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What is Felony DUI Mississippi?
By: Kevin Stewart and Lance Mixon, Partners and Award-Winning DUI Lawyers in Mississippi
Many people charged with a DUI in MS search generic phrases like, "Are DUIs felonies?" or "How many DUIs is a felony?" In the last decade, that determination has been altered by the Mississippi Legislature toughening state laws on repeat offenders. But, a first offense DUI in Mississippi has many great options, including being able to fight the case in court.
Is a DUI a felony or misdemeanor? In the State of Mississippi, a third DUI offense can be a felony if it is a 3rd DUI within 5 years. This is called a "lookback" period, and is used in most states, but seldom for just a five-year period. Longer lookback periods create more repeat offenders being sentenced to tougher punishment.
A fourth DUI Mississippi offense now has lifetime lookback. By way of example, in Georgia, the lookback is for 10 years, and a 4th DUI within 10 years is a felony in the Peach State. Other states are more aggressive, such as Michigan. About 15 years ago, all lookback periods were abandoned.
In NC, the lookback is for 7 years for repeat offenders, but the Tar Heel State counts the seven years by measuring the date of the last conviction to the date of the new arrest. Georgia and Mississippi use dates of arrest for measuring DUIs, except that Mississippi now looks at a driver's lifetime DUI record, when a DUI fourth offense is accused.
When are DUIs Felonies in the Magnolia State?
For several decades, a 3rd DUI in MS (or subsequent DUI, e.g., 4th, 5th DUI) within 5 years has been the threshold for a felony DUI in Mississippi. See Weaver v. State, 713 So.2d 860 (Ms. Sup. Ct., 1997), where the appeals attorney for Defendant challenged to old methods of charging DUI cases with uniform citations, unsuccessfully arguing that those should not be "counted."
Sorting through Mississippi DUI Laws: Is a DUI a Felony?
For arrests of a 4th DUI in Mississippi lifetime offender, which are made October 1, 2016 and afterward, our state uses a driver's lifetime DUI record. This drastically increased the number of the potential drivers affected by this change in Mississippi DUI laws.
On October 1, 2016, a new amendment creating a DUI 4th offense law that does away with the 5-year lookback period. This law was enacted in the sweeping changes of the 2013 Mississippi amendments, but had a future effective date.
Below is the wording from the Mississippi statute of that new fourth DUI in a driver's lifetime subsection:
MSA 63-11-30. Operation under the Influence of Alcohol or other Impairing Substance
(d) Fourth and subsequent offense DUI.
(i) For any fourth or subsequent conviction of a violation of subsection (1) of this section, without regard to the time period within which the violations occurred, the person shall be guilty of a felony and fined not less than Three Thousand Dollars ($3,000.00) nor more than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00), and shall serve not less than two (2) years nor more than ten (10) years in the custody of the Department of Corrections.
(ii) The suspension of commercial driving privileges is governed by Section 63-1-216.
(iii) A person convicted of a fourth or subsequent offense is ineligible to exercise the privilege to operate a motor vehicle that is not equipped with an ignition-interlock device for ten (10) years.
In the one reported appellate case interpreting the new subsection, Ross v. State, 275 So.3d 1090 (Ms. Sup. Ct., 2019), the trial judge handed down the full, maximum 10- year state prison sentence. Several legal arguments were made by Ross's lawyers on appeal, concerning the harsh prison time, but the legal points did not sway the Mississippi Supreme Court to grant any relief.
Serious Injury or Death from Alcohol Related Crashes can bring a 25 Year State Prison Sentence
If convicted of a Mississippi DUI 1st offense causing serious injury or death, while operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or other substances, a serious felony is chargeable. Mississippi law makes it a felony to negligently cause serious bodily injury or death to any passenger, other vehicle driver or occupant or a pedestrian. Such accident cases will be accused as a serious FELONY.
For serious injury or death of a child passenger within the DUI driver's vehicle., a draconian sentence will be imposed. Mississippi DUI law defines a child as being under the age of sixteen (16) years old. Here is what MSA 61-3-11-30 (12) (d) states:
(d) A person who commits a violation of this subsection which results in the serious injury or death of a child, without regard to whether the offense was a first, second, third or subsequent offense, shall be guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not less than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) and shall be imprisoned for not less than five (5) years nor more than twenty-five (25) years.
So, MS DUI laws call for the criminal penalties to include up to twenty-five years in the Mississippi State Penitentiary for certain victims. Plus, the related civil liability in DUI injury or DUI death cases is another colossal problem. DUI-related collisions can create tort liability and total costs in the millions for the DUI driver who loses in court.
Paying attorneys near me thousands of dollars to try to keep civil claims within the limits of your auto insurance policy has inestimable value. Such negotiated settlement help can protect you from having non-dischargeable debt (in any bankruptcy proceeding) as set forth in Section 523 of the US Bankruptcy Code.
When your Job, Family and Freedom could be on the Line, Call Experienced DUI Attorneys near me
Sometime, letting our prior clients speak for us is better than calling on you to decide on which law firm near me to hire. Call today to speak to the authors, or senior partner Vic Carmody, for a FREE lawyer consultation. 1-800-360-3847
Kevin knows the laws and can help you!! Everyone thought I was screwed, but luckily, I had a knowledgeable lawyer!! Thank God!! My DUI was dismissed!! I had even done the "breath" test which made my case a little more difficult to fight!! It's worth it to have an attorney like Kevin!! I would recommend him to anyone!!
– L.W.
Knowledgeable and Competent
Mr. Mixon is kind, understanding, knowledgeable and competent. I am pleased with the service he provided and will refer others if I have the opportunity.
– D.S.
Free Consultation (601) 948-4444 (800) 360-3847
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"We cannot thank Mr. Carmody enough. He really did his homework on our case.....well, he DID write all the books on it :) I mean, you cannot get more qualified than that!!!" Cynthia
"I am very grateful for Mr. Carmody's knowledge and skill. He did a tremendous service for my family. Our prayers were heard and answered and I thank God for sending Mr. Carmody to get the job done." Lynn
"Kevin did an amazing, seemingly effortless job of handling my case. His experience and vision allowed for a level of preparedness and contingency planning that frankly humbled me on the day we faced the judge." Rob
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We serve clients throughout Mississippi, including, but not limited to, those in the following localities: DeSoto County including Horn Lake, Olive Branch, and Southaven; Forrest County including Hattiesburg; Harrison County including Gulfport; Hinds County including Clinton and Jackson; Jackson County including Pascagoula; Lafayette County including Oxford; Lee County including Tupelo; Lincoln County including Brookhaven; Madison County including Madison and Ridgeland; Oktibbeha County including Starkville; and Rankin County including Brandon, Florence, Flowood, and Pearl. View More
What is Felony DUI Mississippi? | Madison County Drunk Driving Defense Lawyers
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text:
Q: Count NULL Values from multiple columns with SQL I have 3 columns let say A, B, and C. I need to count the NULL values in each column.
For example:
 A  | B  | C
-------------
1   |NULL| 1
1   | 1  | NULL
NULL| 1  | 1
NULL|NULL| 1

Should output:
 A  |  B  |  C
---------------
 2  |  2  |  1

I've tried count, sum, sub-queries but nothing has worked for me yet. Any input would be appreciated!

A: You can use an aggregate function with a CASE expression:
select
  sum(case when a is null then 1 else 0 end) A,
  sum(case when b is null then 1 else 0 end) B,
  sum(case when c is null then 1 else 0 end) C
from yt

See Demo

A: SELECT COUNT(*)-COUNT(A) As A, COUNT(*)-COUNT(B) As B, COUNT(*)-COUNT(C) As C
FROM YourTable;

A: SELECT
(SELECT count(*) FROM my_table WHERE A is NULL) as A,
(SELECT count(*) FROM my_table WHERE B is NULL) as B,
(SELECT count(*) FROM my_table WHERE C is NULL) as C

A: select
    sum(case when a is null then 1 else 0 end) as a_null_count,
    sum(case when b is null then 1 else 0 end) as b_null_count,
    sum(case when c is null then 1 else 0 end) as c_null_count
from table

A: For SQL SERVER you can use the following:
SET NOCOUNT ON
DECLARE @Schema NVARCHAR(100) = '<Your Schema>'
DECLARE @Table NVARCHAR(100) = '<Your Table>'
DECLARE @sql NVARCHAR(MAX) =''
IF OBJECT_ID ('tempdb..#Nulls') IS NOT NULL DROP TABLE #Nulls

CREATE TABLE #Nulls (TableName sysname, ColumnName sysname , ColumnPosition int ,NullCount int , NonNullCount int)

 SELECT @sql += 'SELECT  '''+TABLE_NAME+''' AS TableName , '''+COLUMN_NAME+''' AS ColumnName,  '''+CONVERT(VARCHAR(5),ORDINAL_POSITION)+''' AS ColumnPosition, SUM(CASE WHEN '+COLUMN_NAME+' IS NULL THEN 1 ELSE 0 END) CountNulls , COUNT(' +COLUMN_NAME+') CountnonNulls FROM '+QUOTENAME(TABLE_SCHEMA)+'.'+QUOTENAME(TABLE_NAME)+';'+ CHAR(10)
 FROM INFORMATION_SCHEMA.COLUMNS
 WHERE TABLE_SCHEMA = @Schema
 AND TABLE_NAME = @Table

 INSERT INTO #Nulls
 EXEC sp_executesql @sql

 SELECT *
 FROM #Nulls

 DROP TABLE #Nulls

you will receive a result set with the count of Null values and non null values in each column of you table

A: I am very late to this, but if you don't want to manually list out all the column names and still want to get a table, you can do this in SQL Server (Just replace testTable with your actual table):
--Creates the table the poster wanted

CREATE TABLE testTable (A int, B int, C int)
INSERT INTO testTable (A, C) VALUES (1,1)
INSERT INTO testTable (A, B) VALUES (1,1)
INSERT INTO testTable (B, C) VALUES (1,1)
INSERT INTO testTable (C) VALUES (1)

--Creates the output table which will consist of each column name and the amount of nulls

CREATE TABLE ColumnNames (
    ID int IDENTITY(1,1) PRIMARY KEY,
    [name] varchar(max),
    nullAmount int
)

INSERT INTO ColumnNames ([name])
SELECT [name] FROM sys.columns WHERE object_id = OBJECT_ID('dbo.testTable')

DECLARE @columnIndex INT = 1

WHILE @columnIndex <= ( SELECT COUNT(*) FROM dbo.ColumnNames )
BEGIN
    DECLARE @colName nvarchar(max) = (SELECT [name] FROM ColumnNames WHERE ID = @columnIndex)
    EXEC('SELECT ' + @colName + ' INTO colTable FROM testTable')

    DECLARE @SQL nvarchar(max) = N'UPDATE ColumnNames SET nullAmount = (SELECT COUNT(1) - COUNT(' + quotename(@colName) + ') FROM colTable) WHERE ID = @columnIndex'
    EXEC SP_EXECUTESQL @SQL, N'@columnIndex int', @columnIndex

    DROP TABLE colTable
    SET @columnIndex = @columnIndex + 1
END

--Select the output table and get null info
SELECT * FROM ColumnNames

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Weddings and other formal events leave memories that last. Make these events extra special with this posh champagne solid check pre-tied wedding cravat for boys by DQT. Made to standout, this cravat would help you step up your game. Be a showstopper and feel like a royal with what DQT has to offer.


On July 9th in Ekaterinburg-EXPO an annual international industrial exhibition INNOPROM 2018 opened, in which South Ural State University is taking part.
INNOPROM exhibition unites the main industrial sectors in one space: industrial automation, metalworking, additive technologies, technologies for the power generation sector, mechanical engineering and production of components for the mechanical engineering sector.
Every year this exhibition is attended by more than 20,000 top managers and specialists of mechanical engineering enterprises from industrially developed regions of Russia and CIS countries, who are interested in purchasing equipment for metalworking and robotic automation of production.
Scientific innovations by South Ural State University were also presented to the guests and participants of the INNOPROM international exhibition. SUSU Rector Aleksandr Shestakov shares why the university's participation in the international exhibition is good for the institution.
The stand of South Ural State University the university's scientists have presented 9 unique innovations in technologies and digital industry. One of such developments is Coriolis flow meter for oil-and-gas industry. A research engineer of Experimental Mechanics Laboratory Dmitry Telegin shares what this device is intended for.
Vice-Rector for Research, Doctor of Sciences (Engineering) Aleksandr Dyakonov explains what another SUSU innovation is – samples of resurfaced parts.
Director of Geoinformation Systems Research and Education Center Valentina Maksimova presented at the exhibition a geoanalytical system of agricultural facilities monitoring for rational use of agricultural lands.
GIS is a very popular field, it is widely developed in agriculture and forestry, mining, and in studying of city infrastructure. Without geoinformation systems, geolocation data and neural networks such prediction would not be possible. Our platforms, such as GIS systems, allow to integrate all of it into a unified format, and based on the results, to make some model in perspective. A new UAV model allows to assess the condition of air, water and climate, register the presence of vegetation, or emergency situations. Flying over the land surface an apparatus makes several hundreds or thousands of photos, and then in a supercomputer these photos are seamed together, and one big photo is obtained. Already based on this photo, 3D models, maps, layout schemes are made, directly with which it is possible to solve management tasks.
Vice-Rector for Research, Doctor of Sciences (Engineering) Aleksandr Dyakonov shares what is unique about the Coordinate measuring machine with CNC (computerized numerical control) and computer vision system.
Engineer of the Machine Tools Office of the SUSU's Research and Production Institute of Education Equipment Pavel Chigintsev shares on the education-and-production machine lathe machine with a computerized numerical control system (CNC).
Engineer of the Research and Production Institute of Education Equipment and Technology Artem Semashkov presented at the exhibition his training apparatus complex featuring seven simulators for training service engineers for machine tools with CNC.
Vice-Rector for Research, Doctor of Sciences (Engineering) Aleksandr Dyakonov shares why the Simulators demonstration complex is useful.
Engineer of the Research and Production Institute of Education Equipment and Technology Roman Lisovsky shares on another SUSU's development – an automated laboratory rolling mill ДУО-130.
Vice-Rector for Research, Doctor of Sciences (Engineering) Aleksandr Dyakonov explains why developments by the university students and staff can be called innovative.
Our slogan 'We Create Digital Industry of the Future' agrees with the presented exhibits. We are transiting to digital technologies. Our current developments are mostly intended for personnel training. Steps have also been made on implementing these technologies in the context of real productions.
"Digital Production" is the main theme of INNOPROM 2018. Republic of Korea has acted as the exhibition's partner country since it is one of the leading countries of the Asian-Pacific Region as per rate of economic development and scope of commercial turnover with Russia.
Over the recent decades Korean industry has reached the leading positions in such fields as automotive engineering, shipbuilding, production of household electrical appliances and telecommunication equipment.
The Korean exhibit is located in pavilion No.1 and is occupying the biggest area of the exhibition's territory – over 3,000 sq.m. The national exhibit comprises 105 leading enterprises of Korea – leaders in such sectors of industry as mechanical engineering, robotics, automotive engineering, power generation, industrial equipment, metalworking, and consumer goods.
Besides the Korean national exhibit, 7 more countries have presented their developments: Japan, Italy, Switzerland, Slovakia, Germany, Hungary and Belarus.
In the course of the first day of INNOPROM 2018 the main strategic session was held on People/Machines/Software: How to Squeeze Maximum Efficiency, which aims at answering the key question of the top managers of global companies regarding the ratio Equipment/Personnel/Software. The discussion participants in detail touched upon such basic trends of the "Fourth Industrial Revolution" as 3D printers, robotic automation, Big Data technologies, artificial intelligence, and Internet of Things.
Let us recall that INNOPROM International Industrial Exhibition is being annually held in Yekaterinburg since 2010. In 2012 Russian Government assigned federal status to this exhibition. The main goal of the program is to organize direct contacts between potential foreign consumers of Russian industrial products and Russian manufacturers. This year the exhibition is being held July 9th through July 12th. INNOPROM is organized by the Russian Federation Ministry for Industry and Trade.


The continual growth of our fleet has provided distinct service improvements for our clients. Fleet expansion has also allowed Clearway Gritting to maintain its competitive edge, both on a cost basis and through the provision of a more flexible and dynamic service to meet clients' needs across expanding site portfolios.
Our structured growth plans always take into consideration the need for emergency gritting and snow clearance vehicles to be a maximum of 30 minutes from our clients' premises.


Our team customizes the constant contact responsive email templates for your email campaign.
Constant Contact has all the features that a small business needs to create an effective email campaigns and easy to use tools.
We help you to design & code the constant contact email template right from the scratch to make it a success for your business.


All employees want to be valuable and remain competitive in the labour market at all times. This can only be achieved through employee training and development. Employees will always want to develop career-enhancing skills, which will always lead to employee motivation and retention. There is no doubt that a well trained and developed staff will be a valuable asset to the company and thereby increasing the chances of his efficiency in discharging his or her duties.
On the other hand External training is normally arranged outside the firm and is mostly organized by training institutes or consultants. Whichever training, it is very essential for all staff and helps in building career positioning and preparing staff for greater challenges.
Employers of labour should enable employees to pursue training and development in a direction that they choose and are interested in, not just in company-assigned directions. Companies should support learning, in general, and not just in support of knowledge needed for the employee's current or next anticipated job. It should be noted that the key factor is keeping the employee interested, attending, engaged, motivated and retained.
For every employee to perform well especially Supervisors and Managers, there is need for constant training and development. The right employee training, development and education provides big payoffs for the employer in increased productivity, knowledge, loyalty, and contribution to general growth of the firm. In most cases external trainings for instance provide participants with the avenue to meet new set of people in the same field and network. The meeting will give them the chance to compare issues and find out what is obtainable in each other's environment. This for sure will introduce positive changes where necessary.
When needs arise as a result of findings from the outcome of performance appraisal.
As part of professional development plan.
As part of succession planning to help an employee be eligible for a planned change in role in the organization.
To imbibe and inculcate a new technology in the system.
Because of the dynamic nature of the business world and changing technologies.
Communications: The increasing diversity of today's workforce brings a wide variety of languages and customs, thus staff should be able to be very good in both written and verbal communication.
Computer skills: Computer skills are becoming a necessity for conducting administrative and office tasks. In this era of technological advancement, computer skills are very necessary for almost of departments in an organization.
Customer service: Increased competition in today's global marketplace makes it critical that employees understand and meet the needs of customers. The firm that stands out from the crowd is that firm that puts its customers first before every other goal. Then the need to always train staff on customer service.


text:
Home Georgia
PM of Georgia holds intensive meetings with executives of private healthcare facilities
The FINANCIAL — Giorgi Gakharia, Prime Minister of Georgia continues to have intensive meetings with executives of private healthcare facilities in the process of COVID-19 management by taking into account the current epidemic situation in the country.
Head of Government of Georgia together with Ekaterine Tikaradze, Minister of Health and Ivane Matchavariani, Minister of Finance met with representatives of Evex, Geo Hospitals and high-technology medical center with an aim of inquiring about the available hospital beds and mobilizing additional resources.
The Prime Minister of Georgia was briefed in detail about the number of hospital beds currently available at each healthcare facility. He also inquired about the emerging needs of clinics if additional resources were to be deployed.
EECMD Statement on the conditions affecting the former President of Georgia
Ex-President Saakashvili – A Life Hanging By A Thread
Broken Dream: The oligarch, Russia, and Georgia's drift from Europe
IMF Executive Board Completes First Review under the Stand-By Arrangement with Georgia
Managers of clinics noted at the meeting that they have a possibility of mobilizing additional hospital beds both in terms of general therapy and intensive care units. They are apparently making concrete steps towards this end already. They also noted that such communication between the public and private sectors is very important as it facilitates a more effective management of the situation and efficient response to the challenges.
Focus was made on the significance of avoiding an overburdening of the hospital sector and the role of healthcare executives and medical doctors in this process, making sure that no one is left behind, especially those who need medical treatment in the first instance. It was noted that it is not only important to hospitalize people with acute health conditions, but also to continue medical support of light cases at home through an active communication with family doctors or at COVID Hotels under permanent medical supervision.
At the same time, facemasks and social distancing remain as the most significant preventive measures at the present stage of viral spread.
It was once again stressed at the meeting that the Government of Georgia continues to pursue its strategy of precision-targeted and localized approaches and no systemic restrictions are intended.
Tags: Coronavirusekaterine tikaradzeEvexGeo HospitalsGeorgiaGiorgi Gakhariahealthcare executiveshigh-technology medical centerIvane MatchavarianiMinister of FinanceMinister of HealthPrime Minister of Georgia
EECMD Statement on the conditions affecting Mikheil Saakashvili, the former President of Georgia Protecting the health and survival of Mikheil...
ADB issues first green bonds auctioned and listed on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange

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Abstract Background: Interaction of proteins with other molecules plays an important role in many biological activities. As many structures of protein-DNA complexes and protein-RNA complexes have been determined in the past years, several databases have been constructed to provide structure data of the complexes. However, the information on the binding sites between proteins and nucleic acids is not readily available from the structure data since the data consists mostly of the three-dimensional coordinates of the atoms in the complexes. Results: We analyzed the huge amount of structure data for the hydrogen bonding interactions between proteins and nucleic acids and developed a database called DBBP (DataBase of Binding Pairs in protein-nucleic acid interactions, http://bclab.inha.ac.kr/dbbp). DBBP contains 44,955 hydrogen bonds (H-bonds) of protein-DNA interactions and 77,947 H-bonds of protein-RNA interactions. Conclusions: Analysis of the huge amount of structure data of protein-nucleic acid complexes is labor-intensive, yet provides useful information for studying protein-nucleic acid interactions. DBBP provides the detailed information of hydrogen-bonding interactions between proteins and nucleic acids at various levels from the atomic level to the residue level. The binding information can be used as a valuable resource for developing a computational method aiming at predicting new binding sites in proteins or nucleic acids.
© 2014 Park et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http:// creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.
interacting amino acids and ribonucleotides in the primary sequences. However, it does not provide the binding sites on the interacting partners of the amino acids and ribonucleotides in protein-RNA interfaces. In this study we performed wide analysis of the structures of protein-DNA/RNA complexes and built a database called DBBP (DataBase of Binding Pairs in protein-nucleic acid interactions). The database shows hydrogen-bonding interactions between proteins and nucleic acids at an atomic level, which is not readily available in any other databases, including the Protein Data Bank (PDB) . The binding pairs of hydrogen bonds provided by the database will help researchers determine DNA (or RNA) binding sites in proteins and protein binding sites in DNA or RNA molecules. It can also be used as a valuable resource for developing a computational method aiming at predicting new binding sites in proteins or nucleic acids. The rest of the paper presents the structure and interface of the database.
Figure 1 Three H-bonds between Cytosine (C8) and Threonine (Thr224). Three H-bonds between Cytosine (C8) and Threonine (Thr224) of a protein-RNA complex (PDB ID: 4F3T). O2′ of Cytosine donates hydrogen to OG1 of Threonine. OG1 of Threonine donates hydrogen to O2′ of Cytosine and OG1 of Threonine donates hydrogen to O3′ of Cytosine.
total of 44,955 H-bonds in protein-DNA complexes and 77,947 H-bonds in protein-RNA complexes. Table 1 shows the number of atoms, which are occurrences in H-bonds of amino acids. In the 44,955 H-bonds of protein-DNA complexes, there are 41,298 hydrogen donors and 3,657 hydrogen acceptors in amino acids. In the 77,947 H-bonds of protein-RNA complexes, there are 59,796 hydrogen donors and 18,151 hydrogen acceptors in amino acids. Table 2 shows the number of atoms, which are occurrences in H-bonds of (ribo)nucleotides.
Figure 2 The structure of a protein-RNA complex (PDB ID: 4F3T). The enlarged box shows three hydrogen bonds between Cytosine and Threonine. O2′ donates hydrogen to OG1. OG1 donates hydrogen to O2′ and O3′.
likelihood ratio (-4.24). Interestingly, Ala has a negative log-likelihood ratio although it is frequently observed in protein-RNA complexes. This is because Ala is rarely observed in binding sites.
Figure 3 RNA-binding amino acids in protein-RNA complexes. (A) Amino acids in the protein-RNA complexes and RNA-binding amino acids. (B) The probability that the binding amino acid is A (P (A|+)) and the probability that non-binding amino acid is A (P(A|−)). (C) The log-likelihood ratio log2(P(A|+)/P(A|−)).
Figure 4 DNA-binding amino acids in protein-DNA complexes. (A) Amino acids in the protein-DNA complexes and DNA-binding amino acids. (B) The probability that the binding amino acid is A (P (A|+)) and the probability that non-binding amino acid is A (P(A|−)). (C) The log-likelihood ratio log2(P(A|+)/P(A|−)).
has the most frequently observed amino acid in the binding sites with DNA.
residue, Donor, Donor chain, Donor index, and Donor residue.
Figure 5 The XML schema of the database. XML files were generated for the binding sites in protein-DNA complexes and protein-RNA complexes via the XML schema.
between proteins and nucleic acids at various levels. Such information is not readily available in any other databases, including PDB, but will help researchers determine DNA (or RNA) binding sites in proteins and protein binding sites in DNA or RNA molecules. It can also be used as a valuable resource for developing a computational method aiming at predicting new binding sites in proteins or nucleic acids. The database is available at http://bclab.inha.ac.kr/dbbp. Authors' contributions Byungkyu Park implemented the databse and prepared the first draft of the manuscript. Hyungchan Kim drew figures and prepared the manuscript together. Kyungsook Han supervised the work and rewrote the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. Acknowledgements This work was funded by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning (2012R1A1A3011982) and the Ministry of Education (2010-0020163) of Republic of Korea. The cost of the article was funded by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning (2012R1A1A3011982). This article has been published as part of BMC Bioinformatics Volume 15 Supplement 15, 2014: Proceedings of the 2013 International Conference on Intelligent Computing (ICIC 2013). The full contents of the supplement are available online at http://www.biomedcentral.com/bmcbioinformatics/ supplements/15/S15.
12. Allers J, Shamoo Y: Structure-based analysis of Protein-RNA interactions using the program ENTANGLE. Journal of Molecular Biology 2001, 311:75-86. 13. Norambuena T, Melo F: The Protein-DNA Interface database. Bmc Bioinformatics 2010, 11. 14. Kirsanov DD, Zanegina ON, Aksianov EA, Spirin SA, Karyagina AS, Alexeevski AV: NPIDB: nucleic acid-protein interaction database. Nucleic Acids Research 2013, 41(D1):D517-D523. 15. Terribilini M, Lee JH, Yan CH, Jernigan RL, Honavar V, Dobbs D: Prediction of RNA binding sites in proteins from amino acid sequence. Rna-a Publication of the Rna Society 2006, 12(8):1450-1462. 16. Terribilini M, Sander JD, Lee JH, Zaback P, Jernigan RL, Honavar V, Dobbs D: RNABindR: a server for analyzing and predicting RNA-binding sites in proteins. Nucleic Acids Research 35:W578-W584. 17. Wang LJ, Brown SJ: BindN: a web-based tool for efficient prediction of DNA and RNA binding sites in amino acid sequences. Nucleic Acids Research 2006, 34:W243-W248. 18. Torshin IY, Weber IT, Harrison RW: Geometric criteria of hydrogen bonds in proteins and identification of 'bifurcated' hydrogen bonds. Protein Engineering 2002, 15(5):359-363. 19. Elkayam E, Kuhn CD, Tocilj A, Haase AD, Greene EM, Hannon GJ, JoshuaTor L: The Structure of Human Argonaute-2 in Complex with miR-20a. Cell 2012, 150:100-110. 20. McDonald IK, Thornton JM: Satisfying Hydrogen-Bonding Potential in Proteins. Journal of Molecular Biology 1994, 238(5):777-793. doi:10.1186/1471-2105-15-S15-S5 Cite this article as: Park et al.: DBBP: database of binding pairs in protein-nucleic acid interactions. BMC Bioinformatics 2014 15(Suppl 15):S5.
Authors' details 1 Institute for Information and Electronics Research, Inha University, Incheon, South Korea. 2Department of Chemistry, Inha University, Incheon, South Korea. 3School of Computer Science and Engineering, Inha University, Incheon, South Korea. Published: 3 December 2014 References 1. Simicevic J, Deplancke B: DNA-centered approaches to characterize regulatory protein-DNA interaction complexes. Molecular Biosystems 6(3):462-468. 2. Berger MF, Bulyk ML: Universal protein-binding microarrays for the comprehensive characterization of the DNA-binding specificities of transcription factors. Nature Protocols 2009, 4(3):393-411. 3. Licatalosi DD, Mele A, Fak JJ, Ule J, Kayikci M, Chi SW, Clark TA, Schweitzer AC, Blume JE, Wang XN, Darnell JC, Darnell RB: HITS-CLIP yields genome-wide insights into brain alternative RNA processing. Nature 456(7221):464-U22. 4. Varani G, Nagai K: RNA recognition by RNP proteins during RNA processing. Annual Review of Biophysics and Biomolecular Structure 1998, 27:407-445. 5. Moras D: Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases. Current Opinion in Structural Biology 1992, 2:138-142. 6. van Kouwenhove M, Kedde M, Agami R: MicroRNA regulation by RNAbinding proteins and its implications for cancer. Nature Reviews Cancer 2011, 11(9):644-656. 7. Contreras-Moreira B: 3D-footprint: a database for the structural analysis of protein-DNA complexes. Nucleic Acids Research 2010, 38(suppl 1):D91-D97. 8. Hoffman MM, Khrapov MA, Cox JC, Yao J, Tong L, Ellington AD: AANT: the Amino Acid-Nucleotide Interaction Database. Nucleic Acids Research 2004, 32(suppl 1):D174-D181. 9. Lewis BA, Walia RR, Terribilini M, Ferguson J, Zheng C, Honavar V, Dobbs D: PRIDB: a protein-RNA interface database. Nucleic Acids Research 2011, 39: D277-D282. 10. Xie Z, Hu S, Blackshaw S, Zhu H, Qian J: hPDI: a database of experimental human protein-DNA interactions. Bioinformatics 2010, 26(2):287-289. 11. Berman HM, Westbrook J, Feng Z, Gilliland G, Bhat TN, Weissig H, Shindyalov IN, Bourne PE: The Protein Data Bank. Nucleic Acids Research 2000, 28:235-242.
Incorporating efficient radial basis function networks and significant amino acid pairs for predicting GTP binding sites in transport proteins.
Macroscopic self-assembly based on complementary interactions between nucleobase pairs.
Photoactive Spatial Proximity Probes for Binding Pairs with Epigenetic Marks.
Free fatty acid receptors: structural models and elucidation of ligand binding interactions.
iDNA-Prot|dis: identifying DNA-binding proteins by incorporating amino acid distance-pairs and reduced alphabet profile into the general pseudo amino acid composition.
Direct protein-protein interactions and substrate channeling between cellular retinoic acid binding proteins and CYP26B1.
poly(acrylic acid) interactions with pH.
The Nucleic Acid Database: Present and Future.
Identification of critical base pairs required for CTCF binding in motif M1 and M2.
Inferring active and prognostic ligand-receptor pairs with interactions in survival regression models.
Quantifying electrical interactions between cardiomyocytes and other cells in micropatterned cell pairs.
A bioinspired redox relay that mimics radical interactions of the Tyr-His pairs of photosystem II.
Protocols and pitfalls in obtaining fatty acid-binding proteins for biophysical studies of ligand-protein and protein-protein interactions.
RBscore&NBench: a high-level web server for nucleic acid binding residues prediction with a large-scale benchmarking database.
Prediction of FAD binding sites in electron transport proteins according to efficient radial basis function networks and significant amino acid pairs.
Amino acid anions in organic ionic compounds. An ab initio study of selected ion pairs.
Standard in vitro assays for protein-nucleic acid interactions--gel shift assays for RNA and DNA binding.


(by Sergei Blagov, CNSNews.com) Moscow – As Vladimir Putin handed the Russian presidency to his handpicked successor Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday, speculation continued about who would actually run the country.
In his inaugural remarks during a grand ceremony at the Kremlin, Medvedev pledged to promote civil and economic freedoms, and the rule of law, saying he would transform Russia into one of the best countries in the world, with the highest living standards.
He also thanked Putin for his leadership and formally asked the outgoing president to serve as his prime minister. The pliant Russian parliament is due to rubber-stamp the nomination on May 8. Putin selected Medvedev as his successor in December 2007.
As Putin left the presidential office, he also "automatically" assumed leadership of the pro-Kremlin United Russia party, which dominates the Russian parliament. Last month the party agreed that he could become its leader, without the need to obtain membership.
The unusual political maneuvering has raised speculation that Russia will have an untested system of dual governance, replacing the traditional "one man" system of leadership.
During Putin's presidency, he appointed and dismissed four prime ministers. Now, however, as leader of the dominant party and head of the cabinet he is due to assume significant power, never before available to a previous Russian prime minister.
The uncertainties have led to some confusion. Earlier this week, Russia's Gazeta daily claimed that as Putin aims to have 11 deputies in his cabinet, real power would move from the presidential office to the prime minister and government. The Kremlin dismissed the report as unconfirmed rumor.
Nonetheless, after Putin met with leaders of parliamentary parties on Wednesday, the Communist Party head Guennady Zyuganov confirmed that Putin did plan to have more deputies as prime minister than predecessors.
Nikita Belykh, head of the right-wing SPS opposition party, said Russians should wait and see how the new political system works, predicting that disagreements between Medvedev and Putin could arise at some point. Medvedev himself had yet to come up with any original ideas, Belykh added.
Moscow's foreign policy set by Putin — and which Medvedev promises to pursue, has brought tensions with the U.S. in recent years, most recently over opposition to U.S. missile defense plans for Eastern Europe, Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence from Russian ally Serbia, and moves by former Soviet states Ukraine and Georgia to join NATO.
1. Who is Dmitry Medvedev?
2. What did Mr. Medvedev promise to do as he takes over the leadership of Russia?
3. a) Who did Mr. Medvedev ask to be the new prime minister?
b) Why is this appointment questionable?
4. What is believed to be the possible outcome of Mr. Putin being appointed prime minister and becoming head of the United Russia party?
5. How is the opposition SPS party reacting to Mr. Putin's new offices?
6. What aspects of Russia's foreign policy (set by Mr. Putin, and which President Medvedev promises to pursue) have brought on tensions with the U.S. in recent years?
According to the Constitution, which was adopted…in 1993 … Russia is a federation and a presidential republic, wherein the President of Russia is the head of state and the Prime Minister of Russia is the head of government.
There is no vice president, and the legislative branch is far weaker than the executive.
The bicameral legislature consists of the lower house (State Duma) and the upper house (the Federation Council).
The president [appoints] the highest state officials, including the prime minister, who must be approved by the Duma, and his deputies, ministers, and selected other individuals.
The president can pass decrees without consent from the Duma. He also is head of the armed forces and of the Security Council.
The Russian constitution does not allow presidents to serve more than two consecutive terms.
For background information on Russia, go to the CIA World FactBook website here.
Read commentaries on Mr. Medvedev here and here.


The 2019 NCBA DII Regional Tournaments will take place May 3rd-5th, 2019. The NCBA makes every effort to host each regional tournament in a location that is neutrally geographic for all teams that make up the region. Sites do change from year to year, so be sure to check back often as location and tournament updates will be posted as soon as specifics are finalized.
All 8 Regional Playoff winners will move onto the 2019 Division II World Series.
-Did the team finish in at least 2nd place in their conference?
-How did the team perform against their conference champion?
-Is the team on probation?
-Has the team forfeited any games?
CLICK HERE TO FOLLOW ALONG WITH ALL 8 REGIONAL PLAYOFF BRACKETS. SCORES WILL BE UPDATED AT THE CONCLUSION OF GAMES FRIDAY (5/3) & SATURDAY NIGHT (5/4)!
Host Hotel: Red Roof Inn Lessburg. All parties looking to reserve rooms will call the Red Roof directly at 703-777-6622 & will simply mention NCBA or National Club Baseball Association to ensure you get into the room block . Family & Friends are welcome into the block as well. $108/night. All teams are required to stay at this property.
Additional Notes: 2019 will be the 4th year Fireman's Field will be featured as a host site for a DII Regional Playoff. It's extremely well known throughout the state of VA as it's quite the historical field used by everyone from local high schools to various summer leagues and more. This old fashioned facility will provide a fantastic atmosphere for the event. CLICK HERE for a short YouTube video showing off the field.
Additional Notes: This will be the 2nd straight year the NCBA partners with "The Chuck". The entire field is synthetic turf – everything from the plate, to the mound to the entire infield and outfield. NO metal cleats are allowed. The Chuck is a multi purpose facility that has hosted many big time baseball events. Local high schools, adult summer leagues and travel ball primarily use the facility but it has also hosted high school postseason & showcase events along with local college games. CLICK HERE to see a short YouTube video showing off the grand opening of the facility back in 2009.
Host Hotel: Best Western Plus – The Charles Hotel. All parties looking to reserve rooms will call the Best Western directly at 636-946-6936 & will simply mention NCBA or National Club Baseball Association to ensure you get into the room block . Family & Friends are welcome into the block as well. $99/night. All teams are required to stay at this property.
Additional Notes: 2019 will be the 1st year CarShield Field & The NCBA partner together. The facility is home to the River City Rascals of the Frontier League, along with the local high school in the area. The facility is completely turf – mound and plate included. NO metal spikes are allowed on the field. CLICK HERE for additional info & pictures of the field.
Host Hotel: Hampton Inn Webster. All parties looking to reserve rooms will call the Hampton directly (585-671-2050) & will simply mention NCBA or National Club Baseball Association to ensure you get into the room block . Family & Friends are welcome into the block as well. $114/night. All teams are required to stay at this property.
Additional Notes: This will be the 2nd consecutive year the NCBA partners with Basket Road Field for the New England Regional Playoff. Basket Road Field is all turf, aside from the pitchers mound and plate area, that has proven to keep baseball playable through even the worst of weather. The Rochester Ridgemen of the New York Collegiate Baseball League call this facility home during the summers while local high schools and other various summer leagues also take advantage of the facility.
Host Hotel: Holiday Inn Johnstown-Downtown. All parties looking to reserve rooms will call the Holiday Inn directly (814- 535-7777) & will simply mention "NCBA DII New Penn" to ensure you get into the room block . Family & Friends are welcome into the block as well. $109/night. All teams are required to stay at this property.
Additional Notes: Point Stadium is a beautiful facility that has tons of history. While it was built back in 1925, it has seen numerous renovations through the years to not only stay updated, but to preserve it's high quality amenities. The field is all turf except for the pitching mound. Only the pitcher is allowed to wear metal cleats – all position players must wear turf or rubber/molded cleats/athletic shoes . The field is home to NCAA Division II College Pitt Johnstown. The annual NCAA Division II Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Tournament is also held at Point Stadium, along with other local high school & summer league events. CLICK HERE for pictures of the facility.
Host Hotel: Comfort Inn Fond Du Lac. All parties looking to reserve rooms will call the Comfort Inn directly (920-921-4000) & will simply mention National Club Baseball Association to ensure you get into the room block . Family & Friends are welcome into the block as well. $104/night. All teams are required to stay at this property.
Additional Notes: Gus Thompson Field is home to the one of the nicest high school facilities in the state of Wisconsin. It's not only home to the local high school team, but it has hosted many big time events such as Regional & State Legion ball tournaments along with local NCAA college games. It features an all turf infield, aside from the dirt mound & grass outfield that offers a fantastic playing surface for all players. 2019 will be the 2nd consecutive year the Northern Plains Regional Playoff will be held at Gus Thompson.
Additional Notes: Rawley Duntley Park features 2 adult sized baseball fields back to back – one of which featuring lights. This will be the 3rd year the park is used.
Host Hotel: Quality Inn & Suites. All parties looking to reserve rooms will call the Quality Inn & Suites directly (575-392-8777) & will simply mention NCBA or National Club Baseball Association to ensure you get into the room block . Family & Friends are welcome into the block as well. $109/night. All teams are required to stay at this property.
Additional Notes: 2019 will be the 1st year Veterans Memorial Complex & The NCBA work together on a Playoff event. Veterans is a state of the art facility that features 2 all turf fields, both with lights. The local high school mainly uses the facility, though local colleges and other various leagues use the facility during the year as well. 1 field is 100% turf throughout, while the other is all turf with a dirt mound. Metal spikes are allowed on either field.


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The messages they send : e-mail use by adolescents with and without a history of specific language impairment (SLI)
Conti-Ramsden, G. and Durkin, Kevin and Walker, Allan J (2012) The messages they send : e-mail use by adolescents with and without a history of specific language impairment (SLI). International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders, 47 (2). pp. 217-228. ISSN 1368-2822
Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1460-6984.2011.00096.x
Contemporary adolescents use e-mail for a variety of purposes, including peer communication and education. Research into these uses has focused on typically developing individuals; much less is known about the use of e-mail by exceptional youth. The present study examined the structure and form of e-mail messages sent by adolescents with and without a history of specific language impairment (SLI). Thirty-eight adolescents with a history of SLI and 56 typically developing (TD) peers were assessed on measures of nonverbal abilities, core language skills and literacy skills (reading and spelling). The participants were asked to compose an e-mail reply to a standard e-mail sent by an experimenter. These reply e-mails were coded for linguistic structure, readability and spelling errors. Two adult raters, blind to the participants' language ability, judged how understandable the e-mails were, how grammatically correct the e-mails were, and also the sender's command of the English language. Adolescents with a history of SLI produced e-mails that were similar to those sent by their TD peers in terms of structure and readability. However, they made significantly more spelling errors. Furthermore, the adult raters considered the messages from participants with a history of SLI to be of poorer standard than those sent by their TD peers. Conclusions & Implications: The findings suggest that the e-mail messages of adolescents with a history of SLI provide indicators of the sender's language and literacy skills. Implications for intervention and technology development are discussed.
Conti-Ramsden, G., Durkin, Kevin ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6167-3407 and Walker, Allan J
specific language impairment (SLI), adolescents, e-mail, literacy skills, adolescent writing, Psychology, Speech and Hearing
Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > Psychology
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (HaSS) > School of Psychological Science and Health > Psychology


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Bonded Logistics Announces Plans for 762K Sq. Ft. Campus in Charlotte
Charlotte-based 3PL to use mix of new and current facilities to offer full-suite of supply chain management services
CHARLOTTE, NC (May 4, 2017) – Bonded Logistics, a premier third party logistics (3PL) provider, announces plans for creating a 762K sq. ft. logistics campus in Charlotte, NC. Utilizing a mix of new and current facilities, it will offer a broad range of options for companies looking for supply chain management solutions in one of the fastest growing regions in the Southeast.
"This campus really opens up so many opportunities," states Scott Carr, President of Bonded Logistics. "Not only does it help us benefit from synergies with labor, equipment, and communication, it also adds another flagship, Class A building to our portfolio that we can market to current and prospective clients. I'm very excited about the growth potential that this campus will bring."
The campus centers around a new 372K sq. ft. Class A space at 5224 Gibbons Road in Building 2 of Metrolina Park, a new distribution park being built by Beacon Partners. Located off Statesville Rd on the old Metrolina Fairgrounds, this will be Bonded's largest building and include a mixture of racked and bulk ambient storage to help with the growth of current customers as well as new business opportunities.
"This is our second new facility in two years and our largest to date," states Dave Jesse, Chief Operations Officer for Bonded Logistics. "We are excited to add a third building to our Statesville Rd campus. This will provide us the opportunity to share resources between all three facilities and enhance our service offerings to our customers."
Adjacent to the new facility at 7320 Statesville Rd is a 176K sq. ft. public facility that Bonded has occupied since 2002. This location currently offers a mix of bulk and rack storage in ambient as well as temp-controlled environments. Plans are to convert almost the entire warehouse into temp-controlled space once inventory is moved into the new space.
The third building, located directly across the street at 7335 Statesville Rd, is a 215K sq. ft. warehouse that houses Bonded Pac, the company's contract packaging division. This location, opened in 2013, is a dedicated facility that provides efficient and cost-competitive packaging solutions to help clients gain expertise, increase flexibility, reduce costs, and get products to market quicker.
"We strive to be a full-service warehousing group," adds Carr. "Not only do we have Grade A food and medical facilities, but also separate hazmat facilities in our network. By adding more temp-controlled space, it gives us opportunity to offer a full range of services to existing and potential clients. With packaging, the closer you are to the customer the better because transportation is expensive. Having a facility so close, it just gives us the opportunity to provide quicker turn around with minimal expenses."
Plans call for the new building to be completed by the middle of June, and once operational will employ 65 full-time staff, including 25-30 new employees. It will bring Bonded's total footprint to 2.6 million sq. ft. across 14 facilities with over 300 full-time employees in five NC counties.
"Bonded has been in Charlotte for 45 years, and we've seen its growth to become a major East Coast distribution hub with a global reach," says Carr, who is a second-generation owner of the company. "Charlotte has proven to be not only a good business climate, but continues to offer a well-rounded talent pool for finding the right employees. We feel like growth for the warehousing and logistics industry is just beginning here as demand continues to rise."
May 4, 2017August 19, 2019
By Bonded LogisticsIn Latest News, WarehousingTags 3PL, Bonded Logistics Inc, Charlotte, Logistics Campus, NC, Warehousing
Jim Carr, Bonded's Founder, Passes AwayWhy Companies Rely on Us for Rework Services
Transportation Director Q&A: Success Starts with Relationships
New Transportation Director Has Bonded Logistics Poised for Growth
Bonded Logistics Opens 115K Sq. Ft. Dedicated Facility in Charlotte
Bonded Logistics Names New EHS Manager, Training Manager
Bonded Logistics Announces New Hires at Warehousing Facilities
Bonded Logistics Packs 6,000 Shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child
Bonded Logistics expands operations, surpasses 2 million sq. ft. milestone
Bonded Pac Hires Packaging Veteran to Lead Production Operations
Bonded Pac Debuts Print Registered Film Bundling Services


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Home » Posts tagged 'middle-east'
Tag Archives: middle-east
A School Playground with no Women
August 17, 2017 8:55 pm / Leave a comment
As parents, we all have a duty to find out what happens to our children in school. We have to protect weaker children from school bullies who might otherwise terrorize their juniors.
Imagine the school bully unchecked after a playground fight. "You," he shakes a menacing fist at a defiant runt. "Don't dare talk back to me again, or else…" he pulls a knuckle duster from his pocket and shoves it in the little boy's face. "Or else you'll have a bloody lip…" The little boy, whose name is Cutter, looks around to the smirking head boy sitting on the playground fence for support, but the head boy says nothing and does not move.
"I'll see he doesn't talk back to you." stammers another little boy, whose name is Kurshid. The bully shrugs, looking out of the corner of his eye at the head boy sitting on the fence. He remembers that some time ago, the head boy came to Kurshid's aid when another bully smacked him on the head, took away all his marbles, and kicked him out of the playground. On that occasion, to everyone's surprise, the head boy beat the bully to pulp and had him expelled from the school. Everyone knew the head boy had done this because he liked Kurshid's marble collection.
"Now be good boys," says the harried teacher, who knows the boys don't respect his authority in the least. "Be nice. Don't all gang up on the smallest because he won't play with you," he says, shrugs, and turns away, knowing the fighting will start again as soon as his back is turned. Meanwhile the sadistic head-boy sits on the fence and smirks gleefully. He's just sold a knuckle duster to the biggest bully on the playground and can't wait to see it in action.
There are no female teachers present. This scenario is playing on the world stage. Here are the real players in this drama.
Cutter – al-Thani clan, Qatar
Kurshid – Emir of Kuwait, mediator
School bully – Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia
head boy – Donald Trump, United States
another bully – Saddam Hussain
marbles – oil
harried teacher – UN
knuckledusters – US arms sales to Saudi Arabia
Other key actors offstage:
chief hoarder of marbles – China
school clown – Kim Jong Un
neighborhood dope dealer – Putin
anxious parents -Rest-of-the-world
A few weeks ago, the Guardian newspaper published a list of 13 demands made by Saudi Arabia and friends. Qatar is to comply with all of them within ten days, or else… (see https://goo.gl/KDdkeP)
In a nutshell, (or) A Nut in a Shell
February 2, 2017 4:40 am / Leave a comment
Where to begin? Needless to describe the sense of loss and dismay as a gracious, thoughtful, highly intelligent family man is replaced by a blustering, orange-hued womanizer who seems to have no respect for anything other than power, wealth and glitter. For better or for worse, the US has been regarded as the leader of the democratic world for much of the last century. In this role, it attracted some of the best and brightest of the world's young to its universities. They stayed on after graduation, started businesses that thrived and helped make the US the global business and financial powerhouse that it is today. Much of that lustre, also called soft power, has been lost in the past decade, ever since the US began its war on terror and the futile armed incursions in the Middle East.
Image: courtesy wikimedia commons
And now Trump has arrived. Seemingly to ensure, with his rants against the establishment, that the terrorists finally succeed. More worryingly, there appear to be significant parallels between his language and behaviour and that of the demagogues who pushed the world into the second world war. More worrying still, even as US soft power declines, Trump remains command-in-chief of the world's most powerful military!
Out of Africa and from the Middle East
January 8, 2017 9:29 am / Leave a comment
Food for thought for those in many countries around the world who wish to permanently stop immigration of 'foreigners.'
When the first migrants left Africa 75,000 years ago for the Cradle of Civilization — modern Iraq and Kuwait — Stoneking and his team estimate there were fewer than 100 people. They suggest there were just 15 men and 26 women. They also point to a Bering Strait crossing, from Asia to North America, around 15,000 years ago, as is commonly accepted.
Source: M. Stoneking, et al. Human paternal and maternal demographic histories: insights from high-resolution Y chromosome and mtDNA sequences. Investigative Genetics. 2014.
For more by this author, see his Amazon page here, or links to his 4 books on the Google Play store.
Closing the Golden Door
November 14, 2016 9:03 am / Leave a comment
Inside the Statue of Liberty, on a bronze plaque, a sonnet was engraved in 1903. A poem by Emma Lazarus, called "The New Colossus."
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
Over the century since the plaque was installed, the last five lines of the poem have become an intrinsic part of the US story. No longer. Donald Trump's message is clear. The masses can huddle elsewhere, taking their yearning with them.
For more by this author, see his Amazon page, or Google Play here.
The Politics of Inclusion
July 23, 2016 1:40 pm / Leave a comment
If one reads the newspapers in Europe these days, it's easy to imagine a world going unbalanced. Political chaos in Britain; the shock of Trump's rise to political prominence in the US; the continued slaughter in Syria; the failed coup in Turkey; honor killings of women in the Middle East and South Asia; young girls kidnapped in the hundreds by a sinister cultish organization in Nigeria with hate and abhorrence of non-religious learning as its primary motivation; China flexing its military muscle in the South China Sea…the list goes on. The underlying cause of each of these symptoms is one and the same, the quest for economic power. In itself harmless, economic power, the accumulation of wealth, is such a basic human instinct that it was unquestioned long before Adam Smith came along to make it intellectually respectable.
What we should question, however, is the tendency of modern societies to equate development with wealth, and economic poverty with under-development. There will be conflict in the world as long as wealth accumulation is equated with development. No one wants to be under-developed, so development currently means increased exploitation of the world's resources. Ultimately, it is the scramble for the world's resources that fuels all the conflicts and emigrations we observe today. Interestingly, many of those people, mostly politically right-wing, who rage against immigrants these days invoke a past society free of injustice and racially pure. They forget, or are unaware that, for a species that genetically differs from a chimpanzee by only 1.3% of its genes, talk of racial purity is an absurd notion, absurd to the point of imbecility.
The politics of inclusion that most people yearn for, but don't know how to create, actually begins with us. The process of inclusion begins with us, one person at a time. Perhaps that is why the process is so daunting, since we have to change ourselves first, before we begin to find the politics of inclusion that the majority of the world seems to be longing for. Check out this link to hear what geneticist David Suzuki has to say about modern economic thought.
For more by this author, see his Amazon page here.
Dam(n)ed Words
July 15, 2016 8:20 am / 3 Comments on Dam(n)ed Words
"In the beginning was the word," the book of St. John begins, in the King James version. "And the word was with God and the word was God."
An overflow of words. Image: courtesy youtube.com
In the Katha Upanishad (approximately 5th century BCE), OM is related to the first primeval sound and the creation of the Universe, in an eerie echo of modern physics and the sounds that presumably accompanied the Big Bang. However, this analogy cannot be drawn too far, since the word OM has multiple meanings and interpretations in the Upanishads and in Buddhist belief. The Huffington Post says "Om is also considered the mother of the bija, or "seed" mantras — short, potent sounds that correlate to each chakra and fuel longer chants (like, say, Om Namah Shivaya). Depending on who you talk to, it relates to either the third eye or the crown chakra, connecting us to the Divine. No wonder it is core to some Buddhist systems and other Indian religions. Some say it's even among the sounds recorded in deep space — on NASA's website, Earth itself sounds a bit om-y."
Coming to the present day, which is our primary concern here, Lucia Graves writes in the Guardian (July 13th, 2016) "It used to be that you had to read between the lines to determine that Donald Trump was stoking racial resentments. And it used to be that the subjects of his racial animus were mostly immigrants. But now, increasingly, he's casting a wider net and amping up his rhetoric." Also in the Guardian of the same date, another headline says, "Labour's Luciana Burger receives death threats telling her to 'watch her back.'" Because she's Jewish. Chilling news, seven decades after the horrors of the Shoah!
In Bangladesh, India and Pakistan, the language of intolerance has grown more strident in recent years, often drowning the voice of reason. The Islam of the Sufis seems to be disappearing from public discourse, and the all-embracing tolerance of Hinduism seems to be hardening at its edges. In the Middle East, the intolerant rhetoric of various groups has led to spectacular and bloody breakdown of civil society in the region.
The world as we know it began with words. Even so, the unraveling of our world and civilization as we know it, also begins with words. It begins with the language of the bigot, the language of the nationalist, the language of the religious fanatic speaking on behalf of God (presumption or megalomania?), the language of the intolerant, the language of politicians looking to increase their grip on power. In politics today, the language of intolerance seems to be gaining ground, becoming socially acceptable. Socially acceptable? That means us. That we accept it. Unless we emphatically refute it at every encounter. By casting votes, by speaking up, by voting with our feet. The last case scenario is, sadly, what prompts the widespread immigration we see today.
See more work by this author on his Amazon page here or on the Google Play store.
Living in Limbo – Streetside Portrait
June 3, 2016 2:05 pm / 1 Comment on Living in Limbo – Streetside Portrait
I see this older man on every visit to the local supermarket. He notices me, because Vari and I are among the few people who park our bikes at the small stand and carry home all our shopping in bicycle saddle bags. He sells a newspaper, called the Augustin. The Augustin is an inclusive newspaper run by volunteers who have formed an association, a 'verein' that promotes tolerance and provides opportunity for marginalised members of society to earn a little money with dignity, selling issues of the paper on the streets. Not many people buy them.
My Augustin man is always well groomed, clean shaven and decently dressed. He stands by the bank of shopping trolleys outside the supermarket. Sometimes, when he sees an elderly lady fumbling with change to release a shopping trolley from the stand, he steps forward with a metal gadget from his pocket the size of a beer opener that releases a trolley. Some people take the trolley from him with a sideways glance or nod of acknowledgement. Sometimes not even that. A few people stop to talk to him. I bought an Augustin from him one day, as a gesture of support.
Last week he used his gadget with a flourish when I was entering the supermarket and presented me with a trolley. I stood and spoke with him for some time. He's from Georgia, he said, and 62 years old, a professor of philology. He's waiting for his papers to be processed. I'm not sure how much I can ask about why he's here. He's so dignified and reserved. Does he have family? Did he lose his job? Is he a political refugee? He's not allowed to work, he said, and lives with the support of Caritas while waiting for his papers. Caritas is the catholic relief agency that does a lot of good work among refugees in Austria and elsewhere.
When I come home, I check the definition of philology in Wikipedia. Philology is the study of language in written historical sources; it is a combination of literary criticism, history and linguistics, it says. I read a beautiful poem by John Milton when I was a child. Seeing the unemployed philologist reminded me of it. It's called, When I Consider How my Light is Spent.
When I consider how my light is spent
Ere half my days in this dark world and wide,
And that one talent which is death to hide
Lodg'd with me useless, though my soul more bent
To serve therewith my Maker, and present
My true account, lest he returning chide;
"Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?"
I fondly ask. But Patience to prevent
That murmur, soon replies: "God doth not need
Either man's work or his own gifts; who best
Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state
Is kingly. Thousands at his bidding speed
And post o'er land and ocean without rest:
They also serve who only stand and wait."


text:
Ports, Terminals and Shipyards
Survival, Safety and Protection
Cruising into the new year: top trends to look forward to in 2023
Swedish innovators I-Tech AB introduce medetomidine Selektope
What trends do maritime industry experts predict for 2023?
TORM to buy seven LR1 vessels for $233m
US DOT's FTA earmarks $384.4m for ferry service upgrades
MSC and Maersk to terminate 2M container shipping alliance
GTT to design tanks for two new LNG carriers
Alfa Laval launches biofuel-ready separators for marine sector
Maersk Q3 profit soars on rising freight rates
Asia-Pacific is seeing a hiring jump in ship industry digital media roles
The ship industry found it harder to fill digital media vacancies in Q2 2022
Lightening the load: Solving freight challenges for small and medium-sized businesses
Vantage River Discovery II Cruise Vessel
River Discovery II is a first generation inland cruise vessel owned and operated by Vantage Deluxe World Travel (Vantage), a Boston-based tour operator.
River cruise ship
Construction Commenced
Owner and Operator
Vantage Deluxe World Travel
Shipyard De Hoop
She was delivered in March 2012 and is the first in a series of four river cruise ships being manufactured by Dutch shipbuilder Shipyard De Hoop.
The vessel can carry a total of 221 people, including 45 crew members. She is 135m long and has a width of 11.5m. The draught of the vessel is about 1.45m.
Building of River Discovery II as part of the fleet expansion programme
"The vessel is classified as a 'green ship' because of her fuel efficient propulsion system which allows for significant emissions cuts."
Vantage's new river cruise ship is part of its $120m fleet expansion programme. The tour operator intends to achieve two-fold increase of its river cruising fleet, with this investment. It contracted Shipyard De Hoop in March 2011 to build four new river cruise vessels. The new vessels will operate on the Yangtze, Mekong and Amazon rivers.
Construction on the first vessel, River Discovery II, commenced in June 2011 by placing the first four segments on the shipyard's slipway in Tolkamer, Netherlands.
The vessel was launched in December 2011 and her initial sea trials were undertaken at the beginning of March 2012. The naming ceremony for the new ship was held in Amsterdam.
Construction on the second and the third vessels has already commenced. They are anticipated to be handed over to the owner in 2013. The fourth vessel will be delivered in 2014.
Fuel efficient propulsion system and features of Vantage's cruise vessel
Vantage's new river cruise vessel boasts a number of advanced features. The vessel is classified as a 'green ship' because of her fuel efficient propulsion system which allows for significant emissions cuts.
"She was delivered in March 2012 and is the first in a series of four river cruise ships being manufactured by Shipyard De Hoop."
The unique hull lines permit a minimum draught of 1.45m. This allows the vessel to cruise even in shallow waters. Compared to other vessels of her type, River Discovery II can attain the desired cruising speed of 12kt on lower power, saving a substantial amount of fuel.
Energy savings feature includes use of light-emitting diode (LED) lighting. The ship is fitted with more than 2,500 LED lights, which consume just three watts of power.
Another innovative feature is a hydraulic sliding roof which is placed at the rear of the vessel, above the bar and the conservatory. It can be fully opened and closed in less than three minutes.
Suites, amenities and other facilities onboard Vantage's River Discovery II
The vessel can carry a total of 221 people, including 45 crew members.
River Discovery II offers a range of luxurious accommodations for guests. The owner's suite, furnished in an area of more than 30 square metres, is the largest of all staterooms. It is fitted with a 40" flat screen HDTV and furnished with posturepedic mattress. Other facilities include a private bathtub, a mini-bar and an adjoining sitting area.
The vessel also has 12 deluxe suites, which measure approximately 23 square metres. For solo travellers, there are eight 11.6 square metre single cabins on the vessel's lower deck. These constitute about ten percent of all the cabins.
Ocean Supremacy Luxury Yacht
Sauter Carbon Offset Design (SCOD) unveiled the design of its largest and most eco-friendly luxury yacht, in March 2012.
More than three-quarters of the staterooms have French balconies. Free Wi-Fi access is available onboard, while US electrical outlets are provided in the cabins. The cabins also have iPod / iPhone docking stations.
The vessel features an advanced dining room. Floor-to-ceiling windows allow the diners to enjoy scenic river views while enjoying their meals. Towards the stern of the vessel is a casual lounge. It features a retractable skylight roof and facilitates open-air dining and seating.
Leisure and fitness facilities include a reading room, nightly entertainment and fitness room equipped with treadmill, step machine and stationary bicycle.
Propulsion from Caterpillar C32 engines and Veth rudder propellers
River Discovery II is powered by two Caterpillar C32 diesel engines. The propulsion for transit is provided by two Veth rudder propellers, each rated at 745kW.
Adastra Superyacht, Zhuhai, China
Adastra is a trimaran-type superyacht built by McConaghy Boats for Hong Kong-based shipping baron Anto Marden.
P&O Oriana – Cruise Ship, United Kingdom
Oriana is the first cruise ship commissioned for P&O Cruises. Built by Meyer Werft, the vessel entered service in April 1995 as the first cruise ship designed for the British cruise market.
Carnival Jubilee Cruise Ship, US
MSC Seascape Cruise Ship, US
Scarlet Lady Cruise Ship, USA
Ship Technology Excellence Awards Report 22
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The leading site for news and procurement in the ship industry


The Drum is a 'Constant' instrument in Reggae Music and is traditionally part of the African heritage. As such it was seen as 'disturbing' to the status quo. This can be gauged in the film 'The Devil's Daughter' the first Hollywood movie to be shot in Jamaica in 1939.
This film was also called 'Pocomania' and this genre of music was one of the precursors of Reggae Music and while featuring traditional Jamaican Folk songs, you can also see and listen to the constant, growing sound of the Drums.
Pocomania sprang up in the 18th Century and was seen as a vehicle of rebellion against the harshness of slavery and in the 19th Century (1860) it became a religious practice from which the Revivalist Church emerged.
Pocomania or Revivalists are people who, while still believing in Christianity (Baptism) and God, infused their beliefs with many African religious traditions, especially about the spirits of their ancestors. They believed a person can be possessed by the spirits of the dead who can make you sick or can protect you. Tambourines, the Rumba Box, the clapping of hands and dancing are features of this musical genre and religious service.
The Rumba Box (or Marímbola as it's called in some Spanish speaking Caribbean Islands) has its roots in African traditional music and was also an important instrument in the Mento musical genre, another precursor of Reggae.


text:
Dispatch: This Is Why You Can't Have Nice Guns This Is Why You Can't Have Nice Guns...
This Is Why You Can't Have Nice Guns
Syria's moderate rebels are brawling among themselves in the streets of Turkey. And these are the people the White House wants to arm?
By David Kenner
FADI AL-HALABI/AFP
URFA, Turkey — As the sun went down on the night of Sept. 25, a shouting match in the streets of this eastern Turkish city grew so heated that residents felt the need to call the police. The cause was a dispute between two Syrian opposition groups that were supposed to be on the same side: 12 Syrian rebel fighters from brigades affiliated with the Free Syrian Army (FSA) had confronted three employees from the Syrian opposition's interim government to accuse them of stealing money.
"There were many times that we wanted to start fighting, but we controlled ourselves," said Mohammed, a fighter for the FSA-affiliated Suqoor Ali Brigade who was involved in the confrontation. The argument was only defused after the Turkish police showed up; both sides departed, with the underlying dispute left unresolved.
As the United States escalates its campaign against the Islamic State, the confrontation in Urfa represents a microcosm of the larger struggles that have faced Washington's allies within the Syrian opposition. The Syrian opposition coalition, which President Barack Obama has touted as the "legitimate representative of the Syrian people" and supported as the opposition's interlocutor in negotiations with the Syrian regime, has been plagued by a lack of funds and a crippling distrust among the exiled anti-Assad forces.
URFA, Turkey — As the sun went down on the night of Sept. 25, a shouting match in the streets of this eastern Turkish city grew so heated that residents felt the need to call the police. The cause was a dispute between two Syrian opposition groups that were supposed to be on the same side: 12 Syrian rebel fighters from brigades affiliated with the Free Syrian Army (FSA) had confronted three employees from the Syrian opposition's interim government to accuse them of stealing money.
As the United States escalates its campaign against the Islamic State, the confrontation in Urfa represents a microcosm of the larger struggles that have faced Washington's allies within the Syrian opposition. The Syrian opposition coalition, which President Barack Obama has touted as the "legitimate representative of the Syrian people" and supported as the opposition's interlocutor in negotiations with the Syrian regime, has been plagued by a lack of funds and a crippling distrust among the exiled anti-Assad forces.
As a result, the institutions that U.S. officials hoped could fill the vacuum in areas abandoned by President Bashar al-Assad's regime have been largely excluded from the international campaign in Syria. Washington has not coordinated with the FSA; in the words of one Arab intelligence officer, the loosely knit collection of militias "is not ready yet to control the ground." Meanwhile, the Syrian opposition coalition continues to be hobbled by a rivalry between its two major patrons, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, which have struggled to place their allies in positions of power within the organization.
Most recently, the Syrian opposition coalition reappointed Ahmed Toumeh as head of its interim government, a body overseen by the coalition that was intended to provide services such as medical treatment and clean water, and establish nascent governing institutions in areas that had been freed from Assad. Toumeh, who is said to be backed by Qatar, had lost his position when then coalition leader Ahmad al-Jarba, a Saudi-backed figure, dissolved the interim government in July.
The work of the interim government stagnated over the intervening three months, as international donors hesitated to give funds to an institution without clear leadership.
"I would say the current situation is not very good — it's quite sad, actually," said Ghassan Hitto, who was appointed as the interim government's first prime minister in March, before being forced to resign in July due to opposition by Saudi-backed figures. "Our friends, those who otherwise would want to support the government, they have put a lot of things on pause."
The tussle in Urfa shows how the exiled opposition is struggling even to win the trust of Syrians who should be its natural allies — in this case, FSA fighters from the eastern province of Deir Ezzor who had been driven from their homes by the Islamic State. The confrontation stemmed from a promise by the interim government to distribute $150 to each injured FSA fighter in the city. The rebels contend that they compiled 343 names of injured fighters and gave the list to the interim government. When the government drew up the final list, however, the fighters said that some of those names had been deleted and replaced with roughly 50 people whom they had never heard of before. They argued that the interim government officials had manufactured those names to pocket the money for themselves — approximately $7,500.
"From the big one to the small one, they are thieves," Mohammed said. "They don't want to do anything for people; they just want to take the money."
An official with the interim government, speaking on condition of anonymity, had a different story. The official said that the interim government had informed the rebels that it only had enough money for 300 fighters, and the different brigades would need to reach an agreement among themselves over which fighters would make it onto the list. The dispute broke out, the official said, when the brigades could not come to an agreement over how the money would be distributed.
When Hitto came into office, he had ambitious plans to transform the interim government into an institution that could administer freed areas in northern Syria. However, those plans were soon dramatically curtailed under his successors, while the coalition's internal political battles prevented the emergence of strong leadership that could drum up significant funding. As a result, the interim government is a body that is still almost entirely based in Turkey.
"I believe one of the errors that were made by the interim government was, for some odd reason, that they thought they could have an effective government outside of Syria," said Hitto. "If you go [to the FSA] and tell them, 'Listen, you go fight Assad, you go protect our cities, and we're going to take care of all the civil work,' that'll work. I went inside Syria and I tried this several times — every conversation, not a single time people resisted."
Hitto said that a properly funded and supported interim government could have been a tool in the international effort against the Islamic State, by providing an alternative to the jihadist groups. What's more, he argued, it would have given the anti-Assad forces leverage in their negotiations with the Syrian regime, by showing that Damascus is not the only authority capable of administering territory. "Having an interim government gives the opposition not a set of teeth, but it gives them a tooth or two," Hitto said. "At least something to get a negotiation started."
Some of the opposition coalition's forays into providing humanitarian support in Syria, however, have only caused more problems. Last month, at least 15 children died after receiving vaccinations for measles that had been distributed by the opposition coalition. The vaccine had been improperly mixed with muscle relaxant; the World Health Organization blamed "human error" for the mistake. The coalition responded by firing five officials, including Suheir al-Atassi, the head of the coalition's Assistance Coordination Unit, which is charged with distributing humanitarian assistance inside Syria. Atassi hit back with a lengthy Facebook post arguing that her dismissal was invalid, and accused the opposition leadership of "exploiting the death of innocent children in the internal struggles within the coalition."
While the United States continues to describe the exiled Syrian opposition as a partner in its war against the Islamic State, former U.S. officials are more candid about the limits of its influence. Robert Ford, who served as the U.S. ambassador to Syria, said that his experience as a U.S. diplomat during the Iraq war made him skeptical of the exiled opposition body's weight on the ground. "They need to get themselves out of Istanbul, and instead get themselves installed in Syria, with or without a no-fly zone," he said. "And we've raised that with them."
Other former U.S. officials, however, suggest the opposition's ineffectiveness should have been expected after Syria's long bout of authoritarianism. "Look, Syria and Syrians were coming out of a 50-plus-year political coma [when the opposition bodies were formed]," said Fred Hof, a former special advisor on Syria at the State Department and currently a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council. "Did we really expect opposition politics to be characterized by trust, openness, loyalty, and selfless teamwork?"
Hof said that rather than focusing on the Syrian coalition's failings, President Barack Obama's administration should be asking whether it did everything possible to give the moderate opposition a chance to succeed. "If we want the Syrian National Coalition to be an effective part of the anti-ISIL coalition, we'll help it get into Syria," he said. "If we want to bind anti-Assad Syrians to our anti-ISIL efforts, we'll engage ISIL elements attacking nationalist forces and we'll ground Assad's air force. The challenge is less one of opposition dysfunction than it is our own."
Whoever is to blame for the state of the official anti-Assad opposition, however, few deny that its influence in Syria is vanishingly small. And that has left the United States in the unenviable position of working for the removal of both the Islamic State and the Assad regime, while having few viable partners to fill the vacuum left in their wake.
Tags: Economics, Middle East and North Africa, Syria, Terrorism, Turkey, U.S. Foreign Policy
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Why Young Americans Are Giving Up on Capitalism 45956 Shares
Why Young Americans Are Giving Up on Capitalism
Sarah Kendzior


With Ontario's cap-and-trade system joining the carbon market in California and Québec on January 11 the three jurisdictions will now hold joint auctions of emission allowances, which will be tradable across and capable of being used for compliance in all three jurisdictions. We look back at Ontario's stand-alone cap-and-trade system for 2017, and look forward to the changes anticipated in 2018.
In the first year of its cap-and-trade system, Ontario held four auctions of GHG allowances, each offering 25.3 million current vintage allowances and 3.1 million future vintage allowances. In total, Ontario has offered 101.2 million current vintage allowances through the auctions, representing 71% of the 2017 allowances available under Ontario's cap. The other 29% were either distributed free of charge by the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change (MOECC) or held in the Ontario price containment reserve. Whether auctioned or allocated free of charge, allowances are the main compliance instrument that capped emitters can use to cover their emissions under the cap-and-trade program.
To help maintain a stable carbon price, Ontario imposed a reserve price for auctioned allowances, essentially a floor price below which allowances would not be sold. The first figure below highlights the reserve price and the actual settlement price at each auction. The subsequent figures show the proportion of available allowances sold, and ratio of qualified bids to available allowances.3 Notably, after three consecutive fully subscribed auctions for current vintage allowances, the fourth quarter auction saw a significant decline in the percentage of available 2017 vintage allowances sold (down to 83%) as well as a lower settlement price (crossed under $18 for the first time). This drop could potentially be attributable to uncertainties surrounding the upcoming 2018 provincial election, and expectations regarding market linkage (which is likely to increase liquidity and drive down prices for Ontario participants).
On January 30, 2017, Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (ICE)—a leading listing and trading venue for commodities markets—listed an Ontario Carbon Allowance Futures contract for trading, which effectively commenced the secondary market in Ontario. ICE also lists other vehicles, such as swaps and options contracts, that may become available to Ontario market participants as Ontario joins the California-Québec market. In addition to exchange-traded contracts, secondary market trading could also occur by way of over-the-counter bilateral transactions. Since January 2017, the secondary market in Ontario has experienced relatively low trading activity, not surprisingly given the recent inception of the market and the fact that linkage with Québec and California was only confirmed toward the end of the year.
As noted, Ontario joined the Québec-California carbon market on January 1. Each jurisdiction will coordinate its own auction reserve prices and price containment points. The anticipated benefits of linkage include increased liquidity of carbon allowances realized through access to a larger market, administrative efficiencies achieved through sharing in the administration of joint auctions, and lower overall costs of emissions reductions.
Because California's annual emissions are nearly twice the combined total emissions of Ontario and Québec, California's 2018 cap (i.e., the number of allowances it will issue this year) is also much higher. In 2018, the joint market will have a combined cap of 553.7 million allowances, consisting of 358.3 million for California, 136.4 million for Ontario, and 59 million for Québec. Therefore, in 2018, even though Ontario will only issue 96% of the total number allowances it issued in 2017 (as a result of the shrinking emissions cap), Ontario participants will now have access to a much larger pool of allowances.
Under a joint market, the increase in liquidity and California's surplus of allowances are expected to create downward pressure on settlement prices for Ontario participants.
The reserve price for joint allowance auctions will be equal to the highest reserve price in the three linked jurisdictions, accounting for currency exchange rates. In this regard, the 2018 Annual Auction Reserve Price Notice (Notice)5 specifies reserve prices of C$14.68 for Ontario, C$14.35 for Québec, and US$14.53 for California. In practice, the California reserve price is therefore likely to determine the reserve price at joint allowances. Regarding allowances to be offered for sale in 2018, the Notice indicates 334.6 million current (2018) vintage allowances and 49.7 million future (2021) vintage allowances will be made available. Remaining allowances under the cap will be allocated for free or held in reserve. Compared to the number of allowances available through Ontario's 2017 auctions, the aforementioned quantities represent a 230% increase in current vintage allowances, and a 300% increase in future vintage allowances.
Under a joint market, the increase in liquidity and California's surplus of allowances are expected to create downward pressure on settlement prices for Ontario participants. Given the size of California's program, its market conditions are expected to be a key price driver post-linkage. California has experienced an oversupply of allowances as a result of covered emissions being consistently lower than the annual cap. Although the passage of AB 398 in July 2017 (extending California's cap-and-trade program to 2030) has caused demand and prices to rebound, prices are still low relative to the floor.
For the combined market, a study estimated cumulative oversupply of 270 Mt (with an uncertainty interval of 200 to 340 Mt) through 2020.6 To this end, it would be reasonable to expect settlement prices in the combined market to hover just above the reserve price in 2018. Indeed, some forecasts indicate average 2020 prices of $17 or $18 per tonne, which would be relatively close to the likely reserve price of $16 or $17 by that time.
In its 2016 Annual Report, the Auditor General of Ontario, citing a May 2016 report by the MOECC, forecasts that linkage could initially result in Ontario participants purchasing in the range of 14.90 MT of allowances from California or Québec each year. Given the surplus of California allowances mentioned above, Ontario participants are likely to end up purchasing significant allowance volumes from California. At a price of $17-18 per tonne, the forecast above would result in a net outflow of approximately $250-to 270 million per year from Ontario to California to fund these acquisitions. This trend is likely to continue throughout the current compliance period which ends in 2020.
Ontario's linkage with the Québec-California carbon market will open up a much larger pool of emissions allowances to Ontario participants. Because of the oversupply of California allowances relative to demand in the state, linkage is expected to maintain downward pressure on settlement prices at joint auctions, and on compliance costs for capped emitters relative to those costs in a standalone Ontario market. Of course, a consequence of this result is the expected outflow of funds to California for allowance purchases. In addition, entities participating in joint auctions will need to be mindful of the rules prohibiting the disclosure of certain auction-related information, and requiring the registration of certain corporate and business relationships with entities participating in the Québec and California systems.
More broadly, the next year will present growing opportunities in the secondary market for emissions allowances, particularly now that Ontario allowances can be used for compliance in Québec and California.
1 To facilitate linkage, in Fall 2017, the three jurisdictions had signed a harmonization and integration agreement. See https://news.ontario.ca/opo/en/2017/09/quebec-ontario-and-california-join-forces-to-fight-climate-change.html. The Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change (MOECC) had introduced the necessary amendments to its cap-and-trade regulations. See http://www.ebr.gov.on.ca/ERS-WEB-External/displaynoticecontent.do?noticeId=MTMzNTQx&statusId=MjAzMDcx&language=en and O. Reg. 450/17.
4 See https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/environmental-indicators/greenhouse-gas-emissions/province-territory.html and https://www.arb.ca.gov/cc/inventory/data/data.htm.


How Are They Related and What Can You DO?
Adrenal Fatigue is a decrease in the adrenal glands' ability to carry out normal function. It is commonly caused by chronic stress from any source—emotional, physical, mental, or environmental— that exceeds the body's capacity to adjust well to the demands placed on it by the stress.
Sleep—it's one of the most important things you can do to recover.
Give yourself permission to sleep. Even if it means taking a short nap in the middle of the day, you've got to sleep to heal. When you force yourself to power through the groggy afternoon slump, you stress your adrenal glands even more.
Go horizontal for 15 minutes during the day. Your adrenals know when you're down and your feet your feet are up. It makes them happy. Find a couch or whatever you can and give your body a break.
Sleep in. The best hours of recovery in the morning are between 6 and 9 am. The more you let your body sleep when it wants to, the faster you will heal.
Go to bed early. You need to be in bed between 9 and 9:45 pm. And that's not reading a novel or answering emails. It's sleeping. The sleep you get before midnight is crucial for rebuilding your adrenals.
Reduce stress. Too much cortisol (pumped out in response to stress) in your system in the evenings keeps you from sleeping deeply, causes you to wake frequently during the night, and to awaken in the morning unrefreshed.
Avoid coffee. Caffeine really stresses the adrenals. A holistic MD that I interned under said coffee was to the adrenals like whipping a poor tired horse and making him keep going when he just wanted to lie down and rest.
Avoid sweets and simple carbs. They trigger a cortisol release, which is another stressor for the adrenals.
Avoid anything stressful before going to bed. Wind down and relax so you can actually go to sleep when you go to bed.
Do You Have Adrenal Fatigue? Take the Quiz.
Rather than coffee, why not wake up your body with an energizing, delicious juice?
Cut produce to fit your juicer's feed tube. Juice ingredients and stir. Pour into a glass and enjoy. Serves 2.
Can use any of detox programs and intensely work. I cannot prep juices nor smoothies at work.?
You can make the juices and smoothies the night before. Or you can make the juice on weekends and freeze them in individual jars. Lots of people make it work out even when busy.
My Specialist is trying to get me of steroids,and to do that my adrenals have to have 250 in the blood work for cortisol but mine is only 120.He cannot lower the medicine until the adrenals kick in.Any suggestions?
Did you get my book The Juice Lady's Remedies for Stress and Adrenal Fatigue. Also the supplement Vitality Renew. I have the package special.


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This darkly dramatic cape comes straight from our Fall 2015 runway. Inspired by airplane mechanics this season, Tadashi custom designed this allover-embroidered motif. Each embroidered panel is trimmed with a coordinating gear-motif lace edging. Features a hidden closure of hook & eyes down the center front.


text:
'use strict';
//Desarrollado por la Oficina de Software Libre bajo licencia MIT

// **exports**
// * secret: Pass secreto para gestión de sesiones
// * loki_db_name: Archivo para almacenar la BDD
// * polls: Lista de polls a generar
module.exports = {
    'secret': 'polleitor',
    'loki_db_name': 'polls.json',
    'polls': {
        "asignatura": [{
            "q": "¿Están bien preparados los alumnos de tu(s) asignatura(s)?",
            "a": ["Si", "No"]
        }],
        "TFG": [{
            "q": "¿Alguna vez has pensado que un alumno es incapaz de hacer un TFG de cierta entidad?",
            "a": ["Sí", "No"]
        }]
    }
};

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub