If you've applied for a car loan or a mortgage lately, you've probably heard someone mention your credit score. It's also likely you've read articles or blog posts about how to improve your score.
By now, you might know paying bills on time and keeping credit card balances and other debt under control can move the needle in the right direction. But that's only skimming the surface. To figure out the best way to improve your credit score, it's a good idea to learn how it's calculated.
A credit score is a number assigned to all adult consumers. It's compiled from several financial factors and attempts to measure how responsible you are financially and how likely you are to repay a loan.
The most widely used score is from a company called FICO, which rates consumers on a 300 to 850 scale. If your score is much below 650, you may pay high rates on loans and credit cards, and you may have difficulty qualifying for certain loans. Once you reach a score of 680 you may begin to qualify for more favorable interest rates. FICO scores aren't just used by banks and other lenders. Insurance firms, landlords and even employers use them to help determine how responsible you are.
Three agencies provide scores to the public – Experian, Equifax, and Transunion. You can also get a free credit report form AnnualCreditReport.com.
Explanation: It's no secret that overdue bill, loan and credit card payments are score killers. But rating firms dig even deeper and factor in how late your payments were, how much was owed, and how recently you missed a payment. Bankruptcies and foreclosures are also considered.
Tip: We all lead busy lives and it's easy to forget payment due dates. At Savings Institute, you can use online and mobile banking tools to eliminate that worry by scheduling bill and payments ahead of time.
Explanation: It's not quite as simple as keeping your debt in check. Credit agencies compare your total debt to the amount of borrowing power available to you. They examine how close you are to limits on credit card limits and instruments like home equity lines of credit. If you have a cushion that allows you to access money quickly, you're considered to be a better credit risk.
Tip: Don't max out your credit cards. Aggressively pay down your balances. Consider applying for a card from Savings Institute with a lower interest rate. Also, think twice before cancelling a credit card. While that might reduce your temptation to spend, you're also eliminating some of the credit cushion that the rating agencies value.
Explanation: Rating firms look at how long your oldest accounts have been open. They want evidence you've reliably made on-time payments over a lengthy period. Young people – especially those with student loans -- are often wary about adding debt. However, avoiding it completely also isn't the best idea.
Tip: You can certainly start to build your credit rating by paying bills on time. You should also look to take on manageable debt, perhaps with a credit card geared toward people building a credit history.
Explanation: Not all debt is the same. Credit cards are known as revolving debt since you draw on money as you need it, pay it back, and then use it again. Auto loans and mortgages are examples of installment loans, where you borrow once and then make monthly payments. Creditors like to see that you're able to manage multiple types of loans.
Tip: If you want to improve your credit mix, a home equity line of credit is another revolving loan option. Similarly, a regular home equity loan is a solid installment loan choice. Either can give you resources to renovate your house, buy new furniture, or take a special trip.
Explanation: Rating agencies don't look only at how many credit cards and outstanding loans you have. They also look at how many you've applied for recently. A flurry of new activity can be a sign of personal financial trouble.
Tip: At Savings Institutewe certainly want to be your go-to destination for loans and credit cards. But we also care about your overall financial health. If you want to talk about your credit score or get financial counseling, visit one of our branch locations.
Check account balances, pay bills, set up recurring bills, view your transaction history, track spending by category, set up savings goals, receive account alerts and more.


text:
"Put a Little Umph in It" é uma música da banda Jagged Edge com a participação da cantora Ashanti. A música foi lançado como single do álbum Baby Makin' Project, sua produção foi feita por Jermaine Dupri e Manuel Seal.

Desempenho

Singles de 2007
Canções gravadas por Ashanti
Singles de Jagged Edge

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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This is a tale of the Earth, Humanity, individual human life, gender, and most importantly that of The Teaching, spiritual transmission throughout time.
The pilgrimage is mythical, mystical, esoteric, and allegorical, deeply emotional and personal, as it is impersonal and informative. It outlines the heritage of every human being, profoundly impressed within cell memory and subliminal cosmic memory, conveying how and why we are here and where we are heading.
This journey in the shape of a book broadens our frame of reference and sows a seed of hope in us… as maybe this is precisely what we need now for the evolution of our collective consciousness.
Let's take the first step in that journey together on May 30th.


text:
Rep. Gabbard Introduces Bill To Upgrade Water Infrastructure
April 25, 2018, 10:27 AM HST (Updated April 25, 2018, 10:27 AM)
Courtesy photo.
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard joined lawmakers in introducing legislation to upgrade and protect community water and sewer systems across the country. The Water Affordability, Transparency, Equity and Reliability (WATER) Act would authorize $35 billion a year to improve drinking water and wastewater services in states nationwide, including renovating old and lead-ridden water pipes, and stopping sewage overflows, and other problems stemming from a national water affordability crisis. The bill would also create an estimated 700,000 to 945,000 new middle-class jobs. Over 90% of Hawai'i's drinking water is from groundwater, and Hawai'i has more cesspools than any other state — half of which are located in areas that require urgent action.
The WATER Act is supported by numerous organizations including Alliance for Democracy; EarthJustice; EcoWorks; Food & Water Watch; National Nurses United; Progressive Democrats of America; Public Citizen; Rural Community Assistance Partnership (RCAP); Water Alliance; American Federation of Teachers, American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America and more.
Rep. Gabbard said: Years of neglecting our water infrastructure has spurred water contamination crises across the country in places like Flint, MI; Philadelphia, PA; Baltimore, MD; among others. According to a 2017 report, Hawai'i needs an estimated $1.05 billion in drinking water investment over the next twenty years to ensure safe water for our people. Ensuring safe, affordable, and accessible water for all is not a political issue – it's a basic human right that is essential for life. Our legislation would make consistent investments in critical water and wastewater infrastructure a priority for our federal government, and take the steps that are sorely needed now to protect health and wellness for generations to come."
Background: The Water Affordability, Transparency, Equity and Reliability (WATER) Act of 2018 would create a WATER Trust Fund, and dedicate $35 billion each year to grant programs and to Drinking Water and Clean Water State Revolving Loan (SRF) programs. This legislation would provide dedicated annual federal support to:
Fully fund the Drinking Water and Clean Water State Revolving Funds;
Provide additional technical assistance to rural and small municipalities and Native American governments;
Increase funding to construct, repair and service household drinking water wells;
Create a new grant program for the repair, replacement or upgrading of household septic tanks and drainage fields;
Increase funding to Native American governments for water infrastructure;
Require EPA to coordinate a study about water affordability, discrimination by water and sewer providers, public participation in water regionalization efforts, and water shutoffs;
Restrict Drinking Water SRF funding to publicly or locally owned systems;
Provide funding for public schools to test and replace drinking water infrastructure; and
Provide grants to replace lead service lines serving households.
Supreme Court Convening for Oral Argument at Kealakehe High School
Reps Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Support Impact Aid Schools
Senators Propose $100 Billion Investment to Rebuild & Repair Schools
Water Conservation Notice Issued for Pāpaʻikou
Nearly $67M in Federal Disaster Relief Funding Coming to Hawai'i

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Under reforms which came into effect on 7th January, over a million parents earning more than £50,000 per year are set to lose all or some of their child benefit payments.
However up until 6th January only 250,000 had voluntarily opted out of the child benefit system, leaving 850,000 parents who will continue to receive child benefit as usual but have it clawed back from them in tax via self assessment.
Despite a last minute rush in applications, many thousands of parents are still unaware of the changes which could land them with substantial fines if they fail to complete their self-assessment forms.
Some of those affected may already be in self-assessment but for the majority it will be the fist time they have had to complete the process. Since 80% of those who already fill in their returns online have to hire an accountant to assist them, parents are looking at increased costs to comply with the regulations.
Critics of the reform have claimed that it is unfair to families. In households where one earner takes home more than £60,000 a year the family will lose all of their child benefit whilst in some cases those in which both parents earn £50,000 could keep their benefit.
Labour Treasury Minister Chris Leslie branded the policy a "very costly administrative nightmare" for parents and also pointed out that families were likely to face a big pre-election tax bill in 2015 as bills for repayments of child benefit from 2013/14 would begin to be sent out.
Whilst Conservative Party chairman Grant Shapps acknowledged the frustration of extra form filling for those faced with losing their benefits, the government also insisted that the cut was necessary to help reduce Britain's welfare bill and that higher earners had to make a fair contribution to reducing the country's debts.


Although a speeding ticket may not seem like anything severe, in Virginia speeding is taken very seriously and can lead to an array of more serious charges such as reckless driving that will stay on your record forever. With these factors in play, it is important that you know what to expect after receiving a speeding ticket and are aware of exactly which speeding offense you're facing. For more specific information regarding your case, call and schedule a consultation with a Fairfax speeding ticket lawyer today.
Due to the fact that Fairfax County is so harsh on speeders, you should expect that a speeding ticket could potentially be something much more serious than a simple traffic infraction. If you were going 20 or more miles per hour over the speed limit, it's possible that what would be just a traffic infraction for speeding in any other state would actually be charged as a criminal offense here in Virginia. As a result, you should make sure that what you're being charged with is speeding and not reckless driving or any other type of more serious offense.
This can be done by looking on your ticket. On the ticket, it will say either speeding or reckless driving, or sometimes it will specify that it's an infraction versus a misdemeanor. If it doesn't specify or it just lists the speed, then you can look right below that on the ticket and it should state whether you are required to appear in court or not. If you're not required to appear in court, chances are that you've been issued a traffic infraction.
Fairfax and all Virginia jurisdictions treat speeding a little bit different from other jurisdictions because Virginia takes a much harder stand on speeding than most other states. While other jurisdictions only have speeding as a traffic infraction, Virginia actually codifies it as a reckless driving offense, which is a class 1 misdemeanor and a criminal offense if you pass the speed limit by 20 miles per hour or more or if you drive 80 miles per hour or more at all. This is a big deal because what would just basically be a slap on the wrist in any other state and would go away in a few years, in Virginia, results instead in a permanent criminal record.
You do not have to appear in court. This is different from reckless driving because criminal charges have a requirement that the defendant must appear in court on the date of the hearing. For a speeding ticket, you have the alternate option to prepay the fine online and admit guilt to the offense in this way. For either one, the best option is to get an attorney to help you build a strong defense. Even if it's impossible for the charge to be reduced or dismissed, there is still the possibility of having the actual penalties reduced or at least mitigated into something that's a little more manageable for your personal situation.
Having a Fairfax speeding ticket lawyer with experience is definitely going to be advantageous to you because there are a quite a few little loopholes and defenses that most people may not know about unless they have experience with this kind of stuff in court. You want someone who can explain to you exactly what you're up against in court and what the possibilities are for having your charges reduced or dismissed. If your charges are not able to be reduced or dismissed, then a good attorney will be able to help you mitigate the damages so that there is less impact on your personal life because of the conviction.


Calspan is a vertically integrated supplier of test equipment and most of the equipment we design and manufacture is highly instrumented. The instrumentation we apply to our test equipment (wind tunnel models, turbomachinery test rigs and other special test equipment) is central to the experimental mission. The data provided by our instrumentation is crucial in validating the technology/product and monitoring the health and operability of the test article/apparatus.
Our instrumentation specialists are part of the Integrated Product Team throughout the project and contribute to the capture of measurement requirements, selection of instrumentation methods/devices, instrumentation installation definition and the specification of component/system modifications. The Calspan instrumentation team also works closely with the test facility and customer specialists to manage all instrumentation system interfaces, calibrations and documentation.
Additionally, we routinely integrate a myriad of other instrumentation systems such as blade tip clearance, blade tip timing and other specialty instrumentation systems.
Our Instrumentation Engineers select measurement methods and optimize their application to maximize measurement accuracy and installation ruggedness while minimizing the influence of the instrument on the measurement.
These processes are all executed within our robust ISO9001:2008/AS9100 (Rev. C) Quality Management System.
Our highly skilled instrumentation technicians often travel to our customer's (or third party) test facility locations to support instrumentation application and the installation and integration of our test articles into test facilities.


Children's wishes and feelings about their habitual residence.
What happens if a local authority wants to make an application for a care order regarding a child who comes from another country? The Courts of England and Wales only have jurisdiction to make care orders if children are 'habitually resident' in the UK – mere physical presence is not enough. Although the Supreme Court have repeatedly said this is a 'simple matter of fact' it is clear that in practice it is not always easy to establish a child's habitual residence.
i have no idea what the impact of Brexit will be on any of this; watch this space.
What power does the court have to make orders about children who come from another country?
Jurisdiction derives from habitual residence.
the jurisdictional reach of the courts of England and Wales in relation to care proceedings is not spelt out in any statutory provision.
Jurisdiction was normally determined by the habitual residence or physical presence of the child.
However, this was fundamentally modified by the Regulation Brussels II revised (BIIR) which applies to determine the jurisdiction of the English court in care proceedings, irrespective of whether the other country is a Member State of the European Union: see A v A and another (Children: Habitual Residence) (Reunite International Child Abduction Centre and others intervening)  UKSC 60,  AC 1, para 30, and In re L (A Child: Habitual Residence) (Reunite International Child Abduction Centre intervening)  UKSC 75,  3 WLR 1597, para 18..
The basic principle, set out in Article 8(1) of BIIR is that jurisdiction is founded on habitual residence. It follows that the courts do not have jurisdiction to make a care order simply because a child is physically present.
The court must deal with this matter at the outset. The court should set out explicitly the basis upon which it has accepted or rejected jurisdiction. A declaration with regard to habitual residence cannot be made by default, concession or agreement but only if the court is satisfied by evidence.
If it is necessary to address the issue before there is time for proper investigation and determination, the following suggested recital should be used: "Upon it provisionally appearing that the child is habitually resident…".
Habitual residence is a 'matter of fact'.
The Supreme Court have repeatedly declared that 'habitual residence' is no more than a 'simple fact' which should be determined without any gloss. That arguably optimistic declaration has to be set against the number of times in fairly recent history that cases involving habitual residence have come before the Supreme Court – suggesting that determination of this 'simple fact' is a far from simple exercise and reflects the greater mobility of people in recent times and the wide variety of circumstances which impact on families, their composition and their location.
habitual residence can in principle be lost and another habitual residence acquired on the same day.
habitual residence is a question of fact and not a legal concept such as domicile. There is no legal rule akin to that whereby a child automatically takes the domicile of his parents.
the test adopted by the European Court is 'the place which reflects some degree of integration by the child in a social and family environment' in the country concerned. This depends upon numerous factors, including the reasons for the family's stay in the country in question. This is the preferred test.
The social and family environment of an infant or young child is shared with those (whether parents or others) upon whom he is dependent. Hence it is necessary to assess the integration of that person or persons in the social and family environment of the country concerned.
The essentially factual and individual nature of the inquiry should not be glossed with legal concepts which would produce a different result from that which the factual inquiry would produce.
it is possible that a child may have no country of habitual residence at a particular point in time.
For those children who have no habitual residence, Article 13 of Brussels II provides that where a child's habitual residence cannot be established and jurisdiction cannot be determined under Article 12, the courts of the Member State where the child is present have jurisdiction.
Habitual residence requires physical presence.
Physical presence is a clear necessary precursor to a finding of habitual residence. In In the Matter of A (Children) (AP)  UKSC 60 the Supreme Court by a majority agreed that a new born baby could not claim habitual residence in the UK even though it was his mother's place of habitual residence and she had been coerced into leaving the country to give birth. However the Supreme Court agreed it was possible in such extreme circumstances to order the child's return to the UK using the inherent jurisdiction.
must be interpreted as meaning that, in a situation in which a child was born and has been continuously residing with his or her mother for several months in accordance with the joint agreement of the parents in a Greece, while in Italy they had their habitual residence before birth, the initial intention of the parents as to the return of the mother accompanied by the child in Italy cannot allow the child to be regarded as having his or her habitual residence in Italy. The CJEU concludes that in such a situation the refusal of the mother to return to Italy accompanied by the child cannot be regarded as an 'unlawful displacement or non-return' within the meaning of Article 11(1).
However this does not mean that the perceptions of older children about where they habitually reside are irrelevant. See Re: LC (Reunite: International Child Abduction Centre intervening)  UKSC 1. Lord Wilson: It will be clear from my formulation of the question in para 1 above that in my view it is, in principle, the state of mind of adolescent children during their residence in a place that may affect whether it was habitual.
However, judicial dicta from other authorities does not support 'state of mind' as determinative.
See Re R (A Child)  EWCA Civ 674 where the Court of Appeal considered the circumstances of a 4 year old girl S. She was born in 2010 in Morocco to an American mother, who had lived in England since the age of 13, and a Moroccan father. Shortly, after her birth, the mother travelled to England and fraudulently registered the birth in Kent. Thereafter, she travelled to and from various locations before returning to the UK in March 2013. In October 2013 S suffered serious injuries and was placed in foster care. The local authority did not commence care proceedings until April 2014.
Given by the time protective measures had been taken S and her mother had been living in the UK for over a year, there seems little doubt as a matter of fact that S was habitually resident 'at the relevant time' i.e. the making of the care order application but it was argued on behalf of the father that S's life had been so unhappy with a neglectful mother, that it could not be said she was 'integrated' into a social environment and therefore her habitual residence was in fact Morocco.
Mr Justice Hayden decided that the court had jurisdiction to make a care order with respect to S on the basis that S's habitual residence was, and had been throughout her life, the United Kingdom. The father's appeal was dismissed. The CoA were critical of the judge's finding that S had been 'habitually resident in the UK all her life' as all that was needed was a finding that S had habitual residence at the relevant time. However, his decision was not 'perverse' given the complexities of this case, including the dishonesty of the parents and the mother's 'frequent and erratic' changes of location.
Thus it is conceded that it is not possible to claim that any period of time spent in another country during which a child was unhappy must then automatically preclude a finding of habitual residence in that country.
All of these discussions, while interesting, serve most usefully in my submissions to reflect the profound difficulties of applying general principles to the probably infinite variety of circumstances in which families find themselves.
I suggest that a pragmatic approach must be taken. The importance of habitual residence is clearly underpinned by asking 'what jurisdiction is best able to make decisions about a child's welfare'. And that jurisdiction is usually the one where the child actually lives or has spent the most time. However, the court will need to look beyond this starting point and the wishes and feelings, particularly of older children, may well be relevant.
This entry was posted in Other Countries and tagged Brussels II Bis, habitual residence, jurisdiction on February 10, 2019 by Sarah Phillimore.
A case about adoption and the best interests of children.
Judgment in this case was circulated on 17th January 2017. It involved 16 applications against the Russian Federation by 45 US citizens and involved 27 children. The claimants had all been in the final process of adopting Russian children when in 2013 the Russian Federation imposed an unexpected and swift ban on any adoption by US Citizens.
The case ended with the ECtHR agreeing that US parents had been discriminated against and awarding a small amount of damages as 'just satisfaction'. The arguments about the rights and wrongs of the ban on adoption by US citizens were wide ranging and illustrate, yet again, that the rights of individual children are very often lost in the competing political and social arguments made by adults.
The saddest part of the judgment is where the court notes that the peremptory ban on adoption lead to many of the children remaining in orphanages for months, even years. Some remain in orphanages still.
The death of Dima Yakovlev in 2008 had led to an outcry in Russia and concern over ill-treatment of other Russian children who had been adopted by American citizens. Dima died after being left in a car for 9 hours by his American adoptive father, who was later acquitted of involuntary manslaughter. On 1st January 2013 the Russian Federation introduced a law prohibiting any further adoption by US nationals of Russian children. The US parents argued that preventing them from completing their adoption applications because of their nationality was unlawful discrimination and claimed breach of Article 14 of the ECHR in conjunction with Article 8. They also made a claim arguing breach of Article 3 because the children, many of whom had disabilities, had been deprived of medical treatment in the US.
At the time of the ban, the US State Department issued a statement highlighting its regret, pointing out that some children who had already formed bonds with their potential new families would now not be able to live with them. There was further serious criticism from various human rights agencies such as Amnesty international, who said it was politically motivated and not in the best interests of the children concerned.
Obviously, the impugned Law was a reaction to the political pressure constantly exercised by the US authorities in relation to Russia since 2002, when the Russian authorities started taking steps to reinforce the independence and sovereignty of the country. Finally, in 2015 Russia was officially declared to be one of the most serious threats (together with ISIS and Ebola) to the USA. The US strategy was implemented through political and economic sanctions, cultural isolation, intensive political propaganda demonising the so-called "political regime" in Russia and establishment of military bases surrounding Russian territory.
Inter-country adoption is recognised as a mechanism to promote the welfare of children who cannot otherwise remain with their birth family by Art 21 of the 1989 UN Convention of the Rights of the Child, which was ratified by Russia in 1990. In 2013 the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly adopted a Resolution on Inter Country Adoptions (see jmt para 301) which recognised that 'a bond forms rapidly between the child and prospective adopters during the adoption process but before legal parent-child relationship has been effected' and urged participating States to resolve its disputes about inter-country adoption in a way that did not harm the best interests of the child or damage this 'nascent family'.
All parties agreed that Article 8 right to a family life did not protect a mere wish to start a family (see para 376); it presupposes the existence of a family thus does not support a 'right' to adopt. The US applicants had initiated the inter-country adoption processes in 2010-12 so most of them had met the child they were seeking to adopt, had spent time with him or her, and had either submitted the adoption application to a Russian court or had their file ready for submission. They were all therefore in the 'final stages' of the adoption procedure (para 422).
Some applicants were clearly further down the road to establish 'familial ties' with the children – for example, one family had already adopted the sibling of one of the children and thus had a clear argument on both right to family life and right to a private life.
The court noted at para 383 that the US applicants had a genuine intention to become parents by applying for inter country adoption when it was still lawful in Russia. Therefore the issue was their decision to become parents and 'their personal development through the role of parents that they wished to assume'. This fell within the scope of 'private life' protected by Article 8.
The Court therefore agreed that Article 14 and Article 8 applied and dismissed the arguments of the Russian Federation to the contrary. However, Article 14 could only apply to the US potential parents, who were discriminated against on the grounds of nationality. It could not apply to the children.
The Russian Government argued that the ban on the adoption of Russian children by US nationals was not discriminatory but based on objective and reasonable grounds and the children's best interests (See para 392). The US citizens could still adopt from elsewhere and other countries had implemented similar blanket bans – for example the UK banned adoption from Cambodia in 2005. Other countries permit inter-country adoption only in exceptional circumstances or subject to strict requirements.
There was also concern that parents in the US had failed to provide reports about the wellbeing of 653 Russian children over the past 3 years and the Russian Government further relied upon reports from NGOs and the US Department of Health and Human Services, of a hidden 'epidemic of violence' against children in the USA, citing 5 children who died every day because of abuse or negligence perpetrated by adults (in 80% of cases being biological or adoptive parents). The Russian Government were concerned that at least 20 children adopted from Russia had been killed by American adoptive parents, although they did not have precise statistics to support this figure (para 396).
Thus a ban on adoption of Russian children by US nationals was not discrimination but a measure of last resort, prompted not only by instances of death, injury and sexual abuse of Russian adopted children but also by the lack of co-operation by the US to help ensure their safety and psychological well being (para 398). Also cited was the desire to increase adoptions by Russian nationals.
The claimants responded (para 403) that death and serious injury to Russian adoptive children comprised on a tiny proportion of the overall number of Russian children so adopted and that the Russian Government had not provided any information that the situation was any better for Russian children in any other country, or indeed in Russian orphanages. The claimants rejected the argument that one of the aims behind the ban was to encourage adoption by Russian families as adoption by foreign nationals was only permitted when it was 'impossible' to find a Russian family willing to adopt. The claimants argued that the Russian response was disproportionate and excluded an entire category of potentially loving parents for children for whom no adoptive family could be found in Russia (para 405).
The Court agreed that American nationals were being treated differently. Did that have an objective and reasonable justification (para 412)? The Court noted that the ban on adoption came only two months after the introduction of the Bilateral Agreement on Adoption between Russia and the US which was aimed at providing stronger legal safeguards for such inter-country adoptions. Most of the concerning incidents involving Russian children in the US had occurred before the entry into force of that Bilateral Agreement. Thus it was doubtful that the ban on adoption had a reasonable justification (para 420).
The claimants were all in the final stages of the adoption process and their proceedings were brought to an abrupt end because of the automatic ineligibility provided by the ban on adoption that unexpectedly came into force over ten days.
'No consideration was given to the interests of the children concerned, and those of them who were eventually placed in a different adoptive or foster family were obliged to stay in the orphanage for additional periods ranging from several months to several years. At the date of this judgment, some of them are still in orphanages.
The Russian Government had thus failed to show that there were compelling reasons to justify a blanket ban applied retroactively and indiscriminately to all prospective adoptive parents from the US (para 426). The difference in treatment was thus discriminatory in breach of Article 14, in conjunction with Article 8. There was thus no need to examine a separate complaint under Article 8.
The claimants further alleged that most of the children concerned needed specialist medical care that was only available in the US and depriving them of that treatment was a breach of their Article 3 rights, which protects against inhuman or degrading treatment. The Court considered this at para 432 onwards. The Russian Government provided evidence about medical treatment available and conditions in Russian orphanages and rejected the argument that the Russian state could not provide suitable medical care for the children. The claimants relied upon expert statements and academic works concerning the general situation in Russia as the medical files relating to the children were in the Russian Government's possession.
Submissions of third party intervenors about the importance of early permanence for children.
At para 440 onwards the Court heard argument from the intervenors. The Harvard Law School's Child Advocacy Program (CAP) and the Bucharest Early Intervention Project (BEIP) argued that extensive research over many years demonstrated the importance of placing children in permanent adoptive homes as early as possible. Nurturing parenting in child's early months and years is vital to normal physical, emotional and intellectual development. CAP cited particular concerns about Russian orphanages, saying '95% of Russian children who grow up in orphanages end up on the streets… and are likely to die shortly after their 18th birthday'. As the world became more global, the idea 'that children belonged in some essentialist sense with their racial or national groups of origin was outdated' (para 443).
The Russian Government countered that Article 8 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child protected the child's right to preservation of his or her identity, including nationality. They rejected the arguments about dire outcomes for children in Russian orphanages as 'unsubstantiated and untrue' (para 446).
The Court ruled that the complaint based on Article 3 was inadmissible as manifestly ill founded. The information provided by the claimants was largely of a general nature and the evidence from the Russian Government showed that these particular children received adequate medical care in Russia.
The Court awarded the applicants EUR 3,000 in respect of non-pecuniary damage and around $600 dollars for costs and expenses of the court proceedings.
There is a more serious problem in Russia. The Russian Government informed the Court that there were still more than 66,000 children abandoned by their parents and subsequently placed in orphanages. The total number of such children who have been accommodated in orphanages during the last 25 years may be close to 300,000. Obviously this is the result of a structural social problem caused by the deterioration of values and lack of social responsibility. This problem cannot be resolved either by inter-country adoption or by political pressure'.
This entry was posted in Other Countries and tagged Article 14, Article 8, inter-country adoption, Russia, US on January 17, 2017 by Sarah Phillimore.
For what reasons do other countries allow adoption without consent?
We are grateful for this helpful summary of the position in other EU Member states from Claire Fenton – Glynn. See further her post, We are not alone: Every European country permits adoption without parental consent.
BULGARIA Resident in a foster home or institutional care, and parent has not requested the termination or modification of this measure and the return of the child (6 months) Parents continuously fail to provide care for the child, do not provide financial support, or raise and educate the child in a manner harmful to its development.
LATVIA Treat the child especially badly or does not care of the child or does not ensure the supervision of the child and it may endanger the physical, mental or moral development of the child.
This entry was posted in Other Countries and tagged dispensing with consent, forced adoption, grounds for adoption without consent in EU member states on August 9, 2015 by Sarah Phillimore.
We are grateful for this contribution from the Lähemmäs (Closer) project from Finland.
Lähemmäs believes that the child has the right to express who s/he feels close to and the aim is to get those people involved in supporting the child in all stages of child welfare procedures.
Another aim is to challenge the authorities to see the people around the child as positive resources when they prove to be such.
See more at www.pesapuu -a nationwide child welfare association bringing expertise to the field of child welfare.
Adoption is not the solution?
We can see that the important issues and questions being considered in Finland are very similar to those in England – particularly the core value of protecting the best interests of the child and looking at family care as the first resort for children.
The key distinction between UK and Finnish law is that Finland does not permit any kind of formal end to the legal relationship between parent and child although a child has been taken into long-term care. Thus in the Finnish system, children taken into care will NOT be adopted but rather will be in foster care or institutional care.
It would be interesting to compare and contrast in greater detail the different attitudes between the Finnish and the UK approach to what is considered the best long term outcomes for children in care.
EDIT 9th August 2015: To say that Finland does not permit a formal end to the legal relationship between parent and child does not seem to be supported by legal analysis from others. Please see this post by Claire Fenton Glynn. I will attempt to find out more and clarify this position.
(1) The adoption of a child may not be granted unless his/her parents have consented thereto, with the exceptions provided in paragraphs (2) and (3) and section 36(2).
(2) For exceptional reasons, adoption may be granted even if the consent of the parents or one of them has not been obtained or if a previous consent has been withdrawn, if it is deemed that the adoption obviously and definitely is in the best interests of the child and that the refusal or withdrawal of consent by the parent(s) is not sufficiently justified, taking into account the best interests of the child and the interaction between the child and the parent(s), their mutual relationship and its nature.
… you are also correct that in Finland uses long term foster care as the preferred option, and I think the use of this section would be very rare (if you look at cases where Finland has been taken to the ECtHR, even in quite extreme cases foster care is preferred).
Unfortunately, I don't know full details about how often it is used, and in what circumstances. I think this is the crucial issue, and it is why I don't really think talking about the mechanisms for adoption in and of themselves is necessary helpful – the only reason I have been emphasising the legal frameworks is that I get annoyed that there is misinformation out there about it not being possible, when I think there needs to be a shift in the discussion – moving away from what is possible (because all frameworks are roughly similar in terms of some kind of parental misconduct or abandonment), to what is actually done.
What we need is a discussion of how these mechanisms are used, and when, and what reaction social services would have in different countries to the same scenario (eg. drug use of parents, developmental delays, problems at school etc). There was one attempt to do so in 2003 by Warman and Roberts, but as far as I am aware, nothing similar has been done since.
How is the information shared between various authorities?
Family care as primary option for the children in care.
The amount of work and customers per social worker ( e.g. the prime assessments of whether there is a need for child protective services are not always done in the timeline stated in the Child Welfare Act).
The need for a strategy plan for improving child welfare.
The experiences of the children, the young and the families who are/have been clients in child welfare services will be taken into account when assessing and improving the quality of child protection services.
In 2012, the number of children placed in care, total of 10,675, stayed at the same level as the year before. The number of new cases of taking into care fell by 143 children, showing a decrease of 4 per cent on 2011.
The number of children in emergency placement has been increasing sharply since 2005, but now the growth has slowed down. There were 3,944 children in emergency placement in 2012, showing an increase of 1.5 per cent on 2011.
During the year, a total of 17,830 children and young people were placed outside the home, an increase of 1.6 per cent on the previous year. There were more boys placed outside the home than girls.
Half of the children in care at the end of 2012 were placed in foster families. Of these children, 11 per cent were placed with relatives or friends.
There were 1.6 child welfare notifications per child in 2012, and the notifications concerned altogether 64,391 children.
Around 87,200 children and young people received support in community care in 2011. This was 7 per cent more than in 2010. Some 7 000 clients in community care received after-care.
Actions should be as discreet as possible and the open care services must be used as primary means of help unless the need of a child requires otherwise. When substitute care is in the best interest of a child it must be arranged without delay. The aim to re-unite the family must be taken into account in substitute care while keeping the best interest of a child in mind.
The basic principle is to help the child and the family so that the children could live in their own homes with their families. These primary services are called support means in open care. They are voluntary and based on co-operation.
The placement away from home may be a short-term solution to a difficult situation. Emergency placement is implemented if a child is in danger. Taking into care is the final option. Taking into care is prepared together with the family and may take a long time. Sometimes taking into care must be done even though the family opposes it. A child taken into care goes to live in a foster family or child protection institution. The child stays in care as long as it is needed but if the circumstances that led to placement away from home change for the better it is necessary to find out whether the child could return home.
it may include support for housing, livelihood, work or studies.
The Survivors' focus group consists of young volunteers between the ages of 16-26 who are or have been in alternative care. The group was formed in 2008 as part of the Youth in Alternative Care project under the auspices of the Finnish NGO Pesäpuu – Centre of Expertise in Child Welfare which is financed by the Finnish Slot Machine Organisation (RAY).
See 'Protect your Dreams – Safeguard the Hope: Children's Contribution to Developing High Quality Alternative Care' – the Ombudsman for Children in Finland.
The first handbook for children and youth in alternative care in Scandinavia was published in 2010 by the Selviytyjät Survivors Focus and Development Group. The title 'We Believe in You, So Should You' served as a basis to a seminar. From this the group developed a special tool to help others develop methods to better hear the needs of children.
See Child and Family Policy in Finland – the aim of Finland's family policy is to create a safe environment for children to grow up in and to provide parents with the material and psychological means to have and raise children. In recent years, the emphasis has been on reconciling paid employment and family life, strengthening fatherhood and ensuring an adequate level of income for families.
The Finnish Board of Inter-Country Adoption Affairs (Finnish Adoption Board) is the expert body in inter-country adoption affairs in Finland. It is subordinated to the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health. The Board was founded in 1985 and has since 1 July 1997 acted as the central authority meant in the Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (Hague Convention). This is what we understand by adoption in Finland.
See also the Association of Adoptive Families in Finland.
The Nordic perspective on child welfare.
Children and families are at the heart of social work all over the world, but, until now Nordic perspectives have been rare in the body of English-language child welfare literature. Is there something that makes child welfare ideas and practices that are in use in the Nordic countries characteristically 'Nordic'? If so, what kinds of challenges do the current globalization trends pose for Nordic child welfare practices, especially for social work with children and families?
Covering a broad range of child welfare issues, this edited collection provides examples of Nordic approaches to child welfare, looking at differences between Nordic states as well as the similarities. It considers, and critically examines, the particular features of the Nordic welfare model – including universal social care services that are available to all citizens and family policies that promote equality and individuality – as a resource for social work with children and families.
Drawing on contemporary research and debates from different Nordic countries, the book examines how social work and child welfare politics are produced and challenged as both global and local ideas and practices. "Social work and child welfare politics" is aimed at academics and researchers in social work, childhood studies, children's policy and social policy, as well as social work practitioners, policy makers and service providers, all over the world who are interested in Nordic experiences of providing care and welfare for families with children.
This entry was posted in Other Countries and tagged Finland on May 6, 2014 by Sarah Phillimore.


text:
Q: Can I make last item of sitemapPath control not clickable? ASP.NET I am using asp.net built-in SitemapPath control as a breadcrumbs bar on a site. SitemapPath get the data from Web.Sitemap file. At the moment, if you click on the last item on the SitemapPath which will reload the same page again.
Can I make the last item of SitemapPath not clickable but other items still clickable to avoid users clicking on that last item.
Thanks,
L

A: The documentation suggests that RenderCurrentNodeAsLink is the property you're looking for, but the default value is false.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
HomeAbbie DeLoach Blog Blog
A Higher Level of Leadership
When it comes to leadership, I find wisdom in a story from speaker and author Michael G. Rogers. It's a parable that highlights five things great
How to move past excuses and get it done
"The greatest glory in living lies not in never failing, but in rising every time we fall." — Nelson Mandela "The way to get started is to quit
Everyone knows
It is said that no one ever knows when you start something, but everyone knows when you quit something. We know it, too, by the way it feels. Many
Join us for the True Blue 5K and Abbie's Adventure Race event on Sept. 24
The Abbie DeLoach Foundation has been the proud sponsor of the annual Georgia Southern University True Blue 5K/Abbie's Adventure Race since 2018. This
For the Love of College Football
It's almost that time of year — when football fans wait for their college team to kick off the new season and be national champions in January
Knocked out or knocked down?
New dreams form every day — so many that if we could count them and put just a penny value on each one, we would be among the richest people in the
What is your personal goal this year?
Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending. I can't go back and change the accident that took
Walking with warriors on Memorial Day
Warriors Walk is located at Fort Stewart in Hinesville, Georgia. It was built to honor the soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Division from Fort Steward and
Work and life advice for new graduates
It was 1982, at the home of the Norcross High School blue devils in Gwinnett County, Georgia — then a hotbed of growth for the metro Atlanta area. The
Moms and their seventh sense
Did you ever tell a lie to your mom? I mean, not a little white lie, but one that would ignite her wrath? I know I may have slid a few past my mom.
Making new endings — and beginnings
"Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending." I gave that framed quote to my parents, two
Life at the crossroads of quality and quantity
"Excellence comes when we balance quality and quantity." — Amit Ray I don't know much about Mr. Ray, other than that he is an author of several


We'd love to see more of this on the big screen!
Rayman Legends is quickly approaching release time. From what we saw at E3, it's going to be one of the best looking (art-wise) co-op titles on the Wii U. But since this game will be releasing on most consoles now, practically everyone will be able to play this visually vibrant, stunning game come August. But just to grab a bit more eye-candy, we had a few new trailers pop up from Ubisoft that are def. worth watching once.
Rayman Legends releases on August 30th for the Wii U, Xbox 360, PS3, and Vita, and will have a 5-player co-op mode. Don't forget that the Rayman Legends Challenge App is currently available for download on the Wii U!
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Earlier this month I wrote about MOTOWN THE MUSICAL, which will be in Detroit from April 18-30 at the Fisher Theatre.
Click here to read about the show, and here to purchase tickets from Ticketmaster.
Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Sunday, March 19th, at 11:59pm EST, and winner will be notified the next day via email, and have 24 hours to respond, or an alternate winner will be chosen.
Winner will receive a 4-pack of tickets for opening night (Tuesday, April 18th). Tickets will be available for pick-up at the Fisher box office on the day of the show.
Must live within driving distance to Detroit, MI to enter this giveaway.


text:
By: Baystreet Staff - Tuesday September 28,2021
False Positives Scare Highlights Need for Changes to Covid-19 Testing Processes
VANCOUVER – USA News Group – A round of false positive test results caused a stir on the popular TV show The View recently, and highlighted flaws in current Covid-19 testing protocols. In the aftermath of US President Joe Biden's pushing of mandatory vaccination/testing in the workplace, more problems have arisen, such as expensive testing costs, and rampant supply shortages. False positives such as those from the two hosts of The View can be quite costly, and are becoming increasingly likely, with false positive rates as high as 16.7%.The market is being tasked with addressing this issues, with a variety of innovative diagnostic options coming from developers and producers such as BioVaxys Technology Corp.(CSE:BIOV) (OTCQB:BVAXF), Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX), Qiagen N.V. (NYSE:QGEN), Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT) and Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX).
A promising new test from BioVaxys Technology Corp.(CSE:BIOV) (OTCQB:BVAXF) is currently being tested, touted as the world's first low cost, disposable, diagnostic to identify a T-cell immune response to the presence of SARS-CoV-2. Data from the use of this form of testing suggests it may even be more accurate than current methods.
The test, called CoviDTH, screens for a T cell-mediated immune response to SARS-CoV-2 instead of just for fragments of the virus itself. It's based on Delayed-Type Hypersensitivity ("DTH") technology, and is currently being developed with the assistance of large corporations, including $63-billion Chinese biomanufacturing partners, WuXi Biologics, and contract research services provider Inotiv, Inc., which has a market capitalization of $795 million.
In its July 2021 Written Response to BioVaxys on the Company's request for a Pre-IND Type B review of CoviDTH as a diagnostic for evaluating T-cell immune response to SARS-CoV-2, the US FDA indicated that animal toxicity studies for CoviDTH were not required and that the Company could start its clinical development program with a combined Phase I/II study.
Despite animal testing being discretionary, BioVaxys announced its started its planned in vivo animal toxicology study of CoviDTH in parallel with the preparation of an IND submission. Assisting with the process is Inotiv, Inc. who is evaluating the safety, tolerability, and toxicity of the purified recombinant SARS-CoV-2 s-protein provided by WuXi Biologics that is a principal constituent of CoviDTH in an intradermal research models.
"Based on the millions of people who have received COVID-19 vaccines that are based on in vivo cellular expression of SARS-CoV-2 s-spike protein, as well as the human DTH studies, we are confident that the toxicology study with Inotiv of the s-protein will likewise confirm the safety profile of CoviDTH," said BioVaxys President and Chief Operating Officer Ken Kovan.
Using a personal smartphone to conduct Covid-19 testing is on its way, as the FDA granted an Emergency Use Application (EUA) to Becton, Dickinson and Company (NYSE:BDX) (or 'BD') for its BD VeritorTM At-Home Covid-19 Test—the first at-home Covid-19 rapid antigen test to use computer vision technology in a smartphone to interpret and provide digital display of testing results.
"The rise in COVID-19 cases from the Delta variant has increased the demand for at-home testing, and the BD Veritor™ At-Home COVID-19 Test is an easy-to-use test with definitive digital results that is ideal for use in the home," said Dave Hickey, president of Life Sciences for BD. "New mandates from governments and businesses are specifying the need for periodic testing for those who cannot or chose not to be vaccinated, and this new test may help businesses, governments or schools fulfill those requirements."
Designed to be easily performed at home by people 14 years of age or older, the BD Veritor™ At-Home COVID-19 Test uses the Scanwell Health's app to provide clear digital results in 15 minutes. If samples are collected by an adult, the test can also be used for children as young as two years old.
As confidence in home testing grows, German genetic testing specialists Qiagen N.V. (NYSE:QGEN) is seeking to capitalizeand launch more products to detect everyday infections. So far, Qiagen's net profit of $250m in the first six months of 2021 has been almost double that of the same period in 2020, when Covid-19 testing was still limited.
"[Demand for Covid-19 tests] completely changed the paradigm for a company like ours," Thierry Bernard, chief executive, told the Financial Times. The shift exploded the value of Qiagen, which saw multibillion takeover attempts from majors in the industry last year.
Similar demand growth has been witnessed by Abbott Laboratories (NYSE:ABT), especially for its BinaxNOW tests, which spokesperson for the company, John Koval, claims are seeing "unprecedented demand".
"Today, there are tens of millions of BinaxNOW tests in various settings and supply chains," Koval said in an email. "We're working with our customers to ensure tests get to where they're most needed and we're ramping back up, as we did last year… There will be some supply constraints over the coming weeks as increased capacity comes online."
Perhaps even bigger new for Abbott was the report from Reuters that the US government is set to purchase more than half a billion dollars' worth of rapid coronavirus tests for point-of-care situations, such as nursing homes and other high risk populations.
After initiating a dull 2021 outlook back in July, Quest Diagnostics Incorporated (NYSE:DGX) updated its outlookbased on surging demand for COVID-19 tests. Earlier in September, the company significantly raised its full-year projection.
"There is simply nowhere near enough supply of POC or OTC tests (PCR tests could be used for regular screening but come with logistical and cost hurdles) today to meet the demand of the U.S. government (280 million tests), employers (likely millions of tests per week), schools, traditional healthcare settings, and retail demand," the company wrote in the update.
As per the increase, the update included a prediction of full-year net revenues ranging $9.84-$10.09 billion, indicating a 4.3-6.9% improvement from 2020. Much of this comes from a new assumption of average volumes of at least 40,000 molecular tests daily for the second half of the year, doubling upon the previous guidance of 20,000.
According to a new global diagnostic enzyme market report, the market is expected to grow from $3.23 billion in 2020 to $3.53 billion in 2021 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.3%. This market is now expected to reach $4.44 billion in 2025 at a CAGR of 6%.
Article Source: https://biotech-today.com/heres-why-you-want-biotech-stocks-in-your-portfolio/
DISCLAIMER: Nothing in this publication should be considered as personalized financial advice. We are not licensed under securities laws to address your particular financial situation. No communication by our employees to you should be deemed as personalized financial advice. Please consult a licensed financial advisor before making any investment decision. This is a paid advertisement and is neither an offer nor recommendation to buy or sell any security. We hold no investment licenses and are thus neither licensed nor qualified to provide investment advice. The content in this report or email is not provided to any individual with a view toward their individual circumstances. USA News Group is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Market IQ Media Group, Inc. ("MIQ"). MIQ has been paid a fee for BioVaxys Technology Corp. advertising and digital media from the company directly. There may be 3rd parties who may have shares of BioVaxys Technology Corp., and may liquidate their shares which could have a negative effect on the price of the stock. This compensation constitutes a conflict of interest as to our ability to remain objective in our communication regarding the profiled company. Because of this conflict, individuals are strongly encouraged to not use this publication as the basis for any investment decision. The owner/operator of MIQ own shares of BioVaxys Technology Corp. which were purchased as a part of a private placement. MIQ reserves the right to buy and sell, and will buy and sell shares of BioVaxys Technology Corp. at any time thereafter without any further notice. We also expect further compensation as an ongoing digital media effort to increase visibility for the company, no further notice will be given, but let this disclaimer serve as notice that all material disseminated by MIQ has been approved by the above mentioned company; this is a paid advertisement, and we own shares of the mentioned company that we will sell, and we also reserve the right to buy shares of the company in the open market, or through further private placements and/or investment vehicles.
While all information is believed to be reliable, it is not guaranteed by us to be accurate. Individuals should assume that all information contained in our newsletter is not trustworthy unless verified by their own independent research. Also, because events and circumstances frequently do not occur as expected, there will likely be differences between any predictions and actual results. Always consult a licensed investment professional before making any investment decision. Be extremely careful, investing in securities carries a high degree of risk; you may likely lose some or all of the investment.
Severe Shortage of Lithium Could Put the Brakes on Electric Vehicle Boom
Double-Digit Growth in Global Cancer Immunotherapy Market to Drive Advancements Ahead of 2030
Three Top Reasons to Consider Cannabis Stocks in New Year 2022
Top Hydrogen Stocks to Consider in New Year 2022


The Argyle NYE 2018: Carpe Noctem (seize the night) – A show with an intriguing performance. Celebrate this New Year's Eve in style at The Argyle Hollywood, where Gatsby-esque decadence and Vegas style excess converge at Hollywood's most exclusive champagne jam. Prepare for a night set to excite and delight all your senses as we plan on sending out 2017 in true Argyle style.
Jump start the New Year with high fashion panache and Hollywood-only swank at the Argyle; where fashionable, megawatt revelry will make NYE in LA an out of this world experience. This New Year's Eve, Great Gatsby-inspired extravagance meets Vegas style excess at Argyle. Your NYE will be a great one!
The celebration starts with a five-hour open bar, providing a free flow of premium liquor fuel for Argyle's beautiful patrons. As you revel amid Argyle's luxurious surrounding, satiate other party-appetite with early evening mini-buffet and festive NYE party favors, both compliments of the house.
The Argyle's spacious dance floor will fill up with L.A.'s most beautiful party-goers as a live DJ spins the best of Hip Hop and Top 40 Open Format music. As the clock ticks down on the year, the excited crowd will gather around for an electrifying live countdown complete with a complimentary champagne toast.
For those looking to experience NYE revelry supersized with 'all-eyes-on-me' VIP, The Argyle knows how to deliver decked out decadence in high doses. With L.A.'s first ever two-story VIP "table," with its own balcony, Argyle is the expert on the velvet-rope experience and has created, on its nightclub level, a debauched dancery that combines, high art, high fashion, and high times.
Indulge in one of The Argyle New Years Party packages that will make you feel like nightlife royalty. Limited amount of early bird tickets are available now to buy online and save money. Act fast. This event will sell out. And don't forget to dress to impress, you never know who you might meet this NYE.


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Elite international experts to debate SMRs' role in nuclear co-generation and hybrid systems
February 3, 2015 By Rod Adams
Atomic Insights is a media partner for the 5th Annual Small Modular Reactor Summit, scheduled for April 14-15 in Charlotte, NC. Conference value increases when information about the event reaches people who are keenly interested in the topics that will be discussed.
We will be running several pieces that will help Atomic Insights readers decide whether they should make plans to attend.
A unique panel discussion and workshop on integrating small modular reactors (SMRs) into nuclear co-generation and hybrid energy systems has been confirmed for the 5th Annual Small Modular Reactor Summit 2015, to be held April 14-15, in Charlotte NC.
Experts leading the development of the technology from Europe and the US will provide first-hand updates and probe issues through interactive sessions.
The panel has been assembled by David Matthews, Nuclear Energy Consultants and former Director of New Reactor Licensing at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission – who will also serve as workshop moderator – and Phil Hildebrandt, Special Advisor to the Director, Idaho National Lab.
Nuclear co-generation promises to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by capturing the heat and electricity produced by nuclear power generation for use in other industrial and domestic applications.
"This kind of session has never taken place before and represents an absolutely unmissable opportunity for any utility development manager," said Kerr Jeferies, senior industry analyst, Nuclear Energy Insider.
"The integration of SMRs into hybrid energy systems thinking is sure to be a catalyst for the development of all related technologies," he added.
The panelists have been named as Shannon Bragg-Sitton, Deputy National Technical Director, Idaho National Lab; Fred Moore, Executive Director – Emeritus, NGNP Alliance Ltd; Kajetan Rozycki, Head of New Reactor Technologies Team, European Nuclear Cogeneration Industrial Initiative (NC2i); and Mike Middleton, Strategy Manager, UK Energy Technologies Institute.
In specially facilitated break-out sessions delegates will be able to evaluate the potential opportunities for SMRs, both LWR and non-LWR designs such as High Temperature Gas Reactors (HTGR), in energy co-generation applications, and explore the economic models available when SMRs are deployed as part of an integrated energy generation system.
Also revealed will be the most recent technological developments in the nuclear co-generation field, plus strategies for identifying new investment propositions.
Phil Hildebrandt of Idaho National Lab will lead the panel discussion with an overview of SMR nuclear energy co-generation opportunities and the concepts of hybrid energy systems.
Shannon Bragg-Sitton, also of Idaho National Lab, will provide perspectives on the use of nuclear energy systems as an integral part of hybrid energy system concepts, including technical, business model and economic considerations.
Mike Middleton, ETI, will present the role of nuclear within the energy mix of a typical scenario through to a 2050 UK low carbon energy system.
Fred Moore, of NGNP Alliance, will provide end-user perspectives and the potential for integration of High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (HTGR) technology with a petrochemical facility based on his earlier experience as a senior manager in The Dow Chemical Company.
Kajetan Różycki, of Poland's National Centre for Nuclear Research, and representing Europe's Nuclear Co-generation Industrial Initiative (NC2i), will provide a vital European perspective and assess the European business interests in co-generation.
Last year, leaders of the NGNP Industry Alliance Limited NC2i met to discuss collaboration opportunities to develop and commercialize a Generation IV, intrinsically safe HTGR technology that can be used for co-generation.
Both NC2i and the Alliance have missions to enable commercialization of the HTGR technology and expand the use of nuclear energy to industrial applications, and each are setting targets to build and demonstrate HTGR installations in energy-intensive industries over the coming decade.
Lower temperature applications could include seawater desalination or district heating, while higher temperature industrial applications such as chemicals production, oil refining, hydrogen production or advanced steelmaking.
"Getting these two groups together in one room is going to be tremendously exciting," Jeferies said.
So far, confirmed attendees to the Summit include senior executives from PSEG, Fortum, Ameren, Exelon, First Energy, Areva, Generation mPower, Mitsubishi, Bechtel, Mirion, Marsh, Terrestrial, US Department of Energy, IAEA, Chinese National Nuclear Corporation, and more.
Atomic Insights has secured a 10% discount to readers – simply quote ATOMICINSIGHTS when you register online here at: http://bit.ly/1CW6DHf
For more information visit the website at: http://bitly.com/zIFetv
SMR advocates and interested parties gathering in Charlotte - April 14-15
Filed Under: Conferences, Small Nuclear Power Plants, Smaller reactors
Hey Rod – sorry, this isn't directly related to this blog post, but just wanting to reach you – It's breaking in the news that Plant Vogtle in GA is running into schedule delays and cost overruns. Can you look into this and provide some insight, response for those who will surely point to this as claiming once again, "Nuclear is too expensive and constantly runs over budget"?
My guess is that, being that this is the first of a kind being built in the US (though not first of a kind – there are some being built in China that I think are ahead of Vogtle?), that might have something to do with this?
http://arstechnica.com/science/2015/02/further-delays-strike-us-nuclear-plant-construction/
Someone else pointed me to an article Rod posted over on the ANS blog on the topic of Vogtle delays. I hadn't seen this before.
http://ansnuclearcafe.org/2014/11/12/root-cause-of-vogtle-and-vc-summer-delays/


text:
package org.sakaiproject.kernel.component.test;

import static org.junit.Assert.assertEquals;
import static org.junit.Assert.assertNotNull;

import com.thoughtworks.xstream.XStream;
import com.thoughtworks.xstream.annotations.Annotations;

import org.apache.commons.logging.Log;
import org.apache.commons.logging.LogFactory;
import org.junit.Before;
import org.junit.Test;
import org.sakaiproject.kernel.api.ComponentSpecificationException;
import org.sakaiproject.kernel.api.Artifact;
import org.sakaiproject.kernel.api.DependencyScope;
import org.sakaiproject.kernel.api.PackageExport;
import org.sakaiproject.kernel.component.URLComponentSpecificationImpl;
import org.sakaiproject.kernel.component.model.Component;
import org.sakaiproject.kernel.component.model.DependencyImpl;
import org.sakaiproject.kernel.component.model.PackageExportImpl;
import org.sakaiproject.kernel.util.ResourceLoader;
import org.sakaiproject.kernel.util.XSDValidator;

import java.io.IOException;
import java.io.InputStream;
import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.List;

/**
 *
 */
public class URLComponentSpecificationImplTest {

  private static final String TEST_RESOURCE = "res://org/sakaiproject/kernel/component/test/simplecomponent.xml";
  private static final String TEST_COMPLEX_RESOURCE = "res://org/sakaiproject/kernel/component/test/complexcomponent.xml";
  private static final Log LOG = LogFactory
      .getLog(URLComponentSpecificationImplTest.class);
  private static final String COMPONENTS_XSD = "res://components.xsd";
  private static final String XML_DECL = "<?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"UTF-8\"?>\n";
  private static final String XML_XSD = " xmlns=\"http://ns.sakaiproject.org/2008/components\" ";

  /**
   * @throws java.lang.Exception
   */
  @Before
  public void setUp() throws Exception {
  }

  @Test
  public void testOutput() throws IOException {
    XStream xstream = new XStream();
    Annotations.configureAliases(xstream, Component.getComponentClasses());
    Component c = new Component();
    c.setActivator("activator.class");
    c.setDocumentation("docs");
    c.setGroupId("org.sakaiproject.kernel.components");
    c.setArtifactId("component1");
    c.setVersion("1.0");
    c.setUnmanaged(false);
    DependencyImpl cd = new DependencyImpl();
    cd.setGroupId("org.sakaiproject.kernel.components");
    cd.setArtifactId("component2");
    c.setUnmanaged(true);
    DependencyImpl cd1 = new DependencyImpl();
    cd1.setGroupId("org.sakaiproject.kernel.components");
    cd1.setArtifactId("component2");
    c.setUnmanaged(true);
    List<Artifact> cdl = new ArrayList<Artifact>();
    cdl.add(cd);
    cdl.add(cd1);
    c.setComponentDependencies(cdl);

    DependencyImpl cpd1 = new DependencyImpl();
    cpd1.setGroupId("org.sakaiproject.kernel2.agnostic");
    cpd1.setArtifactId("shared");
    cpd1.setVersion("0.1-SNAPSHOT");
    cpd1.setScope(DependencyScope.LOCAL);

    DependencyImpl cpd2 = new DependencyImpl();
    cpd2.setGroupId("org.sakaiproject.kernel2.agnostic");
    cpd2.setArtifactId("common");
    cpd2.setVersion("0.1-SNAPSHOT");
    cpd2.setScope(DependencyScope.SHARE);

    List<Artifact> cpdl = new ArrayList<Artifact>();
    cpdl.add(cpd1);
    cpdl.add(cpd2);

    c.setDependencies(cpdl);

    PackageExportImpl pe1 = new PackageExportImpl();
    pe1.setName("org.sakaiproject.kernel.api");
    PackageExportImpl pe2 = new PackageExportImpl();
    pe2.setName("org.sakaiproject.search.api");

    List<PackageExport> pel = new ArrayList<PackageExport>();
    pel.add(pe1);

    c.setExports(pel);
    xstream.setMode(XStream.NO_REFERENCES);

    String specification = attachXSD(xstream.toXML(c));
    LOG.info(specification);
    InputStream xsd = ResourceLoader.openResource(COMPONENTS_XSD,this.getClass().getClassLoader());
    String errors = XSDValidator.validate(specification, xsd);
    LOG.info(errors);
    assertEquals("", errors);

  }

  /**
   * @param xml
   * @return
   */
  private String attachXSD(String xml) {
    int endtag = xml.indexOf('>');
    return XML_DECL + xml.substring(0, endtag) + XML_XSD
        + xml.substring(endtag);
  }

  /**
   * Test method for
   * {@link org.sakaiproject.kernel.component.URLComponentSpecificationImpl#URLComponentSpecificationImpl(java.lang.String)}
   * .
   *
   * @throws IOException
   */
  @Test
  public void testSimpleComponentSpecificationImpl() throws IOException,
      ComponentSpecificationException {
    URLComponentSpecificationImpl uc = new URLComponentSpecificationImpl(null,
        TEST_RESOURCE);
    assertNotNull(uc.getComponentDependencies());
    assertEquals(0, uc.getComponentDependencies().length);
    assertNotNull(uc.getComponentActivatorClassName());
    assertNotNull(uc.getDependencies());
    assertEquals(0, uc.getDependencies().length);
  }

  @Test
  public void testComplexComponentSpecificationImpl() throws IOException,
      ComponentSpecificationException {
    URLComponentSpecificationImpl uc = new URLComponentSpecificationImpl(null,
        TEST_COMPLEX_RESOURCE);
    assertNotNull(uc.getComponentDependencies());
    assertEquals(3, uc.getComponentDependencies().length);
    assertNotNull(uc.getComponentActivatorClassName());
    assertNotNull(uc.getDependencies());
    assertEquals(1, uc.getDependencies().length);
  }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Tragic story of grieving man and how extreme cleaners saved him from 'monster' flat
TV's Call The Cleaners takes a look inside Britain's dirtiest homes and the teams who transform them so they sparkle
Jane LavenderAssistant Editor
Eight years ago Alan's whole world fell apart.
Within weeks both his beloved wife and his best friend lost their battles against cancer.
Since then he has struggled to maintain normal life and left feeling totally isolated he eventually stopped cleaning his home five years ago.
Alan, from Glasgow, said: "I got depressed, I got very, very isolated and I let the place go.
"As you can see there's some long-term neglect in this place."
Alan has struggled since the death of his wife and his best friend (Image: ITV)
'My hair falls out, I have memory loss and chronic pain due to my mouldy flat'
The 62-year-old is now confined to just one room in his flat - and it's covered in thousands and thousands of cigarette butts and rotting food.
His tiny living space also houses a fridge and a broken cooker.
But he dreams of one day being able to sleep in his own bed once again, use his kitchen and bathroom and relax in his living room.
Alan is one of the people being helped by the extreme cleaners on ITV's Call The Cleaners.
He said: "Yes, I'd like to have two separate rooms and a normal house. I'd like to live as a normal person."
Jamie and Steve work hard to transform Alan's home (Image: ITV)
The toilet is going to take some serious scrubbing (Image: ITV)
TripAdvisor says this hotel is one worst places to stay - and here's what it's like to spend night there
Extreme cleaners, Jamie and Steven have three days to transform Alan's grimey home into a sparkling palace.
They get to work but admit it's a "monster challenge".
And the more they clear away, the more evident it becomes that this is no ordinary clean.
Rotting tins of ham and carpet flies greet them in the only room Alan lives in while takes charge of the bathroom.
Jamie has to use a heavy duty scraper and special brush to tackle the carpet.
Maxine and Jasmine have a tough job on their hands to clean up Neil's flat (Image: ITV)
But after three days of hard work, Alan's home is once again gleaming - and the first time he sees it, he can't believe it.
He says: "It's absolutely brilliant. I don't recognise it. I didn't realise the potential this room had until I saw it.
"Everybody needs a wee bit of a helping hand. I've certainly got that and now it's up to me to make sure that helping hand isn't thrown away."
Meanwhile, in Dover Maxine and Jasmine are heading to the rescue of Neil, a 54-year-old man with learning difficulties who has lived on his own for eight years.
But he struggled to stay on top of his cleaning and mountains of rubbish have built up in his flat.
Neil has struggled to stay on top of his cleaning and mountains of rubbish has built up (Image: ITV)
A 45-year-old dad who struggles with anxiety and depression hasn't been able to clean his flat for eight years (Image: ITV)
Not only that but his toilet has become blocked solid because of a severe limescale.
Maxine and Jasmine have just two days to transform his home.
Super strength acid is needed to clear the limescale from the toilet but with a LOT of elbow grease, one full skip, a litre of acid and two litres of bleach Neil's home is spic and span.
When he returns he can't believe the difference.
He says: "You got it looking really nice for me. It's a lot better. I'm very proud of my flat now with it all being nicely done."
And in Kent, Joh Marc and La Toyah are tasked with transforming the home of a 45-year-old father who is struggling with anxiety and depression.
He hasn't cleaned his two-bed flat for seven years and every surface is caked in dirt and grime.
But just 24 hours later, it looks like new.
Call The Cleaners is on ITV at 7:30pm tonight.


text:
New service to Cape Town
Virgin Atlantic announces new service to Cape Town
Flying from 25th October 2020
Sunseekers this winter can head down to South Africa on Virgin Atlantic's new daily seasonal service flying between London Heathrow and Cape Town
With the first flight taking off on 25th October 2020, the new service will operate on a Boeing 787-9 aircraft complementing the existing daily service to Johannesburg.
Juha Jarvinen, Chief Commercial Officer, Virgin Atlantic commented: "2020 is an extremely exciting year of continued growth for Virgin Atlantic. Not only are we launching a new service to Sao Paulo in March but we're delighted to announce a new seasonal service to Cape Town offering more choice for our customers than ever before."
"We're delighted to be flying to Cape Town again - we're expecting a high proportion of leisure travellers on this route taking advantage of the winter sun, the safaris and of course, the world-famous wine region."
The VS478 will operate as a night flight departing Heathrow at 16:20 arriving into Cape Town at 05:55 whereas the inbound, the VS479, will depart at 08:00 landing later that day at 18:00. Return Economy fares start from £713 per person.
The new services will be on sale from 18th February 2020. Visit www.virginatlantic.com for more information and to book.


The decisive state in the 2000 presidential election has received less and less attention over the last twelve years. Florida tilted more Republican than the nation in the 2004 and 2008 presidential elections, and Kerry's pursuit of Ohio combined with the emergence of new battlegrounds in the Southwest and the Mid-Atlantic to break Florida's stranglehold on the Electoral College.
But while few argue that Florida is 2012's most important state, its 29 electoral votes—the most of any battleground state—remain hotly contested. Indeed, the campaigns have spent more on advertising in Florida than any other state, although big spending is as much a product of the state's size as its competitiveness. Early on, most advertisements were purchased by the Obama campaign, presumably in an attempt to overcome the state's slight Republican lean.
But recently, Romney has begun to pour more money into the state. According to new data from NBC's First Read, the Tampa and Orlando media markets have surged up the rankings and now stand as the second and third most heavily saturated markets in the country. Perhaps more significantly, the two Florida markets are the only two of the ten most saturated media markets where Romney is outspending Obama, suggesting that the Romney campaign feels compelled to play catch-up in a state expected to tilt toward the Republican candidate.
If the Romney campaign's internal numbers are similar to the public polls, then their decision to invest more heavily in Florida is unsurprising. After a wave of favorable polls following Romney's triumph in the GOP primary, Obama appears to hold a modest lead in most surveys over the last 45 days. Representatively, two Quinnipiac polls conducted in June show Obama leading by 4 percentage points after the same firm showed Romney leading by an average of 3 or 4 percentage points in May.
Much of the change appears to be driven by a collapse in Romney's favorability ratings among white working class voters—precisely the effect predicted by advocates of attacks on Romney's time at Bain Capital. Romney's favorability rating among white voters without a college degree dropped by a net-15 points between the May and June Quinnipiac polls and Romney's standing in the horse race declined by a net-10 points.
While Romney fell among college educated white voters, the losses were minor compared to declines among whites without a college degree.
Romney's renewed weakness might not translate into many votes for Obama, since white working class voters in Florida hold an even dimmer view of the President than Romney. However, dissatisfaction with two unappealing choices might just lead these voters to stay home, and the percentage of white voters without a college degree indicating that they do not intend to vote increased in every successive Quinnipiac poll, rising from 1 to 5 percent over the last two months—more than any other demographic group in Florida.
Even if Obama can't sway disaffected white working class voters, low turnout among voters with reservations about Obama's performance is still a boon for the President's reelection chances. Obama's diverse base gives him a relatively high ceiling, and Romney will need to consolidate dissatisfied white working class voters to swamp a strong Obama showing in southeast Florida and Orlando.
Obama has problems of his own. A majority of Floridians do not approve of the President's performance or believe he deserves reelection. But Florida is a state that Romney ought to hold in the event of a close national election, and the possibility that Obama's relentless attacks on Romney's record have nudged the state toward the national mean would represent a meaningful tactical victory for the Obama campaign in the early stages of the race. While Obama possesses plenty of routes to victory without Florida, Romney would be hard pressed to overcome a loss in the Sunshine State.


Hierald Osorto, director of religious and spiritual life, shared his experience as a gay latino growing up in a religious household and a predominantly white area of Newark, New Jersey.
Osorto, director of religious and spiritual life, spoke about his experiences as a member of the LGBTQ community in an annual talk held in commemoration of National Coming Out Day on Oct. 10. Every year, the Center for LGBTQ Education, Outreach and Services at Ithaca College hosts a local speaker to share their experiences opening up about their sexuality. During the event, titled "Creating from Chaos," Luca Maurer, director of the Center for LGBTQ Education, Outreach and Services, asked Osorto about his identity, not only as a gay man but also as a Latino man of faith. Approximately 10 students attended the event.
Osorto started working at the college this semester. The position was created partly to mend issues among the faith communities on campus and was proposed by Roger Richardson, associate vice president for the Division of Student Affairs and Campus Life, and students from the faith communities. Osorto said that although he initially resisted coming to the college, he feels called by God to serve in his current position.
He said the work that he and others at the college are doing to help create a dialogue takes courage. In order to go against the status quo and the systems that society perceives as normal also takes strength and courage, he said.
The need for strength is what gave Osorto the inspiration for the title of the dialogue.
Osorto shared the story of coming out to his mother, which he described first and foremost as chaotic. He said that when he came out, the only thing his mother could say was that she loved him. Although neither fully understood their emotions at the time, Osorto said, he knew that she would support him.
The most difficult part about coming out for Osorto was reconciling his sexuality and his spirituality. For students struggling with the same problem, Osorto recommended searching deeper within their faith and their traditions.
"Finding those texts that I draw from, the Bible, what are the ways that the stories there celebrate reconciliation or engagement with my spirituality or who I am," Osorto said.
Before Osorto came out as gay, he said he came out as Latino. As a child growing up in a predominantly white area of Newark, New Jersey, and as the son of Salvadoran immigrants, he said, he wanted to be like the other children at school.
He remembers feeling ashamed of his culture until he was in college, where he "came out as a Latino" and identified by "Hierald" instead of "Gerald," he said.
Osorto said he did not come as gay until later in his 20s after attending Messiah College, a conservative Christian college in central Pennsylvania. While at college, he said, he could not be fully out, but his college gave him the tools he needed to question his religion and begin to reconcile his sexuality and his spirituality.
Since coming out in his late 20s, Osorto has become more comfortable in who he is and how his identities connect, he said.
Osorto said that in order to move intersectional awareness forward, people need to be more aware of the way that they impact others. He questioned who the partners were in conversations about marginalized groups. If they were not members of the groups themselves, then the conversation only furthers stigma and exclusivity. He also said privilege, especially racial privilege, prevents society from being completely intersectional. Ultimately, he recommended that instead of acting as allies to LGBTQ people, students should be proactive in adding advocacy.
He also suggested going places where reconciliation could be seen. For him, it was a church in Washington, D.C., where he saw LGBTQ couples worshipping together with the rest of the church congregation. He also said it was important for him to draw a distinction between spirituality and institution. While in college, Osorto traveled to Nepal because his professor recommended the trip to him. He said his experiences with the Nepalese people who were of a different faith than himself taught him about the difference between religious constructs and personal spirituality.
Osorto will be hosting meals for LGBTQ students to talk with him about their experiences, specifically surrounding faith on campus. The meals will be held noon–1 p.m. Oct. 22 and 23 and 5–6 p.m. Oct. 30. The location will be announced at a later date.


text:
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text:
Safety probe after cinema employee falls through lift shaft
Curzon confirms it is examining circumstances of 'serious accident' at former Renoir picturehouse
28 March, 2019 — By Samantha Booth
A FAMOUS cinema is investigating how one of its members of staff fell through a lift shaft while at work.
Curzon Cinema confirmed there had been a "serious accident" at its Bloomsbury venue – the picture house formerly known as the Renoir – on Thursday evening. Ambulances arrived at the cinema at around 7pm and took the woman to hospital.
The chain, which also runs Curzon cinemas in Soho and Aldgate, would not expand on the details of the incident.
The New Journal has been told that the member of staff was seriously hurt. The cinema underwent a £2.5m refurbishment in 2015 and won a Riba London Award for the revamp the following year. It went from two large screens to six smaller screens, including a Bertha Dochouse, a dedicated documentary screen and a 148-seat room, named the Renoir in a nod to its past. A notice on its website warns customers that the lift is currently out of order.
A spokesman for Curzon said: "There was a serious accident at our Curzon Bloomsbury location on the evening of Thursday, March 21 involving a staff member." He added: "The person involved is receiving treatment and we are glad to report that they appear to be making good progress."
The ambulance service said it had been called to the Brunswick Square at about 6.50pm last Thursday to reports of an "incident".
A spokeswoman said: "We sent an ambulance crew to the scene. We treated a person and took them to hospital." The Curzon spokesman added: "We would prefer not to comment further at the moment while we conduct an internal investigation into what happened. The cinema remains open for business. We will be giving our full support to the staff member during their recovery."
Camden Council had been informed about last week's incident, the spokesman said.
From the West End Extra
Taxi drivers make their point in Parliament Square
17 January — By Tom Foot
Dub culture first in a museum setting
17 January — By The Xtra Diary
Jeremy Corbyn attended the D-Day anniversary
Councillor's tweet was flippant and arrogant
• ON January 5 2020 Labour councillor Richard Olszewski tweeted a photo of Iranian politicians chanting "death to America" and...


From his early work as lyricist for West Side Story to acclaimed creations such as A Little Night Music, Sunday in the Park with George, and Sweeney Todd, Stephen Sondheim is widely regarded as the most important figure in musical theater since the second half of the 20th century. Who better to discuss this prolific artist's work than the master himself? Sondheim on Music: Minor Details and Major Decisions is a collection of interviews conducted by Mark Eden Horowitz, senior music specialist in the music division of the Library of Congress. In these guided conversations, Sondheim expounds in great depth and detail on his craft. As a natural teacher, thoughtful and opinionated, Sondheim discusses the art of musical composition, lyric writing, the collaborative process of musical theater, and how he thinks about his own work. The entire scope of Sondheim's career is covered here, in which Sondheim's greatest works are discussed-from Passion, Assassins, Into the Woods, Sunday in the Park with George, Sweeney Todd, and Pacific Overtures to A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Merrily We Roll Along, Company, Follies, Anyone Can Whistle, and A Little Night Music. Sondheim even provides thoughts about the film adaptations of his works, such as Sweeney Todd. The book also features an entire chapter on Bounce, the previous incarnation of his latest musical, Road Show. Preserving the essential elements of the previous volumes, this edition includes all of the interviews-verbatim-and features a revised introduction and a postlude with an additional conversation. Finally in paperback, Sondheim on Music: Minor Details and Major Decisions, The Less Is More Edition is a must-have for fans of these creative genius.


Joie describe the Joie i-Level car seat as a 'carrier meets carry cot', so we're keen to have a look and see what their latest infant carrier offers.
"157° recline feature offering a safer and healthier angle"
"Large size so may not fit in some smaller cars if you have other passengers"
"Can't be used with vehicle's seat belt"
With the introduction of the i-Size regulations has come a host of safer, higher tested car seats. Car seat manufacturers have also acknowledged the fact that young babies are safer in the car in a more reclined angle and created infant carriers that allow them to travel in this position. The Joie i-Level allows your baby to travel in a near flat position in the car AND when used as part of a travel system!
The Joie i-Level is an infant carrier that offers an area of real comfort for the child with extra padding throughout. It comes with a plush infant insert that you can use from birth upto around 60cm, or whenever they get too big for it.
Fitted to the car with the included ISOFIX base, the i-Level is simple to use and we really liked the clear and easily accessible green indicators, ensuring that you have done everything correctly.
The best feature of this infant carrier is the three position tilt, the furthest being 157°. Whether you are travelling in the car or using the car seat on a pushchair chassis, you can make sure that your baby has the best position for their airways, as well as allowing proper spine development. This means that you don't have to worry as much about them being in their car seat, like you would with an upright one. It's easy to adjust through the positions, with a single button on the back of the seat.
As an infant carrier that you may use as part of a travel system, it's great to see such a large hood to offer protection to baby when out and about. It also has an additional zip section to come down even further. Made from a thick material, it shouldn't lose its shape and is UPF 50+ rated.
The Tri-Protect™ headrest has three layers of protection inside, as well as Guard Surround Safety™ filled with Intelli-Fit™ foam. The headrest adjusts simultaneously with the 3-point harness, meaning they move smoothly up and down together. No rethreading of the harness is a big plus!
Looking at other car seats on the market that offer a near lie flat position, especially in and out of the car, the i-Level is very competitively priced. The price of £250 also includes the ISOFIX base, whereas other car seats may need you to purchase this in addition.
With the hood on the i-Level being so big, it does make getting to the harness and headrest adjustment tricky. You need to reach right underneath the folds to alter it. This isn't a job that will need doing often though, and could be remedied by removing the hood if you don't need its protection out of the car.
After testing the car seat with a 10 month, 25 lb baby, we did find the padded headrest quite narrow. Although perfect to keep a small baby's head secure, it was a little snug around our tester's head, even though he had plenty of room everywhere else in the seat.
The fact that this car seat reclines means that it does take up more room on the back seat. Whether you choose to place it behind the driver or passenger seat, you'll have to adjust your front seat further forwards to accommodate.
As the i-Level meets the i-Size standards, it can only be used in the car with the ISOFIX base. This could make it difficult if you ever have to use a car without ISOFIX anchors, or are travelling in a taxi.
The Joie i-Level is an infant carrier that has a feeling of total quality about it. The beautiful fabrics and plentiful padding making sure that your small baby will be completely comfortable and cocooned while out and about.
With the reclining function, you can feel reassured that as well as being comfortable, your baby is kept safe and healthy too.
It's a good sized car seat, with a range of seven different headrest and harness positions, so should last most children a good amount of time, in line with the i-Size requirement of 15 months rear-facing. The only part that could do with being slightly wider, is the headrest for older children.