Direct from Toronto's Buddies in Bad Times' Rhubarb Festival, "Deaf That!" is a cabaret-style showcase on Deaf Culture which allows us to explore our individual stories to show that the each of us are unique humans with multiple layers of experiences within the Deaf community.
Sit back, enjoy as you watch the show, making you sign out... "Deaf That!"
ASL interpreting provided as part of the performance.
Sage Willow is a multidisciplinary queer nonbinary Deaf artist and educator from Southern Ontario. Aside from their intensive community work, they also provide performance interpreting in ASL for the local Deaf community; incorporating their passions of film, languages, theatre and accessibility into pieces of art.
Tamyka Bullen is a Deaf POC Queer-identied womyn who started her career in the theatrical world along with her 20+ years in social justice advocacy with her performances. She has worked and volunteered at social justice organizations ranging from women to LGBTQA. She brings her advocacy into her poetry performances at different theatres since 2005 and she became being involved in acting recently. She loves to experiment with artistic forms to make shows more interesting such as poetry, dance, singing, mime, etc.


text:
THINKING ART LOUD
THE PARABLE OF WISDOM
This is the second parable I wrote recently.
This parable, as its name indicates, is about wisdom and its origin.
Many of the elements are quite typical for this sort of thing,
but I'm positive the example is still understandable.
I hope you enjoy and extract value out of it,
and would very much appreciate if you let me know whether you did in the comment section below.
Thank you for your time and attention,
Once, there was a village in a valley. The village was very much alive, and its citizens were known
for their endurance and energetic manner, both at work and at play.
The villagers lived according to the ways of the valley, and in doing so they thrived.
Far enough from the village, in a nearby mountain, there was a cave. In the cave, there sit a man.
The man was many hundreds of years old, and his manner was akin to silence.
He was the wisest man alive.
Nobody had seen him for a long time, though he was known by the townspeople.
Soon, the townspeople grew restless with new problems they were facing.
They then invented many ingenious pieces of machinery and technology.
They started fighting amongst themselves because of fear and greed,
to the point where they could eradicate one another.
The villagers now faced a problem they couldn't solve, at least not by themselves as they were.
They made a temporary truce and held a town council meeting, in which they decided to ask the
wise man in the mountain for help. A party was made and sent off on the journey towards the
mountain.
After several days, they arrived at the cave.
As they entered, they felt something they had never felt before.
Everything was silent and still beyond its appearance.
It was something they couldn't quite explain, much less identify within themselves.
The man was sitting on the ground, and the people approached him carefully.
Much to their surprise, the man was sitting in front of a very big mirror,
which had formed from the stone.
Then, the man opened his eyes and slowly turned to the villagers.
They greeted the man and proceeded to explain their situation.
The man responded shortly after: "I cannot help you."
The villagers were outraged.
They insisted, detailing the problem further and howling at what was at stake,
imploring the man to help them.
The man said: "I cannot help you because you don't want help."
The villagers were dumbfounded, utterly confused.
One of them, the youngest, then asked the man: "What is the source of your wisdom, old man?"
That caused the man's eyes to sparkle, and he grinned.
His response was: "Look into the mirror. What do you see?"
The boy said: "I see myself."
The man looked at the boy intently, and the boy then realised what he meant.
The man went on: "The problems you are facing lie within, and so do their answers.
You have come to me for help, but you have not asked for it, and you have never asked for it within yourselves. Your focus is so entangled in your problems, that you have become them.
No answer can be given to those who do not ask for it.
That's why I say that I cannot help you. You come here only with the problem, and although you say
you want answers, you are not ready to change, you are not ready to let them in.
Even if I did give you a solution, soon your thoughts and your actions would refute it,
and would continue to produce problems.
If you look within yourselves, you will find the answer you seek, and furthermore discover there
was no problem in the first place, only illusion and ignorance, which causes you pain.
The boy nodded his head with a big smile, and lead the townspeople back home.
THE END
POEMES

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Olsen Brothers flying high with Eurovision cover versions
Charlotte Jensen / 15th June 2010 at 17:16 / Review / Denmark
Olsen Brothers - Wings Of Eurovision
It is ten years ago Denmark won the 2000 Eurovision Song Contest. The Olsen Brothers are celebrating that with a brand new album with Eurovision cover versions. On some songs they are true to the original while they on others comes up with a brand new arrangement. It works very well and we are asking for a volume 2.
On many previous Olsen Brothers album Jørgen has been so much in focus that it was hard to see what Noller was actually doing there. The power balance has changed and on this album they are more equal. It suits them very well just as it suits them to try so different Eurovision Song Contest songs as they do here. Due to the songs being so different I think it is only fair to look at them individually.
1. Bang-A-Boomerang: We start out with a national final song that didn't make it to the Eurovision Song Contest song. Svenne & Lotta came third in the Swedish selection in 1975 with this song that was afterwards recorded and sung by ABBA, who also wrote it originally. It is quite smart to start with this song as it works as a really good opening that suits the Olsen Brothers' voices quite good. This version is quite true to the original though it has been added the little "artistic pause" Fly On The Wings Of Love also had.
2. Love Shine A Light: Here we come to something completely different. This 1997 Eurovision Song Contest winner from United Kingdom has been put down and is slower in the Olsen Brothers version. Noller sings solo on most of the song and his darker bas voice is quite unusual on such a song. The slower speed almost makes it sound like something that can now be heard on a football stadium. Near the end of the song Jørgen joins on the chorus and the song immediately grows.
3. Hallelujah: The Olsen Brothers have completely changed the arrangement of this 1979 Eurovision winner. Noller sings again, this time in a duet with Lill Babs who represented Sweden in 1961. The song has gotten a jazz arrangement and this unusual version actually sounds better than the original! It is nothing else than fantastic what the Olsen Brothers came up with here.
4. What's Another Year: Here Noller and Jørgen both sings. The song is quite true to the original, but with a bit more saxophone added it does get a slightly more jazzy sound. The song has been given a saxophone solo in the beginning and in the middle.
5. Rock'N'Roll kids: Jørgen has previously said that this song might as well have been written by him as it tells his story as he would have told it himself. You can hear on Jørgen's voice that he feels something for this song. The song has more instruments on it than the original, but it doesn't hurt as they really hit the melancholic touch of this song.
6. Now it gets interesting as we all know that they would not be able to keep the ABBA speed. When ABBA in '74 finished the song the Olsen Brothers in 2010 would barely be through first verse. It has been made a bit slower, but not so much. So hands up for the Olsen Brothers who has more energy than I thought although they do cut short on some of the notes. It is however clearly not a song that fits them quite well.
7. Ein Bisschen Frieden: Noller starts out with first verse. Then Nicole comes in with a solo bit and then Jørgen and Nicole sings the chorus. It sounds later like Jørgen more or less takes over the song. It starts out with an instrumental intro where you can barely recognise the song and unfortunately there is too many instruments on this song. From a simple song to be it appears like they made it a bit too heavy – they do sing well in German, but it has to be added that they have recorded several albums in German as they were quite popular in Germany in the early '80's.
8. Save Your Kisses For Me: This version has gotten a quite different intro with a nice guitar riff which actually suits it quite well. It is not nearly as light and sparkling as the original though. With the tempo this version is in, it would have been smart with a string section added. Maybe Alexander Rybak should have been invited to Copenhagen for the recording of this version?
9. Let It Swing And Let It Rock'N'Roll: Another song in a high tempo. They sing this Norwegian winner in English as the title indicates. Jørgen caries this song through as he always does with the faster songs and he actually manages quite well. The song is quite a rock and roll song now and we are no longer in the 80's, but instead back to the 60's. You could say that this is quite the boogie rock style we know from Status Quo.
10. No So Che Darei: Here Alan Sorrenti sings along with them and Jørgen has told how Alan worked as their Italian teacher as well as they wanted him to make sure that they got the right pronunciation. Very well done. There are a few places where their voices drowns a bit in the guitar sound, but all in all a very good version quite true to the original, but you can hear that both Jørgen and Alan has to stretch their voices now that they have gotten older so maybe they could have put it a slightly bit down.
11. Congratulations: This version has been put quite a bit down and from time to time you don't even recognise the original UK entry from 1968. A guitar is carrying this version through and that does make it quite different. It is mainly Jørgen singing, but Noller sings in the background and that does appear a little bit disturbing to the song.
12. Fly On The Wings Of Love (2010 version): This new version of their own winning song has more drums on the intro, it is slower and maybe even a bit more raw in it. It is not nearly as romantic as the Eurovision winner, but instead more rough. It doesn't make it worse, just different. It is good to hear that they have made a new arrangement of their own song and didn't just record the same song 10 years after.
13. Smuk Som Et Stjerneskud (2010 version): Same arrangement as before, but I have to add that it sounds different due to this version being in Danish. Jørgen's voice gets a more romantic feeling to it in this Danish version, whereas it is a bit rougher in English.
Conclusion: Quite a fine album which is worth adding to the collection for any Eurovision or Olsen Brothers fans. I would say that it should be rated somewhere between 3,5 and 4 stars. As we don't operate with three fourth of a star I choose to then give it 4 stars. They deserve a bit extra for having the courage to pick such different songs and to come up with quite some different arrangements. It is a very good album and we will be looking forward to a volume 2 as a show that has lasted more than 50 years certainly can do with more than 12 songs in an Olsen Brothers cover version. If they need inspiration I am willing to give them a list of songs they should try.
You can purchase the album at your CDON.com department:
La voce dell'alba: Elina Nechayeva serves us a new beautiful track
Written by Charlotte Jensen from Denmark
View profile and more posts from Charlotte
15th June 2010 in Review. Tags: 2010, Abba, Alan Sorrenti, Bang-A-Boomerang, Bobbysocks, Brotherhood of Man, Cliff Richard, Congratulations, Cover version, Ein Bisschen Frieden, Eurovision Song Contest, Fly on the wings of love, Halleluja, Johnny Logan, Katrina & the waves, Let It Swing And Let It Rock'N'Roll, Lill-Babs, Love shine a light, Nicole, Non So Che Darei, Olsen Brothers, Paul Harrington & Charlie McGettigan, Rock'n'roll kids, Save Your Kisses For Me, Smuk Som Et Stjerneskud, Svenne & Lotta, Waterloo, Whats another year Countries: Denmark
It is ten years ago Denmark won the 2000 Eurovision Song Contest. The Olsen Brothers are celebrating that with a brand new album with Eurovision cover versions. On some songs they are true to the original while they on others comes up with a brand new arrangement. It works very well and we are asking… Read more
Poll – Eurovision 2010s: The favourite Danish entry this decade is…
5 years ago – what has become of Eurovision's Top 10 from 2014?
24th May 2019 at 17:38 Ashleigh Kobevko
← Rotterdam prepares for 8 weeks of Eurovision celebration
Miki continues to party on his new song "Celebrate" →


Today, Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner issued the following statement recognizing Women's Equality Day, which commemorates the 1920 ratification of the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution, granting women the right to vote.
A blog post entitled, "Women's Equality Day." This post provides an overview of the women's suffrage movement in Florida and pays homage to some of its most significant leaders including Caroline Mays Brevard, the granddaughter of Florida territorial governor Richard Keith Call; Ivy Stranahan, an early advocate of women's suffrage in Florida; and Mary Mann Jennings, Florida's First Lady during the administration of her husband, Governor William S. Jennings.
A document showing the "Ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment by the Florida Legislature, 1969." Though Florida would pass a law in 1921 that provided the right to vote to all residents, it was not until 1969 that Florida joined the ranks of states that had previously ratified the 19th amendment in 1920-21.
Online photo exhibits featuring notable women in Florida history. The exhibits feature renowned women's rights activists such as Roxcy Bolton. Another exhibit explores the contributions of Florida women who have served in law enforcement, nursing, fire and rescue, and in various capacities during World War II.
A voter information look-up page where voters can check on their voter registration status, find their polling place, and check on the status of requested absentee ballots.


In the listening test a neat trick is to use the breaks well during your IELTS test.
There are breaks between the four sections of the test and in the middle of sections 1, 2 and 3 (there is no break in the middle of section 4).
Scan and read quickly all questions.
Scan read each question as soon as you see the paper to acquaint yourself in a few seconds as to what is ahead.
Then focus on the question and test section ahead, read the next question, make sure you understand it, keep calm and focus on underlining what you think are the key words and start to think about what kind of answer is needed (e.g. name, number, verb, noun, plural, singular).
Ignore using the end of a section time to check your answers, think of the future, read ahead, get familiar with the text. This is because the listening test has no replay opportunity unlike other English tests or examinations. You have to be ready for the start, not left in the start blocks and having to catch the runners ahead. You will be rushed, "chasing" the test and find it very difficult to read the questions and listen to the answers at the same time.
The end of the listening test provides you with time to transfer your answers, a reason why you do not need to waste time in the test transferring them to the answer sheet as you complete each section. This is a mistake by a good number of students who want to be organised and who then have a problem trying to listen and answer the later sections.
Should you need to know more about the IELTS test please visit this page.


Humans have anticipated, feared, and revered artificial intelligence (AI) for as long as there have been computers. Today, whether they know it or not, anyone with a smartphone in their pocket is already reaping the rewards of AI and its counterpart, machine learning. As these technologies advance, the possibilities seem virtually endless. But how did we get here, and what lies ahead?
At our latest FutureTalk event at our Portland, Ore., engineering headquarters, a pair of AI experts sought to answer those questions and more. Sergey Razin, chief technology officer at the software-optimization firm SIOS, introduced the audience to the concept of "the self-driving data center," while Alan Fern, professor of computer science at Oregon State University, explained how an AI system finally became world champion of the ancient game Go—and what that victory portends.
Sergey, who has previously held positions at Kaspersky Lab and EMC, has been researching and working on machine learning for more than 15 years. Now, he said, almost everyone claims to be using machine learning, often falsely. As he puts it, "There's a lot of fluff in this space." Still, with speech recognition in our phones, algorithms in our streaming services, and self-driving cars rolling fast down the road, it's clear that AI has hit mainstream IT.
Why? Because the technology has evolved. Data has gotten bigger and more multidimensional, and computers have gotten infinitely more complex. With so many resources interacting over any given hardware device, the "blender effect" threatens to cripple even the most robust infrastructure. Conventional tools can be overwhelmed by noise, leaving users with plenty of data but zero actionable insights.
Sergey and his colleagues believe they have found a solution in SIOS IQ, a new product that seeks to apply machine learning to software development and operations. Through a process called Topological Behavior Analysis (TBA), SIOS' tool obtains information from the system's infrastructure, extracts relationships, and characterizes individual metric behaviors.
That data is then transposed into multidimensional space and fed into root-cause algorithms based on probabilistic models. By casting behavior into visible shapes rather than focusing on specific clusters, TBA can reveal interesting information that might otherwise be lost in the noise.
All of which paves the way for the "self-driving data center." In the near future, Sergey said, the brains behind any robust IT operation is going to be a machine learning algorithm.
When Deep Blue beat chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov in 1997, it seemed that machines had officially surpassed humans when it came to games of skill. But, as Alan explained, it took another two decades for an AI system (specifically, Deep Mind's AlphaGo) to defeat a human Go champion.
The challenge was to fuse machine learning with the intuition of human Go experts, and the answer lay in treating the Go board as an image. Through an impressive combination of deep neural networks, the Monte Carlo Tree Search, distributed high-performance computing, huge quantities of data, and reinforcement learning, Deep Mind was able to fashion a truly formidable Go player. Earlier this year, AlphaGo finally defeated international Go champion Lee Sedol in a $1 million challenge.


text:
Q: Frequency distinct values grouped by date I am trying to get the frequency of unique ID values for each month of the last year. However, I don't get the outcome.. including the error message "SELECT list expression references column user_id which is neither grouped nor aggregated".
How can I get the count of unique IDs in each month and them group them by month?
What I tried:
SELECT
  user_id,
  EXTRACT(MONTH FROM date) as month
FROM
  TABLE
WHERE
  date >= '2020-09-01'
GROUP BY
  month

I want something like this:

month
count of unique user_id

1
300

2
200

...
...

12
250

A: You would use GROUP BY and COUNT(DISTINCT):
SELECT EXTRACT(MONTH FROM date) as month, COUNT(DISTINCT user_id)
FROM TABLE
WHERE date >= '2020-09-01'
GROUP BY 1;

I would advise you to include the year in the query.  In BigQuery, this is simplest using DATE_TRUNC():
SELECT DATE_TRUNC(date, MONTH) as month, COUNT(DISTINCT user_id)
FROM TABLE
WHERE date >= '2020-09-01'
GROUP BY 1;

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Call: (+91) 9687608117
Email:info@abddiamonds.com
Directors Club
CVD Lab Grown Diamonds
News/Event
CVD Lab Grown Diamond
Diamond Characteristics
CVD Rough Diamonds are graded and categorized through its different characteristics in the diamond industry. Any diamond is graded on the basis of 4C'S.
The 4C'S consist of:
These are the basic details Gemologists and jewelers see in diamonds :
Diamond cut is the most important criteria of grading. Brilliance of a diamond depends on how good the cut is. Furthermore,lab grown fancy cut diamonds are defined and categorized in different grades to help the customers in determining the cut of a particular diamond. The grades are :
Excellent : 'Excellent' cut diamonds reflects the maximum amount of brilliance and fire. It reflects nearly all light that enters the diamond, creating exceptional sparkle and life.
Very Good : 'Very Good' cut diamond properly reflects most of the light that enters the diamond, producing superior fire and brilliance. Under normal lighting conditions, appears very similar to excellent cut, but for a lower price.
Good : Reflects a majority of the light that enters the diamond, for an above average appearance. An excellent value compared to higher cut grades.
Fair/Poor: Allows much of the light entering the diamond to escape from the sides or bottom, reducing perceived fire and brilliance. More acceptable in diamonds weighing less than 0.75 carats, where differences in sparkle are more difficult to perceive. The diamond may appear noticeably dull and lifeless, even to an untrained eye.
The clarity of the diamond is rated by the quantity and position of 'inclusions' or flaws, which bothers the light that passes through the diamond. The rating of the diamond is done in the following categories:
Flawless (without inclusions or imperfections)
Flawless (IF)
Very, Very Slightly Included (VVS1 and VVS2)
Very Slightly Included (VS1 and VS2)
Slightly Included (SI1 and SI2)
Included (I1, I2, and I3) (with inclusions or imperfect)
When most industry experts discuss the color of diamonds, they are generally referring to lack of transparency or color of the diamond. CVD Diamond manufacturers create diamonds that are made of 100% pure carbon without impurities therefore they are completely colorless. However, almost all diamonds contain some extent of color impurity caused by traces of nitrogen, boron, hydrogen or other elements. Most diamonds suffer only traces of nitrogen, which produces a pale yellow or brownish color.
Method of Diamond Color Grading:
To grade color of the diamonds, they should be free, because if the diamond is in the metal, the metal will affect the color we perceive. For example, a slightly yellow diamond might glitter more if categorized under yellow gold while it looks less yellow if categorized under white gold or platinum.
Diamonds are placed table-down, pavilion up, and magnified under 10X loup.
Lettering system from D to Z is used to determine the amount of color in each diamond with D awarded only to rarely complete colorless diamonds.
Grades of Diamond color: Colorless diamonds and diamonds that are yellow or yellowish brown are grouped into the following categories. These varieties do not apply to fancy colored diamonds - they have their own grades.
D-E-F: Colorless
G-H-I-J : Almost colorless.
K-L-M :Pale in color, usually yellow.
It's easier to understand this C of all "4Cs". A unit of weight for lab grown diamonds and other gemstones is carat. Weight of a diamond is directly related to the size, and although incorrect, these terms are sometimes used interchangeably. It is a term that is derived from the use of an ancient 'Carob' seed in measuring small weights. Table of common weight-related terms are given below.
One Carat is 0.200 grams (There are 5 carats in 1 gram and 142 carats to 1 oz.)
A carat is divided into 100 parts each called a point. So 1 carat = 100 points.
Three Quarter Carat = 75 points
Half Carat = 50 points
Quarter Carat = 25 points
Chemical Vapour Deposition Diamond
Chemical Vapour Deposition (CVD) is a process of creating diamonds. CVD Diamonds are gaining popularity in India due to its affordability. One and the only difference in lab grown diamonds and earth-mined diamonds is its origin. Using highly-advanced technology, the lab-created diamonds are grown in labs. To summarize, the natural process is replicated in the labs to create these lab grown diamonds. The result of the process is exactly the same as the ones found beneath the Earth's surface.
These lab created diamonds are also known as synthetic diamonds. Although these diamonds are real, due to their creation in labs, these are usually termed as fake.
Manufacturing Process of CVD Diamonds
Lab grown diamond manufacturers use two processes to create these diamonds. They are (i) High Pressure High Temperature (HPHT) and (ii) Chemical Vapour Deposition. ABD Diamonds is one of the growing CVD diamond manufacturers in India.
In the process of creating these manmade diamonds, the extremely pure carbon-rich gases are stored and controlled in a chamber. These carbon-rich gases like Methane are heated to approximately 800 degree Celsius. These gases then break apart enabling the carbon atoms to separate within the gas. The carbon atoms then fall on to a diamond substrate starting to create layers, resulting in a diamond crystal. It takes six to ten weeks for CVD rough diamond manufacturers to process and further create Type IIa diamonds.
Classifying CVD Diamonds By Types!
Scientists have started recognizing the different types of diamonds since 1930. They have grouped diamonds into two categories which are Type I and Type II based on the transparency ratio under ultraviolet radiation. The CVD diamond has been classified into two types; Type I and II diamonds.
Type I Diamonds: These type of diamonds are defined by the intake of blue light and nitrogen during the formation phase. These type of diamonds include orange, yellow, and brown color diamonds.
Type II Diamonds: These type of diamonds are determined by the lack of nitrogen throughout the process of diamond creation. When it comes to comparison, these type of diamonds are rarest, and the most valuable than Type I. These include pink, green, red, and blue color diamonds.
Type (Color)
HPHT
Ia (colorless) Common --- ---
Ib (yellow) Rare Rare Available
IIa (colorless) Rare Available Available
IIb (blue) Rare Rare Rare
ABD Diamonds is a Man-made Diamond Supplier and Lab-grown Diamond Supplier to deliver expensive & eye-catching diamonds.Here, we are not only committed with providing quality diamonds; we aim to build a relation of trust, lifetime business commitments, and expertise that can make our business image stable & constant in between our competitors.
ABD Diamonds Reviews: Reviewed by 2 Clients Rated: 5.0 / 5
Get into touch with us today and be part of our team!
Copyright © 2019 ABD Diamonds. All Right Reserved


Marsland Nash Associates are an independent and well established firm of accountants. We have a wealth of experience in all areas of accountancy and taxation and are able to offer our clients a friendly, affordable and personalised service, which covers all aspects of your business and personal affairs.
We are a forward thinking Practice with a relaxed culture. We believe that a proactive approach to tax and business development is essential when dealing with small and medium sized owner operated businesses.
Our client base is a general spread of clients from small self-employed to large corporates. Building strong relationships with our clients is key to offering an unrivalled service. Only by understanding your aims and objectives can we deliver the highest level of individual client care.
During our initial meetings with you, we will listen to your thoughts, ideas and future development plans. This will enable us to build a business profile based on your current needs and future aspirations and offer you a number of service options tailored specifically to complement and develop your line of business. We specialise in taxation, but we are also experts in compliance work such as accounts and tax returns.
We will come to you if that is your preference at no additional cost and with no travel costs.
Our unique fee structure is fixed in advance and menu driven for the vast majority of our work, so you know from the outset what the cost will be. We do not run a 'timesheet' on our work unless it is a specialist project or an HMRC enquiry. You can pay monthly or annually for compliance work.
We charge what we believe to be the right price for our services to enable us to give a proactive, accurate service and employ the best team. We are not the cheapest firm, but we are no means the most expensive.
Whatever type of service you or your business requires you will receive free incidental advice and support during office hours. Only if you ask us to perform work beyond the phone call may this incur fees, and in this event we will always advise you in advance. You will never receive an unexpected bill from us.
We provide a fast, accurate and reliable service and uniquely agree with clients a timescale to prepare their accounts within. Normally this time frame is between 4 – 8 weeks, but where possible, we will always work with clients if for any reason they require their accounts sooner.


text:
Doing media and settling in.
by	Saunders & Associates / Monday, 06 July 2009	/ Published in Fitnesss 4 All 50 State Tour
5:47 a.m. CST – This morning I had and interview with "Today in St. Louis" on KSDK NBC Channel 5. (www.ksdk.com) We discussed the basic points of the Tour, including how I'm pushing across America paralyzed from the chest down to inspire and motivate the American people to get fit and meet with city and community leaders to provide tools and resources to create lasting health and fitness initiatives for all citizens. And as always, I welcomed any support from companies or individuals who wanted to help support our efforts and help us continue to bring our grass roots initiative to communities across America. Morning and early afternoon – After the interview, we spent the first part of the day unpacking and preparing for all the events we had lined up this week. It is going to be a long week, but I am ready! St. Louis is very supportive of the Tour and everyone wants to be involved.
3:30 p.m. CST – We left the hotel and headed for Tony's house. Tony works for The Visibility Company and he helped plan most of the events this week in St. Louis. Before dinner, we talked a little business. Tony went through the week's scheduled events to make everyone was up-to-date. It was soon time for dinner, or maybe I should say it was time for the party. Tony's family, the three of us, and Brian (the head designer for one of our sponsors www.ImShapingUp.com) were all there. I really enjoyed sitting down for a family-style meal. Being on the road 24/7 makes it hard to do that. It was very thoughtful of Tony and his family to invite us. Unfortunately, a bad thunderstorm came through the area around 9 p.m. and ended the party. It knocked the power out of a large part of the city including Tony's home. We stayed a few hours later than we expected to at Tony's house. By the time, we were able to return to Baymont, it was late in the evening. We drove back in the darkness past blown over tree limbs and power lines. Tony's house was without power for several days.
The whole situation made me think of how ironical people are. Almost everyday individuals face emergency like the one the storm presented. They do whatever it takes to overcome the crisis. However, an emergency like the nation's obesity crisis, causes damages everyday and there are no signs of it slowing down. Why are they not approaching this situation the same way? I felt a renewed sense of determination for my mission. I MUST do whatever it takes to help America overcome the obesity crisis. Every city I visit and every person I talk to is a step in the right direction.
About Saunders & Associates
Getting the Right Fuel from Your Food for the 'Big Push'!
Spent the day resting and reflecting
The Michigan Line: The "Big Push" gets underway in the Motor City


text:
Q: loop through a file in R and select values based on a range I have a file called 'genes' with 4300 lines that looks like
Gene_id  chr  start   stop
GeneA chr1  10  1000
GeneB chr1  2300  7000
GeneC chr1 10000 13577

and another file called 'bases' (~100,000 lines) and looks like
Chr Bases
chr1 160
chr1 157
chr1 8500
chr1 2200

I want to produce a file that keeps the bases that fall into the range between start and stop for each gene
so output would look like
Chr Bases
chr1 160
chr1 157

I have tried this function but it only gives me back the first entry four times:
methC <- apply(bases,1,function(a){
my_bases <- bases[bases[1]==genes$chr & bases[2]>=genes$start & bases[2]<=genes$stop,]
result <- my_bases[,2]
return(result)
})

>methC
# 160 160 160

so I'm missing base 157 and 160 is duplicated 4 times.
If I use
b <- bases[which(bases[1]==genes$chr & bases[2]>=genes$start & bases[2]<=genes$stop),]
> b
 #  Chr Bases
#chr1   160

I'm still missing 157, but maybe that is due to the order.
However if I try using my real and much larger files with this 'which' function I get back an empty data.frame
> b
Chr        Base
<0 rows> (or 0-length row.names)

, so that's why I thought a function would be better to handle large datasets.

A: I would use the data table library:
library("data.table")

# Read the data from file
genes <- data.table(read.csv("genes.csv"))
bases <- data.table(read.csv("bases.csv"))

# Define the columns that are used to join the two tables
setkey(genes, chr)
setkey(bases, Chr)

# The first line joins the two tables, and the second line
# filters the result to keep only those that match and defines
# the columns that are to be shown in the output. Note the need
# to take care with capitalisation and the reserved word 'stop'
genes[bases, allow.cartesian = TRUE][
  Bases >= start & Bases <= `stop`, list(Chr = chr, Bases)]

Which produces this result:
    Chr Bases
1: chr1   160
2: chr1   157


text:
namespace Robot.Slack.ApiModels
{
    internal class UrlVerification
    {
        public string Token { get; set; }
        public string Challenge { get; set; }
        public string Type { get; set; }
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Do you want to explore Hokkaido in a fun and affordable way? Then this guide is for you. Find suggested itineraries and driving routes for road trips lasting 5, 7 or 10 days and everything you need to know about Shiretoko (a World Heritage Site), Akan, Sounkyo, Furano, Biei, Asahikawa, Sapporo and Otaru. This guide includes driving tips, map, where to stay, what to see and eat, useful Japanese phrases and lots of beautiful photos. Enjoy Hokkaido in an amazing and affordable way!
Buy Drive-It-Yourself Hokkaido, Japan travel guide as a PDF download. Our travel book store offers the best travel guides.


text:
N3.9bn Fraud: Court to Decide Fate of Badeh's Case, Feb 26.
By Naomi
- in News
Justice Okon Abang of a Federal High Court, Abuja, has adjourned the alleged N3.9 billion fraud case involving a former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh to February 26, 2019, to enable parties know how to proceed with regards to the defence of Iyalikam Nigeria Limited, a company with whom he was standing trial.
Badeh who was killed on December 18, 2018 by yet to be identified gunmen along the Keffi-Abuja Road, on his way from his farm in Nasarawa State was expected to open his defence on January 16, 2019. The EFCC had closed its case against him and the company, on October 23, 2018 after calling 21 witnesses.
At the resumed sitting on January 16, 2019, Badeh's counsel, Akin Olujimi, SAN, informed the Court of the death of his client.
Describing his murder as a "shock", Olujimi said that the "unfortunate incident" deprived Badeh "the opportunity to let the world know that he did not commit the offence with which he was charged".
"When a defendant to a crime has passed on, the litigation against him must terminate," he said, further stressing that his late client would have been able to disprove the allegations against him.
He thereafter, applied for an adjournment "pending the burial" of the deceased, and informed the Court that "the prosecution and defence teams are making arrangements to meet, regarding how to proceed with the matter".
Counsel for the company, S.T. Ologunorisa, SAN, aligned himself with the submission of Olujimi, and further appealed that the matter be adjourned to a later date, "as a mark of honour for the late Badeh".
"We will also want the Court to vacate the other dates earlier scheduled for hearing," he added.
Prosecuting counsel, O. A. Atolagbe, also expressed his condolence. According to him, though the demise of the first defendant was public knowledge, the Court being "a Court of Record", it was essential for the defence to furnish it with a death certificate.
Previous article Love Scam: Fraudster Bags 12 Months Jail Term .
Next article Video: Lady whose two sons are in jail for robbery, arrested for aiding her third son in robbery.
Humanitarian service provider/Social and community worker.


Q: As part of my background research on a party, I quickly found a voter registration record for her. Unfortunately, this particular registration record tells me little about her. Is there any other way to get a sense of her political leanings or perspective?
A: Search the Political Donor Information database (POLITICAL-DONORS). Even if the individual never declared a party affiliation, her POLITICAL-DONORS record may include information such as the party, committee, or PAC to whom she has donated; the dates and amounts of her contributions; her employer; and her occupation. In addition, the Links tab may contain links to her other political donations, a variety of public records, and her Westlaw PeopleMap report.


text:
Hueto Arriba () or Otogoien () is a hamlet and concejo located in the municipality of Vitoria-Gasteiz, in Álava province, Basque Country, Spain.

References

External links

Concejos in Vitoria-Gasteiz

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


How Do Internal Linking And Site Size Affect SEO?
It's pretty obvious why stuff like mobile optimization and keywords matter to search engine optimization. They're pretty much the bread and butter of search engines. Less obvious is the role of a website's structure – internal linking and size in particular.
Part of the problem is that internal linking is a deceptively complex topic. Without a solid understanding as a foundation, it's difficult to even conceptualize. Let's talk about that.
To understand the role internal linking plays in search engine optimization, you'll first need to know a little bit about how search engines like Google crawl content. Search engine robots trawl their way through the structure of a site by following both internal and external links, using them to form an idea of how everything fits together.
Eventually, they'll also assign a value to each page on the site based on how many backlinks it has – also known as link authority. Generally, your website's homepage has the most link authority, as it has the most pages linking back to it. To maximize the effectiveness of your internal linking strategy, you need to understand which sites have the highest authority and structure your site in such a way that Google is able to understand each page's relevance, relationship, and value.
Yoast offers some pretty decent advice in this regard, recommending a site structure that looks like a pyramid. The most important content sits at the top, with links branching off to sub-pages and related content, and also between posts and pages that are related to one another. A good way to do this for a blog or eCommerce storefront is with related items, category tags, or topic tags.
You can also use anchor text within site copy to connect people to related pages, though you should do so only sparingly.
You might assume that bigger is better where your website is concerned. Unfortunately, that's not strictly true. Google's own Matt Cutts, for example, has gone on record saying a bigger site doesn't guarantee you'll rank better.
See, while it's true that more pages and sub-pages give you more of a presence on Google (in addition to more internal linking opportunities), size is much less important than quality. A website with three pages will rank higher than one with several hundred if it provides more value to visitors.
Site size, in other words, is like anything else in the SEO space. It doesn't exist in a vacuum. Where indexing and ranking is concerned, it's part of a larger whole – it can help, but only if your content is already of exceptional quality.
Generally speaking, bigger is better where your website is concerned – at least in theory. More pages and sub-pages mean more opportunities to rank, after all. It means more traffic.
So, there you have it. Size doesn't matter as much as you'd think – it's more about the content you provide, and how that content is structured. We'll discuss link structure and sitemaps in greater depth in a later post.
For now, you know what you need to get started.
Next Next post: What Is Metadata, And Why Is It Important?


text:
The Hip Girl's Guide to Homemaking
Decorating, Dining, and the Gratifying Pleasures of Self-Sufficiency--on a Budget!
By Kate Payne
Search The Hip Girl's Guide to Homemaking
Trade PB
About The Hip Girl's Guide to Homemaking
With The Hip Girl's Guide to Homemaking , it's possible and even convenient to create an inviting space for living and entertaining on a budget. From unique decor ideas to growing strawberries on...
About Kate Payne
Kate Payne is a former nanny, after-hours poet, occasional painter, and writer. She is the founder of the Hip Girl's Guide to Homemaking website, author of The Hip Girl's Guide to Homemaking , and a...
"My daughter is moving into her first apartment next year. Along with boxes of second hand linens and furniture from the attic, she's getting this fresh, modern, and enthusiastic primer on all things housekeeping."
— Eugenia Bone, New York Times writer and author of The Denver Post's Well-Preserved blog and the Well-Preserved book
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text:
Ten Questions You Should Be Asking About Your Website's ADA Compliance
How To Protect Your Clinic From Litigation And Make Sure You're ADA Compliant
Jon Morrison
I know what you're thinking already: "Not another thing I have to worry about."
As a small business owner in any industry, there are a zillion little issues trying to take up space in your mind. While some are more important than others, most of them have to be addressed at some point.
That nagging issue of your website and whether it makes you vulnerable to litigation is one of those ones that doesn't just go away on its own. In fact, it gets louder with time. And it's not going away.
Web accessibility litigation for websites that were restrictive to users with disabilities continued to grow in 2021.
According to Accesibility.com, more than 2,300 cases were filed against U.S. businesses — a year-over-year increase of over 14%.
You may have already gotten some of these warnings across in your email inbox or social media feed.
About 61 million Americans are living with a disability. That's one in every four people. As a medical clinic owner, it's vital to be ADA compliant with your website. ADA compliance means ensuring that all of your content is accessible to everyone, including those who have disabilities.
The Department of Justice, or DOJ, published the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Standards for Accessible Design in September 2010. The Act states that electronic and information technology (IT) must be easily accessible to people with disabilities.
Having reviewed hundreds of clinic websites, we are certain that even the best clinics in operation today have websites that violate the ADA. However, all is not lost. In this article, I'll go over the top ten questions we are asked about this issue.
Please note that it is focused on United States law. Canadian law will be covered another time.
1. What is the ADA?
ADA compliance refers to accessible design standards set by the Americans with Disabilities Act. The act states that information technology, like websites, must be easily accessible to those with disabilities.
The ADA dates back to some of America's fundamental foundations. The U.S. Department of Justice, or DOJ, was created in 1870. It enforces federal laws that guarantee equal opportunity for all Americans regardless of their race, gender, age, or disability.
The DOJ has jurisdiction over the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The act focuses on ensuring that digital content, including websites, is accessible to all citizens.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal law that requires businesses, governments, and non-profit agencies to make appropriate accommodations for people with disabilities.
Even though the ADA was passed in 1990, many clinics have not updated their websites to comply. In fact, some estimates suggest that there are over 2 million public accessible websites in violation of the ADA.
Congress created the ADA standards to ensure that all U.S. citizens are able to access information, regardless of their disability. An ADA-compliant website adheres to these specific guidelines.
With no direct regulations on website design, there has been a lot of confusion about this legislation.
Many website owners still aren't clear about precisely what it means to meet these standards. On top of this, in 2008, Congress amended the act. These amendments made the Act more web-oriented in recognition of the changing ways Americans consume media today.
This lack of clarity leaves websites susceptible to court orders while waiting out years' worth of lawsuits from those claiming damages. Typically, claimants bring cases due to their inability to access information easily and without difficulty. Often the sole root of these issues is that most clinic owners and their website designers didn't know any better.
Title III of the act requires that every owner, lessor, or operator of places where the public gather is duty-bound towards providing individuals their legal right to an inclusive experience in accordance with ADA standards. That includes offering all patrons whatever accommodations they need so long as these things do not interfere whatsoever with anyone else's opportunity.
It's not always clear how ADA rules will be applied to any particular website. Still, it's generally a good rule of thumb to be cautious and prepare for the undeniable truth that the demand for compliant websites will only increase.
In an effort to make things more straightforward — or you could say "more accessible" and perhaps even more confusing for you to understand, many states have adopted their own accessibility laws.
Our research showed that the volume of accessibility-related lawsuits filed against websites has shot up over the past few years. Plaintiffs have been increasingly successful with these suits, forcing website operators to take action.
Our stance is that it's not worth it for most organizations to gamble that a court will rule in their favor. Additionally, it's not worth the hassle and court fees that result from litigation.
In light of the fact that 26% of Americans live with some form of disability, making your clinic's website compliant has a strong ethical component.
The goal of any clinic is to assist people. The purpose of any website should be to make information readily available and accessible. A website that puts even inadvertent roadblocks in the way of a citizen trying to seek help has failed at its purpose.
2. What Does It Mean To Be Compliant With ADA?
The WCAG 2.1 guidelines are the latest guidelines used to determine if your website is accessible and ADA compliant. Additionally, they help define which level of conformance it meets. According to these guidelines, the content of a website must be:
Perceivable
Understandable
Let's take a high-level view of each of these requirements in the context of ADA compliance. From here, you can understand how they relate to your clinic's website.
Perceivable: All information and user interface (UI) should be presented in ways that users can perceive. Non-text content, like pictures and video, should have a readable alternative. For example, users with visual impairment should be able to select text alternatives for images and video.
This requirement also extends to website colors and layout. For example, websites should make it easy for users to see and hear content. Some of the areas covered by WCAG are instructions to not use color or audio as the only means of conveying information.
Operable: This section states that all UI components and navigation should be easily operable. Additionally, developers should make all web pages functional via keyboard.
The operability section covers several scenarios related to how users interact with a web page. For example, keyboard shortcuts shouldn't require specific timings.
Other elements of this section suggest that websites should always give readers enough time to read the content. Further areas dictate that flashing graphical content shouldn't cause seizures or other physical reactions and be easy to navigate and find information.
Understandable: This section suggests that web content should be understandable. For example, content should be legible and use language that users can easily understand. In situations where jargon or idioms are used, there should be a mechanism for explaining terms, likewise, with abbreviations.
Other areas covered include the requirement of simplified alternative texts. Additionally, WCAG 2 suggests that web pages should operate in a predictable way, and they should be set up to help users avoid errors or mistakes.
Robust: The robust section calls for content that is robust enough to be interpreted by a variety of current and future users agents. For example, assistive technologies, like text-to-voice screen readers.
ADA compliance dictates that the content your website offers must be available for all, whether it is visual or auditory. That means that every page on your site should be text-based HTML with minimal JavaScript, Flash, or other embedded objects.
It also means that features like images in your articles can't use click-through navigation and that all content is available in standard browser viewports.
3. How does one's website become ADA compliant?
Some websites may be compliant already without you even knowing it. While for others, a website might need to be rebuilt from scratch to ensure ADA compliance. Meeting the requirements could require several changes in coding and design.
Going through the above POUR requirements are the best start to assessing your level of compliance.
Getting your site up and running with ADA compliance can take time and knowledge of web development. Websites that do not meet the requirements of ADA compliance are vulnerable to lawsuits.
If you are a Clinic Sites client, the good news is that your website was built with a foundational level of compliance to accessibility laws.
4. What are the most common issues with websites that hinder access?
Some of the more common issues that can hinder access to a website include:
Using images like infographics instead of text to convey information
A layout that is not easy to navigate
Design features that make it difficult to use the site
Use of Flash files, which cannot be read by screen readers and cause problems for people with disabilities who use modified browsers or special assistive software.
A website is not responsive to mobile phones.
Use of pop-up windows instead of visible content or other multimedia elements.
5. What are the possible consequences of not following ADA standards?
The consequences of not following ADA compliance regulations can be severe. If a website does not meet the requirements, it may result in legal action being taken against it.
We've found that most lawyers of defendants recommend settling with the plaintiff outside of court. Our research showed that the average settlement was around $10k-$15k. Following the litigation, site owners may be forced to create a new site compliant with ADA standards and pay legal fees.
6. What are the benefits of making your website ADA compliant?
Aside from avoiding the disruption or costs that result from legal action, there are several other benefits to making your website ADA compliant.
Social responsibility:
General kindness tells us that whether it's software, websites, mobile apps, or other pieces of software if you ignore accessibility, people with disabilities are negatively impacted.
If you make your website ADA compliant, all citizens will have easy access to information that they can use in their everyday lives. Making your site accessible is a social responsibility that all organizations should consider when developing a web presence.
Protection from litigation:
With all the grey and "room for interpretation" of the law that lawyers love so much, it's tough to guarantee anything in regards to 100% protection from litigation. However, when you take some documented steps to improve your website's accessibility features, you are adding layers of protection that significantly lessen the risk of facing lawsuits.
Reaching seniors:
Every year, more seniors are gaining access to digital devices and the Internet. Ensuring websites are accessible for everyone should be the goal of every organization.
Reaching the margins:
It will be easier for people with disabilities to access information on your site and gain knowledge. A website that reaches more people allows you to connect with a broader audience, transforming some into loyal patients.
7. What should I do if my site isn't ADA compliant?
If you discover your website is not ADA compliant, there are several steps you can take to remedy the situation:
Understand the minimum standards required and how they affect your visitors.
Invest in expert services to help you work toward accessibility compliance if you need extra assistance.
Make an action plan to determine which steps will get your site compliant, who will be responsible for each task, and when you should implement them.
8. What does the future hold for ADA compliance?
The future of ADA compliance will likely see increased enforcement of the standards by the DOJ. However, there may be changes in how companies must comply with accessibility standards since they conflict with other laws that protect intellectual property.
The future will see an increase in mobile-friendly websites as smartphones or tablets become more accessible to use for people with disabilities.
9. What Can I Do Right Away?
Making your website ADA compliant is more important than ever. Complying with web accessibility standards is a legal requirement, but public and private organizations also consider it a social responsibility.
The ADA has strict guidelines about what you can and cannot do online, but they're incredibly confusing even to experienced web developers.
We have been working tirelessly to create an affordable way to help you fix your website before you get slapped with a lawsuit.
Clinic Sites' compliance service works with you on how to fix them! We'll also provide regular reminders so that when your site gets updated, it's always in compliance!
10. What Has The US Government Done To Help?
There is some great news if you are a tax-paying, small business in America - did you ever think you'd read those words?
Did you know that Section 44 of the IRS Code permits a tax credit for small businesses to assist businesses with complying with the ADA?
Additionally, Section 190 of the IRS Code allows a tax deduction for all businesses. Here's a quick link to the form.
The tax credit is available to businesses with total revenues of $1,000,000 or less in the previous tax year or 30 or fewer full-time employees. This credit can cover 50% of the eligible access expenditures in a year up to $10,250 (maximum credit of $5000). You can read more about that here and then bring it up with your accountant.
You can use the tax credit to offset the costs of removing barriers and making alterations to improve accessibility in your business.
The tax deduction is available to all businesses with a maximum deduction of $15,000 per year. You can claim the tax deduction for expenses incurred in barrier removal and alterations. We recommend you talk to your accountant but a website transition from "non-compliant/non-accessible" to "compliant/accessible" qualifies for this credit.
Clinic Sites Is Here To Help (You Sleep At Night)
We know this is largely unknown, out of your control and can be a stressful topic for you.
While the problem may be unnerving, the solution is simple.
Thankfully, the Clinic Sites team has known about website accessibility for many years. We built our proprietary platform with compliance in mind. The pages are organized right down to the base level coding to be compliant. The additions to make your site more compliant are simple.
Our more advanced compliance packages offer you next-level compliance coverage with a widget, an accessibility statement and the behind the scenes upgrades to accommodate all the customizations you've added to your site.
If you want to make sure you're protected from litigation, please don't hesitate to contact us and talk about it.
Get Compliant Today. Contact Our Team Today
If you would like to learn more about what we can do to get your website compliant with ADA standards, check out this page.
If you'd rather schedule a call with someone on our team, don't hesitate to schedule a call today. Click here to book a call.
ada compliant webistes
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text:
Thursday, Jun 15, 2017, 3:41 pm
A Day in the Life of a Day Laborer
Day laborers often wait for several unpaid hours, hoping for an employer to engage them with work. (Photo by Ken Cedeno/Corbis via Getty Images)
CHICAGO—Come sunrise, the men fill the street corner, among them Luis, quietly sitting by himself, nurturing hopes for work today.
There was no work yesterday, nothing the day before and nothing for weeks.
Still, the 50-year-old Guatemalan, who didn't want his last name used, waits in the growing heat, saying he has no other choice.
He waits even though he hates day labor work, because he says it is sometimes dangerous, barely enough to live on, and some of the men on the street corner have bullied and hurt him on the job.
The factory where he worked for almost a decade shut down a few years ago, he can't find any work as a caregiver, and, he says, the factories aren't hiring or they are shutting down.
He says he has papers to show he is a legal resident in the United States, but he suspects that many of the men standing around him don't have that status.
That's not the case for Carlos Sanchez, 70, and Gustavo Almaraz, 28, who are standing nearby. Carlos says he is Puerto Rican and Gustavo says he was born in the United States.
But they say that many workers lack papers and so they suffer. Often, the contractors who hire the men off the street corner "automatically think you don't have papers," explains Almaraz. And that's a problem, because they want to take advantage of you. "Some of the people here (doing the hiring) are mean," he adds.
The two also say they know how to take care of themselves.
Sanchez says he knows how to do a lot of jobs and how to deal with people, starting out decades ago as a migrant worker earning 35 cents an hour. And Almaraz says he has picked up enough skills that he can virtually take every job offered on the street corner.
"It's all on you," Almaraz explains. "You see a car coming in and you have to go up and say, 'Hey boss, what do you need?'"
The secret is finding a good boss and somebody who needs you for a long time, he says. It also involves knowing, he says, when to walk away from someone who abuses you. "I had a good-paying job with an electrician, but he started to become disrespectful. He started to yell and insult me."
Almaraz says he won't work for less than $15 an hour, but surveys indicate laborers often earn minimum wages or less, and sometimes nothing. "Nobody can live on less than $100 a day," Almaraz says.
Near them is a 65-year-old Mexican: a short, stocky, balding man, who says he has been doing day labor ever since coming to the United States without papers 12 years ago.
He hasn't been able to find work and so he says he will take less than the others. "Sometimes they don't pay. It's very difficult. There is no work and everything is expensive," he says in Spanish.
Time passes, and the men disappear from the street corner. Some are off to work, getting into the trucks and vans that pick them up.
As soon as someone pulls up onto the gasoline station's street corner, the men rush them, huddling by the vehicle's windows, bargaining furiously as they tout their skills. And some just wander off.
Not Luis. He sits waiting. Some jobs he won't take. "I have friends who were injured doing roofing, and they went home (to Guatemala) handicapped," he says.
Not too long ago, he took a moving job with another worker. It was supposed to be an easy three-hour job. But the items they moved were so heavy, he sat at home for three days afterward, his hands shaking.
"A lot of people will do this work. They don't speak the language so they have to. But I don't have to," he says.
He waits along with more than 100,000 others who gather daily on dozens of street corners across the United States, according to figures from 2006. It is a world, where workers are often cheated out of their wages, injured on the job and then left without medical care, according to a 2006 survey. Where workers who complain often suffer retaliation by employers who fire them, suspend them, or threaten to call immigration officials.
As the hours pass, Luis huddles in the scorching sunlight, watching out for anybody looking for a worker and a job he can do.
Most of the men are gone, but not him.
Stephen Franklin
Stephen Franklin, a Pulitzer Prize finalist, is a former labor and workplace reporter for the Chicago Tribune, was until recently the ethnic media project director with Public Narrative in Chicago. He is the author of Three Strikes: Labor's Heartland Losses and What They Mean for Working Americans (2002), and has reported throughout the United States and the Middle East. He can be reached via e-mail at freedomwrites@hotmail.com.
More by Stephen Franklin
The Chicago Tribune Is Finally Union as the Media Organizing Wave Intensifies
After 41 Years, The Teamsters Reform Movement Is Finally Building Power
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"The factory where he worked for almost a decade shut down a few years ago,..."
And if you raise the minimum wage, how many more factories do you think will shut down?
Posted by MrJimm on 2017-06-19 20:53:49
"Working In These Times" is dedicated to providing independent and incisive coverage of the labor movement and the struggles of workers to obtain safe, healthy and just workplaces. more
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text:
@implementation SCVideoBlob

- (id)initWithData:(NSData *)data {
    if (data.length < 2) return nil;
    if (((const char *)data.bytes)[0] != 0 || ((const char *)data.bytes)[1] != 0) return nil;
    if ((self = [super init])) {
        self.blobData = data;
    }
    return self;
}

- (NSString *)blobFileExtension {
    return @"mp4";
}

@end


This blog is not about how the DOL took something that was instantly certified, so that business could move forward, and slowed it down. Yes, there's much to gripe about there. Our H-1B process will become much slower, but then, why should the Government aid is speeding up business? We have slowed down as a nation, we are just standing and smelling the non existent roses.
No, this blog is about DOL's use of the English language in the Prevailing Wage section of the LCA. Bear in mind this form is to be used not by attorneys, but mostly by Employers when they move H-1B employees from one location to another.
The first question (G-7) is Agency which issued Prevailing Wage. Most Employers just look at the Online Wage Library which is maintained by Foreign Labor Certification Data Center. This is overseen by the Department of Labor. Agencies are little orgs inside a Department. Just because the FLC Data Center does not end with an A, an US Employer should know its not an agency, right? I don't see why the question asked in the previous LCA (ie What is the source of the prevailing wage?) is not adequate. Why ask 20 questions to get to the right answer? Wait, its probably a game.
Yeah, this means If you used OES or Other, (AND you DID not use SWA/NPC) then write down the obvious answer FLC Data Center.
Can you use a comma before AND?
This reminds me of Lynn Truss' book Eat, Shoots and Leaves – The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation. The story goes like this: A panda walks into a bar. He asks the bartender for some plant shoots and leaves and a beer. He eats, shoots the bartender with a gun and leaves. The owner looks up the definition of Panda in Wikipedia. It says a Panda eats shoots and leaves. The difference between the two is a comma between eats and shoots.
What University gave Bill Carlson his PhD?
Loosing a job is never easy. Each and every one of the 14.7 million people who lost their jobs in this economic downturn has felt the sinking feeling in their stomach, the worry of uncertainty, and the stigma of failure. But United States citizens can survive. Yes, its hard for an accountant to deliver pizza, but its some money as opposed to nothing. It's an entirely different story with the non immigrants.
I had a client who worked for 25 years for an oil company in Saudi Arabia and 1 year in the United States. And then he got laid off. He is an Indian national, and his only option is to go back to India. He has a house in the US, which he will loose money on selling. But the real cost is that his teen age children had never studies in India and will be hopelessly lost in the Indian education system. He will not have money to provide for private schools.
Another client was coming back to work after visiting India for his father's death and was informed by the Customs and Border Patrol in the airport that his employer fired him and revoked his H-1B visa. In many cases non immigrants have postponed scheduled visits to their home country for fear of being laid off. Some women are not taking maternity leaves after their babies are born for the same reason. Thus the human cost for a non immigrant who is laid off goes far beyond finances.
By law a non immigrant looses their status when they loose their jobs. However, the CIS has usually given a one month grace period. That means that if you can find another job sponsor and file the H-1B within one month, the CIS seems fine with that. They of course have to submit copies of their last pay stub with this new transfer.
If not, one should consider either filing for a visitor's visa, student's visa or go back to their home country. A Visitor's visa may be necessary to extend their stay to be able to settle their financial affairs here. One should file the Form I-539 and explain the situation. They should also show sufficient resources in the United States to stay here. Very often the Citizenship and Immigration Service is asking for proof of ticket purchase to return. Also the reason to stay here has to be compelling. Citizenship and Immigration Service is afraid of people staying here illegally, and thus there is a high rate of denial of these change of status applications to a visitor's visa.
The employee can also seek admission to a school and convert to a F student status. School benefit from foreign students and foreign students benefit from the education. However one has to actually study. Just registering is not sufficient.
After converting status, if one has time remaining in their H-1B status (ie, they have not used up the six years), they can go back to the H-1B status any time they find another H-1B sponsor. They do not have to enter the crazy H-1B lottery again. Even if they are back in their home country, they can file for the remaining period on their H-1B. Please see December 05, 2006 memo by Michael Aytes, Acting Director of USCIS.
By filing for a conversion to the B or F visa, or by leaving the US, they actually stop the running of the 6 year H-1B clock and preserve the remaining time. So when the economy picks up again, and trust me, it will; they do not have to enter the H-1B lottery again, and simply convert or come over on the H-1B visa.
Whatever one does though, they have to be careful not to accrue illegal presence. According to that infamous law acronymed IRAIRA, if one has a 6 month illegal presence they are barred for 3 years, and if the illegal presence is 1 year or more there is a 10 year bar.
On the plus side, there is still H-1B numbers available. As of July 03, the Citizenship and Immigration Service received 45,000 of the 65,000 per year quota for H-1B visas. Businesses are slow in hiring, and that is true especially of non immigrants. So for those lucky enough to find an employer sponsor, there is no lottery unlike previous years.
Hopefully we will all emerge from this economic downturn without too much scarring. Hopefully the US will still be looked upon as a kinder gentler nation, and will continue to draw the brightest and the best to maintain our top position in the world marketplace.


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Berlin-based Everphone raises €34 million to scale beyond Germany
Annie Musgrove 28 July 2020
Berlin-based Everphone, which offers a 'phone-as-a-service' product to equip mobile and remote workforces, has raised €34 million in Series B funding. This round was led by fellow Berlin firm signals Venture Capital, with other new investors including AlleyCorp, Telekom Innovation Pool (the investment arm of Deutsche Telekom), and the Dutch bank NIBC.
Founded in 2016 by former CHECK24 board member Jan Dzulko, everphone is a flexible and cost-efficient way for companies to equip their workforce with smartphones and tablets. The German startup sources, configures and deploys the rental devices and also organises repairs and returns. More than 400 customers, SMEs as well as large corporations such as Ernst & Young, use the service.
Marcus Polke, partner at signals Venture Capital, says the startup "addresses both the hardware and software elements of a rapidly growing number of communication channels, while integrating cybersecurity and data protection requirements. everphone thus provides companies with an integral component of the digital infrastructure on their way to Enterprise 4.0."
Commenting on the round, Dzulko said: "The additional funding will enable us to meet an increasing demand as we further expand our equipment pool and our services. The global pandemic has been a catalyst for growth in the field of digitization: We are currently experiencing a significant increase in demand at home and abroad, which is why we are aiming for European expansion with the funding."
Photo: Founder Jan Dzulko
german startups
berlin startups
Everphone
electronics rental
Female Founders is kicking off its next batch of startups to help close the funding gender gap
Founded in 2016 in Vienna, Female Founders is…
Jonathan Keane


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The decision is likely to anger the US, which has banned Huawei from government networks and put pressure on other partners in the Five Eyes intelligence alliance - the UK, Australia, New Zealand and Canada - to do the same.
Australia has joined the list of places that won't be getting the Galaxy Fold as early as hoped. Troubles with the folding screen have delayed its release.
China's tech giants are increasing their influence over industries and governments around the world. How worried should we be?
In an ideal world, Europe would have something similarly ambitious to the Belt and Road scheme to offer its members.


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Fomalhaut (alpha Piscis Austrini) is de helderste ster in het sterrenbeeld Zuidervis (Piscis Austrinus).

De ster staat ook bekend als Os Piscis Meridiani, Os Piscis Notii, Difda als Auwel en 'de eerste kikker'. De tweede 'kikker' is Deneb Kaitos in het sterrenbeeld Walvis. Gezien vanuit de Beneluxlanden klimt Fomalhaut tijdens het culmineren nooit hoger dan 9 graden boven de zuidelijke horizon. Fomalhaut kan gemakkelijk worden opgespoord met behulp van de sterren α en β Pegasi (Markab en Scheat) die de twee westelijke sterren van het herfstvierkant vormen. De verticale verbindingslijn tussen deze twee sterren dient verder zuidwaarts getrokken te worden om aldus tot bij Fomalhaut te komen.

Fomalhaut is een driedubbelster (tripelster) met naast de hoofdster, Fomalhaut A, de oranje ster Fomalhaut B (ook bekend als TW Piscis Austrini) en de rode dwerg Fomalhaut C. De afstand tussen Fomalhaut A en B is 2 graden aan de hemel. Fomalhaut C is 5,5 graden verwijderd van Fomalhaut A, maar blijkt er toch door zwaartekracht mee verbonden te zijn en omheen te draaien.

Kenmerken

Fomalhaut A kent in ieder geval één planeet, genaamd Fomalhaut b (niet te verwarren met de ster Fomalhaut B). Deze is op 13 november 2008 bevestigd door middel van directe waarnemingen door de Hubble ruimtetelescoop. In april 2020 lijkt een nadere analyse van bestaande en nieuwe gegevens uit te wijzen dat Fomalhaut b een botsing heeft ondergaan – waardoor niet een vaste planeet te zien is, maar mogelijk een uitdijende stofschijf op de plaats waar Fomalhaut b zich zou moeten bevinden.

Fomalhaut lijkt een zeer jonge ster. Eerder werd deze ster zo'n 200 miljoen jaar oud geschat. Latere studies met behulp van ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter Array) leidde tot een nieuwe schatting van 440 miljoen jaar oud.  De temperatuur aan de oppervlakte van de ster is zo'n 8500 kelvin. De ster heeft een massa van 2,3 zonnemassa's, is 15 keer zo helder als de zon en heeft een ongeveer 1,7 keer zo grote diameter.

Schijf en planeet
In 1983 werd door de Nederlands/Amerikaanse satelliet IRAS een torusvormige schijf van stof rond de ster ontdekt. De schijf wordt soms aangeduid als de "Kuipergordel van Fomalhaut". In juni 2005 werd de ring voor het eerst waargenomen in zichtbaar licht. Op deze foto's, waarop de schijf sterk doen denken aan het oog van Sauron (uit de verhalen van Tolkien), is te zien dat het centrum van de schijf zich op zo'n 15 AE (een afstand van ongeveer de halve diameter van het zonnestelsel) van de ster bevindt. Deze afwijking was niet te verklaren met het zwaartekrachtsveld van Fomalhaut alleen. Dit, en het feit dat de schijf een scherp aftekenende binnenrand heeft, konden het best verklaard worden met de aanwezigheid van een planeet aan de binnenzijde van de ring. Deze werd uiteindelijk in november 2008 ontdekt.

De foto's van juni 2005 duidde echter niet alleen op het bestaan van een planeet, maar ook op een maximale grootte ervan. Men dacht dat als de planeet groter zou zijn dan 5 Jupitermassa's, dat deze warm genoeg zou moeten zijn om op de foto's zichtbaar te zijn, wat uiteindelijk in november 2008 ook bleek met de ontdekking van Fomalhaut b. Ook al wordt de massa van deze planeet wel kleiner geschat, zo rond die van Jupiter.

De binnenrand van de schijf bevindt zich op een radiaalafstand van 133 AE en maakt een glooiingshoek van 24 graden met de ster.

Zie ook
 Lijst van helderste sterren

Externe link

Dubbelster
Ster binnen 100 lichtjaar
Magnitude +1 ster
Type A-hoofdreeksster
Ster in Zuidervis


According to the Nikkei, Tokyo is taking a look at getting electronic-warfare (EW) aircraft and Boeing's EA-18G Growler is one of the options being explored.
The news outlet says the Defense Ministry plans to officially put in a request to buy these specialized aircraft in the Mid-Term Defense Program at the end of the year. Once approved, the acquisition will take place between 2019 to 2023.
Growler's sensors have "a range of several hundred kilometers," according to the Japanese Defense Ministry's acquisition and technology unit. If necessary, the country could deploy the aircraft over international waters off the coast of North Korea to disable missile bases and radar facilities.
Thanks to its capabilities the EA-18G would enhance Japan's so-called Anti-Access/Area Denial strategy, which aims to keep Chinese aircraft and military vessels from encroaching on Japan's surroundings. China is deploying its own electronic-warfare aircraft under the military's recently formed Strategic Support Force.
As we have already reported Japan is buying another weapon that could be used in a strike on enemy facilities, in the form of the the JASSM-ER (Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile – Extended Range) cruise missile which features a range of over 575 miles (925 km).
Furthermore Japan is considering the purchase of F-35B STOVL stealth fighters so that it can deploy them aboard Izumo-class helicopter destroyers which will have to be modified with ski-jumps and upgraded aviation fuel storage facilities. Tokyo might even build a new-class of ship to handle the F-35B.
As we have already explained Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is thinking to give preemptive strike capability to the Japan Self-Defence Force (JSDF). Abe would like to give the JSDF such capability because of North Korea's nuclear and missile programs recent developments.
Nevertheless, despite the threat posed by Pyongyang nuclear arsenal, apprehension about giving such capability to JSDF remains deep-rooted within the nation.
However if North Korea were to simultaneously launch multiple missiles, it would be difficult to shoot them all down under Japan's current missile defense structure. Given this issue, Abe is considering possessing the ability to strike enemy bases before a missile attack is initiated against his country.
Along with a strike performed by F-15Js armed with JASSM-ER missiles and an air raid conducted by F-35 stealth fighter bombers, two options are under consideration: a ballistic missile attack and a cruise missile strike.
Acquiring a preemptive strike capability has been considered by previous governments with no decision reached, because such ability would not be appropriate for the JSDF exclusively defensive nature.


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Kalamazoo's Greatest HitsKalamazoo's Greatest Hits
Journey is Coming to Grand Rapids in July
Wendy Reed
Thursday morning it was announced that Journey will be embardking on a 2020 North American tour withThe Pretenders, and one of those tour stops will be right here in Grand Rapids.
In a release, the band revealed that they'll play a show on Wednesday, July 8, 2019 at Grand Rapids' Van Andel Arena.
Tickets for all of the 60+ tour dates go on sale on Friday, November 8, 2019 at 10 a.m.
Grand Rapids isn't the only Michigan date on the tour - the bands will also be playing at DTE Energy Music Theatre in Clarkston, Mich. on July 5, 2020.
Fans can expect to hear iconic Journey classics such as "Lights," "Faithfully," "Any Way You Want It," "Open Arms," "Wheel In The Sky," "Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)," and the seminal "Don't Stop Believin'," which is the top-selling digital catalog track in history, as well as Pretenders' hits such as "I'll Stand By You," "Back On The Chain Gang," "Brass In Pocket," "Don't Get Me Wrong," "2000 Miles," "My City Was Gone," "Middle of the Road," and many more.
Filed Under: journey, Van Andel Arena
Categories: Concerts


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Home SPORTS College Sports Penn State Fan Sends Player Racist 'Dreadlocks' Letter
Penn State Fan Sends Player Racist 'Dreadlocks' Letter
Defender News Service
One Penn State University fan went out his way to send a letter to a star football player, calling his dreadlocks "disgusting" and "not attractive." Now, Penn State has responded to the remarks.
According to NBC News, a letter from an alumnus was sent to a Nittany Lions player who wears dreadlocks. It was addressed "Dear Jonathan," so it can be assumed that it was directed to Penn State safety Jonathan Sutherland. The letter was posted to social media by teammate Antonio Shelton on Monday night with the caption, "One of my teammates got this. Explain to me how this isn't racist."
The letter started off with the writer saying he and his wife are "older" graduates of Penn State and they follow many of the university's sports. The author even shares that he used to be an athlete back in his day.
Then things get ridiculous. The author writes, "Though the athletes of today are certainly superior to those in my days, we miss the clean-cut young men and women from those days."
There's more.
"Watching the Idaho game on TV we couldn't help but notice your – well – awful hair," read the letter. "Surely there must be mirrors in the locker room! Don't you have parents or girlfriend who've told you those shoulder length dreadlocks look disgusting and are certainly not attractive."
Yes, this man spent precious time to type up this letter, lick the stamp and mail it off to Jonathan.
Many athletes and fans came to Sutherland's defense. In a tweet, defensive tackle Aeneas Hawkins dubbed Sutherland a "blueprint" of the "highest standard in the classroom, community, and with his teammates on the field or off." He continues, "This letter is intolerable, your discomfort is disgusting, and you don't deserve to be 'represented' by a man with character as spectacular as #26."
Penn State also came to Sutherland's defense, writing:
"While we don't know the source of this letter or the authenticity, obviously its content does not align with our values. We strongly condemn this message or any message of intolerance."
Athletic Director Sandy Barbour also wrote on Twitter, "I stand with our Penn State student athletes and appreciate how they represent PSU in competition, in the classroom and in the community. Their dress, tattoos, or hairstyle has no impact on my support, nor does their gender, skin color, sexuality or religion!"
Sutherland is a sophomore from Ottawa, Ontario. So far, the Nittany Lions have won their first five games of the season and they're currently ranked No. 10 nationally in the latest Associated Press poll. Penn State's next game is against Iowa, which ranks 17, on Saturday.
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Everyone is very excited with the latest Winter Storms that have brought must needed rain for Mother Earth & white fluffy snow for us sleigh ride enthusiast! Our future is looking 'Merry & Bright!!' A great start to December!! Yahoo!!!
Unfortunately, road conditions & the extended winter storm warning for today, Saturday December 1st, will not allow us to open our sleigh rides or carriage locations at Sand Harbor State Park or Stateline, Lake Tahoe. Singing 'Jingle Bells' & 'Dashing Through the Snow' will have to be delayed until tomorrow.
We do hope to open tomorrow Sunday, December 2nd offering 1 hour sleigh rides at Sand Harbor State Park, 3 mile south of Incline Village, Nevada and If possible, Stateline, Lake Tahoe, Nevada location as well. More tomorrow in our post.
Enjoy the Day - Build a snowman, have some hot chocolate & enjoy the ones you're with!!!


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Wave kitesurfers get world tour in dream spots
February 10, 2011 | Kiteboarding
The International Kiteboarding Association has announced the creation of the 2011 Wave Kiteboarding Championships. The competition will be completed with two stages.
The first one will be run through the PKRA World Tour. With a series of not less than six wave events scheduled for 2011, the battle will be fierce to win one of the coveted tour cards that will allow participation in the world championship finals.
The second stage - the finals - will be run by the KiteSurf Pro (KSP), a new tour set up by a group of the world's finest wave riders, including PKRA Wave Committee members Guilly Brandao, Mitu Monterio, Sky Solbach and Kristin Boese. The KSP aims to to hold events in so-called "dream locations".
Qualification for a spot in the KSP is only possible by competing and placing on the PKRA World Tour or by getting one of the few wildcards that will be available through application to the IKA or the local organizer.
Top eight male riders and four female riders from the 2010 PKRA tour season are already qualified for the 2011 season. Another eight slots are available through the 2011 PKRA World Tour ranking, until one month before the start of the KiteSurf Pro. The number of participants is limited to 24 men and 12 women.
"The feedback and support from the riders, industry and local organizers has been overwhelmingly positive. At this point our main priority is to set up the KSP as a non-profit-association, finalize the details of a cooperation between the IKA and KSP and remain in constant contact with our local organizers to ensure our dream events will happen", says Kristin Boese, a KSP supporter.
IKA takes control of wave kitesurfing titles
World wave kitesurfing champions to be decided in one-off event
Nicholas Thiede replaces Terry McKenna in the KSP World Tour
The complete roster of the 2013 KSP World Tour
The qualification system for the 2013 KSP World Tour