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Scrum for Hardware: A Groundbreaking Experiment at Thermo Fisher Scientific Shows Promise
Industry: Manufacturer of Analytical, Diagnostic and Laboratory Equipment
Company Size: 50,000 Employees
Location: MA, US
Cprime Services:
Agile for Hardware Consulting
The world's largest maker of analytical, diagnostic and laboratory equipment was looking to try Scrum in a hardware environment. Unfortunately this has never been tried in a hardware environment, particularly when the goal was not a prototype but a fully developed, saleable product.
The world's largest maker of analytical, diagnostic and laboratory equipment, Thermo Fisher Scientific has revenues of $17.5 billion a year and employs 50,000 people spread across 50 countries. The project in question took place in the company's San Jose, California, office after employees there heard positive comments about some Agile experimentation taking place in the company's office in Bremen, Germany. "We decided to try it here to see if we could get similar results, such as increased transparency of project status and improved collaboration between marketing and R&D and among different technical functions," says Senior Manager Marisa Richardson. "We also needed a project management process that was acceptable in a regulated industry." With her background in Lean and Operational Excellence, Richardson said she felt Scrum offered a nice framework for defining and monitoring the work of a complex, multidisciplinary project. "I was also interested in a process that would bring more visual management to how projects were led.
Scrum in a Hardware Environment
Thermo Fisher was familiar with Scrum, having used it in software, but no one, to the knowledge of either Thermo Fisher or Cprime, had tried Scrum in a strictly hardware environment — particularly when the goal was not a prototype but a fully developed, saleable product. "There was no obvious history to point to of anyone who was already doing this successfully," says Cprime's Agile Practice Lead Kevin Thompson, PhD, PMP®, CSP®, who led the project.
And Cprime, Thompson is quick to point out, hadn't done it either. However, Thompson was an obvious person to lead the project, having written a paper, "Agile Processes for Hardware Development," in which he argued that a Scrum process should be effective for development of electronic and electromechanical devices.
How Scrum is different in Hardware
What makes the implementation of daily working Scrum so different in a hardware environment? You might better ask what isn't different, says Thompson. To start with, software development typically proceeds at a fairly rapid pace and is broken down into separate steps or iterations, while it might take three to six months to get to a working hardware component or feature. More specifically:
1. It's not Easy to add Functionality Over Time.
In traditional Scrum, features and functionality are added as you go along, but hardware is set from beginning. "You design the entire system to do certain things and then you build components to fit that plan," says Thompson. Because hardware is developed according to strict process models and has to meet specific compliance standards, it's much harder to make changes, particularly late in the process. When late changes do have to be made, the costs can run high.
2. You Can't Test in the Middle.
In traditional Scrum, the team tests product iterations, then makes usability modifications accordingly, without altering the flow of execution. But with hardware, it's not possible to test before all the components are assembled. "Take a car, for example — you can't drive it when all you've got are tires and a drivetrain," says Thompson. "You've got to put an awful lot of this stuff together before you can check capabilities, so that [checking] happens much later than in the software world."
3. Everyone is Learning a New Language.
It wasn't just the hardware developers who were learning a new language in being introduced to Scrum. Thompson realized he too needed to listen and learn. "They didn't know how to do Scrum, but they did know how to design equipment," Thompson says. So he started by listening in team meetings and learning how the current process worked. "A hardware team talks about pieces of equipment, they don't think in terms of functionality. So I said, "Let's divide up the world your way, and go with how you think about all this."
In many ways, Cprime's work with Thermo Fisher Scientific followed the same process as any other type of Scrum training. The primary differences were the environment, the deliverables, and the fact that the team members, all hardware engineers, had zero experience with Scrum.
Choosing the Team.
Given the pioneering nature of the effort, it was important that everyone involved understood that the project would involve significant challenges, says Thompson. "While Cprime has enormous experience working with a variety of clients, Agile hardware development is new." Even more critical, managers chose members of the nine-person team carefully, looking for innovators who had good tolerance for risk and mistakes.
Making the Plan.
To ensure the greatest chance of success, Thompson advised Thermo Fisher to choose for the pilot a medium-sized project that was important to the company, but the success of which was "not a life-or-death matter." They chose a new product known as "Trailblazer" that met these criteria and launched in late July 2015.
Setting a Schedule.
Week 1: Scrum training and writing high-level requirements (epics)
Week 2: Drafting the release plan, including setting estimates for all epics, writing user and technical stories in preparation for Sprint 1
Week 3 (first week of Sprint 1): Sprint planning , developing and testing deliverables
Week 4 (second week of Sprint 1): Developing and testing deliverables.
Defining a Release Cycle.
Thermo Fisher defined the product life cycle in three phases: engineering prototype, manufacturing prototype, and final design. After consideration, Thompson and the team decided it made the most sense to map release cycles exactly to the three main design iterations. Thus the first release cycle was to design a working engineering prototype. The team estimated the full period necessary for the project at 15 sprints, or 30 weeks, or about 7 months.
Lessons Learned: What Worked and What Didn't?
At first, as the team began Scrum training, "there was a fair amount of bafflement and amusement," Thompson says, at this completely different way of working from their previous Waterfall-style project management. But quite quickly things began to come together. Here are the most important lessons Thompson learned about how a typical Scrum process works in a hardware environment.
Lesson #1:
The product owner is also a team member. In software development, product owners tend not to be software developers but to be product managers focused on market and business needs. But in hardware, the people who drive the definition of hardware products will usually be those participating in the development process.
Writing hardware requirements is a different process. To break down a project into specifications and deliverables, it's necessary to cover all aspects of the product as currently understood. In software, a typical process would be to define the major user-facing areas of functionality that were important for the first (or next) product release, and write specifications for them. But in hardware, the focus is on what the product does and the components necessary to achieve that successfully. This meant that few of the deliverables reflected user experience, and most deliverables were behind the scenes. In Scrum language, there were lots of technical stories and relatively few user stories.
Release planning is essential. In typical Scrum, the fundamental development cycle is the two- to three-week sprint, and the much longer time horizon of a release cycle may or may not be part of the process. But because the cost of change is so much higher in hardware development, and the time to usability is much longer, it became clear that release planning was required. Going forward, "we sensed that we need to do more release planning and project risk assessment at the beginning, to be able to give a more predictable overall schedule for the organization to plan by," says Richardson.
Stories are tested by implementers. While in software, quality assurance specialists are generally tasked with software testing, hardware deliverables vary so widely (from, as in this case, the design of a circuit board to an actual device or piece of machinery) that developers are in most cases the only ones who understand them well enough to test them.
Time-based estimation works best. Traditional Scrum teams collaborate to estimate stories relative to each other, in story points. However, hardware development teams comprise a mix of such highly specialized skills that establishing story point norms as a group proved impossible. The team found time-based estimation much more successful and intuitive.
What Made This Experiment Successful
Taking the time to plan together allowed the team to communicate and collaborate better than ever before, everyone involved in the project agrees. "The process of planning went more smoothly, with fewer bumps than they were used to," says Thompson. Now, adds Richardson,
Team member Michael W. Belford, a research and engineering scientist at Thermo Fisher, agrees, "I make technical decisions with more input from the team than in any other project that I have worked on," says Bellford. "The daily stand-up is a lifesaver, as is the [visual task] board. I can quickly understand where we are and what needs to be done."
Outcome measures were another area where results were almost immediately apparent. "The first sign this was a success was that the burn-down chart was eerily on target; the tracking records showed we were exactly on plan," says Thompson. Both team members and managers appreciated the resulting improvements in predictability.
Scrum has also increased team members' ability to see the larger picture. "Release planning has been beneficial because it really focused the team on what our big goals are, as opposed to smaller engineering goals," Belford says. Even what had seemed to be a problem has benefits, says Belford.
"Grooming is a hassle because it takes so much time and requires us to stop doing and think, but the drawbacks I mention are also the clear benefits."
Thompson emphasizes that one of the most important aspects of the process is that it was clearly defined and purely Scrum, not something Agile but less defined. "I'd say that if we broke ground here, it was in creating a standard way to use Scrum for hardware development. All the i's are dotted, and the t's are crossed. It isn't a one-off custom solution, but a fully reusable standard that I'm now using with other hardware clients."
Currently the pilot project is still going strong at Thermo Fisher, with the nine-person team continuing to "push the envelope" in exploring the application of Agile to hardware.
Considering it an experiment in progress, Thermo Fisher Scientific isn't ready to draw any specific conclusions yet. Still, the company hopes to expand the process to other teams and projects. "We would like to experiment with a bigger project, a distributed team, and continue to evolve with these variables," says Richardson. "There are a lot of parallels with Lean, and we've seen Lean adopted outside of the automotive and manufacturing sectors to many different industries, such as health care and the military. It definitely makes sense that similar trends could happen with Scrum."
Meanwhile, as word spreads, Thompson says he's seeing a great deal of curiosity among those in hardware, and several clients have approached him about starting projects of their own. In particular, companies that use Scrum for software are interested in expanding it to hardware with the expectation that it would improve coordination between the two, says Thompson.
"Any time you're building a product and your software and hardware need to get along, then the people who build them need to get along, and now you're going down the path towards Scrum."
An Alten Company, Cprime is a global consulting firm helping transforming businesses get in sync. Cprime is the partner of choice for Fortune 100 companies looking to achieve value and agility. We help visionary business leaders compose solutions, execute implementations, and exceed business goals. With our key partnership recognitions, including Atlassian Platinum, AWS Advanced, and SAFe Gold SPCT partner, our industry-leading software and services work in synergy to deliver transformations.
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Kicking off this year's Fringe reviews, we start with a trip out for breakfast on Shakespeare Island.
Shakespeare for Breakfast is a Fringe regular, and this is my third visit. Each year, the group present a different show complete with plenty of comic Shakesperian and pop-culture references.
This year's show deviates from previous years as the cast have not decided to go for a straight adaptation of a single play. Instead, many of the tropes and characters from some of the most famous plays are woven together into a new story about the evil characters trying to change the plays to become the heroes. I won't say much more for fear of giving the plot away.
Overall, the story was straightforward, and funny, but it didn't quite have the charm of the play adaptations in previous years. Amongst those I went to the show with, this was a controversial opinion with some suggesting it was better! However, the writing was still sharp as a tack with plenty of laughs on all levels.
I don't really have a bad word to say about this year's cast. The play was performed with enthusiasm, which meant even the most weak of jokes still found giggles. There was quite a bit of dual casting, which was part of the comedy, and this only strengthend the performances.
As always, you can't go far wrong booking this show, especially as there is a free cup of coffee or tea and a croissant thrown in. If you've seen it in years before, you may feel it's not up to usual standards, but I wouldn't let that put you off a thoroughly enjoyable morning.
This entry was posted in Reviews, Theatre and tagged 4 stars, fringe 2014, musical, reviews on 7th August 2014 by .


Check Out The Great Content In The Scots Magazine August 2018 Issue!
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The August issue of The Scots Magazine is in shops now!
Ayrshire's Culzean Castle is a horticultural wonderland!


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This series introduces the concept of anonymous transactions, methods of deanonymizing Bitcoin transactions, and techniques to enhance Bitcoin privacy. Part I is an introduction. Parts II and III discuss specific implementations of anonymous cryptocurrencies. Part II will cover the CryptoNote protocol and Monero, and Part III will focus on zero-knowledge proofs and Zcash.
The "Warlocks" and anonymous identities
In sci-fi author Vernor Vinge's classic cyberpunk masterpiece True Names, a group of prominent hackers called "warlocks" regularly operates on the largest open virtual reality world to penetrate computers around the world. To protect themselves from each other, and the authorities ("The Great Adversary"), the warlocks must keep their real identities anonymous at all cost. Failure to hide their identity could result in slavery, or even death.
Protecting the identities of participants in financial networks in the real-world is taken just as seriously. Failures in privacy protection can expose network participants to social engineering, theft, or blackmail.
In the traditional financial system, privacy is achieved through limiting access to information. In a bank, only authorized individuals are permitted to view identity or transaction data, and security systems are built around preventing unauthorized access to the sensitive databases.
(Image source: Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System)
Over the years there were numerous attempts at creating financial systems native to the digital world (see Bitcoin's Academic Pedigree). Bitcoin is the first successful implementation. Unlike most of his predecessors, Satoshi Nakamoto designed the transaction database as a fully transparent public ledger. In Bitcoin, privacy is achieved through breaking the connection between real-world identities and transaction addresses.
On a blockchain explorer, transactions look like this:
(Image from Bitcoin Explorer)
For most people, it is extremely challenging to figure out the identities of the sender/recipients just by looking at these alphnumerical strings. However, Bitcoin transactions are not fully anonymous. With the right tools, it's possible to track down exactly who is moving Bitcoins around; and the tools are constantly improving especically when there is financial incentive for malicious actors. Before going into the specifics of the techniques, let's go over some fundamental cryptographic concepts.
Cryptographic primitives of Bitcoin
A hash is a function that maps data of any size (file, video, audio etc.) to data of fixed size (a string). A cryptographic hash function is a special class of hash functions that is designed to preserve the integrity of the data source. After the original file is hashed, it is impossible to derive the input from the fixed-sized output.
As illustrated above, the output changes completely when only a single digit of the input is altered. Even though the hash results look uncorrelated, the same message will always return the same hash. However, to produce a specific hash result, you will have to try almost all possible inputs. The ideal cryptographic hash functions are also collision-free, meaning that it is infeasible to produce the same hash value with two different inputs.
Cryptographic hash functions are a critical component in digital signatures. Digital signatures are the public-key primitives of message authentication that guarantees the validity of a Bitcoin transaction. They are used to bind a signatory to the message. Public key cryptography, or asymmetrical cryptography, uses a pair of keys: the public key and private key. Asymmetrical cryptography was revolutionary in eliminating shared secrets between the sender and receiver. Its security relies on mathematical problems that are currently considered too inefficient to solve, such as integer factorization, or discrete log. Profound and difficult theorems in mathematics tend to be more secure when turned into algorithms. The private key and the public key have a mathematical relation that allows one to easily derive the public from the private key, but almost impossible to find the private key from the public key.
The first private-public key scheme was proposed by the legendary Whitfield Diffie and Martin Hellman in 1976, and further inspired industry-grade algorithm such as RSA, developed in 1978 by Rivest, Shamir, and Adleman. Today, Digital signatures are a standard weapon in most cryptographic protocol arsenals.
A simplified illustration of RSA
To sign a document, the sender needs to combine a private key with the hash of the document.
To verify the signature, the receiver first decrypts the signed document with a public key and compares the results with the hash of the original document. If the results are equivalent, the signature is authentic.
The public key in a digital signature is usually the representative of identity. The hash of the public key, combined with a network identifier byte, and a checksum, is the alphanumeric address we see on the blockchain explorer. Digital signatures have a wide range of applications in computer science.
Fermat's last theorem, Elliptic curve, and the NSA
It's important to note that no asymmetric cryptographic schemes is perfectly secure. The underlying algorithms work due to the intractability of the mathematical problem. As computation power improves, cryptography also needs to constantly improve. Bitcoin uses a particular digital signature scheme known as Elliptic Curve Digital Signature Algorithm. The security of ECDSA relies on the algebraic structure of elliptic curve over a finite field.
Elliptic curve gained popularity from the proof of Fermat's Last Theorem. The theorem, conjectured in 1637, states that no three positive integers a,b, and c satisfy the equation 𝑎^𝑛+𝑏^𝑛=𝑐^𝑛 for any integer value of n greater than 2.
Among the many challenges that Fermat left for the world, this was to prove the most difficult. A tantalizingly simple problem about positive integers, it stood unsolved for 358 years until Andrew Wiles proved that semistable elliptic curves over the field of rational numbers are related to modular forms, which implies Fermat's Last Theorem holds.
The elliptic curve has several interesting properties that can be useful in cryptography. Neal Koblitz and Victor Miller introduced elliptic curves to cryptography in 1985. Today, elliptic curves cryptography has been extensively studied. For more detailed tutorial, please see a post by Andrea Corbelini. Based on currently understood mathematics, elliptic curve cryptography proves to be a much more secure scheme than first generation systems like RSA.
An elliptic curve is a set of points that satisfy the equation 𝒚^𝟐=𝒙^𝟑+𝒂𝒙+𝒃, also called Weierstrass Normal Form. As a and b change, the shape of the curve varies too:
(Image from Wolfram MathWorld)
Choosing the right curve is essential for security. Many cryptographic standards widely used in commercial applications were developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, a government entity that works closely with NSA. In 2007, security researchers found NSA backdoors in some of the cryptographic tools. In an article written by Vitalik Buterin, he describes how Satoshi Nakamoto avoided such threat by choosing secp256k1, a curve that was almost never used before Bitcoin, hence making sure the digital signature scheme in Bitcoin almost impossible to be compromised by backdoors.
Vulnerabilities in Bitcoin transactions
Despite Satoshi Nakamoto's careful and deliberate selection of the cryptographic tools, Bitcoin still is not fully anonymous. Which parts of the network are vulnerable to privacy attacks? Let's review the transaction process step-by-step:
Recall that the Bitcoin network is a public ledger. During the transaction process there are several steps the data feed interacts with the public network. Before sophisticated tools such as Chainanalysis were developed, people often try to find basic patterns in transactions that happen frequently between the same addresses. Over the years, many methods have been tested to reveal the real identities of the senders and recipients. Due to the linkability of the transactions, we say Bitcoin is pseudo-anonymous. To compromise the pseudo-anonymity is to associate identity information with a series of transactions. Such information can be acquired during the highlighted steps below:
De-anonymizing bitcoin transactions
The common techniques to denonymize a transaction can be summarized into two categories: network analysis and blockchain analysis.
Network analysis entails tracking down the IP of the node initiated the transaction. At the 2011 Black Hat conference, Dan Kaminsky suggested that due to the P2P nature of the network, "when you are connected to every node, the first node inform you of a transaction is the source of it." This recognition inspired some new experiments with network layer IP analysis. It is especially effective when multiple nodes coordinate and listen to the network. An example of this method is CoinSeer. This kind of exposure can be partially mitigated by using Tor or some other i2p services. However, not only is Bitcoin-over-Tor hard to use, extensive studies have shown that the IPs are not fully protected. Plus, i2P and Tor themselves are not fully anonymous under certain attacks.
A more common type of attack is blockchain analysis. Through collecting a magnitude of transaction data, the adversary is able to cluster and tag the identities of participants. Open Bitcoin Privacy Project lists linking network identity to Bitcoin address as one of the top threats.
Such type of clustering attack is possible because of the "cash" characteristic of UTXO, the data structure responsible for tracking the balances on Bitcoin public ledger.
The design rationale of UTXO is to help tracking the flow of transactions such that it is easier to check double-spending. A UTXO is like a bank note and each one is unique. A user's wallet contains a set of UTXOs. Supposing the Sender needs to send 5BTC, the Bitcoin client will extract UTXOs with sum of value larger or equal to the transaction amount (3BTC and 4BTC), and the difference will be a new UTXO deposited back to the Sender.
As the illustration shows, sometimes a transaction can have multiple inputs. These different inputs are evidence of account ownership. With the right tool, the adversary can link multiple inputs to find out the controller of these addresses. This process can be repeated many times to plot out an entire cluster of transactions belonging to a single entity or individual. We call these transactions linkable. Some of the heuristics employed in the linkability analysis are:
Shadow Change: Change public key has never been seen before in the blockchain.
Optimal Change: Wallets do not spend unnecessary outputs if there is a unique output with a value smaller than any inputs.
Consumer Change Transactions from consumer's wallet have less than 2 outputs.
After linking and clustering the transactions, the adversary can tag the central servers in the network after interacting with them to associate real-world identities with the transactions. Common service providers are exchanges, wallets, mining pools, and vendors. Below is a transaction graph plotted by researchers Meiklejohn et al in 2013 in the article A fistful of Bitcoins: characterizing payments among men with no names. Each grey line contains at least 200 transactions between two nodes. The size of the circles represents the comparative volume of capital transacted.
(Image source: Meiklejohn, Sarah, Marjori Pomarole, Grant Jordan, Kirill Levchenko, Damon McCoy, Geoffrey M. Voelker and Stefan Savage. "A fistful of bitcoins: characterizing payments among men with no names." Internet Measurement Conference (2013))
Why privacy matters
For service providers or e-commerce platforms accepting Bitcoin, such exposure can invite many unwanted trouble. Your competitors will know exactly how much volume you are handling, and hackers/social engineers can create more specific strategies to attack. Especially if your address shows up on the list of Top 100 Richest.
Privacy is also an essential basis for fungibility, and fungibility is a fundamental property of a currency. It means very coin is worth the same value and is thus mutually interchangeable. Bitcoin is not fungible, because of the public ledger used to track all historical transactions. Some tokens may be blacklisted or overpriced as a result of previous transactions.
In order for a token network to be fully fungible, it must maintain privacy on the public ledger. How anonymous is anonymous enough? To be fully anonymous, we require the transaction network to be untraceable and unlinkable, which means it is impossible to link together different addresses of the same user, impossible to link sender of a payment to its recipient, and impossible to link together different transactions made by the same user. But how do we know if a network is truly anonymous? How do we quantify the system's anonymity?
Measuring (and effecting) anonymity
Anonymity on networks is not binary measurement but a spectrum. In 1988 Chaum introduced the concept of anonymity set. It is defined as the set of participants who could have sent a particular message, as seen by a global observer who has also compromised a set of nodes. It is common to use the cardinality of the set as a measurement of anonymity. Increasing the privacy of a network is maximizing the anonymity set to any adversary.
Over the years, researchers proposed and tested new methods to enhance Bitcoin privacy against blockchain analysis. Various techniques that achieved relative success are more-or-less based on the concept of mixing (sometimes referred to as tumbling). As the name suggests, mixing combine several transactions together to obfuscate the addresses of a particular transaction.
Mixings are usually done through a dedicated service provider. Some notable implementations include CoinJoin and ValueShuffle.
Lightning Network could also potentially increase the privacy of the network. While it is not specifically designed for privacy purposes, using multiple hops in the Lightning Network could potentially obfuscate a transaction's origin. However, if the Lightning channel is opened only for direct transactions, those transactions will be aggregated and recorded into the blockchain after close, and anyone listening on the Lightning during this process could still have observed all these transactions.
Next: Comparing approaches to privacy in Monero and Zcash
None of these forms of anonymization are perfect; for example, in the case of mixers, the centralized mixer itself could be malicious and steal customers' assets. More advanced anonymization techniques are explored over years in some alternative protocols. We will discuss anonymization techniques in further detail in Part II.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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BlogHome Shipping Top 10 Biggest And Largest Ships In The World 2018
Top 10 Biggest And Largest Ships In The World 2018
Cruise ships signify a lavisher treat away from the daily life where travelers of the world can relish extravagant facilities to any other places of the globe so these are also sometimes called as the floating resorts on the oceans and seas, as they have to live many months in the water, the life of biggest ships or cruise wealthier or biggest by every passing day.
Manufacturer and designers are working on the beauty, luxury and effectiveness of these cruises, so as we take the name of biggest ships, none other than but Titanic came in our mind because that was one of the biggest ever in the history but now, despite of that, there are large number of biggest cruises made which made the life of people full luxury and they are able to transport large things than that of any other machine of the world.
So here we have the list of top 10 biggest and largest ships in the world 2018.
10: TI Class Supertanker
The TI Class of supertankers are at present the four largest ships in the world The class encompass the ships TI Asia, TI Europe, TI Africa, and TI Oceania, where the 'TI' refers to the VLCC Tanker Pool operator Tankers International, the class were the first ultra-large crude carriers to be built in 25 years in the history. It has more length, dead volume, despite of this also more attractive cruise, it is used for transferring crude of large quantity because it is able of transferring more than 440,000 tones with great capacity and speed that is never less than 16 to 20 knots so its length is about 380 meters.
9: CMA CGM Von Humboldt
Another gigantic cruise ship is CMA CGM Alexander von Humboldt that is an Explorer class container-ship built for CMA CGM, It is named this after Alexander von Humboldt, CMA CGM had formerly designed to name the ship after Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama, so it was scheduled for delivery in June 2013. So it started working in 2013 after some days of its construction, length of this master one is all about 396 meters with dead weight is more than 187,624 tons, despite of its large length, it also has maximum speed of 20 knots so it is mostly used for transferring oil tankers.
8: Emma Maersk
Emma Mærsk is the gigantic leading cruise ship as it is first container ship in the E-class of eight owned by the A. P. Moller Maersk Group, it was manufactured in 2006 therefore it is in service because at that time, it was largest ship ever made in the world; according to reports, it is able to carry more than 11,000 twenty-foot equivalent units. It was exclusively prepared in Denmark; it also set the record of sailing for more than six week in the same year of its manufacturing and it is interesting to know that ship was caused by fire during construction.
7: Barzan
Barzan is a particularly large container ship and therefore among the largest container ships in the world, more interesting, it is the first of a succession of six 18,800 TEU container ships which was built for United Arab Shipping Company in South Korea, According to the manufacturers and designers, it has carbon productions far inferior than the Maersk EEE class container ships. This ship is also in one of the newest built because it was completed in 2015, so dead weight of this cruise is all about 199,744 tonnes, it length is also about 400 meters with the speed more than 42 km/h.
6: Maersk MC-Kinney Moller
MV Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller is the leading cruise ship of the family Maersk's Triple E class of container vessels, at the time of its entrance into service in 2013, it had the biggest cargo capacity in TEU of any vessel, and was called as the longest container ship in service worldwide, it was constructed for famous company Maersk by Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering of South Korea, so it was unveiled before the world in February 2013 and entered operational service in the same year in July 2013, so length of this gigantic one is about 400 meter with the speed of 23 knots.
5: Esso Atlantic
It is one of two major cruise ships in the history of the world that has dead weight more than half million tons, so it is known as the record holder ship of the world due to this feature, it was launched in way back in 1977 and also known as biggest cruise ship at that time because it has length more than 406 meters with awesome speed of 15.6 knots. So dead weight capacity of this ship is about 516,891. This is basically an oil tanker which was used for transferring oil so it has served the world for many years.
4: Batillus Class
Batullus Class is also known as Batillus Class supertanker, it was one of those cruise ship which were built in the early days years of 1970s, it was completed in almost 3 years between 1976 to 1979 in France, as according to reports, it was also extended in 1981 which made this supertanker longest in the world with total size of just over than 414 meters. It was also basically an oil tanker but also used for transferring other heavy machinery so it was entered in the service in the 1976, speed of this enormous ship was about 16 knots.
3: Pierre Guillaumat
This supertanker was named after the French politician and organizer of Elf Aquitaine oil industry, Pierre Guillaumat was a supertanker, built in 1977 by Chantiers de l'Atlantique at Saint-Nazaire for Companies National de steering, because of her enormous magnitude the usability of the Pierre Guillaumat was very inadequate. So it was not able to pass through either the Panama or Suez canals, because of its draft, it was entered in minimal number of ports in the world, and was therefore moored on offshore engineers, so deadweight tonnage of Pierre Guillaumat was almost 555,000 tons, so length of this cruise was about 414 meters with near about 16 knots of speed.
2: Seawise Giant
As it was clear from the name of this master cruise ship, Seawise Giant and it was named as later Happy Giant, Jahre Viking, Oppama, Knock Nevis, and finally known as Mont, it was a ULCC supertanker and the greatest ship ever built in the history, it obsessed the greatest deadweight tonnage ever recorded. At the time of fully loaded, its disarticulation was 657,019 tones the heaviest ship of any kind, so total length of this cruise is about 458 meters with the total speed of 16 knots, this ship started its journey during the war of Iran and Iraq.
1: Prelude FLNG
Prelude FLNG is the first cruise of the world floating liquefied natural gas platform, despite of this, it is also largest offshore capability ever constructed, the Prelude is being built by the Technip / Samsung Consortium in South Korea for a combined venture between KOGAS, Royal Dutch Shell, and Inpex. It is largest in the world because of its length which is 488 meters; 74 meters wide, therefore large material is used in the construction of this ship because made with more than 260,000 tons of steel. At the time of full load, it will displace more than 600,000 tons, more than five times the dislocation of a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier.
Source: www.foxnewspoint.com
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Q: Images are served by localhost but not when I deploy I have been working on a GAE app, I had been referencing an image locally fine but when I deployed the app the image is missing!! I am using Windows Vista, FWIW. Here's my app.yaml:
application: pll3rdorder
version: 1
runtime: python27
api_version: 1
threadsafe: yes

handlers:
- url: /favicon\.ico
  static_files: favicon.ico
  upload: favicon\.ico

- url: /static
  static_dir: static

- url: /download/noiseSources
  script: downloadNoiseSources.app

- url: /stylesheets
  static_dir: stylesheets

- url: .*
  script: main.app

libraries:
- name: webapp2
  version: "2.5.1"
- name: numpy
  version: "1.6.1"
- name: jinja2
  version: "2.6"

I am referring to the image like so:
<img type="image/png" class="image" src="/static/PLL_diagram2_small.png" />

For some reason that works locally but when I deploy, that image does not show up!
I am also using a CSS stylesheet and that DOES work both locally and when I deploy:
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="/stylesheets/style.css" />

Stylesheets and images are both static files, so why does it work for one but not the other? I hope someone can illuminate me.

A: Make sure that the filename PLL_diagram2_small.png exactly matches your url.
When you say that the image works on your Windows machine but not in the deployed version -- and considering that the filename contains uppercase and lowercase letters -- it is very likely that there's something wrong with the filename cases.
On your windows machine, your file system is probably not case-sensitive so that it will not recognize case errors in filenames.
The deployment system seems to be more strict, here.
Anyway, you provide only few information about the actual error. Maybe, you could state if the server gives you e.g. a 404 or provide a link to the problematic site (if it is available for public).

A: For me, the problem was the filename format. I had the image file as equityLogo4.png and the image did not display on server. I changed the filename format to equity-logo.png and it fixed the problem.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
SCULLY LOVE PROMO
We'll spread the love about you!
Ann Vriend, Indie Musicians, Music, Singer-Songwriter, Soul Music, Video Release
ANN VRIEND (AV) Releases New Single + Video IT'S HAPPENING w/ Special Performance by Sifton Elementary Student Choir
Posted on October 14, 2018 by Scully Love Promo
TORONTO – Award-winning soul singer ANN VRIEND (AV) releases a new video and single entitled "IT'S HAPPENING." Commissioned for a school fundraiser, the students of Sifton Elementary School Choir accompany AV on this empowering and gritty, inner-city soul anthem. The efforts will culminate on Friday, October 26, at 2:15 pm with a special performance at the school, 4305 134 Ave NW, Edmonton, AB. For more info please visit www.annvriend.com.
AV sings her heart out about her views of the world; her matter-of-fact, non-sugar-coated observations from her inner city neighborhood; her hard life lessons – and yet there is a soulful, hopeful persistence for herself and the world to be better.
The children's choir AV recruited to sing the song "It's Happening" with her, are living proof that as she sings, the change to a more diverse and inclusive society "is already happening." Propelled by an unstoppable and compelling electric piano groove, the lyrics describe the transcendence of tough circumstances, with a compassionate heart. With her voice sounding like that of the late Aretha Franklin in her very early Gospel days, AV offers a powerful, socially conscious exhortation.
"It's Happening" was recorded June 4, 2018, with students from the Sifton Elementary School Choir. Sifton Elementary is a school in North Edmonton where many students come from war-torn countries and traumatizing and/or impoverished situations. The funding of this recording was made possible via an anonymous donor who saw the students and AV perform at a school fundraiser on May 4, 2018. The donor was so moved and inspired by the performance of the song, that he immediately asked how it could be immortalized by a studio recording of it. A week later he graciously provided the funding for this endeavor. A month to the day after their debut performance, the students, AV, and her producer and videographer, Tino Zolfo, were in the recording studio recording the song and making a music video for it. None of the students had been in a recording studio prior to this date, but have since inspired many people with their talent, hope, and enthusiasm for this venture. AV and all involved in the making of this video would like to thank everyone for listening and being part of this experience.
www.annvriend.com
https://open.spotify.com/album/3HPEpM2xRp3n3k3ujaKCUG
https://play.spotify.com/artist/3vjHMysd98leqhwDotu9fZ
www.youtube.com/user/AnnVriend
www.facebook.com/AnnVriend
https://twitter.com/AnnVriend
www.instagram.com/annvriend
For more information, photos, mp3s, WAV files, CD copies, interviews, please contact:
SPEAK Music | Beverly Kreller, Publicist
bev@speak-music.com | 416-922-3620
Twitter: @SPEAKMusicPR
Facebook: www.facebook.com/beverly.kreller
Ann Vriend AV diversity Edmonton Public Schools inclusion inclusive society inner city neighborhood inner city neighbourhood It's Happening music video new music video Sifton Elementary School Sifton Elementary School Choir soul music soul song soul songstress Tino Zoflo
"Merry Christmas Darling: Carpenters' Christmas" Theatrical Touring Show Hits the Road For the Holiday Season
Sultans of String Premiere Video for the Song "Turkish Greensleeves" from Christmas Caravan
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Multi-JUNO Award Nominees Canadian World Collective Sultans of String Send Special Birthday Wish to Neil Young by way of "Heart of Gold" November 12, 2019
Singer-songwriter David Leask Releases New Music Video for "When You Think No One Loves You" November 1, 2019


Dan Roules has 30 years of experience in international transactions in Asia, Europe and the United States and has been living and working in China for nearly 25 years. Dan has served as lead counsel on numerous cross-border mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and restructurings in China (including Taiwan) and throughout the Asia Pacific region. He counsels on corporate finance, corporate governance, US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and PRC anti-bribery issues, as well as the full range of operational issues for manufacturing companies in China.
Prior to moving to Shanghai, Dan spent four years in the firm's Beijing office and three years with the firm in Taipei, where he counselled manufacturing, technology and venture companies on a wide range of matters both there and in mainland China.
During the 1990s, Dan worked for the firm in several emerging markets, including the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, advising multinational companies on acquisitions, joint ventures and commercial matters, and counselling multilateral financing organizations and government agencies on privatization and foreign investment matters.
Developing entertainment and gift policies for use by US publicly-traded companies in China for use with government offices and executives of state-owned enterprises.
Advising a US consumer goods company on its response to an inquiry into alleged price-fixing activities in China.
Counseling a US fast food restaurant and delivery company with respect to data privacy issues under PRC law.
Coordinating internal investigations at multinational automotive sector company based in China into various acts of wrongful conduct including vendor price-rigging.
Advising a leading global producer of consumer goods on price-fixing issues.
Representing a US IT company in responding to nationwide complaints by customers and legal counsel in China on alleged product defect and demands for recall.
Designing a comprehensive IP protection strategy for a US automotive components manufacturer and counseled on implementation with a particular focus on the protection of know-how and trade secrets in China, as well as data protection and state security issues.
Routinely counsels on PRC pre-merger filing and competition issues in connection with mergers, acquisitions, and joint ventures in China.
In connection with the firm's work as lead global counsel to ITOCHU Corporation in its US$1.68 billion acquisition of the Asia fresh fruit and global packaged foods businesses of Dole Food Company, coordinated local counsel in more than 15 countries throughout the Asia Pacific region and the Middle East, including the investigation of real estate and foreign ownership matters, compliance, health, safety and environmental issues, competition, foreign exchange, regulatory and employment matters.
Representing a world-recognized developer of beauty products, technology driven skin care, makeup and perfumes on data privacy/data protection issues in China.
Advising and analyzing the compliance issues for the software product of a leading UK consulting company for marketing analysis to be launched in China, including advising on PRC regulatory issues related to map data and data privacy.
Counseling Western clients on the data privacy implications of China's Cyber Security Law, both as adopted and as implemented.


"Mr. Syrigos, someone tried to kill you. Do you suspect anyone?"
That was the question the Greek police asked sports editor Filippos Syrigos of the newspaper Eleftherotypia the day after he was brutally attacked by two men who hit him over the head and stabbed him several times in the back.
Sports journalism has become a dangerous business in Greece with three attacks on sports journalists in the past year. To highlight this unfortunate development, Play the Game had invited Filippos Syrigos to Copenhagen to talk about the attack and the possible reasons for it.
In October 2004, Syrigos told the police officer – just as he told delegates at Play the Game 2005 – that he had been working on three major reporting issues – all of them sports scandals with the potential to be the reason for the hit against him.
One was the exposure of a scam revolving around the Greek Karaiskaki Stadium where the president of the Olympiacos Football Company S.A. built a lucrative private business on land owned by the state and with money that essentially originated from state funds.
Syrigos had also reported extensively on the Greek doping scandal at the Olympic Games including secret dealings between the IOC and the runners Kenteris and Thanou and their coach Tzekos.
Finally, Syrigos had turned his journalistic spotlight on the dealings of the sport marketing company, Octagon, that seemed to profit extensively from the owner's close relationship to Gianni Angelopolous, president of the organising committee of the Olympic Games in 2004.
Filippos Syrigos does not want to point the finger at any of these potential suspects without proper evidence. However, a year on from the attack the Greek police has still not arrested anyone for the attack that nearly cost the sports journalist his life.


Tomatillo Cheese Sauce, Tomatoes, Red Onion, Cilantro, Sour Cream, Jalapeno-Cilantro Crust.
Choose Half or Full Size and two Side Dishes of Angus Steak Power Plate. Antibiotic Free. No Added Hormones.
Choose Half or Full Size and two Side Dishes of Chicken Breast Power Plate. Antibiotic Free. No Added Hormones.
Choose Half or Full Size and two Side Dishes of Shrimp Power Plate. Natural Shrimp. No added phosphates or coloring agents.
Tomatillo Cheese Sauce, 4 Cheeses, Cilantro, Onions, Cabbage, Sour Cream, Pico de Gallo. Side of Organic Rice & Organic Beans.
Chicken, Tofu, or BBQ Salmon, Organic Rice & Organic Beans (with a cheese topping). Includes a Mini Baked Churro.
Includes Organic Rice & Organic Beans and a Mini Baked Churro.
Roasted veggies: organic carrots, organic beets, organic yams, organic brussel sprouts, organic cauliflower, red onion, mixed with a walnut-cilantro pesto. Served with organic quinoa with veggies, organic black beans, and organic baby greens.


The Columbia Bookstore is located on the first floor of the Resource Centre beside Reception. The Bookstore carries all current semester textbooks and a limited supply of past semester text books.
Refunds or exchanges will be accepted until the second week of each semester (third day for summer semester) or one week after date of purchase if purchase was made prior to a semester. For a 100% refund or exchange, students must bring the textbook back (a) in the first week of the fall or winter semester, (b) within the first three days of the summer semester, or (c) one week from the date of purchase if the purchase was made prior to the beginning of a semester. A 90% refund is available for textbooks returned the second week of the fall or winter semester.
For an exchange or refund, customers must have the original till receipt (plus debit/credit card or yellow textbook charge receipt if applicable). All refunds will be applied to the student's account unless original purchase was made with a credit card (refunded to credit card).
plastic shrink wrap has been opened or removed (when applicable).
textbook has been damaged in any way.
any accompanying CD or student aid is missing from the text package.
returned after the second week of the fall or winter semesters, or after the third day of the summer semester.
Columbia Bible College reserves the right to refuse refunds if the return does not meet the standards listed in the store policy.
Students who wish to park on campus must purchase a parking pass for the whole academic year beginning in September. If a parking pass is no longer needed, students can return the pass and complete a parking pass cancellation form available at the front office. The prorated amount will be refunded to the student's account. Daily parking is available, please see reception for rates.
To register your vehicle for a parking permit or to appeal a parking violation, please login to MY CBC.
Columbia Bible College places a high priority on the public safety of the campus community. To help maintain security, every student and staff member is issued a prox card with picture ID. Each prox card is coded to allow access to specific buildings and rooms on campus. For example, commuters gain access to the Commuter Lounge with their prox card, and residents need their prox cards to access their building and floor.
Note that our 24-hour on-campus assistance line is printed on the back of every prox card, so you should never have trouble finding it.
Students looking to work while studying at Columbia have access to various employment opportunities.
Click on the jobs below to view the job descriptions.
Columbia provides a job board for employers to post job opportunities for Columbia students. Please note that this is a free service and Columbia Bible College is not responsible for the job postings listed.
Do you qualify to live off-campus? If you're married, a continuing student, or age 20 and over, you're welcome to live off campus if you prefer. Columbia is surrounded by great housing options. To make your search easier, we've created a housing board.
Columbia provides a housing board for the community to post available housing opportunities for Columbia students. Please note that this is a free service and Columbia Bible College is not responsible for the postings listed.
As a current Columbia student, did you know you qualify for special discounts at local restaurants & businesses? Remember to bring your ID card and mention the discount.
An award-winning dessert cafe. The best cheesecake this side of New York! Show your card and get 10% off your purchase.
Everything from classic pizza to club sandwiches to share plates. Show your card and get 10% off your purchase.
Cheeseburgers, breakfast burgers, chili cheese fries - oh my! Show your card and get 10% off your purchase.
Dion's Table | 2528 Montrose Ave.
A place to get healthy, quick, delicious meals made with quality meats & produce. Show your card and get 10% off your purchase.
Authentic, amazing Vietnamese food. Try the Henry Special! Show your card and get 10% off your purchase.
Pitas & wraps, just the way you like them. Show your card and get a free bag of chips or a small drink with purchase.
Authentic Neapolitan pizza fire baked on hearth stone and made with 100% Caputo Flour imported from Italy! Show your card and get 10% off your purchase.
Delicious tea, chai lattes, and live performances. Show your card and get 10% off your purchase. Bonus: Bring a new person and get 25% off.
More than just fresh, never frozen wings. WINGS Abbotsford offers a variety of delicious meals at an affordable price, perfect for any student on a budget. Enjoy the best dining experience Abbotsford has to offer. Show your card and get 20% off your total food purchase.
Made-to-order stir fries & noodle bowls. Yum. Show your card and get 10% off your purchase.
A family run business serving the Fraser Valley for more than 20 years. Show your card and receive 10% off all parts and labour on your vehicle's maintenance.
Physiotherapy for a wide spectrum of injuries, ages, and abilities. Show your card and receive 10% off per visit.
Incredible deals on books & music, with a huge selection. Show your card and get 10% off your purchase.
Hardware, paint, everything for your dorm room, suite, or home. Show your card and get 10% off your purchase (alumni, staff/faculty and students!).


The primary area of expertise at the Aalborg Centre is Problem and Project Based Learning (PBL) and Engineering Education Research (EER) whereas Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is a new area, still in the start-up phase. This comprehensive research program is based on PBL in Engineering Education (PBL-EE) research carried out at the Aalborg Centre.
Coupling these three research areas is unique and creates a very special platform for research on engineering and science education. Each of the areas forms their own research platform within the Aalborg Centre, however mostly of the research projects go across PBL, EER and ESD. Furthermore, the Aalborg Centre wishes to integrate more research issues to form its comprehensive research approach.


Working in partnership with landowners and the conservation community, the South of Scotland Golden Eagles Project aims to protect and increase the numbers of these iconic birds in the Borders and Dumfries and Galloway. Come and meet the team and learn more about this wonderful project.
Robin has been working with wolves, bears and lynx in Slovakia since moving there from Dumfries over 20 years ago. Here he talks about his experience of studying these remarkable creatures, and provides insights into the complexities of sharing land with large carnivores.
All talks and related 'interventions' will be taking place at The Stove. Throughout the afternoon there will also be opportunities to participate in Guided Walks with the Orographic Interns, view our exhibition of art and writing relating to the project, and don't miss your chance to book a ride in the Orographic Taxi which will take you to the landscape of your wildest imagining!
Oceanallover will present their latest theatrical performance, taking over the High Street of Dumfries.
5.30-6.30pm: Hot Food will be served at the Stove. A chance to meet and eat, and talk about the day's events, before continuing into the evening.
As animals, we are an integral part of life on earth, and yet we behave as if the fate of the earth was not also our fate. How can we recover our connection to the rest of the living world, truly acknowledge what harm we do, and understand how we need to change? Join Margaret Elphinstone in an exploration of what it means to recognise that 'nature' and 'wildness' are not something other, but part of who we are.
Following a rich day of performance and presentations, please continue with us into the evening for a programme of spoken word and fine conversation. The Oceanallover in-house band will play a set from recent and imagined shows. BYOB.


Frame Design, 16×20 Picture Frame was posted August 3, 2016 at 10:07 am by getyourjob.info . More over 16×20 Picture Frame has viewed by 7987 visitor.
Frame Design, 16×20 Picture Frame was posted July 30, 2016 at 4:17 pm by getyourjob.info . More over 16×20 Picture Frame has viewed by 8014 visitor.


blue colour flowers - Blue wedding ceremony flowers may add a special and contemporary touch to your wedding day. They are a great blossom option to look out for wedding that would have blue as truly one of its own colors. Lots of different blossoms are available in blueeyes. These blossoms vary with period irrespective of the season, blue wedding flowers can be a gorgeous accent for a day that is exceptional.
Lots of people do not think as blue to get a typical color of flower. When asked to listing blossom colours they provide more common colors such like: pink, yellow, white, white and red. However, several naturally are offered in blue. These blossoms comprise: hydrangeas, morningglories, periwinkle, iris, corn-flowers, statice and hyacinths. Needless to say, this checklist is not allinclusive and any florist will readily have the ability to offer hints of flowers that will be accessible blue throughout a particular marriage ceremony time of year.
Along with normally occurring blue blossoms a few brides decide to pick other selections of flowers and then dye or color the blossoms blue. Carnations are flowers that are known to take coloration very properly. In addition, many different blossoms can be readily coloured by your own florist to fulfill your precise color requirements.
When gloomy wedding blossoms have become crucial, don't forget to communicate these needs to the bride. Discuss the chance of all blue arrangements as well as combination agreements. Many brides decide to have a really good white fragrance with their remainder of their color being gloomy. Other folks decide to highlight all of wedding blossoms with all gloomy . And still other brides want to unite blue along with different colors. Even the chances are infinite and could only be set by the bride as she plans her distinctive day.
Blueribbon may likewise be utilised to highlight whitened bouquets. While that isn't just a traditional use of blue wedding blossoms, using blue as an accent colour to snowy flowers can realize a stunning effect which is going to soon be similar to a marriage with blue flowers. In addition, this can be used to further highlight the blue at blossoms using a combination of colours. There are numerous chances for including blue wedding blossoms to a single occasion.
Each wedding is different. A marriage with blue wedding blossoms is guaranteed to be quite a unique and lovely celebration. By working carefully with the bride, this look can be achieved utilizing a variety of distinct blossoms as well as processes. Many naturally occurring blue flowers are available to help achieve this look together with a range of colored and colored flowers.


FC Dallas defender, Zach Loyd shared his soccer story with us at Cross The Line and how he maintains a personal relationship with God.
So Zach you have made over 150 appearances for FC Dallas, what's your fondest moment been on the pitch?
What excites you the most about where the MLS is headed?
Tell us how you came to know Jesus for yourself.
What would you be doing right now if you hadn't made it professionally?
If you could play alongside any other defender in world football, who would it be?
Is it difficult to balance the pro soccer lifestyle with living in a way that honours God?
How proud are you to have represented the US national team, on more than one occasion?
How do you deal with failures and mistakes, which as a defender, usually cost goals?
God loves each one of us as if there was only one of us to love.
What spiritual disciplines do you have in place that help you stay close to God?
What was your highlight from Zach's interview?


In Sweet Company Conversations With Extraordinary Women About Living A Spiritual Life (Jossey Bass, 2005), is a compelling collection of intimate conversations with 14 remarkable women, each with a spiritual life that nourishes them and serves as a dependable compass for their decision-making. Each chapter tells the story of one woman's inner development in her own words, and the social, emotional, and professional fulfillment her spiritual commitment provides her.
In Sweet Company casts a wide net: the women range from 31 to 91 years of age; they come from Buddhist, Christian, Jewish, Hindu, and Native American traditions and follow practices synthesized from their own life experience. Above all, they are women beloved and respected for who they are as well as for what they do.
Read more about the women of In Sweet Company and what readers are saying about the book.


text:
<?php
declare(strict_types=1);

namespace TestApp\TestCase\Event;

use Cake\Event\EventListenerInterface;
use Closure;

/**
 * Mock used for testing the subscriber objects
 */
class CustomTestEventListenerInterface extends EventTestListener implements EventListenerInterface
{
    /**
     * @return array<string, mixed>
     */
    public function implementedEvents(): array
    {
        return [
            'fake.event' => 'listenerFunction',
            'another.event' => ['callable' => 'secondListenerFunction'],
            'closure.event' => Closure::fromCallable([$this, 'thirdlistenerFunction']),
            'multiple.handlers' => [
                ['callable' => 'listenerFunction'],
                ['callable' => Closure::fromCallable([$this, 'secondListenerFunction'])],
            ],
        ];
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Vietnam News Agency debuts 2021 interactive calendar
The Vietnam News Agency (VNA) debuted its first-ever new year interactive calendar on December 25, which allows users to review events in 2020.
VNA's special website on 13th National Party Congress makes debut
VNA launches special website on 13th National Party Congress
Vietnam News Agency, Kien Giang intensify communications cooperation
Each event is attached with a QR code, which enables users to access the agency's websites. (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) - The Vietnam News Agency (VNA) debuted its first-ever new year interactive calendar on December 25, which allows users to review events in 2020.
Apart from photos capturing Vietnam and its people, taken mostly by VNA photo-journalists, the calendar also creatively features major events from the previous year.
Each event is attached with a QR code, which enables users to access the agency's websites, including its e-newspaper VietnamPlus, Tin Tuc (The News), The Thao & Van Hoa (Sports & Culture), Vietnam News Channel (Vnews), and infographics.vn, which give a panorama on the year 2020 through news in the forms of text, photos, infographics, video clips, and mega stories.
These are only a small part of the hundreds of thousands of pieces of information from the agency's 1,300-strong staff, who work in 63 domestic representative offices and 30 overseas bureaus and other units.
VNA has always made efforts to fulfil its role as a national news agency providing official and trustworthy information in a timely manner, covering all aspects of life at home and abroad for domestic and foreign media networks.
The agency has also met the demand for information from the public, with diverse and attractive media products published using modern technology, and maintained its position as a strategic information centre of the Party and the State, contributing to national construction, development, and defence./.
Vietnam News Agency photo-journalists interactive calendar strategic information centre national news agency Vietnam VietnamPlus Vietnam news


text:
Topology vs. Topography
The main difference between Topology and Topography is that the Topology is a subfield of mathematics and Topography is a field of science.
In mathematics, topology (from the Greek τόπος, place, and λόγος, study) is concerned with the properties of space that are preserved under continuous deformations, such as stretching, twisting, crumpling and bending, but not tearing or gluing.
An n-dimensional topological space is a space (not necessarily Euclidean) with certain properties of connectedness and compactness.The space may be continuous (like all points on a rubber sheet), or discrete (like the set of integers). It can be open (like the set of points inside a circle) or closed (like the set of points inside a circle, together with the points on the circle).
Topology developed as a field of study out of geometry and set theory, through analysis of concepts such as space, dimension, and transformation. Such ideas go back to Gottfried Leibniz, who in the 17th century envisioned the geometria situs (Greek-Latin for "geometry of place") and analysis situs (Greek-Latin for "picking apart of place"). Leonhard Euler's Seven Bridges of Königsberg Problem and Polyhedron Formula are arguably the field's first theorems. The term topology was introduced by Johann Benedict Listing in the 19th century, although it was not until the first decades of the 20th century that the idea of a topological space was developed. By the middle of the 20th century, topology had become a major branch of mathematics.
Topography is the study of the shape and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area could refer to the surface shapes and features themselves, or a description (especially their depiction in maps).
Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary science and is concerned with local detail in general, including not only relief but also natural and artificial features, and even local history and culture. This meaning is less common in the United States, where topographic maps with elevation contours have made "topography" synonymous with relief.
Topography in a narrow sense involves the recording of relief or terrain, the three-dimensional quality of the surface, and the identification of specific landforms. This is also known as geomorphometry. In modern usage, this involves generation of elevation data in digital form (DEM). It is often considered to include the graphic representation of the landform on a map by a variety of techniques, including contour lines, hypsometric tints, and relief shading.
Topology (noun)
A branch of mathematics studying those properties of a geometric figure or solid that are not changed by stretching, bending and similar homeomorphisms.
A collection τ of subsets of a set X such that the empty set and X are both members of τ and τ is closed under finitary intersections and arbitrary unions.
The anatomical structure of part of the body.
The arrangement of nodes in a communications network.
The properties of a particular technological embodiment that are not affected by differences in the physical layout or form of its application.
The topographical study of geographic locations or given places in relation to their history.
The art of, or method for, assisting the memory by associating the thing or subject to be remembered with some place.
Topography (noun)
A precise description of a place.
A detailed graphic representation of the surface features of a place or object.
The features themselves; terrain.
The surveying of the features.
the study of geometrical properties and spatial relations unaffected by the continuous change of shape or size of figures.
a family of open subsets of an abstract space such that the union and the intersection of any two of them are members of the family, and which includes the space itself and the empty set.
the way in which constituent parts are interrelated or arranged
"the topology of a computer network"
the arrangement of the natural and artificial physical features of an area
"the topography of the island"
a detailed description or representation on a map of the physical features of an area.
the distribution of parts or features on the surface of or within an organ or organism.


text:
Highways can do more for women
Martin Melecky, 12 July 2019
There has been increasing interest in how infrastructure can help close gender gaps in developing countries. Based on studies of various highway investment programmes in Asia, this column reveals how highways can help women can seize better jobs if they are already employed. Compared with men, however, women have some distinct demands from road corridor programmes and could face gender-specific risks, notably during the construction of the highways.
Women in economics: Stalled progress
Shelly Lundberg, Jenna Stearns, 18 December 2018
Although the share of women in top PhD-granting departments more than doubled between 1972 and 1993, this growth has stalled in recent years. This column reviews recent literature on women's relative position in the discipline and assesses the evidence on barriers that female economists face in publishing, promotion, and tenure. It suggests that differentialassessment of men and women is one factor in explaining women's failure to advance in economics and that continued progress toward equality in academic economics will require a concerted effort to remove opportunities for bias in the hiring and promotion processes.
Improving public health through socialised medicine: Evidence from Turkey
Resul Cesur, Pınar Güneş, Erdal Tekin, Aydogan Ulker, 18 January 2016
The goal of universal health coverage has been pursued by countries in a number of ways, most notably through demand-side policies. In 2005, Turkey extended basic healthcare services to its entire population under a free-of-charge, centrally administered system. This column examines the impact of this supply-side programme on mortality and birth rates. Results show that the program was successful in lowering both mortality and birth rates across provinces, particularly for the most vulnerable populations. These findings provide compelling evidence in favour of providing accessible healthcare services to all citizens.
The Great Recession and the health of mothers
Janet Currie, 15 January 2016
Studies of the effects of economic fluctuations on health have come to wildly different conclusions. This may be because the effects are different for different groups. Using US data, this column looks at the health consequences of the Great Recession on mothers, a sub-population that has thus far been largely neglected in the literature. Increases in unemployment are found to have large negative health effects and to increase incidences of smoking and substance abuse among mothers. These effects appear to be concentrated on disadvantaged groups such as minorities, and point to short- and long-term consequences for their children.
Do employers discriminate in female-dominated occupations?
Alison Booth, Andrew Leigh, 02 February 2010
Does gender-stereotyping in the workplace cut both ways? This column presents evidence from Australia suggesting that employers in occupations with more women discriminate against male applicants, perhaps preferring to conform to perceived social norms. As with discrimination against women, this raises concerns for both equity and efficiency.


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Jack Foster ist der Name folgender Personen:

* Jack Foster (Fußballspieler, 1877) (John Samuel Foster; 1877–1946), englischer Fußballspieler und -trainer
 Jack Foster (Fußballspieler, 1889) (John Henry Foster; 1889–1972), englischer Fußballspieler
 Jack Foster (Leichtathlet) (John Charles Foster; 1932–2004), neuseeländischer Marathonläufer

Siehe auch:

 John Foster

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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SCA OSTRAND MILL EXPANSION AND FORESTRY (EIB-20160146)
$ 150.00 million
Bank reported EUR 150 million
Updated in EWS Apr 27, 2017
Disclosed by Bank Apr 25, 2017
LOCATION Sweden DESCRIPTION The operation consists (i) in the finance of selected renewable energy, energy efficiency and environmental protection measures within an investment programme in Sweden consisting of the upgrade of a pulp mill in TimrAL and (ii) the replanting and regeneration of about 68,000 ha of forest, the construction of 4,250 km of forest roads and an upgrade of five forest terminals. OBJECTIVES The project will contribute to higher energy efficiency and innovative process optimisation. The operation also aims to upgrade and renew regional forest resources and will enhance and create employment and have significant multiplier effects on the regional rural economies. ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECTS The mill modernisation project falls under Annex I of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Directive 2011/92/EU. A full EIA as well as a permit under the Industrial Emission Directive 2010/75/EU is required. Some of the investments planned within the project programme for modernisation and renewal of forest assets may fall under Annex II of the EIA Directive and would require a screening decision by the competent authority. Details of the permitting procedures, potential impact on nature conservation sites close by and sustainability and origin of the biomass will be further assessed at appraisal. PROCUREMENT The Bank will require the promoter to ensure that contracts for the implementation of the project have been/will be tendered in accordance with the relevant applicable EU procurement legislation.
ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF EIB The EIB Complaints Mechanism is designed to facilitate and handle complaints against the EIB by individuals, organizations or corporations affected by EIB activities. When exercising the right to lodge a complaint against the EIB, any member of the public has access to a two-tier procedure, one internal - the Complaints Mechanism Office - and one external - the European Ombudsman. A complaint can be lodged via a written communication addressed to the Secretary General of the EIB, via email to the dedicated email address complaints@eib.org, by completing the online complaint form available at the following address: http://www.eib.org/complaints/form, via fax or delivered directly to the EIB Complaints Mechanism Division, any EIB local representation office or any EIB staff. For further details, check: http://www.eib.org/attachments/strategies/complaints_mechanism_policy_en.pdf When dissatisfied with a complaint to the EIB Complaints Mechanism, citizens can then turn towards the European Ombudsman. A memorandum of Understanding has been signed between the EIB and the European Ombudsman establishes that citizens (even outside of the EU if the Ombudsman finds their complaint justified) can turn towards the Ombudsman on issues related to 'maladministration' by the EIB. Note that before going to the Ombudsman, an attempt must be made to resolve the case by contacting the EIB. In addition, the complaint must be made within two years of the date when the facts on which your complaint is based became known to you. You can write to the Ombudsman in any of the languages of the European Union. Additional details, including filing requirements and complaint forms, are available at: http://www.ombudsman.europa.eu/atyourservice/interactiveguide.faces


Update Description BIOS CheckSum:6900h 1.Fixed install winXP fail rate with 100FSB 1.5v cpu. 2.Update XPU micro code.
Update Description BIOS CheckSum:B500h 1.Patche an USB Storage cause system hang on post code 52H. 2.Improve system stability of 1.5V CPU.
Update Description BIOS CheckSum:E400h Fixed Version 1.0F BIOS HT CPU Boot Issue.


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21/09/2019 14:00 Showfield McBookie.com NRJFA Premier League
1. R. Hepburn
2. M. Mulligan
3. J. Duncan
4. K. Mason
5. M. Grant 68'
6. R. MacDonald Subbed off 55'
7. J. Anderson Subbed off 80'
8. C. Mason Subbed off 66'
9. A. Macleod 35'
10. C. Fonweban 61'
11. S. Walker
17. M. Brown Subbed on 80'
15. I. Fernandino-soto Subbed on 55'
18. M. Mcbrier
2. R. Thomas Subbed off 55'
4. A. Smith
6. C. Mackie Subbed off 66'
7. D. Critchard
11. G. Hay
14. S. Harrison Subbed on 72'
19. C. Kane Subbed on 66' 89'
17. L. Duncan Subbed on 55'
16. N. Rankine
18. I. Chalmers
Nairn St. Ninian F.C. 0 - 3 Hall Russell United F.C.
North Region Junior FA McLeman Cup - Quarter-Final
Saturday 10 Nov 2018 14:00
Hall Russell United F.C. 3 - 1 Nairn St. Ninian F.C.
Nairn St. Ninian F.C. Playing At Home Last 4 matches
Hall Russell United F.C. Playing Away From Home Last 4 matches
Nairn St. Ninian F.C. Playing At Home
Hall Russell United F.C. Playing Away From Home
Banchory St. Ternan F.C. 1 - 3 Aberdeen East End F.C.


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Forestview students solve a whodunit
By Eric Wildstein ewildstein@gastongazette.com
Jan 21, 2017 at 3:53 AM Jan 23, 2017 at 5:09 PM
Forensic science students at Forestview High engaged in a murder mystery dinner for their final exam at the school Thursday evening.
It was a live-action game of "Clue" as students attempted to solve the caper, where a wealthy Italian businessman named Vito Scarfazzi was found murdered shortly after salad was served.
"It's Vito, he's dead," yelled forensic science teacher John Hunsucker, who narrated the affair as the character Antonio Telistori. "Forensic scientists, can you please help?"
Students heard from six of Scarfazzi's family members, each of them suspects, who were present at the dinner at the time his body was discovered. Each family member was played by adults from the school system and around Gaston County. Each had a unique backstory, and wore specific clothing or carried possessions that could help students identify the murderer.
"I'll need to get a new dress, something in black," Ann T. Pasta, played by at-large school board member Dot Cherry, said of Scarfazzi's funeral. "I need to go shopping."
Drawing from lessons in forensic science learned in Hunsucker's class, and biographical information about each suspect, the 25 students organized into teams and set out to uncover the truth. But they had to be meticulous — the exam was worth 20 percent of their final grade, with each piece of the investigation worth a certain number of points.
"You don't want to send the wrong person to prison," Hunsucker said.
They investigated three scenes of evidence. First was the murder scene, where they found a mannequin representing Scarfazzi slumped in a chair. He had an apparent stab wound to the right side of his chest, with blood spattered on a wall behind him. Students used critical thinking to determine the handedness of the murderer.
"We know that he came up from behind and that he's right-handed because of the way the blood splattered on the wall," said Hannah Fascella, a junior.
The young scientists then analyzed a knife and piece of cloth found in a burning fireplace. Below the hearth, students measured the stride and size of footprints left behind. This information was used to determine the height and clothing of the suspect, along with the type of knife used, essentially the smoking guns that would crack the case wide open.
"All burned fabric kind of looks the same except wool, which we discussed with our groups that was either polyester or cotton," said Anderson Victoria, a senior whose group guessed the correct suspect. "All of the guests had scarves which contained either cotton or polyester."
But was it Pepi Roni, played by Gastonia City Councilman Robert Kellogg? Or Mack O' Roney, a vain Irish playboy played by Torben Ross, the school system's director of community and parent engagement? The suspect list narrowed.
Family dysfunction permeated as suspects began accusing each other of the crime. Al Fraydo, a baseball player played by Forestview Principal Chad Carper, pointed the finger at country singer Mary Nairah, played by Ana Barreto-Matthews, the English as a Second Language coordinator for the school system.
"She needs an inheritance to get her career back on track," Fraydo said while holding a baseball bat. "Of course she did it."
An unsigned, handwritten confession note left behind by the murder suspect prompted students to collect handwriting samples from each of the family members.
Then, the verdict:
Hunsucker announced that all evidence showed the grisly deed was committed by Tara Misou, the TV actress played by Forestview English and yearbook teacher Lindsay Beverly. Beverly was led away in handcuffs by Ling Wenny, the Chinese butler played by Clay Carrigan, a former Forestview teacher who started the forensic science program.
Victoria, who wants to someday become a registered nurse, said the murder mystery dinner was the perfect culmination to the course.
"You've got to pay attention in class and once you learn it, it sticks with you," he said. "All the hard work has really paid off after learning so much from Mr. Hunsucker."
You can reach Eric Wildstein at 704-869-1828 or www.Twitter.com/TheGazetteEric.


An activity that takes place to assist in promoting the look of the home area is known as landscaping. There are advantages that are achieved when people get to practice landscaping. Where one wants to have the compound of the home area well-improved one can go ahead use garden. Landscaping is one way that one can use to enhance the value of the home. Getting people who can sell a house that the landscape is well done at a good cost is very easy. Landscaping is also an encouraged activity for it helps in the prevention of soil erosion.
Where one needs landscaping to be done one should ensure they get the experts in the designing of the land. Getting them is advisable because they are the people who are well versed with activity. For one to get the best landscaping companies using the sites for the search is the best idea. One should make sure they appoint the experts for they help one a lot.
The skills of the experts is what makes it necessary for one to get the professionals. The experts have been well taught on how to handle the work. The professionals are well aware of what should be done so that the plants can appear in the best way, and so they know which plants to put together. The professionals get to handle all the dimensions of the projects. Some people tend to think that garden is a DIY project. The professionals make sure they handle all the work given to them in good time. This is best because one is then able to attend to so many things.
If one decides to do the landscaping one needs to make sure they have the appropriate tools. There is usually the need to get the needed resources to handle the landscaping designs when one decides to do the work themselves. This costs people money. The fact that the professionals have all that is needed to handle the work is a good thing because they help one avoid any stress.
The way the landscaping designs should be handled is passed on to the landowners by the experts. This then helps in preserving the work done. When getting the professionals one tries to get the one who will always avail themselves to help in maintaining the work they do. The good thing with the experts is that they avail themselves. It makes it easy for one to count on the professionals. The work hard to make sure that the project succeeds, and nothing fails.
Where one wants to remain on a certain budget is best for the experts to make sure to do all. This is because they do the work in the best ways. The plants used they of good prices. The experts also charge their services at good amounts.


Sea shells have been used in many ways by our Stone Age ancestors in days long gone. They served as means of payment, were processed into precious jewellery, used in ritual ceremonies, as playing stones or even as musical instruments. With them we can bring the story to life. Just like flutes made of bones and barking woods made of horn, ivory and wood, shells are among the oldest instruments in the world. They were used as rattles, ratchets or for percussive sounds.
Our percussion shells have their musical origin on the Atlantic coast of Spain, in Galicia, where they are still used today in traditional music and there are indications that this extraordinary shell species has already served many Celtic groups on the Atlantic coasts as a percussion instrument. This is not surprising, because with the two shells you can create incredible effects.
Since each valve is naturally covered with larger rows of ribs that consist of even smaller, more delicate rows of grooves, they are ideal for rubbing against each other, careful tapping or light beating. We have selected especially firm and finely ribbed shells for you, which allow many playing possibilities from tenderly rustling to the grand Güiro sound. Due to the pronounced curvature you can create a resonance space together with the palm, which gives the sound an unexpected volume, which is characterized by a remarkably high assertiveness.
Our "As Cuncha" seashells are supplied as a pair and as they are a natural product, they can differ slightly in shape, size and colour.


2. Lay the ribs on a long sheet of aluminum foil.
3. Combine the dry rub ingredients in a small bowl, then cover the ribs evenly on both sides, making sure to press the rub into any cracks and smooth out any large lumps.
4. Wrap the foil around the ribs, making sure they're completely sealed. Use additional sheets if necessary. It's important that the juices of the ribs stay inside the foil to keep the ribs moist during cooking.
5. Bake the ribs for 3 to 3½ hours, until tender.
6. Unwrap the ribs carefully, then wiggle the bones out slowly. If you're having trouble removing the bones, use a knife to make small cuts to help their removal.
7. Combine the glaze ingredients in a bowl and brush both sides of the deboned slab of ribs generously, being sure to carefully handle the ribs since they're super tender.
8. Broil the ribs for about 5 minutes until the glaze is bubbling and starting to brown. Set aside.
9. Slice the bread in half into the thickness of your choice, then butter both sides of the bread. Sprinkle sesame seeds on top, then toast your bread by broiling it for a few minutes. Keep a careful eye on it as it will burn extremely quickly.
10. With two long spatulas or knives, carefully transfer the glazed ribs to the bread, then top with onions, parsley, and the top bun.
11. Slice into about 2-inch sandwiches, and serve!


Guest blogger Eka Gigauri from Transparency International Georgia explains how her organization uses financial transparency to boost its credibility. The views expressed in this blog are those of the author alone, and may not reflect the views of Transparify.
Transparency International (TI) Georgia is the Georgian chapter of the global anti-corruption movement Transparency International. In all of its operations, TI Georgia is and acts as an independent local nongovernmental organization which has been using in-depth analysis and targeted advocacy to promote accountability and transparency in Georgia over the last 14 years.
Much of our research is related to revealing the power relationships in areas where important decisions are made that affect the lives of citizens. We have been a pioneer think tank in Georgia that identifies and brings to public attention the corruption risks in a number of areas, including government-business relations, public procurement, media, and political party financing. Moreover, based on the findings of our studies, we have been able to advance a great deal of progressive reforms in various areas of public policy and have successfully advocated for changes in legislation and practice. One of our current advocacy campaigns, conducted with a number of partner organizations, aims to change the secret surveillance status quo in Georgia.
In Georgia, probably as in many places nowadays, there is a growing distrust towards influential think-tanks as some parts of the society believe that these organizations receive money from 'suspicious' sources and are therefore working for the benefit of anonymous donors rather than for the good of society. We understand that, in order to maintain the high credibility that we currently enjoy, we must keep our profile transparent and available for public scrutiny. After all, in an empowered society, which we are trying to build, public scrutiny is an important tool for achieving accountability.
At TI Georgia, we believe that we need to contribute to establishing and reinforcing the culture of accountability. This is part of our organization's culture and representing the global Transparency International movement in Georgia involves the responsibility to be transparent. Through internal regulations, such as the procurement policy and annual independent financial audits, we ensure that integrity is at the heart of all financial decisions.
We therefore disclose all the information about our financing through the 'Our Funding' section of our website which provides the full list of our donors and the exact amounts that we have received from them, as well as all private donations above EUR 1,000.
We have recently started accepting donations online. We have made it our policy not to accept donations above EUR 50 if they come from an anonymous source (it is impossible for us to control where the micro-donations come from). Even if this implies losing some potential donors, we would rather face that loss than risk our reputation.
Politicians and public officials in Georgia often respond to critical statements of civil society organizations by questioning the integrity of those organizations and saying that they would be interested to know the sources of their funding. We are proud to be able to reply to every statement of this sort by directing them to our website where all the relevant information is available for public scrutiny.
Eka Gigauri is the Executive Director of TI Georgia, which forms part of the Transparency International network. Full disclosure: A member of Transparify's team was a TI Georgia employee during 2008-2009. TI Georgia was included in our data set based on a list provided by Transparify's donor, the Think Tank Fund, rather than on our own initiative. The former TI Georgia employee had no role in selecting TI Georgia for inclusion in Transparify's global ratings, and had no role in rating its website.


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Medicare fraud case lands three family members in prison
Posted on April 09, 2013 3:00 AM EST
Last Friday, in a federal courtroom packed with spectators and family members, a federal judge handed down lengthy prison sentences to three family members who were previously found guilty for their involvement in a multi-million Medicare fraud scheme. Antonio Macli, his son Jorge Macli, and his daughter Sandra Huarte, were all sentenced for their participation in healthcare fraud allegedly being committed at their clinic referred to as Biscayne Milieu. All three defendants appeared with their Miami criminal defense lawyers at the sentencing hearing. The defendants had been previously convicted by a jury in the Southern District of Florida.
U.S. District Judge Robert Scola handed down heavy sentences for the three defendants for running a Medicare fraud scam that received $11 million from the federally funded healthcare system. The patriarch of the family, Antonio Macli, received a thirty year sentence for his actions as the clinic owner. His son, Jorge Macli, received a 25 year sentence for his action s as the company's operating officer. Macli's daughter, Sandra Huarte received a 22 year sentence for her actions as the bookkeeper of the clinic. After Judge Scola pronounced the sentence, he told the defendants that their crime was committed in the healthcare fraud capital and that the scheme was multifaceted and complex. The judge was disturbed by the fact the defendants used vulnerable patients with substance abuse problems to line their own pockets.
In the summer of 2012, the defendants went to trial in an effort to be absolved from a healthcare fraud that billed Medicare an estimated $57 million. The bills submitted to Medicare were for mental health services that were not provided, or were provided, but needed. According to prosecutors, the scam occurred between 2007 and 2011. During that time, the clinic purportedly treated 1,100 patients supposedly diagnosed with mental disorders such as schizophrenia and bi-polar disorders. Five other individuals were convicted at the jury trial, including the clinic's medical director. The 72 year-old psychiatrist from Plantation, Florida received a 12 month prison sentence. Twenty other people were charged for their involvement in the fraud, all of which entered guilty pleas to limit their exposure.
Each of the Miami defense attorneys representing the defendants minimized their client's involvement in the Medicare fraud scheme. Despite the statements made on the defendants' behalf, Judge Scola lowered the boom on all three. After hearing evidence over a two month period, which involved testimony regarding the inner workings of the fraud and the kickbacks that were being paid to patient recruiters, the judge handed down a sentence that could be considered heavy-handed to some. Anyone being investigated by the federal authorities for Medicare fraud or anyone having already arrested charged for Medicare fraud should seek counsel with experience in federal court defending Medicare and healthcare fraud related cases.
3 Miami-Dade Family Members Get Long Prison Terms in Multi-Million Dollar Medicare Fraud Case, Miami Herald.com, April 5, 2013.
Categories: Medicare Fraud