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Cornel Mihulecea (n. 1 aprilie 1925, Crihalma, com. Comăna, jud. Brașov – d. 7 mai 2015) a fost un inginer electrotehnician român, Președinte al Comitetului de Stat pentru Energie Nucleară (1976-1989). Cornel Mihulecea a fost deputat în Marea Adunare Națională în sesiunile din perioada 1965 - 1989. Cornel Mihulecea a fost membru de partid din septembrie 1960 și a fost membru supleant al CC al PCR în perioada 1979 - 1989

Biografie

Cornel Mihulecea a urmat școala primară (clasele I-V) în comună, după care a plecat la Petroșani unde a urmat cursurile Școlii Profesionale de electricieni. După ce a lucrat timp de 1 an (1950-1951) ca maistru electro la Atelierele Centrale ITB din București, s-a înscris, la sfaturile mamei, la Institutul Politehnic din Craiova, absolvind în 1956, cu diplomă de licență în inginerie.

Activitatea profesională

Cornel Mihulecea  a parcurs, după obținerea licenței, treptele afirmării profesionale:
 (1956-1957) maistru la Electroaparataj, București;
 (1957-1958) inginer principal energetic la Electroaparataj, București;
 (1958-1959) șef Atelier Prototipuri la Electroaparataj, București;
 (1959-1962) șef Secție Montaj la Electroaparataj, București;
 (1962-1964) Inginer Șef Adjunct la Electroaparataj, București;
 (1964-1965) Director la Întreprinderea Automatica, București;
 din 1965 este numit Adjunct al Ministrului Industriei Construcțiilor de Mașini (1965-1974) / Industriei Construcției de Mașini Unelte și Electrotehnicii (1972-1974), având atribuții de coordonare a industriei electrotehnice și electronice la nivel de departament. Din această poziție a participat la creșterea numărului de întreprinderi: de la 17 întreprinderi și 2 institute de cercetare-proiectare (1965), la 25 întreprinderi, 4 institute de cercetare-proiectare, plus Institutul de Proiectare Uzine pentru Electrotehnică (1974);
 Din 1969 este numit, în paralel, director general al Direcției generale a industriei electrotehnice și electronice;
 (1974-1976) Director General al Centralei Industriale de Telecomunicații și Automatizări, București;
 (1976-1990) este numit Președinte al Comitetului de Stat pentru Energie Nucleară, București, poziție în care a obținut cele mai multe realizări din carieră. După ce a ocupat timp de 14 ani această funcție, i s-a cerut să elibereze postul, să iasă la pensie. În memoriile sale recente (2014) se arată revoltat de faptul că, după pensionarea sa, au dispărut 602 tone de apă grea și utilaje construite ce erau destinate realizării unităților 3 și 4 de la Cernavodă.

Realizări notabile

În domeniul nuclear, în timpul mandatului ca președinte al CSEN, a condus:

 Elaborarea Programului Național pentru realizarea Centralelor Nucleare, a Combustibilului Nuclear, a Apei Grele și a programelor de asimilare a echipamentelor nucleare clasice aferente Programului Nuclear;
 Înființarea Întreprinderii Centrala nucleară de la Cernavodă în anul 1977;
 Încheierea tratativelor româno-canadiene privind contractele de licență și engineering pentru construcția centralelor de tip CANDU și semnarea lor în numele guvernului la data de 16 decembrie 1978;
 Elaborarea studiului tehnico-economic pentru Centrala nuclearoelectrică (CNE) Cernavodă 1979;
 Începerea lucrărilor de construcție a Unității 1 în anul 1980;
 Încheierea și semnarea contractelor cu ANSALDO Italia și General Electric SUA pentru licența turboagregatului de 700 MWA și furnitura pentru sala mașinii la Unitatea 1, februarie 1982;
 Elaborarea proiectului de execuție pentru Unitatea 1;
 Finalizarea structurii de rezistență a clădirii reactorului Unității 1, în anul 1982;
 Finalizarea finisării interioare a clădirii reactorului, introducerea corpului reactorului în interiorul clădirii și începerea montajului principalelor echipamente din clădirea reactorului, în decembrie 1985;
 Punerea în funcțiune a liniei de 30 tone combustibil nuclear la IRNE Pitești;
 Realizarea primelor 82 de fascicole de combustibil nuclear la IRNE Pitești, în anul 1983;
 Dezvoltarea liniei de fabricație a combustibilului nuclear de la 30 tone la 100 tone în anul 1985. Producția cumulată la 31 decembrie 1989 de combustibil nuclear la Secția de Combustibil de la IRNE Pitești era de 31707 fascicole în greutate de 602 tone corespunzător consumului pentru 6 ani de funcționare a Unității 1 Cernavodă;
 Pilotul de apă grea de la Râmnicu Vâlcea, urmare a perfecționărilor din perioada 1976-1978 a atins capacitatea echivalentă de 2 tone/an și s-a elaborat tehnologia pentru proiectarea celor 4 linii de producție industrială de apă grea de la Drobeta Turnu Severin în anul 1978;
 Începerea lucrărilor de construcție-montaj a Fabricii de Apă Grea din Drobeta Turnu Severin cu asistență tehnică a specialiștilor de la Pilotul de apă grea de la Râmnicu Vâlcea pentru realizarea și punerea în funcțiune a acesteia în trimestrul IV din anul 1979;
 Punerea în funcțiune a primei linii de producție de 90 tone/an în anul 1987. Punerea în funcțiune a celei de a doua linii de producție de 90 tone/an în anul 1989. Producția cumulată pe cele două linii, septembrie 1987 – decembrie 1989 a fost de 33 tone/an, reprezentând prima producție industrială de apă grea realizată în România. Este cel mai semnificativ exemplu de realizare a unui obiectiv de asemenea performanță și complexitate, de la cercetare până la produs, cercetare tehnologică, proiectare, realizare de echipamente, materiale și construcții, integral românești, în directa coordonare a CSEN.

Domeniul Reglementare

 Implementarea prevederilor Legii nr. 61/1974 privind desfășurarea în siguranță a activităților nucleare și a Normelor republicane de securitate nucleară, a Normelor de garanții nucleare și protecție fizică;
 Elaborarea Legii nr. 6/1982 privind asigurarea calității în domeniul nuclear;
 Elaborarea Normelor republicane de asigurarea calității în domeniul nuclear;
 Reorganizarea și înființarea ISCAN–ACN prin angajarea unor specialiști cu experiență tehnică și practică în securitate nucleară, radioprotecție și management al calității în procesele industriale;
 Renunțarea la realizarea CNE de 440 MW de tip VVR pe râul Olt și licențierea reactoarelor de tip CANDU 700 de la AECL Canada;
 Pentru cele două reactoare de tip VVR 1000 prevăzute a fi importate din URSS și construite la Piatra Neamț, au fost stabilite cerințele de securitate nucleară la nivelul standardelor IAEA și a legislației naționale cu toate presiunile politice existente în acea epocă;
 ISCAN-ACN a contribuit la întocmirea normelor ISCIR pentru domeniul nuclear și la obținerea de recunoaștere reciprocă cu inspecțiile în domeniu din Canada.

Domeniul Autorizare

 Punerea în funcțiune a Reactorului TRIGA de la ICN Pitești și autorizarea funcționării de probă și a funcționării finale a acestuia;
 Autorizarea Laboratoarelor de Examinare Post Iradiere (LEPI) și a Stației de Iradiere Gama de mare activitate (SIGMA) de la ICN Pitești;
 Autorizarea pilotului de elemente combustibile din S IV a ICN Pitești;
 Autorizarea Stației de Tratare a Deșeurilor Radioactive de la ICN Pitești;
 Autorizarea – Omologarea materialelor și produselor necesare programului nuclear, în regim de asigurarea calității, după specificația AECL.
 În total s-au elaborat cca. 431 de proiecte în cadrul licenței AECL. Din aceste 431 de proiecte, în țară au fost fabricate echipamente total sau parțial pentru unitatea U1 și U2.
 Este de remarcat că pe parcursul exploatării U1 nu au existat probleme în funcționarea echipamentelor proiectate de IRNE Pitești și executate de Uzinele Constructoare de Mașini pentru partea nucleară până la această dată.
 Autorizarea producătorilor de materiale și produse pentru programul nuclear conform Legii nr. 6/1982; Au fost autorizate pe parcursul realizării obiectivului menționat cca. 350 de societăți : cercetare, proiectare, fabricație și construcții montaj. Au fost omologate materiale de construcții care îndeplinesc cerințele standardelor americane – ASTM, produse metalurgice care îndeplinesc cerințele Codului ASME, Secțiunea II, produse electrotehnice care îndeplinesc cerințele standardului IEEE (motoare electrice), produse din industria chimică pentru protecție anti-corozivă a structurilor metalice și finisarea pereților reactorului și clădirii serviciilor nucleare. Aceste materiale, produse și echipamente au asigurat un aport la realizarea CNE Cernavodă de cca. 65-70 % din efort.
 Autorizarea amplasării – construcției, punerii în funcțiune și funcționare a Fabricii de Combustibil Nuclear din Pitești, cu o capacitate de producție anuală de 400 tone/an;
 Autorizarea miilor de utilizatori a surselor de radiații din România din domeniul medical, industrial, cercetare, agricultură, transport, învățământ, etc.;
 Autorizarea amplasării – construcției Unităților U1, U2, U3, U4, U5 de la CNE Cernavodă;
 Autorizarea tuturor unităților de construcții montaj implicate în realizarea CNE Cernavodă;
 Autorizarea amplasării – construcției și punerii în funcțiune a Depozitului Național de Deșeuri Radioactive de la Băița, Bihor;
 Autorizarea explorărilor și exploatărilor miniere de uraniu, thoriu și materialele de interes nuclear – zirconiu;
 Autorizarea uzinei R și a noii uzine E de la Feldioara;
 Omologarea în regim de asigurarea calității a diuranatului, dioxidului de uraniu produs la Uzina R și E de la Feldioara și a apei grele de la Râmnicu Vâlcea și Drobeta Turnu Severin;

Domeniul Controlul activităților nucleare

 Asigurarea unui control al tuturor producătorilor de materiale, componente și produse destinate programului nuclear național;
 Procesul de inspecție a constituit o activitate importantă, care a mobilizat întreg personalul inspecției pentru verificarea modului de realizare a materialelor, produselor, echipamentelor și desfășurarea procesului de construcții-montaj pe amplasamentul CNE Cernavodă. În construcții au fost stabilite puncte de inspecție ale activităților pentru structurile reactorului, clădirii serviciilor nucleare și a sălii mașinilor. Acolo unde nu au mai fost asistate lucrările, constructorii au asimilat și respectat procesul de execuție pe baza experienței căpătate de la lucrările anterioare.
 Asigurarea unui control al tuturor unităților de construcții-montaj implicate în activitatea de realizare a CNE Cernavodă;
 În industria de materiale-metalurgice procesul de inspecție s-a efectuat continuu pe procesele de realizare a produselor: oțel beton pentru armare, a tablelor, țevilor și profilelor destinate echipamentelor nucleare. În industria constructoare de mașini, electrotehnică, chimică, produsele și echipamentele au fost inspectate de personalul ISCAN-ACN, aceasta până când personalul de control al beneficiarului a putut să efectueze aceste activități. Personalul inspecției a fost implicat în analiza și avizarea documentației de calitate aferentă importului de materiale și produse pentru realizarea echipamentelor în țară și a echipamentelor din import pentru CNE Cernavodă.
 În procesul de inspecție ISCAN-ACN (CNCAN) a colaborat cu Metrologia, Inspecția de Stat pentru Produse (IGS), Inspecția de Stat în Construcții (IGSIC), ISCIR.
 Asigurarea unui control al tuturor unităților ce desfășoară activități nucleare prin personalul propriu al ISCAN-CAN și prin echipele de specialiști din CSEN coordonați de ISCAN-ACN la toate locurile din țară unde se desfășoară activități nucleare;
 Asigurarea și controlul evidenței surselor de radiații din țară și realizarea primei baze de date a unităților nucleare și a surselor de radiații existente în România;
 Implicarea în activitatea de control, în situ, a tuturor inspectorilor ISCAN-ACN și celorlalți specialiști din CSEN în frunte cu președintele, inspectorul de stat șef;
 Controlul de garanții nucleare la toate materialele nucleare și de interes nuclear și raportarea lor, conform legii la Agenția Internațională pentru Energie Atomică de la Viena.

În cadrul Relațiile Internaționale, ca președinte al CSEN, Cornel Mihulecea a contribuit la semnarea cu AECL Canada a contractului de bază, de licențiere, proiectare și procurare, convențiile cu partea rusă pentru reactorul VVR 1000. În calitate de guvernator la AIEA Viena, a participat la discuții și a parafat înțelegeri cu AECL Canada și alte autorități de reglementare, autorizare și control din URSS, Bulgaria, Korea, China etc.

Recunoaștere

Duminică 28 august 2016, cu ocazia sărbătorii satului Comăna de Jos, conducerea comunei i-a acordat titlul de cetățean de onoare, post mortem. Diploma a fost primită de fiica acestuia, Cornelia Mihulecea.

Note

Legături externe
 Uzina de apă grea
 S.N. Nuclearelectrica S.A.
 Institutul Național de Cercetare-Dezvoltare pentru Tehnologii Criogenice și Izotopice
 Institutul Național de Cercetare-Dezvoltare pentru Tehnologii Criogenice și Izotopice (Uzina G)
 Institutul de Cercetări Nucleare
 The CANDU Experience in Romania, A. I. Smith, prezentare la International Nuclear Conference - Saskatoon, June 3-6, 1984

Vezi și
 Energia nucleară în România
 Marius Sabin Peculea

Nașteri în 1925
Nașteri pe 1 aprilie
Decese în 2015
Decese pe 7 mai
Electrotehnicieni români
Deputați români în Marea Adunare Națională
Membri ai Partidului Muncitoresc Român
Membri ai Partidului Comunist Român
Membri ai Comitetului Central al Partidului Comunist Român


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Home>>Network/Internet>>Microsoft to acquire AT&T's Network Cloud technology and talent
Microsoft and AT&T announced that the duo has formed a strategic alliance that provides a path for all of AT&T's mobile network traffic to be managed using Microsoft Azure technologies. Microsoft also announced the acquisition of AT&T's Network Cloud technology and talent to help operators increase competitive advantage. Bringing network workloads to Azure for Operators will enable AT&T to increase productivity and cost-efficiency.
Microsoft will also gain access to AT&T's intellectual property and technical expertise to grow its telecom offering, Azure for Operators. The tech giant is acquiring AT&T's Network Cloud platform technology which AT&T's 5G core network runs on.
According to the announcement, AT&T's Network Cloud platform engineering team will receive offers to join Microsoft. Azure for Operators will allow operators globally to deliver highly reliable, cost-effective, and secure 5G services.
According to the announcement, AT&T will also continue to operate its network and retain its customer relationships. AT&T will be able to substantially reduce engineering and development costs by using Microsoft's infrastructure. Jason Zander, executive vice president Azure of Microsoft said,
"With Azure, operators can provide a more flexible and scalable service model, save infrastructure cost, and use AI to automate operations and differentiate customer offerings. Through our collaboration with AT&T, Microsoft will expand its telecom portfolio to support operators with a carrier-grade cloud that provides seamless experiences across Microsoft's cloud and the operator's network."
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The Arrival by Fred Saberhagen
He took the plunge. "Some of you men must recognize me. I'm Jonathan Doors."
The impact on Colonel Shelby, at least, seemed to be favorable. "Mr. Doors," the mustached man acknowledged, and then hesitated.
"Colonel." Doors nodded respectfully in return. "I see your men here are ready for action. Now, I've got to get my passenger here to San Simeon, where there's a certain effort already in progress. I can't take the chance of spelling out all the details, but a minute ago, someone here spoke of having a hostage—well, let me assure you, hostages are worth a lot more in the hands of people who know just what to do with them."
"Ah," said Shelby. His was not the quickest mind Doors had ever encountered when it came to reassessing a situation, but at least he was now moving in the right direction. "We'll give you an escort."
"No. No, I'm afraid that won't do, Colonel." Jonathan thought rapidly. Tilting his head back, he scanned the stars, trying his best to look keen and competent. "A while back there were some helicopters out scanning the roads. I managed to avoid them. The feds, of course. But anything like a convoy of vehicles going up to the castle is out of the question. That would draw too much attention, from the Taelons and from their friends in our so-called government."
"I understand," said the colonel—who, Doors thought, had surely never been anywhere near a colonel in any greater force than this ragtag mob. And the man seemed on the point of adding "sir."
"Your job is here, Shelby." Jonathan gave another serious, approving nod, as if confirming the wisdom of his own decisions, his reliance on Shelby the outstanding patriot. "If anything like an organized pursuit comes after me on the ground—I want you to do all you can to delay them." Again Doors raised his voice a notch, and looked round at his audience. "Knowing the level of force that may be coming down this road in pursuit of me, I won't ask you men to stop them entirely. The army may be involved. But I know I can count on you to do all you can to slow them down."
As he spoke, Doors noted with satisfaction that with every word the murmuring enthusiasm of the surrounding mob seemed to be losing steam, falling away toward silence. Some of the hand-held lights were going out, and weapons were less in evidence.
"Yes, sir." This time Shelby's response was just a second late. But he actually did salute.
« ^ »
Doors was thinking that sunrise at San Simeon would probably always be a very special time—it certainly was very beautiful today. But then he supposed that all times were special in this place. Not that he really knew it very well at all. He had visited the high castle twice in his youth, as a mere tourist, and then twice more several months ago, while he was making up his mind to buy it. Four visits over a period of months, most of them lasting for only a few hours, and he hadn't yet seen half the rooms. The main impression he retained was that of a sultan's or emperor's palace. At least all the zoo animals and birds were decades gone, eliminating one set of problems for the new owner.
Once the roadblock was behind them, the remainder of the drive, up the winding coastal Route One from Cambria, had been gloriously uneventful. Fresh, bracing sea air circulated briskly through the shotgun-blasted holes in both rear windows, the left break considerably bigger than that on the right side. The rear seats, which had fortunately been unoccupied, were never going to be quite the same again. Nor would the lock and window mechanism of the right rear door, against which some of the pellets had expended their energy.
Va'lon had come through the incident without a scratch, and his nerves seemed quite solid enough for an interstellar adventurer. He had not moved or spoken until the SUV was a hundred yards from the opening made for it in the roadblock, and gaining more distance at a brisk rate of acceleration. Then he had turned his handsome head slightly toward the driver's seat and said, "My deepest gratitude, Jonathan Doors. You have managed to return the favor even before it could be fully granted. Thank you."
Doors grunted, checking out the red flares that were fading fast in his rearview mirror. "Por nada, as they say south of the border. I would've done as much for anyone. I don't take kindly to being practically kidnapped, having firearms stuck in my face."
"I begin to appreciate, Jonathan, that your reputation for leadership is well deserved." The Companion turned his head, slowly, gracefully of course, to look behind. Then he added, "I wonder if the unhappy Colonel Shelby and his men will continue to guard their barricade against invading aliens."
"We can hope they don't. I thought I'd kind of suggest that a couple of tanks were more than likely on the way. Unless the New Free Coast Militia is totally crazy that ought to bring them to their senses and send them home."
"I must say it once more. That was an almost incredible performance, Jonathan Doors."
"Some people will tell you my whole life has been an incredible performance." Did that sound too much like bragging? Well, it was the truth.
There was only a relatively small crew of caretakers at San Simeon, a mere half-dozen people on the job tonight, but they were all awake and active. The owner's arrival with an alien being as his guest had not quite taken them entirely by surprise—Doors had radioed ahead when the SUV was only a few miles down the road. He had also managed to get a message to the Highway Patrol regarding the roadblock.
"Looks like you had some trouble, Chief," the man in the guard booth remarked, wide-eyed, when the SUV pulled up at the entry port, and the high gate of steel bars was rolling open. Then the man's gaze landed on the passenger, and he fell silent, jaws gaping in astonishment.
"You might say that." Doors reached for his controls to drive on, but then delayed again. "Oh, and listen, Carson. Keep a sharp eye on this gate. There are some crazy people running around the roads and highways this morning. If anybody shows up calling themselves the new official militia, or the patriots' army or whatever, you are to be very firm that they don't get in. You can be confident about this glass in your booth. The State of California tells me it's really bulletproof."
"Yessir."
"If we do have any callers of an unwelcome type, alert the house right away and we'll call the cops from there."
"Yessir." Then Carson made a visible effort and pulled himself together. "By the way, Mr. Doors, I'm supposed to tell you right away there's an e-mail for you."
"An e-mail? What do you mean?" It was not unusual for several hundred such messages a day to be addressed to him, and to catch up with him at all hours of the day and night, wherever he happened to be.
"Yessir, this is a special one, I understand, from your father. They have it up at the house." And the guard pointed inland.
All that at more or less the crack of dawn. Then, the drive up the winding, narrow, partly unpaved road, from the entrance to the grounds to what some people called the Castle, and old Hearst had christened Casa Grande, six miles to make a climb of some eighteen hundred feet. Va'lon was looking round him now with interest, as well he might.
They had turned east, inland, coming off the coastal highway. Mostly behind them, to the west, the Pacific was coming out of its shroud of darkness, seemingly almost of nonexistence, info morning light; all around the gently curving hills clothed in brown grass whose color at this season always made Doors think of white bread toasted to perfection. Right now his thoughts were easily turned that way. Come to think of it, he hadn't had much to eat in recent hours, and he felt ready for a ravenous confrontation with some kind of breakfast.
And ahead, more than a hundred feet high and coming a little closer with each reversal of the winding road, the twin towers of the main house, Casa Grande. Arrayed within a few yards of its front door, but not visible until the traveler drew closer, were the three smaller guest houses, Casa del Mar, Casa del Sol, and Casa del Monte, each a minor palace in its own right. The whole place, considered as an extravaganza, went beyond anything the Rockefellers or du Ponts had ever thrown up in the eastern United States. People who had seen both edifices had been known to compare San Simeon to the royal palace at Versailles.
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Poland's Robert Kubica gave BMW-Sauber's new Formula One car its track debut on Tuesday as his team limbered up for a first serious assault on the championship.
Team boss Mario Theissen said the team had drawn up a four-year plan when they started out in 2006 and had met every target so far with points in the first season, a podium in 2007 and first race win in 2008.
"We stated that we wanted to fight for the championship from this year onwards," the German told reporters after the rollout on a bright and crisp morning at Valencia's Ricardo Tormo circuit.
"So far all the targets have been met so there is no reason why we should abandon the final and most difficult one. We want to fight for the championship with the big two or more teams."
Kubica and German team mate Nick Heidfeld, the nearly-man of Formula One who has yet to win a race in 152 starts, also finished on the podium 11 times in 2008 with a one-two in Montreal. BMW-Sauber ended the season third.
"Last year we saw that by working together we can achieve good results," said Kubica, who was fourth overall.
"For the first half of the season we were title contenders...we will try to repeat the first half of the season and then finish it in a better way than last year."
Like all the latest generation Formula One cars, the BMW-Sauber F1.09's looks reflected the changed aerodynamic regulations with a huge front wing, slimmer rear and clean lines stripped of add-ons.
There is also more weight at the rear of the car due to the new KERS system, which recovers and stores energy generated under braking before transforming it into a short power boost for the driver.
BMW have been the strongest supporters of the non-mandatory technology criticised by several other teams, including champions Ferrari and Renault, as a waste of resources at a time of cost-cutting.


More than 2500$ in prizes: The Axis Egg Hunt is back !
A good old egg hunt to satisfy everyone! From April 18th to 22nd, you'll have to follow our social media closely and turn your 'hunter' mode ON !
In the sport world, it's the biggest egg hunt in Quebec, guaranteed!
Past edition have been a 'great success', so we decided bring it back in 2019.
Stay tuned! We will soon give you more details on how to participate on our social media platforms.


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Home Police, Fire & Courts Brick Woman Charged After Fleeing Accident; Officer Injured in Chase That Ended...
Brick Woman Charged After Fleeing Accident; Officer Injured in Chase That Ended in Water Rescue
Loraine Niocolosi, 36, of Brick. (Photo: TRPD)
A Brick woman fled from police after the car she was riding in struck a building, setting off a chase through the woods, river and marshland that resulted in injuries to a Toms River police officer.
The incident began at about 1:45 p.m. Friday, when a 2008 Chevy Malibu driven by Daniel Menchise, 62, crashed into the front of the Shop Rite supermarket located on Route 37 West. Menchise, of Carlisle Road in Berkeley, had a medical boot on his right foot that caused him to have difficulties operating his car, police said in a statement. As he approached the building he lost control and rode over the curb ultimately hitting the cement support column of the building.
His female passenger jumped out of the car and ran away prior to police arrival, according to police spokesman Ralph Stocco, but was spotted at about 2:30 p.m. by Officer Ryan Fitzgerald, who saw the woman walking on Lakehurst Road just west of the Garden State Parkway.
As he approached her, she fled on foot, Stocco said. The officer gave chase and the two went tumbling down a steep embankment together behind 301 Lakehurst Road. Fitzgerald landed on a sharp object causing a deep laceration that required in excess of 25 stitches, according to a police report.
The woman then jumped into the water near the Parkway and continued to flee by swimming in the river and running through a swampy area, Stocco said.
At 4 p.m. she was taken into custody when officers and fire personnel reached her in a rescue boat.
Assistance was provided by the Toms River Volunteer Fire Departments Water Rescue Unit and other agencies.
The woman, later identified as Loraine Niocolosi, 36 of Chambers Bridge Road in Brick, was charged with obstructing the administration of law. She was released pending a future court date, but she may ultimately face additional charges.
"She offered no explanation as to why she fled the scene of the initial crash," Stocco said.
Menchise, the driver, was charged with careless operation of a motor vehicle.


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They've Made it Better and Stronger
by Tony Pierce in Miscellaneous on November 15, 2007 12:00 AM
It started simply with a camerashy young lady who wrote the lyrics of the Daft Punk smash hit on her fingers and let them be the stars of the video (as seen after the jump). But now two other young women have taken to writing the lyrics on their bodies.
And if that weren't enough they put boxes on their heads to appear to look like robots - something the dj's do themselves.
The results are wonderful. And just more proof that record labels DO NOT have to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on music videos - they just need to employ creative people and let them produce their work on YouTube and other avenues.
This video, for example, we could watch over and over and over.
The original concept of the words being written on the fingers.


This paper discusses the conception of the gasified MHD-steam combined cycle system and sets up a research scheme on the combined cycle system. In this system one part of the high temperature tail gas exiting the MHD channel is utilized to gasify the coal, then the clean syngas is produced in the gasifier. Another part of the tail gas goes into a radiation furnace. Based on this thermal chemical regeneration technique the chemical energy of the syngas is more than that of the coal, and the syngas, as a clean fuel, is combusted in the MHD combustor. In this way, the difficulties brought by ash residue can be overcome. In the gasifier, the sulphur is eliminated by inserting limestone, so the recovered seed is potassium carbonate and the cycle system does not need a seed regeneration unit. The physical models are built and the code is developed. In this paper we have calculated the thermodynamic properties of the system. The parameters of a 2200MWt MHD-steam combined cycle system with tail gasification are determined and the efficiency of this combined cycle system is computed, which is found to be higher than a traditional MHD-steam combined cycle system. 1 Introduction Megnetohydrodynamic (MHD) power generation belongs to one of the direct energy conversion technologies. It utilizes the high-temperature (around 2400K) plasma incising magnetic force line to induce electromotive force for the generation of electric power . The temperature of tail gas from the MHD generator is fairly high, around 2200K. At present the efficiency of the conventional coal-fired thermal generating power plant does not exceed 40% .


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The Debated Future of Books
In Literature, Politics, Screen
Reputable broadsheet newspapers, like The Guardian, headline articles time again on why books are dying, how ebooks are taking over, and how books are not dying, how ebooks are not taking over – but fewer on how not enough reading is actually done. In reality, there is quite a lot of reading going on, reading of blogs and messages, and webcomics, and news-stories, and fluctuating sales; but the difference is in the complexity and nature of that reading. With fewer articulate, long, and complicated writings being consumed it becomes less probable that lucid, long and complicated thoughts can be shared. We are all literate (you are reading this) but being literate is gradated in a similar way to any other skill; if I can swim in a pool or ready pasta that apparently makes me a swimmer and a cook–but it does not make me as qualified as practiced swimmers and cooks. Similarly, reading words does not equate to a completed literacy, but a share in an inexhaustible source of knowledge (learning another language makes this obvious, even native language fluency is unfinishable).
Public intellectuals like Susan Jacoby, authors like Jonathan Franzen, and cognitive scientists like Steven Pinker agree that longer reads and more complex ideas have more cognitive load than short-reads or simple reads. Complexity as a word can be construed as snobbish but is real: if simplicity and simple reads (Stephanie Meyer) exist so do their opposite of complexity and complicated reads (Virginia Woolf). Carl Sagan's The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark is more substantial than Nicole Polizzi's terrible Shore Thing. But in any case, whether fiction or nonfiction, that extended reading is more beneficial than fragmented pieces and algorithm delivered information.
Now, of course, fragmented information and reduction have their place: chunking is how we remember, summaries provide a shortcut, time and mind is dreadfully limited–the debates around books decline however does not hover around their reading or in population literacy, but on the medium. A mistake: in lauding the end of books, in favour of e-books is to overlook how any book is an ally. Data gathered at University College London suggests only 55% of UK adults regularly read ficion, only 6.5% read poetry; The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development ranks English teenagers (16-19) as the least literate of OCED nations.
More useful is an evaluation of the e-book and paper-books that show why both are valuable in their own way; without the need for excitatory exaggerations that confuse a 'decline' – merely a trough in statistical graph of rise and decline – with 'the end' of either. That merely garners attention through the human tribalistic weakness for X versus Y. Nevertheless, I am happily biased toward paper books, even audiobooks, because, quite simply, their benefits outweigh the benefits of ebooks.
The evidence is inconclusive but for the time it seems paper is more memorable than screens: a text and its style and messages are better remembered in studies of paper. This is because of the visuospatial aspect of reading, and novelty – the uniqueness of object and material senses of smell and touch as well as durative turn-page progress of a book allow better recall of the information it contains. This makes sense: reading on an e-reader has the books all in the same place and in the same way which means text has few distinctive difference-markers that make for more distinct memories; it becomes an amorphous whole.
Similarly, altering and underlining is a process conducive to encoding the information it contains, impossible on an e-reader which has highlighting and click-to-reveal notations.
Paper books are more readable than other reading mediums – reading is pretty mechanical, and the apparent typography, progress, and explicit left-right page domains are more readable in paper books. Indeed, most screens give screen fatigue and those that do not fatigue, work as a less varied imitation of ordinary paper – as in e-ink readers like the paperwhite kindle, that, somehow, still provide few fonts.
Paper books can display all different forms from poetry, comic books, children's literature, picture books that become grayscale condensed failures in e-ink, none screen fatigue, e-readers. E-readers also, suffer by association with other devices that trigger the brain to distraction rather than reading and contemplation. Context and association matters.
As uniquely tangible objects, paper books serve as aesthetic choices and useable decoration and pleasurable visual and tactile forms – owning them is akin to vinyl in that it is not necessary, but the most beloved are wanted in a 'realer' form. Moreover, as objects they serve as social tools – exchanged, borrowed, gifted, that an actual comprehensive dominance of ebooks would make obsolete. In a similar way that streaming has killed the romance of a mix-tape; I thankfully doubt this will happen in the domain of books.
Ebooks are useful because they are easily cataloged, it is, therefore, easier to search and use for research – even at short notice, and often at a lower price. And they do not require physical space, which makes them easy to transport and store.
Several studies suggest that readers of both paper and e-books read more books overall (though the depth of wide reading may be dubious, and is not evaluated by such studies).
Audiobooks are valuable because they incorporate the human voice to any text – that can make the sometimes dry interesting with the auditory sense, and in doing satiate the human desire for a voice to the words. It is only in the burgeoning of modern entertainments that reading became separate from reading aloud- reading aloud was second nature and social for centuries; audiobooks seem to use technology to fill that void. Most obviously, however, it makes narratives accessible to the illiterate or disabled, and is better for audio-memorisers.
Paper, e, and audiobooks all have their uses And the value of reading of all kinds, by any means, ought to be encouraged. There is no winning: all are here to stay, and all can complement one another.
What creates concern around reading is the dispute based on preconceptions around paper books – as the most obvious signifier of ordinary, serious, reading. A cynical view of reading extends to a negative view of paper books. Because a pervasive consumerist culture is spread by entertainment industries that compete for 'users' attention. Hence, books are often viewed as consumables – rather than thinking experiences. Youtube summaries of books, and speed-reading efficiency, and STEM prestige are pandemic. It is as though books are consumed like a drug and then moved on from, or used as an escapism from the real business of moneymaking or The Airport Read. In these trends the overarching influences of our culture become apparent. A Calvinist work ethic reigns: we are conditioned to feel guilty for not getting on with making use of our time for quick material ends; while we are conditioned to accept the dominance of entertainment industries and frivolous leisure time; we take the lack of relationships with books, that was common and widely embedded into the literate social life of the past, as a misnomer; and are conditioned into a reductive desire to pick out The Points of a book from what is, by itself, a point.
Books are not dying, they are evolving, and the paper form remains strong. Rather than a news debate around statistics of medium use by year (18% paper book rise, 8% ebook decline in articles from 2016), the onus ought to be on reading itself (deeply, widely) at all; the question of medium whether paper, screen, or graphic (even audio) form, is a secondary matter. At best a detraction from the more pressing concern of literacy and critical thinking evermore necessary in a 'post-truth' era.
bookse-booksliteracyocedReadingthe world economic forumucl
Albums Chosen by David Bowie
Why You Should Read Comics


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Nigeria, Others Account…
Nigeria, Others Account For 65% Global Gas Flaring
The World Bank has said Nigeria and six other countries were responsible for two-thirds of global gas flaring.
It said this in a statement titled 'Seven countries account for two-thirds of global gas flaring'.
According to the World Bank, "Gas flaring satellite data from 2020 reveals that Russia, Iraq, Iran, the United States, Algeria, Venezuela and Nigeria remain the top seven gas flaring countries for nine years running, since the first satellite was launched in 2012.
"These seven countries produce 40 per cent of the world's oil each year, but account for roughly two-thirds (65 per cent) of global gas flaring.
"This trend is indicative of ongoing, though differing, challenges facing these countries. For example, the United States has thousands of individual flare sites, difficult to connect to a market, while a few high flaring oil fields in East Siberia in the Russian Federation are extremely remote, lacking the infrastructure to capture and transport the associated gas."
Similarly, the Global Director for the Energy and Extractives Global Practice at the World Bank, Demetrios Papathanasiou, said, "In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, oil-dependent developing countries are feeling the pinch, with constrained revenues and budgets.
"But with gas flaring still releasing over 400 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions each year, now is the time for action.
"We must forge ahead with plans to dramatically reduce the direct emissions of the oil and gas sector, including from gas flaring."
However, the World Bank noted that in an unprecedented year for the oil and gas industry, oil production declined by eight per cent in 2020.
It also added that global gas flaring reduced by five per cent, according to satellite data compiled by the World Bank's Global Gas Flaring Reduction Partnership.
Tags: gas flaring Oil&Gas World Bank
Nigeria's Oil Output Rises By 17%
Oil Production Hits 1.18mbpd In November
Debt Servicing To Gulp 123% Of 2023...


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Q: Backing up full remote git repository with history to another remote server Assume that I have to GIT servers behind a fence, say at git.mycompany.com (with gitea UI) and at git.myclient.com (with github-like UI), both heavily security with VPN, multi factor-authentication etc. I want to deliver my full repository myProduct to git.myclient.com/alice/myProduct since Alice is my point of contact.
Can I do that directly without the detour over a local repository on my computer?
Since I am working remote, and the uplink of mycompany.com is much faster than my own...
My current lengthy and slow approach
In detail, the detour over my computer looks as follows:

*

*Using the (github-like) user-interface, create an empty repository at git.myclient.com called  myProduct.

*Make sure that my local repository is up to date with git pull.

*Check my current remote origin with git config --get remote.origin.url, see e.g. an answer to How can I determine the URL that a local Git repository was originally cloned from?
In my case, the result simply is https://git.mycompany.com/b--rian/myProduct.git

*Change this configuration to the destination repository with git remote set-url origin git@git.myclient.com:alice/myProduct.git.

*Generate a key-value pair for ssh using ssh-keygen -o, see https://git-scm.com/book/en/v2/Git-on-the-Server-Generating-Your-SSH-Public-Key

*Ask Alice to navigate to Settings > GPG and SSH keys (usually at
https://git.myclient.com/settings/keys) and ask her to add my New SSH key from the previous step.

*Make sure that the SSH agent is running on my windows box, if not start it with eval $(ssh-agent -s) inside the GIT Bash, see https://help.github.com/en/github/authenticating-to-github/generating-a-new-ssh-key-and-adding-it-to-the-ssh-agent

*Now, finally, I can push most things to the client using git push --all origin. This is the slow step which I would like to speed up.

*The tags have to be pushed separately, I heard: git push origin --tags, see How do you push a tag to a remote repository using Git?

*Wind back everything by setting the remote.origin.url to back what it was in step 3, in my case it is a git remote set-url origin https://git.mycompany.com/b--rian/myProduct.git.

Is there an easier way?

A: Maybe you could use Git mirroring on git.myclient.com.
It's up to clients VCS (Git). Most implementations have mirroring options.
For example, if the client is using Gitlab:
https://docs.gitlab.com/ee/user/project/repository/repository_mirroring.html

A: I think it would be much simpler to add a second remote... and then push into that remote:
git remote add second url-to-new-repo
git push second master develop # push master and develop to second

And so on.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


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Marvel at the works of Italian masters during after-hours visits to the Vatican museums and Venice's Scuola Grande di San Rocco, and tour Florence's iconic Uffizi Gallery with an art historian.
Explore the Roman Forum and the ruins underneath the Colosseum in the company of a renowned archaeologist.
Stay three nights in the Tuscan countryside at a family-owned and -operated 13th-century castello, and get to know members of the family
Itinerary - 10 Days
1-2 Venice, Italy
Arrive in Venice and transfer by motorboat to our hotel overlooking the Grand Canal. On a guided walk, see Piazza San Marco, the Doge's Palace, the Sansovino library, and the Rialto Bridge. Meet a local artisan to learn the science of traditional gondola construction, and access the private collections of Scuola Grande di San Rocco during an after-hours visit.
Venezia Palazzo Barocci (Day 1: D; Day 2: B/L)
3-4 Florence
Board a train to Florence, and take a walking tour of its historic centre. Stroll the medieval town and Piazza della Signoria, and see the Duomo and Ponte Vecchio. Encounter Michelangelo's "David" at the Accademia, then dine in the home of a Florentine family. The following day, journey to Pisa and Lucca and bike along the ancient city walls, or join an art historian at the famed Uffizi Gallery.
Gallery Hotel Art (Day 3: B/L/D; Day 4: B)
5-7 Tuscan Countryside/Siena
Travel into the Chianti region and stop at the renowned Badia a Coltibuono winery for lunch and a tasting, then head to the medieval hamlet of Gargonza. Settle into the 13th-century castello of the Guicciardini family, and opt to join the chef for a cooking lesson. Soak up the medieval flavour of Siena on a walking tour, and hike the scenic landscapes near Gargonza.
Castello di Gargonza (Days 5 and 7: B/L/D Daily; Day 6: B/D)
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Continue to Rome. Venture into the Colosseum, stroll the Roman Forum, and enjoy a specially arranged visit inside the Chiesa di San Lorenzo in Miranda. Here, meet archaeologist Dr. Valerie Higgins, an expert in Roman archaeology who recently appeared in the popular National Geographic documentary series The Story of God. The next day, take in the grandeur of Vatican City with an early morning visit to its museums and the Sistine Chapel before they open to the public, then visit St. Peter's Square and its basilica. Take a walking tour that includes the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, and Piazza Navona. Toast our Italian sojourn at a farewell dinner. (Day 8: B/L Day 9: B/D)
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Seven female celebrities joined Juno director Jason Reitman Saturday for an all-woman live-read of the 2007 film to raise money for Planned Parenthood.
Ellen Page and Jennifer Garner, who starred in the original film, reprised their roles as Juno, the pregnant 16-year-old, and Vanessa, the woman who adopts Juno's baby. They were joined by Alia Shawkat, Kristen Wiig, Tig Notaro, Tracee Ellis Ross and Issa Rae to fill in the other roles for the reading.
Reitman said he was inspired by the 2016 election to bring back the live script-reading series he had put on for five seasons.
"It occurred to me that I have this show that could be used as a tool to not only raise money for causes that need the help, but could serve as an opportunity for a group like Planned Parenthood to connect with an audience who can be presented with new ideas, or even an action item," he told Entertainment Weekly in March.


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Look at what these guys turned this bus into... AMAZING!
The people at Good News Bus are the guys behind this creative project. They turned a standard school bus they purchased for $3000 and converted it into this epic RV! It comes fully equipped with multiple sleeping areas as well as a master bedroom, kitchen, bathroom and dining area. It must be amazing to travel in! Check out the awesome transformation below.


Force youngster Jack McGregor ran onto the field for Sundays match knowing the importance of winning this game and was prepared to keep a fiery Sydney Rays side at bay.
"We knew they would come out firing first out of the gates there cause they had a good a good game last week against Fiji," McGregor said.
The double try scorer felt overjoyed with the end result despite a rocky start.
"I'm very happy [with the win], this was such a big week, we needed a bonus point win and we got away with it," he said.
McGregor came back on to score a try from his own chip and chase and another one from a quick clever pass by Rod Davies but attributed the high scoring result to the hard work of the forwards.
"I was a bit lucky with the bounce on the ball and great pass by Rocket there and the boys outside me," he said.
"[The forwards] are very important, they scored some brilliant tries of mauls there and our scrum was very effective.
Captain Ian Prior was also impressed by the forwards pressure especially during the beginning of the game.
"The forwards are pretty effective there in the scrum and the backs are scoring some great tries out wide and through kicks," Prior said.
Formerly part of the Melbourne Rebels, McGregor is looking forward to next week's game against the Rising.
"Melbourne is going to be a tough game over in Melbourne as well," he said.
The Western Force head back over east to take on the Melbourne Rising on Sunday October 7 at GMBA Stadium, Geelong.


Host Sarah Murdoch, daughter-in-law of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, announces wrong winner for top model contest live on Australian TV.
AUSTRALIA-TOP MODEL- And Australia's Next Top Model is... not Kelsey Martinovich.
The daughter-in-law of media baron Rupert Murdoch announced before a 2,000-strong live audience that 19-year old Martinovich had won the Foxtel competition.
Martinovich had just enough time to finish her acceptance speech before Murdoch realised the error - that the actual top model was 18-year-old rival Amanda Ware.
"I'm feeling a bit sick about this, no, I am so sorry about this, oh my god, I don't know what to say, this was a complete accident, I am so sorry, it is Amanda, I am so sorry, it was fed to me wrong."
Taking the news well, it was actually Martinovich who ended up comforting Murdoch, who was near tears.
"It's fine, don't worry, it's okay. Don't be ridiculous, it's an honest mistake, it's fine."
It wasn't long before the gaff went viral on the internet and Australian newspapers have already branded it as the country's most awkward TV moment.
Foxtel later blamed a miscommunication between directors in a broadcasting control room and Murdoch on stage.
Martinovich's reign as Australia's Next Top Model may have been the shortest in the show's history but she won't be walking away empty handed.
Foxtel said she will receive a 20,000 Australian dollar cash prize and trip to New York as consolation.
Appearing together on a breakfast talk show together the next morning, the winner and runner-up said there were no hard feelings.
"Of course I felt really good for that thirty seconds, you know Amanda won, fair and square with the votes and you know like I said I was here for the career and I want a modelling career, I feel like I have achieved that."
On the same program, series judge Alex Perry rejected speculation that the mix-up was a last minute publicity stunt to boost ratings.


From what I read in the vers.15 feedback thread (Version 15 Feedback & Discussion ) , my war chest counter will be reset if I leave my alliance.
This will be the end of those group of players that organized themselves in two (or more) alliances splitting the players by experience level. This was very useful for newcomers that could learn from experienced people, for experienced players that could be easily replaced when absent for some time (or just needed a break from intense titan battles).
And, of course, this is the end of the common practice of helping other alliances with hard titans.
I can see what we will lose but I really don't get who's going to benefit from this change.
Does anyone knows the reason behind this?
P.S. not being in the release note, many don't believe me when i tell them about this change. Please add it to the Release Note.
PP.SS. I would really love to be corrected should I have misunderstood what this change implies!
I agree that this a concerning change.
SGG has yet to make any mechanics change to reflect the reality of alliance families. This hasn't been a big issue (although the timer on the Titan chest does already remove some flexibility), but these war chests will further lock people in to one alliance, making moves between alliances more costly because leaving the alliance, you sacrifice all of the contributions you've made into that chest.
One change would help: if you leave an alliance and return within, say, 12 hours, you don't reset your war chest. This is a short enough time to help with another Titan but not another war.
Even better: your chest is reset only if you are not back in the Alliance in time for next war.
This would give some flexibility and ensure wars and participating players are consistent.
Quite alot of changes have been made to this game because of helping with titans. I don't think that argument will sway devs.
This is a good change. It will help prevent rampant cheating with the matchmaking trickery and yanking teams so the opponents can't score. I am a one hundred percent advocate for this change.
All the devs are doing/continuing to do is prove which mercs are the ones that say they ONLY do it to be helpful. If they want to be helpful then surely they will give up things, like their war chest, if their intentions are as true and pure as some have stated. Mercs certainly aren't in it for the extra loot chance.
(Please read this with a hit of snark. Just in case it isn't clear, I'm poking fun).
That has been addressed by another change.
Perhaps the devs need to implement a way for mercs to merc without penalties in other areas of the game?
What about Alliance Projects? Buildings the alliance can build as a team effort that give buffs / new abilities to the alliance? One of these could be to invoke the help of X (depending on lvl of Wonder) extra attacks from … mercs? Another could be the building that allows for (limited) trading of ascension items?
I think that might be a next evolutionary step in E&P: Alliance Projects.
The description of the war chest is the same of the elemental chests. I think the loot will be like them.
Someone reported a bug here "War chest error" that looks very similar to the expected behaviour of war chest reset.
Of course if he did not exit the alliance it's definitely a bug!
Anyone just think devs are trying to deter the growing number of alliances in order to fill up the existing ones and make it easier to collect and track data?
Not saying that is what they're doing but less alliances would make their job easier with a few features in the game. Matchmaking and loot tracking are two examples.
Less alliances, less problems. People have complained before about every other new player that joins the game starting an alliance and i have a feeling these war chests may be to deter that and encourage them to join an established alliance that actually has chances of winning wars.
One more benefit for full Alliance, but this chest is not near important as titan loot and that is the greater advantage for the ones that have 30 members.
@Petri is there any thought to @Kerridoc 's comment above about alliances that are teams? This war chest participation counter is preventing me from going to any of my other three alliances to help coach my newer teammates. Perhaps creating a way to have the bigger alliance groups (I.e. Seven Days, Crystal, etc) link to one another so members do not lose the participation credit when they go to other alliances within their families?
Another idea would be as stated above that you do not lose your participation count towards the alliance chest so long as you return prior to the subsequent war starting.
Most all top 100 alliances have several alliances that work together as a team and this makes it difficult to maintain that community.
My sister alliance needs some help stabilizing right now and my co-leaders and I are discouraged that we will lose credit for the war we just won.
I know you have a war break this weekend. Perhaps that could be coded at that time?
I am really curious abot the chest goodies. If it is something even like the present elemental chests that are just giving a 3* mat or nothing, there is going to be a massive backlash.
The descripion is the same from them, so i wouldn't expect nothing more than 3 rolls for AM, 3 for tokens and 1 for flask. Maybe some coins and gems.
Anyone know of any updates on this topic? Rael's question/ concern is the same of ours and others who have sister alliances. We have two alliances, split by experience/power, but sometimes people may temporarily join one until a spot in the other is open, or as the group changes somebody finds themselves fitting better into the other.
It has nothing to do with mercs. Hopefully this changes.
We all have asked to change the rule a bit (for example to allow people come back before the next war).
I don't know if they'll change it, but I believe this rule (in a form or another) is here to stay to stabilize Alliances.
I agree that this participation reset is ■■■■. Why must MY war chest be linked to an alliance. Surely the war chest should reflect what i have done… not in relation to where it was done.
Personally i am on a road trip around e&p world. I am not 'mercing'. Every week or so i go to a different alliance. Different people. Diff strategies. Diff dynamics.
I truely do not understand the rationale why my effort in each alliances war means nothing…!?
I still had to fight and hopefully win.
I think the participation % should purely be linked to your performance (and nothing to do with where)… and how many flags you use. So if i use only 3 flags i get 50% performance for that war.


Summerz Resident answered What is your opinion on SL Families? with They're Okay.
Summerz Resident answered What do you think about overreactions (drama) in Second Life? (open) with Shrugs shoulders and thinks WTF and move on.
Shrugs shoulders and thinks WTF and move on.
Summerz Resident answered Do you play Pokemon Go? ^_~ with No!
Summerz Resident answered In your opinion, which answers are correct? (add yours if necessary) with Shut up! SL isn't a GAME, it's a LIFE!


Twins with psychic connection: Skeptics, how do you explain?
How do you explain these cases of psychic connections between twins that science cannot possibly explain? Please watch the video before posting. Thanks.
How do I know that if I post a reply that the author of the post will respond back? Unfortunately, past experience tells me he won't, so I won't respond unless I can be assured that watching the video and giving an honest assesssment would not be a waste of my time.
haha, was going to write the same thing!
I told you not to comment until after you watch the video. You guys failed. You admit that that you can't explain it. Mysteries do exist. Deal with it. Telepathic connection is a fact.
I haven't watched the video. What we asked was an assurance that if we did you would agree not to immediately abandon the discussion as you have in every other thread you have started.
ProfWag wrote: How do I know that if I post a reply that the author of the post will respond back? Unfortunately, past experience tells me he won't, so I won't respond unless I can be assured that watching the video and giving an honest assesssment would not be a waste of my time.
Arouet wrote: haha, was going to write the same thing!
Are you two boys twins???
Scepcop wrote: I told you not to comment until after you watch the video. You guys failed. You admit that that you can't explain it. Mysteries do exist. Deal with it. Telepathic connection is a fact.
And I won't watch the video until you say you'll stay around for a discussion. However, judging from it being on Unsolved Mysteries tells me right off the bat that it's a show produced for entertainment, will present primarily one side of the story, and will be full of anectdodal evidence. What I would like from you, Scepcop, is to tell us what part of the video do you actually find unexplainable and why? Why don't you use that "freethinker" thing you claim to have and watch the video again with a more critical eye. You might be surprised what you find.
Wow, mysteries actually exist scepcop? That's news to me! Actually, I really just want to say "duh." Yes, mysteries do exist and I don't believe there's a person alive who would disagree with you. Just because it's a mysterie however, doesn't mean there's not a logical explanation to it. Sheesh.
Speaking of coincidences. . .
Roughly a decade ago I had a guy from Texas approach me on a project he was developing that involved his daughters -- TWINS and their doing a mind reading act. . . in the past three or so years two such teams have cropped up on the scene; the girls in this video and two annoying blonds that have recently worked the talk show circuit. . . I just find it to be too much a coincidence and as they say, when it looks like a duck, quacks like a duck and waddles like a duck. . . well, it's probably not a goose. . .
Interesting how Scepcop will absolutely refuse to agree to not abandon a thread. Almost as if he had no intention of continuing the discussion when he started the thread.
Scepcop: if you haven't noticed, this site is dying. As the site owner you may have an interest in keeping discussions going.
Science can't prezently explain thingz like this, but maybe sumday will.
The problem with skeptics iz that they prefer to deny sumthing iz really happening if it duznt fit into our prezent understanding uv the universe - a foolish stratejy, since the unexplainable stuff iz very likely to lead to the most amazing scientific discoveryz.
I saw the Barbie twinz on the Sally Jessy Raffeal show back in the 90z. They also grew up seperately and had identical traits and uncannilly similar experiencez.


Waterside Retirement Lodge Celebrates National Pie Day!
National Pie Day proved to be a delicious event at Waterside Retirement Lodge this week! Indulging in blueberry and apple pies, along with a riotous sing-a-long, the group had a blast, including the staff, who were invited to enjoy a slice as well!


text:
Hôtel du Petit Palais
Nice, Provence, France
8 out of 10 Telegraph expert rating
Weary travellers looking to escape the hustle and bustle of the Old Town and the chock-a-block promenade often end up in the leafy suburb of Cimiez. Here they can unwind at a Belle Époque palace with enviable rooftop views, mini-spa and plunge pool.
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Telegraph Review
Louise Simpson, Travel Writer
Hôtel du Petit Palais is hidden away at the base of Cimiez: arguably the prettiest Niçoise suburb and home to Roman remains and Nice's best art museums (Chagall and Matisse). It's a 10-minute walk uphill from both the train station and the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art. It's also a ten-minute bus ride from the beach and the Old Town.
Style and Character
Beyond its ornate Belle-Époque façade, this boutique hotel seems to be resting on the laurels of its excellent reputation. The interiors blur tastefully into beige and brown hues with Asian artefacts providing welcome relief in the lobby and restaurant areas. There's nothing essentially wrong with its décor – it's just that its four-star competitors have upped their design game of late so that Hôtel du Petit Palais no longer feels like the most stylish hotel in Nice. Resident parrot, Jacko, adds a welcome touch of eccentricity.
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The hotel has maximised facilities within the space available. On the flower-strewn pool terrace, you can dip your toes into the plunge pool or lounge about on recliners. On the garden terrace below, there are plenty of tables and chairs. Here you can grab a copy of The New York Times or borrow a board game such Monopoly and Trivial Pursuit. There's even a small spa where you indulge in manicures, facials and massages. Free parking in front of the hotel is a boon. The hit-and-miss service runs the full gamut of levels from rudely dismissive to charming.
The best thing about this hotel is a sea-facing room with a panoramic rooftop view over Nice. Not every room has a sea view so it's worth booking early and splashing out a little extra on a Sea Standard. Rooms vary in size from small hillside rooms for single travellers to large Junior Sea View Suites with a Terrace that sleep up to three guests. Rooms are carpeted and decorated in neutral tones. The most distinctive room feature is an individually designed coffee table: everything from a clock face to a tree stump. Clarins bathroom products.
There's no on-site restaurant and it's a ten-minute walk to find a decent one. However, there's a simple room service offering salads and selections of cheese and ham. A full English breakfast for €20 (£17) is served in the breakfast room, while a Continental breakfast can be served in the room for €22 (£19). Highlights include organic cereals and fresh pastries. Drinks and coffees (at a charge) are served throughout the day at the bar.
Prices feel punchy. Double rooms from €150 (£93) in low season; and from €250 (£152) in high. Breakfast excluded. Free Wi-Fi.
Access for guests with disabilities?
Not suitable.
Family-Friendly?
Junior Garden or Junior Sea suites cater for up to three. Cots are available at €12 (£10) per night.
17 Avenue Emile Bieckert, 06000 Nice, France.
00 33 4 93 62 19 11 petitpalaisnice.com
Rooms from £ 94
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"Catching Fire," the second film in "The Hunger Games" trilogy, comes out in one year -- on Nov. 22, 2013. The cast is currently filming in Maui, Hawaii, and here are some photos from the movie-in-progress.
Jennifer Lawrence filming a scene from "Catching Fire" in Hawaii.
Entertainment Weekly compared Lawrence's costume to "a wetsuit made out of a roller blade you owned in 1992."
Lawrence takes up her bow.
"Catching Fire" begins after Katniss has won the Hunger Games and must take a victory tour of Panem's districts with co-winner Peeta. But they aren't through fighting for their lives. The Quarter Quell -- aka, the 75th annual Hunger Games, aka "Hunger Games All-Stars" -- rears its ugly head, because we can't have two more books in the "Hunger Games" series with no Hunger Games.
New characters will include Mags and Finnick. The photo above is believed to show Lawrence with Lynn Cohen, who plays Mags, an 80-something tribute.
New characters, of course, will be introduced in "Catching Fire." Lynn Cohen, 68, will play 80-year-old tribute Mags, from District 4. She volunteers for the games to replace Annie, the troubled true love of the other District 4 tribute, Finnick Odair (played by Sam Claflin).
Are you excited to see "Catching Fire"? Tell us on Facebook.


Shangri La in the Desert. Actor Robert Stack (Elliot Ness of the television series, The Untouchables) bought this Spanish hacienda for his mother, Elizabeth Modini in 1955. Upon entering the home you will feel as though you have been transported back in time to Old Hollywood. Located in The Mesa, one of Palm Springs most exclusive neighborhoods which is nestled into the base of the majestic San Jacinto mountains. After a 16 month renovation this stunning, architecturally significant piece of history has been re-imagined as a Modern Moroccan desert gem. In this magnificant space, high-end materials (natural stone tile, restored brickwork & hardwoods) work in concert with rich layers of texture and pattern. An airy floorplan includes a separate wing with 3 Bedrooms (all with private ensuites plus separate powder room) that adjoins the public living space via a soaring glass-walled gallery. The gallery is lit with 2 elegant chandeliers. The open-concept greatroom features a kitchen with high-end appliances including Sub-Zero refrigerator and custom wine refrigerator, six-burner Thermador professional gas range and KitchenAid dishwasher. A quartz countertop with waterfall edge clads the more than 12 foot island. The oversized indoor dining area has a wall of french doors which lead to a spacious Moroccan tiled deck for outdoor dining. Other features include: built-in floor-to-ceiling library wall in the living room & a walk-in closet in the master bedroom with lavish ensuite bath complete with outdoor shower. The extremely private backyard is anchored by an outdoor living room with a dramatic outdoor fireplace and of course a large pool and spa. If you are looking for a trophy property with a pedigree in one of the most coveted locations in Palm Springs, look no further than this extraordinary home in The Mesa.


Upgrading to Shibboleth IdP V3 - InC-Federation - Internet2 Wiki for your Wiki!
In May 2015, the Shibboleth Consortium formally announced the end-of-life of Shibboleth IdP V2. A staged end-of-life process began on December 31, 2015 and ended on July 31, 2016.
Shibboleth IdP V2 reached end-of-life on July 31, 2016. In the future, no bug fixes, not even security-related bug fixes, will be issued.
If you are still running Shibboleth IdP V2, you should be actively planning your upgrade path to Shibboleth IdP V3 or alternative solutions. In preparation for an upgrade, IdP operators in the InCommon Federation should download and install a pre-production instance of Shibboleth IdP V3 as soon as possible.
At any given time, the appropriate version to use will vary but will always be the latest version available from the Shibboleth project.
A test deployment of Shibboleth IdP V3 should mimic your production deployment of V2. Be sure to point your test IdP at the InCommon Preview Aggregate, one of three Metadata Aggregates in the metadata pipeline.
Please document your migration experience on the Shibboleth IdP V3 HowTo page in the shibboleth.net wiki.
Know who your SP partners are. In particular, know which SP partners automatically refresh metadata and which don't. SPs that do not automatically refresh metadata make your job more difficult. If you don't know about a partner, it's likely they're relying on your published metadata and so they won't present a significant problem to your migration anyway. It's usually the partners for which you had to manually load metadata yourself that need special care.
If you have questions, by all means raise them on the Shibboleth support list. Many deployers have already gone through complex migrations (from V1 to V2 or from SAML1 to SAML2) and will be happy to advise. Ask before something breaks, not after. If you don't fully understand the implications of a change, ask first.
The basic strategy is quite simple: Use production metadata for testing purposes. In particular, do not introduce a second entity descriptor into InCommon metadata. Such an entity descriptor cannot have the same entityID as your production IdP, so by definition that entity descriptor describes a completely new IdP. You generally can't test your existing relationships and integrations with a new IdP. Indeed, you don't want a new IdP, you want to upgrade the one you have.
Install Shib IdP V3 on a new physical host (or virtual machine) using the same web path as your production IdP (assuming that path is not going to change). This will allow you to configure Shib IdP V3 to have the same protocol endpoints as your production IdP once your upgrade is complete.
Generally speaking, configure the new V3 instance to be identical to your production IdP (same entityID, same SAML signing key and certificate, same endpoints, same metadata sources, same attribute release policy rules, etc.). The two systems should be identical in every way.
In most cases, this is best accomplished by copying your old configuration to the new host as though you were deploying V2 there, and then using the IdP's upgrade support to install the new version on top of the old. This will maintain files that can be maintained to the greatest extent practical.
If your IdP supports a computed version of eduPersonTargetedID, don't forget to migrate the secret salt to the new V3 platform (which, per above, will happen automatically if you upgrade). Failure to do so will cause different values of eduPersonTargetedID to be generated, which will break interoperability with SP partners. See the FAQ below for more info.
The most important piece of advice we can give is: do not introduce a new entityID.
Configure Shib IdP V3 to have the same entityID as your production IdP so that the two are indistinguishable by relying parties. Consequently, a single entity descriptor in metadata is sufficient to describe both IdPs. Any SP that consumes that metadata will interoperate with either your test IdP or your production IdP.
If you change your entityID, you are essentially starting from scratch. In that case, there is no migration to speak of.
Every IdP has at least one signing certificate (use="signing") in metadata. This certificate contains a public key that complement's the IdP's all-important SAML signing key, the private key used to sign SAML responses and assertions. The latter must be carefully protected at all times.
Most IdPs have exactly one signing certificate in metadata. If you have more than one signing certificate in metadata, it's probably a holdover from a key migration at some point in the past. You should clean this up before getting too deep into the migration by verifying whether the additional certificate(s) are actually in use and for which relying parties.
Of all the bits in metadata, the SAML signing certificate is one thing that can be changed without affecting interoperability (at least with SPs that are relying on the metadata). By following a well-defined migration process, you can introduce a new certificate into metadata without negative side effects. As long as your SP partners automatically refresh metadata, you won't have any problems. That said, if you need to migrate a new certificate into metadata, do so at a later time, after you've upgraded to Shib IdP V3.
If possible, use your production signing key to test Shib IdP V3, but always handle your private key with care!
The simplest thing to do is copy the production signing key and certificate files onto the physical machine that hosts Shib IdP V3. Of course you must do this without exposing the private key. In this case, there is no need to update your metadata.
If you are unable to use the production signing key and certificate on the test system, then you'll have to generate a new signing key for testing purposes. The Shibboleth install (but not upgrade) process will do this for you automatically. This new signing key must be kept no less secure than your production signing key. The certificate corresponding to this new signing key may be added to the IdP's entity descriptor in metadata so that there are two certificates in metadata, one for the production IdP and one for the test IdP. See the FAQ below for more info.
Read the Security and Networking topic in the Shibboleth wiki, especially the section on "Keys and Certificates." The Shibboleth IdP installer will generate three pairs of keys and certificates for you automatically but if you copy your production signing key and certificate to the test machine (which is highly RECOMMENDED), you won't need any of them.
All browser-facing endpoints in IdP metadata are non-indexed (this is a SAML term, but it simply means that more than one of the exact same type and character can't be used). Consequently, there may be at most one SingleSignOnService endpoint per HTTP binding. (The same is true of SingleLogoutService endpoints.) At best, adding a second browser-facing endpoint with a redundant binding to metadata serves no purpose.
Changing an endpoint in metadata is even more problematic. While it is possible to migrate to new endpoint locations (see the FAQ below), it is not something to be taken lightly. Depending on your SP partners, it may take months to safely perform such a migration, much like changing a key. It is best to avoid that pain.
Install the Shibboleth IdP V3 software on a new virtual host but make sure the web application path is exactly the same as your production IdP. Do not change the endpoint locations in production metadata.
You are now ready to begin testing.
Assuming your test IdP and your production IdP share the same path (on different hosts), your best testing strategy is to map the DNS name of the production IdP to the IP address of the test IdP using /etc/hosts on a client/browser machine. Using either SP-initiated or IdP-initiated SSO, systematically test selected partner SPs using the client machine. If the entityID and the signing credentials are both unchanged, any problems that occur are a sign of configuration differences that can be investigated and fixed before the cutover occurs.
Except for the back channel, you can fully simulate real transactions against real SPs through simple manipulation of client /etc/hosts files. Back-channel protocols, such as artifact resolution and attribute query, are much more difficult to test. This is one reason why an IdP deployment strategy that forces all protocol traffic over the front channel is highly desirable. Avoid back-channel protocols if you can.
What if I change my entityID? Will that cause an outage?
The entityID is permanent. If you change it, you have in effect removed the old entity and added a new entity. Thus changing your entityID is not an option unless you want to start over. In that case there is no migration to speak of.
What if I change my SAML signing key? Will that cause an outage?
In general, if your SAML signing key is compromised, you should immediately generate a new key pair and introduce the resulting signing certificate into metadata. Yes, this will cause an outage but that's inevitable when your signing key is compromised. Consequently, you should protect your signing key at all costs.
In all other situations, you can migrate a new signing certificate into IdP metadata with relatively little or no pain. However, do not couple this to your software upgrade. First complete the migration to V3 and then migrate a new signing certificate into metadata.
If you absolutely must introduce a new signing key in conjunction with the migration to V3, you can add the corresponding signing certificate to production metadata while the migration is in progress. Any SP that relies on your metadata will accept a response signed by either key. In this way, you can freely drop in and out of test mode regardless of the signing key in use.
What if I change my endpoint locations in metadata? Will that cause an outage?
Yes, changing the endpoint locations in IdP metadata will cause an outage for as long as it takes your SP partners to update their metadata. It will also cause extended outages for any SPs that are not metadata-aware, thereby causing a large amount of disruption and unwanted attention. Don't do this. At the very least, don't use the upgrade as an excuse to do this. It's much harder to change your endpoint locations than to actually upgrade the IdP software, and you don't want to link two complex changes together.
But I really do need to change my endpoints. How do I do this?
If this is a hard requirement, once again, don't couple this to your software upgrade. One does not make the other easier. First complete the migration to V3 and then change your endpoints.
To change your endpoints, you need to run two instances of the Shibboleth IdP software on separate servers/hostnames while maintaining single sign-on between them. This allows you to gradually complete a migration from the old hostname to the new hostname by running both in production with traffic mixed between them.
SPs that do not support metadata consumption can be migrated one at a time to the new endpoint(s), usually after direct conversation with the SP owner. At whatever time is convenient, your InCommon metadata can be changed to migrate metadata-consuming SPs en masse to the new endpoint(s). Eventually all SPs will either have moved over, or you'll know there are stragglers requiring special attention using simple log analysis.
In short, endpoints can change, but you do not want to perform such a cutover as a weekend activity. It will take weeks, sometimes months to change your endpoints. If you try and shortcut this process, you will have outages.
My IdP supports eduPersonTargetedID. Will upgrading to Shib IdP V3 affect that support?
Implementations of eduPersonTargetedID by the Shibboleth software are either stored in a database or computed on the fly. If your IdP supports a computed version of eduPersonTargetedID, either use the documented upgrade process, or don't forget to migrate the secret salt to the V3 platform. Failure to do so will cause different values of eduPersonTargetedID to be generated, which will break interoperability with SP partners.
What about SAML2 Persistent NameID? Is that a concern?
SAML2 Persistent NameID is an alternative syntax to the eduPersonTargetedID SAML Attribute, so the question is the same in both cases: Is it stored or computed? If it's computed, you must upgrade properly, or migrate the secret salt, to maintain interoperability.
My IdP supports the R&S category. Will upgrading to Shib IdP V3 affect that support?
No, as long as you don't change your IdP entityID, the Research & Scholarship (R&S) entity attribute will remain in your metadata. You should use the upgrade process, or faithfully reproduce the relevant attribute release policy rules in Shib IdP V3 of course, but beyond that there is nothing further you need to do.
I have a network load balancing appliance or strategy. Can this help with my upgrade?
Yes! If you have a network load balancer, hardware or software, or something else that fronts the DNS for your IdP service, it's likely that you can use that facility to ease the transition to V3. This usually involves a step during the final production deployment of your new IdP infrastructure, where you have new IdP node(s) ready for deployment (following all the critical advice in this document about not changing entityID, endpoint locations or keys). Once you have your new nodes deployed but not yet in production, find a reasonable time to do the maintenance to put the new nodes into production. You can usually set your load balancing facility to put the old node(s) in 'drain connections' or similar. Start adding in the new IdP nodes and set the old nodes to drain connections. This will allow new traffic to connect to your new IdP node(s) without an interruption in service. Do this only after thorough testing of your new infrastructure.
IdP operators, please also make sure not to change your eduPersonTargetedID (ePTID) values when upgrading to Shibboleth IdP V3. Otherwise, your users will be locked out of their existing ePTID-based accounts at SPs like CILogon. We're happy to help with testing your V3 IdP. Contact us at help@cilogon.org.
I posted much of the following to the Shibboleth Users list, trying to give an overview of how we proceeded with our upgrade. I've edited the text after finding myself somewhat horrified upon re-reading what I sent.
We deployed IdPv3 on December 17, 2015. Our transition went largely smoothly, and our application owners seemed to appreciate the work we put in to make their testing process easier. Therefore, I thought I might write up an overview for those still approaching the upgrade process.
First, I decided early that would we migrate all of our configuration files to the new formats. I didn't want to have to revisit testing at a later time when an update eliminates the compatibility mode, and I've done these things enough to know that there was a very low probability of updating any old files prior to being forced. Second, there are only two of us in our identity and access management group, and with 200+ local SPs, we weren't going to do the SP testing; we determined that we would push that off on application owners/developers.
Of the 200+ SPs, the roughly 150 belong to central IT services. That made it a little bit easier to get the ball rolling on a testing plan. However, non-IT application owners were also cooperative. Working with the developers, we developed a fairly basic testing strategy: 1) Login to your application, and 2) Ensure you received all of the attributes you expected to receive.
In order to make this easier and a somewhat realistic environment, we turned to our F5 BigIP load balancers. We already used a BigIP iRule for our v2 IdPs to rewrite some Taleo URLs that otherwise caused us problems. We enhanced/rewrote this iRule to provide a cookie-based IdP selection mechanism. Essentially, users were presented with a list of available IdPs. Selecting one of those IdPs set a session cookie. Based on the presence and value of that cookie, the iRule routed their requests to the selected IdP. In addition, in our login template, if the cookie was present, we also displayed which IdP the user was talking to. In this way, the application owners/developers could compare results side-by-side in two different windows. We now use the mechanism to stage new configuration changes for testing and to test individual IdPs in the load balanced pool.
Obviously, this method works only if you have something ahead of the IdP dispatching requests. We used the BigIP with the entire selection page in the iRule, but my initial idea was to have an application inside the cookie domain that would set the cookie, which would permit this to be done with other, less pervasive proxies. Mostly, wanted something better than /etc/hosts changes. We've used /etc/hosts changes in the past, and we've found that users and/or their systems seem to mess them up and people end up thinking they're talking a system that they're not actually talk to.
In the end, on launch day we had only two SP issues. One was caused by my mistaken understanding of Mapped attributes (I changed the way we computed an attribute value in the migration, dropping an Oracle lookup), and the other was caused by the non-testing application owner. Plus, we have a great scheme going forward to test and monitor individual IdP instances in the load balanced pool.


Right after Aki saves Gray and turns around to pick up the canister containing the plant off a table there is no table or ledge. If you watch the movie with the commentary one of the members involved with the movie says that it is floating on nothing.
In every Final Fantasy video game, and the movie, there is a person named Sid (even though sometimes it's spelled with a 'c').