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Refineries in some parts of Texas slammed by Tropical Storm Harvey were aiming to start back up this week, but Houston plants were producing very few products and large facilities further east were bracing for heavy rainfall and potential flooding.
Oil market analysts projected that about 13 to 16 percent of the country's capacity to refine crude oil into gasoline, diesel and other fuels was off line on Tuesday. There were few reports of serious damage to refineries on Tuesday, but flooding and continued rain in Houston made it unclear when workers would be able to reach facilities.
Parts of South Texas and Louisiana remain under water or on flood watch as the Gulf Coast prepares to absorb more rain in the coming days.
via CNBC [1]
This article is for general information purposes only. It is not investment advice or a solution to buy or sell securities. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Corporation or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. Leveraged trading is high risk and not suitable for all. You could lose all of your deposited funds.


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The majority of Brits were so cynical when it came to accepting a genuine offer of goodwill that they turned down free money.(Agencies)
The majority of Brits were so cynical when it came to accepting a genuine offer of goodwill that they turned down free money, research has revealed.
Cash was offered by five women to commuters at busy bus stations up and down the UK but an average of only eight people at each station, out of thousands of bus travellers, took up the offer.
Women wearing a sandwich board that read "Ask me to pay your bus fare and I will" were positioned at bus stations in Newcastle, Medway, Manchester, Perth and Leicester, but were mostly just ignored.
The experiment ran during morning rush hour each day for a week and just 38 people in total across the country accepted the offer.
When questioned, the minority who did eventually accept the free cash admitted they were reluctant at first because they thought the offer was too good to be true.
Those who did accept were generally teenagers, suggesting that the older we get, the more cynical of goodwill gestures we become.
Results showed that 69pc of Brits were too suspicious to accept offers of goodwill and also felt rewards and freebies are often too good to be true, while only 23pc of people thought it possible to get something for nothing.
The research was conducted by Ice, a loyalty scheme which rewards customers with Ice points for spending on eco-friendly goods and services.
Jude Thorne, Chief Executive Officer of Ice, said: "Our experiment shows that as a nation, we simply don't accept the notion of genuine bargains, discounts and offers with no catch, despite admitting that difficult times are forcing us to seek them out actively."
The company teamed up with Arriva UK Bus and Stagecoach Bus to offer free points redeemable against future purchases for customers who book their tickets online.
(Read by Nelly Min. Nelly Min is a journalist at the China Daily Website.)
(中国日报网英语点津 Julie 编辑:陈丹妮)
sandwich board: 挂在身上的广告牌
freeby: 免费赠品
catch: 圈套,隐藏的困难
redeemable: 可换成现款的

subset: commoncrawl


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Filipino stars react to tragic Orlando shooting
Philippine stars have voiced out their reactions on the tragic mass shooting that happened in a gay nightclub in Orlando a few days ago.
Around 50 people were killed and 50 more were injured from that unfortunate event. Netizens and celebrities have used their social media accounts to show grief and promote love instead of hate.
Karen Davila tweeted a photo of a closed fist with rainbow colors with the caption: "TERRIFYING. 50 dead, 53 injured in worst mass shooting in US history. The world we live in."
Out Youtube sensation Sebastian Castro reposted a photo of the heartbreaking "last words eddie justice sent before his life was taken…"
He also reminded his followers to "don't forget to tell your loved ones just how much they mean. there's no better time than now."
TV Personality John 'Sweet' Lapus shared a video on his Instagram account. He is asking for "Prayers for the #LGBTCommunity in Orlando, Florida. Prayers also to the family of the 50 LGBT members/supporters who died (Pulse Club) at the worst shootout in US history."
Singer, actor, and teacher Jim Paredes is puzzled why "the US can allow CRAZY evil people to purchase guns."
Bianca Gonzales shares a photo of a protester holding a sign with the message: "WHY WOULD YOU RATHER SEE 2 MEN HOLDING GUNS THAN HOLDING HANDS." She added the hashtags #EqualityMeansEveryone #LoveisLove #Pride2016 on the caption.
Voice coach Lea Salonga is left "speechless" after hearing the news. The singer is devastated from this event and she sends hugs to all her "friends celebrating #PrideWeekend."
Aiza Seguerra sends a message for equal treatment on the LGBT community. The singer/actress shared, "Sana huwag ninyong kalimutan na ang LGBT ay mga tao rin." (I hope you don't forget that the LGBT are human as well.)
Lastly, Miss Universe Pia Wurtzbach stresses that "the world is in need of unity and change." She added, "It's 2016, there's no room for hate anymore."
RELATED: Omar Mateen, religious or insane?
Source: KAMI.com.gh


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'Tis the season of squash. Here are organically-grown squash at Better Food Company, Bristol.
Courgettes, or zucchini, are part of the squash family. Squash are one of the Three Sisters (along with maize and beans) planted by Native Americans.
Squash contains gentle soluble fibre, immune-boosting vitamins and minerals plus complex carbohydrates for slow release energy.
This recipe for Courgette Cake is from Make More of Squashes, which I co-wrote with recipe-writer, Patricia Harbottle, and her son-in-law, organic gardener, Peter Chadwick.
The book and its companion, Make More of Beans & Peas, are part of the Make More of Vegetables series – with some non-vegetarian recipes but all with veg as the star. And with instructions on how to grow from seed too!
Buy here from the blog Pete set up with Sue Richardson.
Peter Chadwick died in August. Rest in peace, Pete. This post is for you and your lovely wife, Sue Richardson, who helps people write the right book.
Courgette Cake
Using vegetables in cakes makes wonderfully moist cakes (so butter cream filing is optional). If you do not have self-raising flour or baking powder, experiment with adding two more eggs to lighten the mixture instead. If so, allow cake to bake a little longer in the oven.
Cake: 250g (9oz) coarsely grated courgettes + 2 large eggs + 120g (4oz) caster sugar + 120ml (4fl oz) rapeseed or sunflower oil + 225g (8oz) self-raising flour + 1 tsp baking power + pinch each of ground cinnamon and nutmeg and salt + zest of one large orange (keep 1 tsp for icing). Grate orange to get its zest. Or try lazy method. I use a potato-peeler on the orange, then snip the strips of peel – gives strong orangey taste.
Filling: 120g (4oz) softened unsalted butter + 225g (8oz) icing sugar + 1 tsp orange zest (from large orange above) + juice of half of the large orange.
1. Put grated courgettes in colander and drain for 30 minutes. Press down with a saucer or use hands to squeeze out as much liquid as possible.
2. Beat the eggs and caster sugar until the mixture thickens, then beat-in oil until amalgamated and creamy, like thick double cream.
3. With a sieve, sift the flour, baking powder, spices and salt into the beaten egg, sugar and oil mixture. Beat well until really well-blended. Stir in the courgettes and orange zest.
4. Grease and line two 20 cm (8 in) cake tins. Pour mixture into prepared tins and bake in 170C (150C for fan oven) or Gas Mark 3 oven for about 30 minutes.
5. Keep oven door closed for first 25 minutes then test cakes with your finger tip. Cakes should be firm to touch. If not, bake for a further 5-10 minutes. Leave in their tins for 5 minutes, then turn out onto wire rack to cool.
6. Optional butter cream filling: Beat butter and icing sugar and stir in zest and orange juice to make light butter cream. When cakes are cold, spread the filling over one cake and sandwich the other on top.
This cake keeps well in an airtight tin. Try it with lemons or limes instead of the orange.
Hope you like this seasonal recipe.


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Yaht!zi is a Yahtzee game with multiple variations and the ability to play with others rivals on the same device ! The best for a good moment at the bar.
Variations are : Yahtzee, Yahtzee with bonus, Yatch. Each of them can be played from bottom to top and top to bottom.
The multi-players game allow you to play with many rivals without limit !
You can choose the appearance of dice at your guise.
You can choose the best layout for you, dice at the bottom or dice at the right.
The rules can be displayed, so a new player can introduce itself easily in the party.
The Highscorces allow you to challenge yourself and others rivals !
If you encounter a problem or need improvement, please visit the website, there is certainly a solution!


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Wynn Renames Botero, Brotero
Posted by Chuckmonster on 9 Jul 2012
Tonight, Wynn Las Vegas launched their new "Supper Club Done Sexy" promotion aimed at getting douchebags and the chicks who love them to do more at the resort besides clog the hallways while queueing up...
Dreaming Of A Bra(h) Less Vegas
Posted by Chuckmonster on 15 Aug 2011
Whip out the Axxe if you want this shizz in smellavizion, brah. And crank it up. Thanks to VT friend Wade for the in person Tube tip....
Aria: We Welcome Wifebeaters!
Posted by MikeE on 3 Jun 2010
When the hype of CityCenter died, we were left with real reports of (mostly) bad service from the likes of Aria and Vdara. Fortunately, there were inevitable improvements as expected, but let's face it -...
Plastic Watch : Caesars
Posted by Chuckmonster on 10 May 2010
This weekend, Cher celebrated her two year anniversary at Caesars Palace. Congratulations Ms. Sarkisian! Oh, and speaking of stuff wrapped in plastic... in case you forgot, the ...
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Thanks to Custom Comfort Mattress for their awesome service today when we were buying a new mattress at their store in Huntington Beach. They recently had their grand opening of this new location at Bella Terra and because we had heard good things we wanted to check it out. We learned that all of their mattresses are made right here in Orange County, and after trying a few it wasn't hard to figure out why they've been in business for over 25 years. Excited to have picked a mattress from their "Retreat" collection.
If you know a great local Orange County business, that deserves to be featured on our page, tag them in the comments below.


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New research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that adults who exercise at least 40 minutes a week have a larger volume of neurons in the hippocampus. The hippocampus is a structure which is heavily involved in memory. Read more about this study over at NPR.
Another study published by PNAS shows that older adults who exercised at moderate intensity over a year gained volume in their hippocampuses. Read more about this study over at Science Daily.
News >


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Grades 6-8, 9-12
Choosing a Career
Students will be able to:
- Implement a research process for evaluating a career using the Occupational Outlook Handbook.
- Identify the costs and benefits of a career, based on different aspects of an occupation.
- Explain how to determine if someone is suited for an occupation.
- Explain how a career interest survey helps students identify careers for which they may be suited.
- Identify sources of information for finding a job.
In this personal finance lesson, students will evaluate careers to learn what career suits them.
Book Info
This lesson is part of Financial Fitness for Life 9-12, 3rd Edition and provides the slides and activities with educational technology tools. For full access to the book, shop the teacher guide and student workbook below.
Teacher Guide
Student Workbook
Available in eBook and hard copy
Available in eBook and hard copy
Having a sense of direction in terms of possible careers is an important factor in building financial independence. Yet many high school students have not thought much about what occupation or career they will seek after leaving school. And even the few who have a plan will probably reexamine this plan several times during their high school and post-secondary years. Making a choice about a career can determine how much income a person can earn, what they can buy, where they might live, and how comfortably they can live. The type of career also may impact a person's happiness or satisfaction and sense of fulfillment. In this lesson, students will examine a process they can use for evaluating careers and determining what careers might suit them based upon their own strengths, values, and past experiences.
Related Resources
Grades 3-5, 6-8
Homelessness in Children's Literature Series: Cash, Credit, and Cars
Grades 3-5, 6-8
Homelessness in Children's Literature Series: Life Defining Decisions
Grades 3-5, 6-8


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Would you like to help the Center for RNA Biology with its research, education and outreach? The Center for RNA Biology accepts donations from individuals and corporate sponsors alike. We are grateful for all donations, large and small. Thank you for you continued support of RNA Research.
You can help sponsor us by visiting our secure online form.
Tax Information
The Ohio State University Foundation has 501(c)(3) non-profit tax exempt status, with a federal tax ID number of 31-1145986.


text: Equal Opportunity Can two dice be weighted so that the probability of each of the numbers 2, 3, …, 12 is the same? SelectClick for Answer> I think this problem was first proposed by J.B. Kelly in the American Mathematical Monthly in 1950. The answer is no. Let aj and bj be the probabilities that the number j turns up on each of the two dice, and let Pj be the probability of getting the sum j on the pair of dice. So P2 = a1b1 = a6b6 = P12. Now, to maintain this balance, if the first die favors 1 over 6, then the second must favor 6 over 1, and vice versa, so that (a1 – a6)(b1 – b6) ≤ 0. But this means that P2 + P12 = a1b1 + a6b6 ≤ a1b6 + a6b1 ≤ P7. The probabilities of rolling a 2, a 7, and a 12 cannot be equal. August 27, 2014September 7, 2014 | Puzzles · Science & Math


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Anthony David
Saturday May 16, 2020 09:30 PM EDT
Cost: $25-$45 ,
From the venue:
The second show in Anthony's residency at Venkman's. Anthony will perform his second album, Red Clay Chronicles cover to cover. In addition, Anthony will be offering merchandise that will be exclusively available during the shows during his residency.
At Venkman's


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Vibrant Culture And Learning AT George Washington University Surround our HotelWashington, DC, is a Mecca of learning, culture and intellect. Some of the world's premier colleges and universities can be found near One Washington Circle Hotel. Our hotel is within walking distance of The George Washington University, which is visible from the balconies of each of our guestrooms.
- Parent-friendly service
- Special GWU athletic rates
- Direct billing for most departments on the GWU Campus
Our hotel is near the following
- Marvin Center - 4 blocks (six minute walk)
- GWU Hospital - 1 block (four minute walk)
- GWU Law School - 7 blocks (ten minute walk)
- Lisner Auditorium / Jack Morton Auditorium - 5 blocks (eight minute walk)
- Gelman Library - 4 blocks (six minute walk)
- Smith Athletic Center - 7 blocks (ten minute walk)
- Admissions Visitor Center - 4 blocks (six minute walk)
GWU/GWU Hospital DiscountStudents, parents and scholars visiting George Washington University and Visitors for GWU hospital can enjoy the following benefits:
- Save up to 15% off our Best Available Rate
- Save 15% at our on-site restaurant, Circle Bistro
- Complimentary WiFi, bottled water and a daily wine hour, 24/7 access to our fitness center, and access to our outdoor pool (through Labor Day)!


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Incarceration's Incapacitative Shortcomings
19 Pages Posted: 19 Dec 2012 Last revised: 12 Jun 2014
Date Written: April 26, 2014
Incapacitation is the removal of an offender's ability to commit further crime. This essay identifies two distinct types of incapacitative effects: offense-specific incapacitation and victim-specific incapacitation. The former focuses on limitations on the offender's range of conduct. The latter focuses on limitations on the offender's access to particular populations.
As a punishment, incarceration incapacitates quite incompletely. Because imprisonment does not render inmates totally unable to commit crime, it fails to achieve complete offense-specific incapacitation. And, because it merely substitutes one set of potential victims for another, imprisonment fails on the total victim-specific incapacitation front as well. Instead, imprisonment achieves partial offense-specific and partial victim-specific incapacitation by inhibiting prisoners from committing certain offenses and separating inmates from certain populations. When the incapacitative benefit of incarceration is discussed, however, it is not usually described in such a circumscribed way. Rather, imprisonment is often said to fully achieve incapacitation by removing offenders from "society." By excluding the victims of prison crimes from the relevant measuring population, such statements imply that the sentencing authority possesses no interest in such crimes. To avoid such erroneous discounting, this essay endeavors to accurately describe the offense-specific and victim-specific incapacitative benefits and limitations of incarceration.
Keywords: Criminal punishment, sentencing, incarceration, imprisonment, incapacitation
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation


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Tear, tear – senior year is coming to an end and so are your lifelong friendships with your high school friends.
Just kidding!
Thinking back to the 'goodbye's' I had with my friends from home makes me giggle. I remember thinking it was the end of the world. My high school life was officially over. I would never see my friends again. I would never have friends like the one's I had. Wow, I was so wrong! The friendships that you have in high school are genuine. You have history with all of them and that never goes away. When I was in college I could go months without talking to certain friends, I obviously kept in touch with my closest girlfriends. I remember going home on long weekends or for holidays and feeling a little nervous to see my old friends. I didn't know what it would be like. Sure enough, we picked up exactly from where we left off. We had exciting stories to share about college and reminicing about high school always made for a great night. Your friends from home are like family. You never really lose that bond. Even now, I have friends from high school that I haven't talked to in years yet I know that if I went back home and met up with them we would pick up from exactly where we left off.
An even crazier thought…. some of the best friends I have (couldn't imagine living without them) I made while I was in college.


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Yesterday I wrote briefly about new gaming startup Raptr, formerly called GXL, Inc. Founder (and celebrity gamer) Dennis Fong has now demo'd the product on stage at GDC, and I've had the chance to see the product myself.
Approximately 100 people are currently in the beta, all friends and family to the Raptr team. Today the company is taking signups for new beta users on their home page, and will be letting a couple of thousand new users in shortly. A full launch is expected in a couple of months.
As I mentioned yesterday, Raptr has two components. A Windows based software download that keeps games up to date automatically, and a website social network that pulls game data in from the client as well. The product is similar to Valve-only Steam, although it has a lot more to offer users and is developer agnostic. Today, Raptr supports 1,000 titles, including World of Warcraft – Steam has a hundred or so.
The website is a game-centric social network. Users add friends and can see what games they are playing, installing, updating, uninstalling, etc. You can also see what games your friends are playing right now.
Raptr looks at the games you play, and how much time you spend, and compares that data to other players to recommend other games to you that you might like.
More Screen shots below:


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The Bay to L.A. Pop/R&B talent drops new visuals off her recent project! "Bad Boy Good" sees Anjali World throw a raucous house party and woo bad boy O'Shea Jackson Jr. (whom you might remember for his starring role in "Straight Outta Compton") away from a life of crime to the straight and narrow. …Read More »
Home / Tag Archives: Anjali World


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Connect Admin - Change User Role
This article will walk users through the process of using the Admin Portal to change the Type/Role of a user.
1. Log into the Admin Portal and navigate to the Users section.
2. Select the user you want to change the user Role or Type.
3. Select the icon and select "User Settings" and then select "Roles and Types."
4. Select the User Roles and select the role from the drop down menu. Click Save.
Example video:


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Monomelic amyotrophy (MMA) is characterized by progressive degeneration and loss of motor neurons, the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that are responsible for controlling voluntary muscles. It is characterized by weakness and wasting in a single limb, usually an arm and hand rather than a foot and leg. There is no pain associated with MMA. While some physicians contend that mild sensory loss may be associated with this disease, many experts suggest that such symptoms actually indicate a cause other than MMA. MMA occurs in males between the ages of 15 and 25. Onset and progression are slow. MMA is seen most frequently in Asia, particularly in Japan and India; it is much less common in North America. In most cases, the cause is unknown, although there have been a few published reports linking MMA to traumatic or radiation injury. There are also familial forms of MMA. Diagnosis is made by physical exam and medical history. Electromyography (EMG), a special recording technique that detects electrical activity in muscles, shows a loss of the nerve supply, or denervation, in the affected limb; MRI and CT scans may show muscle atrophy. People believed to have MMA should be followed by a neuromuscular disease specialist for a number of months to make certain that no signs of other motor neuron diseases develop.
There is no cure for MMA. Treatment consists of muscle strengthening exercises and training in hand coordination
The symptoms of MMA usually progress slowly for one to two years before reaching a plateau, and then remain stable for many years. Disability is generally slight. Rarely, the weakness progresses to the opposite limb. There is also a slowly progressive variant of MMA known as O'Sullivan-McLeod syndrome, which only affects the small muscles of the hand and forearm and has a slowly progressive course.
The NINDS conducts and supports a broad range of research on motor neuron diseases. The goals of these studies are to increase understanding of these disorders and to find ways to treat, prevent, and ultimately cure them.
NINDS Disorders is an index of neurological conditions provided by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. This valuable tool offers detailed descriptions, facts on treatment and prognosis, and patient organization contact information for over 500 identified neurological disorders.
Neurological Disorders and Stroke »
Some pages on this website provide links that require Adobe Reader to view.


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- Colection of 65 PHP scripts for $4.29 each
Knowledge Base
Here you can find answers to commonly asked questions about our Appointment Scheduler script.
Appointment Scheduler
The knowledgebase below is for the previous version for Appointment Scheduler script. We've recently launched a new version based on our latest framework and are currently working on a new knowledge base for it. Read more in our blog here.
Once the script is installed. Go to the script folder using your browser and log in to the Admin. Add staff, by going to the Employees page, then add Services from the Service page. Don't forget to assign them to one or more employees and set service length.
You can manage script settings under the Options page.
Then you can embed the script on your web page. Go to the Install page and follow the instruction.
You can have the Appointment Scheduler up and running in just a few minutes. Once you purchase and download it you need to upload the on your server. An install wizard will guide you through the installation process. Watch the video to see how to install the script.
You can watch videos showing how to install on Wordpress and Joomla based websites here.
Use the Working Time tab under the Options page to set working hours. You can add a custom working hours, set vacations and holidays.
Usually the Appointment Scheduler comes with all that options set by default. You can manage bookings and payments under the Options page.
Click on the Options tab to manage the general bookings settings, including the option for accepting or not accepting bookings.
Click on the Payments tab to manage whether you accept payments online or not, and manage payment methods.
Please note that all pending bookings are always available on the front-end. By default the script sets bookings as pending if not paid. As soon as payment is made, the reservation is confirmed. All confirmed reservations are unavailable for second booking.
If you'd like a booked time slot to be unavailable instantly after booking, please change the settings for the default booking status under the Options>Bookings>General.
If you'd like bookings to be set as unavailable instantly and in no regard to payments, please set the option "Default status for booked dates if not paid" to Confirmed.
To send SMS text reminders to clients you need to check the option in Options/Bookings/Reminders. Then you can add your own text message for both the email reminder and the SMS.
In order to send SMS notifications via the Appointment Scheduler 2.1 you need to use our SMS gateway and order an API key. You can find more about the SMS service here...
The Appointment Scheduler script uses our own SMS service and currently you cannot configure the SMS sending using another company API. If you already have an account in any other SMS company we can implement it as a custom change. Contact us to request implementation...
Please note that when you add a service in the back-end you need to add its length in minutes and also assign the service to either one of your employees.
You can add services under the Services page.
The email address the confirmation/reminder emails are sent from is the address set in the administrator's profile under the Users page. Changing the administrator's email address will also change the default email sender address.
You can change both the default timezone and date/time format from the admin, under the Options page.
You can find the backup function under the Options>Backup. Use the checkboxes to select whether you want to create a backup for your database, files or both and click the Backup button. Then you'll see the backup in zip files that can be exported with a click.
You can do that under the Options>Invoices. You can add your company details, upload your logo and create your own invoice template and invoice configuration under the Invoices page.
Once you have already created invoices, go to Bookings, then click on the Invoices tab. You should see all the invoices you have created. Click on the pencil button at the row of the one you'd like to see (do not click on the order ID). From then you can edit, print, preview and email invoices.
All the currencies supported by the Appointment Scheduler are listed in the drop-down menu in the General Options tab (Admin > Options > General). Use the drop down menu to set currency, then click Save.
If the currency you need is not supported, contact us and we will add it.
Appointment Scheduler supports the following payment options:
1) PayPal
2) Authorize.net
3) Bank account (for wire transfers)
4) Credit Card (for offline processing)
5) We can add more payment options to your booking calendar.
Yes, you can disable payments and still accept bookings. You can do that by following these steps:
1. From the Admin, go to Options.
2. Click to open the Bookings tab.
3. Then go to Payments and make sure that the first option "Check if you want to disable payments and only collect reservation details" is checked.
4. Click the Save button at the bottom of the page.
N.B. Make sure that the "Accept bookings" option is checked too. Otherwise making an appointment from the front-end will not be allowed. You"ll find that option under the Options>Bookings>Options.
You can set a deposit payment to be required in order the appointment to be confirmed. This can be set from the Options>Payments. You set your deposit as a percentage of the total amount or as a fixed amount per appointment.
You can translate the script by using the Languages page (Options>Languages).
You can do the translation manually by adding your own translation to the title and then click Save, or import an SQL translation file under the Import/Export tab. You can check this page to watch a tutorial on how to translate and change titles.
Note that by default the Appointment Scheduler 2.1 comes in English. You can translate the booking calendar using the Language module and manually update all titles and system messages, otherwise you can import a new language file to replace the current translation of the script.
To do that, follow these steps:
1. Go to the Options > Languages and then under the Import/Export tab export the current language file.
2. Open the file using any text editor and replace the second-last column with your own titles.
3. Make sure that you save the file with a file extension .sql
4. Import the new language file using the Import/Export tab.
This is important when you need to re-install the script, because the new installations always come in the default English version. Please make sure you export the translation before uninstalling the script.
You can add your own booking terms by going to Options>Bookings>Terms. Use an external URL or insert the booking terms directly. The your clients can read the booking terms before making an appointment with you.
The Appointment Scheduler 2.1. supports both email and SMS notifications. You can customise the notifications under the Confirmation tab in the Bookings page (Options>Bookings>Confirmation). You can use the tokens listed in the information box to personalize your emails.
N.B. Please note that if you'd like your system to send reminders to clients, you need to use the Reminder tab.
To install the appointment script you need to upload the files onto your script. Then an install wizard should start and guide you through the installation process. You can check the Video page to see a video on how to install the appointment script.
Once the appointment script is installed on your server, use the Install page in the Admin to embed the appointment scheduler on your web page. You simply need to copy/paste a simple snippet of code. You can check the Video page to see a video on how to integrate the appointment script...
As you have already installed the script package on your new webhost server - all you need to do to move the MYSQL database data and all the script settings from your previous installation is:
1) export the whole database from your old location and import it in the new MySQL database. This can easily be done using phpMyAdmin
2) copy all files from the following folders to the new installation:
/app/web/upload folder
You can export bookings by following these steps:
1) From the Admin, go to Bookings.
2) Change the number of the visible entries on the page so you will be able to fit all new bookings on a single page. You can do that by using the Items per page option at the bottom right of the screen.
3) Mark all entries or individual entries.
4) Use the Choose action button at the bottom of the page to Export selected bookings.
Do you have more questions?Contact Us
Useful Resources
More FAQs


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Cheryl Cole looked gorgeous in a floor-length pink gown by Victoria Beckham at the Pride of Britain Awards last night, with loose curls in her shoulder-length blonde hair.
She looked relaxed on the red carpet, but on Twitter she confessed she was pretty nervous about posing in front of the cameras and fans at Grosvenor House!
Her Girls Aloud bandmates Kimberley Walsh and Nicola Roberts were also at the awards, and Cheryl gave new X Factor judge Tulisa Contostavlos a massive hug when they bumped into each other.
We're happy to see that they're good mates!


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The US national security adviser, John Bolton, has confirmed that the US will withdrawal from the landmark intermediate-range nuclear forces treaty (INF) after meeting with Russian president Vladimir Putin and senior Russian officials.
Speaking in Moscow, Bolton said that Russia had been violating the treaty for years and that rising powers such as China meant that it was a "new strategic reality out there".
Bolton also said that China's cyber-attacks against the United States made Russia seem like the "junior partner". He did not go into detail.
The INF was a "bilateral treaty in a multipolar ballistic missile world", Bolton said, adding that no formal steps had yet been taken but that the US would exit the treaty "in due course".
The treaty, concluded in 1987, barred the United States and Russia from deploying missiles with a range from 500 to 5,500 km, and largely was credited with banishing nuclear missiles from Europe.
Bolton avoided directly answering questions from press about whether "we'll soon be seeing US missiles in Europe", saying only that the single country constrained by the INF treaty was the United States.
"It is the American position that Russia is in violation," Bolton said at Interfax, the same press agency where he discussed US plans to withdrawal from the anti-ballistic missile treaty in 2001. "Russia's position is that they aren't. So one has to ask how to ask the Russians to come back into compliance with something they don't think they're violating."
Bolton also announced that Putin would meet with Donald Trump for talks when the two leaders are in Paris next month for the 100th anniversary of Armistice Day, marking the formal end of the first world war.
It will be the first meeting between the two presidents since their controversial Helsinki summit in July, and just their fourth meeting in person since Trump became president.
Russia played up the meeting, with a Kremlin aide saying the talks would be "a full-fledged meeting. There will be serious preparations."
Bolton met with Putin at the Kremlin on Tuesday, where he came to explain the US exit from the INF. The Russian leader joked that the US seal showed an eagle carrying olives branches and arrows. "The question is: did your eagle already eat all the olives and only the arrows are left?"
"Hopefully I'll have some answers for you," Bolton replied. "But I didn't bring any more olives."
The two also discussed cooperation in Syria and accusations that Russia was meddling in US elections. Bolton on Monday said that he had confronted Russia on its elections meddling, but also said that the interference had little effect on the outcome of the 2016 elections, a view that seemed tailored to Donald Trump.
"What the meddling did create was distrust and animosity within the United States," Bolton said on Tuesday when asked about his remarks. "It made it almost impossible for the US and Russia to make progress diplomatically for two years. That's a huge loss to both countries but mostly to Russia. It's a message to Russia: don't mess with American elections."
A Kremlin aide, Yuri Ushakov, on Tuesday evening said that US accusations about elections interference were "mentioned but not discussed", according to Interfax.
"In fact, both the president and Mr Bolton decided to abandon mutual accusations and hold this serious, normal substantive conversation, and they did," he said, according to Interfax.


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Senate introduces bill to honor US soldier who protected 200 Jewish POWs
Published February 14, 2017
(JTA) — A bipartisan bill introduced in the Senate would honor an American prisoner of war who protected 200 American-Jewish POWs during World War II with the Congressional Gold Medal.
The bill introduced Monday would recognize Master Sgt. Rodrick "Roddie" Edmonds, who refused to reveal to a German commandant at the Stalag IXA camp which troops under his command were Jewish. The Congressional Gold medal is one of the highest civilian honors bestowed in the United States.
Sens. Bob Corker and Lamar Alexander, both Tennessee Republicans, and Democrats Ben Cardin of Maryland and Tim Kaine of Virginia introduced the measure.
Edmonds was captured during the Battle of the Bulge by the German army on Dec. 19, 1944. As the highest ranking officer in the POW camp, he was responsible for the camp's 1,292 American POWs. The camp's commandant ordered Edmonds to identify the Jewish soldiers in order to separate them from the other prisoners. When Edmonds refused, the commandant placed his pistol against Edmonds' head, demanding that he identify the Jewish soldiers. Edmonds responded, "We are all Jews here," refusing to identify the Jewish soldiers, thereby saving their lives.
Surviving 100 days of captivity, Edmonds returned home after the war, but never told his family of his actions. He died in 1985, and only long after was first recognized for his heroic actions.
"When I learned of Master Sergeant Edmonds' valiant actions that saved Jewish-American prisoners of war in Germany, I was reminded of the Talmud's teaching that 'whoever saves a life, it is considered as if he saved an entire world,'" Cardin, who is Jewish, said in a statement. "At a dark time in humanity's history, Master Sergeant Edmonds was a bright light and did what his heart told him was the right thing to do. There are families alive today who can be thankful that their very existence is due in no small part to Roddie's service and sacrifice."
Edmonds was posthumously recognized by the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem as Righteous Among the Nations, the first member of the U.S. Armed Forces and one of only five people from the United States to be so recognized.


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A Review of Alexandra Horowitz's On Looking: Eleven Walks with Expert Eyes…
About once a month my friend Bob and I take an urban hike. We like to walk, and we like to eat. So we plan our hikes in interesting parts of the city and select our routes so that they include restaurants that we have read about. Bob has a taste for a Vietnamese Banh Mi sandwich and so we park at Montrose Harbor, walk six miles through the North Center and Lincoln Square neighborhoods and end up at Argyle Street. My wish to eat at the Publican Quality Meets near Randolph Street is the inspiration for a walk from Wrigley to the Cell, eight miles on Halstead. When we're joined by my city-wise son, he offers both good company and sound advice on coffee shops or taquerias.
The walks are opportunities for conversation and interesting encounters with neighborhood folks who we are not shy about approaching. Bob is a gifted photographer and his always-ready camera has captured some wonderful images of the city and its people. I'm fairly knowledgeable about the history of the city and the configuration of its neighborhoods, but occasionally there are historical places that I missed on the Geoffrey Bair video tours of Chicago. On our walk to Argyle Street we discovered the former site of the Essanay Studios, which in the early 20th century was a site for producing films starring the likes of Charlie Chaplin.
Despite what we think is a high level of attention to the changing urban environment, I've always finished our walk both with a feelings of satisfaction and pleasant fatigue, but also with a sense that I've missed a lot. And so I was an eager reader of On Looking.
Horowitz is a professor of psychology at Barnard College with a specialty in animal behavior. [Her previous work Inside of a Dog is very popular.] She's a resident of New York City's upper West side and an inveterate city walker with her human and canine family. This most recent work grew out of dissatisfaction similar to my own: the feeling that we could be much more attentive to our surroundings and that the companionship of a number of experts would enable us to become more fully awake. Horowitz selects 11 experts to share her walk around the neighborhood and to communicate their informed perspectives. Her experts include a geologist, naturalist, illustrator, sound engineer, and physician. Among the experts are walkers who we would not consider experts but who are, nevertheless, agents who interact with the world in an interesting way. The meanderings of her toddler son enable her to think about the developmental challenges of making sense of the "blooming, buzzing confusion," as psychologist William James describe the bombardment of stimuli that we confront. A chapter called "A Dog's- Nose View," which draws from her previous work, might as easily have been called "On Smelling" because it focuses on the ways in which canines, with their finely-tuned olfactory apparatus, have one up on their eye-dominant human masters. Her writing is informed by current research in perception and information-processing.
Students of zoology and ecology will find the two chapters devoted to animals both large and small to be very informative. Anyone who has wondered about the coyote in the back yard or the snail on the sidewalk will come away better informed about the human-animal inter-relationship. And students in preparation for careers in the medical field will learn much about those practitioners, like Dr. Bennett Lorber, who are able to infer much about how the body in space (its gait, its smell) reveals the individual's internal disorders. Lorber believes that our life histories are revealed in our bodies and that a trained diagnostician can read the signs without the aid of sophisticated medical technology.
The chapters that I read with the most interest are those devoted to the "unterwelten" or world view of the graphic designer, illustrator, and urban planner. Paul Shaw, a specialist in fonts, helps Horowitz to understand the sources of her aesthetic pleasure and disgust in the hundreds of billboards, handbills, and shop window script that she sees on her walks. And he reveals that a knowledge of the history of the popularity of a font is a useful tool in determining the building's date of construction and the city's character. The use of Helvetica throughout the New York City subway system did as much as anything to make that font one of the dominant ones in our visual culture.
Illustrator Maria Kalman uses photographs of ordinary objects as the starting point of her illustrations. Her aim is to defamiliarize the familiar, to make us see with a perception more like Horowitz's toddler than an art historian. The discarded couch at curbside is a treasure to observers like Kalman. The intrepid artist and rambler also helps Horowitz to understand better the shifting boundary between private and public space.
Fred Kent, President of the Project of Public Space, is an advocate of livable cities and a researcher into the ways in which the environment can be engineered to enrich the urban experience. A student of sociologist William Whyte, he is an analyst of pedestrian movement on sidewalks and through larger public spaces. Acquainted with the research on the movements of animal swarms, he's a keen analyst of the "pedestrian dance," the ways in which use our vision and other senses to find our way through human traffic. While interested in the efficiency of movement, he's also interested in the ways in which public space can be organized to promote constructive loitering, an antidote to urban isolation. He offers a number of counter-intuitive theories: that well-place barriers can facilitate rather than impede traffic flow; that jaywalking may be safer than crossing at an intersection because the eye contact between pedestrian and driver (mostly non-existent in designated crossing zones) is the contributor to safety. Kent also helps to explain Horowitz's irritation to the texting-while-walking crowd. Horowitz's chapter on the blind Arlene Gordon is an interesting counterpoint to this chapter which focuses on the skills of the sighted pedestrian.
"It matters not where or how far you travel – the further commonly the worse – but how much alive your are." This Henry David Thoreau quote which Horowitz uses as an epigraph to one of her chapters captures the spirit of the book. With the help of all these experts, Horowitz claims to be more alive. They have trained her to look, and to look closely, to pay attention, especially to the trivial and commonplace. They have provided her with sets of expectations and ways of seeing that enable her to see what she had previously ignored or never imagined existed.
I could not help but think about the analogy between Horowitz's self-education project and our students' encounters with the general education and major-based curriculums. Are professors not asking students to take walks with them and to see the world as they see it, hoping that their students can, at least temporarily, make use of and delight in the special lenses that they have provide. How to Read Like a Professor, a text that I've used in my literature classes, acknowledges in its title this broad educational mission. Horowitz's book wisely and gently promotes "multi-perspectivism," a number of points of view flexibly applied as each new situation warrants. I'm eager for my next urban and to make some of Horowitz's practices my own.


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During Letterman's opening monologue last night, he quipped: "It was so cold here in the New York area today, Chris Christie was wearing two giant sweaters." Then, irked by the weakness of his joke, he asked writers Joe Grossman and R.J. Fried to come onstage and punch it up, and—after running through some alternatives ("It's so cold, Taylor Swift wrote a song about breaking up with her shorts")—they landed on "It's so cold, I chipped a tooth on my soup," before being kicked offstage. A little later, in a bit where Dave made him guess the atomic numbers of various elements, music director Paul Shaffer had a voiceover monologue wondering what poor life choices had led him to this sorry moment. Both of these are classic Late Show bits: comfortably within the "so cold I chipped a tooth on my soup" realm of classic, broad, network nightly-show humor, while gently ribbing the very flaccidity of that style.
But then John Oliver took the stage. Oliver, who was Letterman's guest in advance of the Feb. 8 Season 2 premiere of Last Week Tonight, began regaling the host with anecdotes about tasering himself while entertaining troops in Afghanistan and watching a man try to steal a whole side of beef during a summer job in the freezer section of a slaughterhouse. And seeing Oliver and Letterman's distinct styles bump up against each other offered a revealing window into the old vs. new guard of late night. The currency John Oliver trades in is substance—the packaged delivery of information and argument, while Letterman dwells lovingly in daily ephemera. "I heard you had a bad job once" is exactly the kind of question the Late Show With David Letterman asks. "Here's 16 minutes of well-sourced argument outlining the corrupt use of civil forfeiture in America's police departments" is an answer Last Week Tonight With John Oliver gives.
Letterman remains the kind of show where half the jokes are literally about how tepid the jokes are, while, when John Oliver dumps a 400-page stack of Miss America research onto his desk, his only joke is just how ridiculously well-substantiated his joke is. It's basically the same gag—we tried hard, but we ran out of time—but one played for "You love it because it's dumb" and one played for "You love it because you're learning something." So when Letterman lobbed the softball "Are you going to watch the Superbowl" question at him, Oliver—who has taken jabs at the NFL on his own show—took the opportunity to declare: "It's patriotic, it's religious, it's happy, it's sad, it's incredibly dangerous on a personal level, and Pepsi sponsored the whole thing…when you beam that around the world everyone else is thinking 'if they're capable of this, what else can they do?" The Late Show and Last Week Tonight, needless to say, are shows with very different goals. And it remains to be seen how much Stephen Colbert, when he takes over the Late Show gig, will really be able to push the late-night envelope in light of the rigid expectations of the form. But watching Letterman and Oliver side-by-side still felt like kind of like seeing the clash of Late Night Past and Late Night Future play out before our eyes.


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text: Associated Press Writer Embattled Democratic donor Mauricio Celis has been released from a lawsuit against his law firm brought by a former client trying to recoup legal fees. Celis, a prolific donor to state and national Democratic candidates, is the subject of several legal challenges based on allegations that he practiced law without a license. In one lawsuit, Paloma Steele is seeking to recoup legal fees she said she was owed from a case in which Celis' firm represented her. Celis was dropped as a defendant in the case Wednesday. His firm, CGT Law Group, and three of his partners remain defendants. "This proves what we've been saying all along," said Lawrence Coffey, Celis' attorney in the case. "At the end of this politically motivated witch hunt, there's nothing there. By dropping this lawsuit, (attorney) Thomas J. Henry has gone a long way toward showing that his entire line of attack against Mr. Celis has ultimately no basis in reason or in the law." Henry, who represents Steele, said the motion "had nothing to do with the claim against Celis and CGT." "This was simply a legal move that knocked down Mr. Celis' roadblock, which was an attempt to prevent Ms. Steele from taking deposition of all of his witnesses," Henry said. The motion allows proceedings in the civil case to continue while Celis deals with his criminal case, Henry said. Steele can choose to bring Celis back into the case later, but Henry would not say if they intended to do so. Two of Celis' partners were ordered to give their depositions within 30 days. Henry said he plans to depose Celis. A Nueces County grand jury also has indicted Celis on four charges, including perjury, theft, falsely holding himself out as a lawyer and impersonating a police officer. Republican Attorney General Greg Abbott also has sued Celis, accusing him of practicing law without a license. The Unauthorized Practice of Law Committee also has sued Celis and CGT, claiming the firm improperly shared legal fees. In a separate motion, attorneys for Celis on Wednesday asked that belongings seized from his office during a raid by state and county investigators earlier this month be returned.


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Hedging interest-rate risk used to be pretty simple: a company would issue debt and simultaneously enter into a custom-fit, over-the-counter interest-rate swap with a financial institution. But the Dodd-Frank Act put an end to that simplicity. The law requires most OTC-traded derivatives contracts to go through a clearinghouse, so all transactions are handled by a central counterparty. Entering a centrally cleared swap will require a company to post margin, so companies will have to compare the cost of centrally cleared versus bilateral contracts.
The requirements haven't taken effect yet, at least as they pertain to end users of swaps. But now, a large futures and options exchange is adding something else to the mix: futures contracts tied to interest-rate swaps that allow companies to lock in the terms of a swap for a future date.
CME Group, formerly the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, is launching "deliverable" interest-rate swap futures in early December. The instruments will have maturities of 2 years, 5 years, 10 years, and 30 years to start, as well as quarterly contracts. At maturity, the futures contract will convert into the underlying interest-rate swap of the selected tenor.
"If you buy a July 2013, five-year LIBOR fixed-pay futures swap, you have effectively locked in a swap spread for that future date, and on that date you will have a swap at the clearinghouse," says Richard Paulson, managing director in the banking and capital markets advisory group at PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Swaps futures could be especially attractive to companies with low credit ratings, says Paulson. When such companies enter into a bilateral swap, they might be asked by the bank to post collateral or provide credit support anyway, he says. The cleared product could actually have lower margin requirements in comparison.
The CME says cleared interest-rate swaps and swaps futures provide distinct advantages. A listed market is highly transparent, for one. These products also eliminate bank counterparty credit risk and are much more liquid than OTC derivatives, says Sean Tully, global head of interest rates at CME Group.
"When a corporate does a trade with a single bank, it's really a bespoke contract — not just on the date and the size, but on the two counterparties. So it's completely dependent upon their creditworthiness," says Tully. With a futures contract or a cleared swap, "you have a fungible instrument that you can get multiple parties to price if you ever want to exit the transaction," he says.
To exit a bilateral swap, in contrast, a company would have to either enter into a contract that offsets the original OTC instrument or try selling the swap back to the bank or a third party. "In general, terminating the swap creates difficulty, friction, and increased costs," says Tully.
An Imperfect Future
There are drawbacks to swap futures. For one, the end user would have to post initial margin as well as "variation" margin, a payment based on an adverse price movement in the futures contract. In other words, the position has to be marked to market daily.
Perhaps more important is the exposure to basis risk. With bilateral swaps, firms create something specifically tailored to their needs. But in a futures market, contracts are standardized, so the hedge and the underlying liability may be imperfectly correlated, creating the potential for excessive gains or losses from hedging. And there might not be a futures contract to match the desired time period for a hedge.
"The risk you'll see in the interest-rate swap futures world will kind of mimic what you see in commodities, where some contracts — such as jet fuel or certain grades of commodities — just don't exist," says Gurpreet Banwait, a director of product management at derivatives risk-management firm FINCAD. In theory, using such an inexact hedge could disqualify a firm from using hedge accounting under Financial Accounting Standard 133, which requires that a derivative be "highly effective," its value moving in a near-perfect inverse relationship to the liability.
The final rules on swaps from the Commodities Futures Trading Commission and other regulators will be a key input to what is essentially a math problem for corporations, says Paulson: Will the cost advantages of the listed futures or cleared swap product outweigh the financial and operational costs that come with it? How will those costs compare with the expected higher price of executing an OTC bilateral swap?
The sheer complexity of replicating a highly tailored bilateral swap with a listed product or products (a company may need to hedge currency risk with futures at the same time) may also scare off CFOs, says Paulson. Still, he says the interest-rate swap future is an interesting product: "It's the type of innovation we are expecting more of since the regulatory bias favors listed and exchange-traded products."


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Before his doomed 2008 presidential run, then-Sen. Joe Biden, following the unofficial candidate tradition, released a precampaign memoir, Promises to Keep: On Life and Politics.
The book recounts his childhood and his staggering 39 years in politics up to that point (by the end of his vice presidency, it was 47). In it, he explains away the plagiarism scandal that effectively ended his 1988 presidential run by saying his words felt "absolutely authentic." At the very least, he learned a lesson: "You should not run for president because tactically you can win," Biden writes. "The questions you have to ask are why you're running for president and what will you do when you are president. You shouldn't run until you know the answers to those questions."
Biden has run again for president, proving that a third time's the charm, seemingly without really answering those questions. Democratic primary voters nominated him not because of any policy agenda or vision for the country, but because polling consistently showed he had the best shot at defeating President Trump.
Biden's own campaign hammered this point almost daily for months, while rivals such as Sen. Bernie Sanders highlighted their healthcare reforms and tax plans. Tactics, to paraphrase his book, were central to Biden's entire rationale for running.
To his campaign's credit, Biden's confidence in this strategy kept him coolly on-message. When the press were writing him off after his humiliating placement in the Iowa caucuses, Biden's wife turned to voters and laid out what this election was really about: beating Trump.
"I know that not all of you are committed to my husband, and I respect that, but I want you to think about your candidate, his or her electability, and who's going to win this race," she said in New Hampshire, just days before the state's primary.
Voters found that message unconvincing at the time. Neither did it resonate in Nevada, where Biden hardly campaigned at all and earned just over 20% of the vote, compared to Sanders's 46.8%. But Biden stayed on-message, knowing for all that Democratic voters spoke about racial justice, income inequality, and healthcare access, the most important thing was humiliating the president.
And as the race turned to his favor following the South Carolina primary, it was not because of any eureka moment by voters who finally understood what Biden's America would look like. It was because he had proven his ability to win over black voters — a crucial constituency that is responsible for having put every Democrat in the White House for the last 20 years. Once that became clear, the rest of the Democratic Party's voters fell in line; Biden had passed the implicit test. Other candidates, namely Sanders, naively believed ideas would ultimately win out in the end over Democrats' simple desire to remove Trump from office.
Following that primary, former President Barack Obama swiftly sought to end any remaining debate about the future of the Democratic Party. He jumped on the phone with candidates such as Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar and explained why their path to the nomination was now closed. They'd have more leverage to get Cabinet positions if they dropped out now and endorsed Biden before the pivotal Super Tuesday primaries. And that's what they did.
With the nomination wrapped up, Biden's toughest days were presumably ahead. Not only were journalists who literally cheered for Sen. Elizabeth Warren during one Democratic debate from the press room now theoretically forced to turn their attention to an elderly man they believed to have insufficiently woke racial sensibilities and no plan to eliminate all their college debt, he would be forced to create a meaningful contrast with a president who oversaw record-breaking unemployment numbers, rising wages, and no new wars.
But right around the time Biden's nomination seemed wrapped up, the medical and political communities finally began to accept the seriousness of the looming COVID-19 pandemic. That handed Biden a new argument as soon as the old one expired: He could now say he was running for president to rescue the country from a plague exacerbated by Trump's incompetence.
The pandemic had the added effect of giving Biden reason to run the campaign from his basement, meaning the average reporter covering his campaign could enjoy the libations at various three-star hotels in Wilmington, Delaware, with any semblance of a substantive policy debate vanishing.
Instead, Biden would be asked by the press what, in the face of thousands of people dying, he thinks the government's response says about Trump's soul or whether Biden was sufficiently angry at the president's supposed years-old remarks about deceased soldiers just remembered by anonymous sources. The traditional merging of the press and the Democratic nominee's campaign, this time, meant a referendum not on policy but on "empathy."
Voters awarded Biden a comfortable popular victory on top of a substantial one in the Electoral College. To the extent one can trust exit polls, Biden's victory had little to do with just about anything he said or did on the campaign trail. Of the 71% of voters who said their vote constituted support for a specific candidate, just 46% said so for Biden, compared to 53% for Trump. Only 49% said they held a favorable opinion of Biden, with 43% saying the same for the president.
This dynamic was reflected in Biden's complete lack of coattails in down-ballot races, where voters dropped the "empathy question" and made sure to repudiate the policies pushed by the rest of Biden's party. At the Senate, House, and local levels, voters overwhelmingly rejected Democratic candidates, many of them incumbents, suggesting that the party paradoxically faces a more serious branding crisis than the GOP. Despite predictions from polling shamans, the Democratic margin in the House will shrink to its lowest level since the Obama administration. In private phone calls with Democratic leadership, lawmakers complained about the damage the defund-the-police movement has done to the party. Majority-minority California voted almost as a center-right state and struck down ballot initiatives to revitalize affirmative action and expand the franchise partially to 17-year-olds.
Despite the best efforts by Democrats to tie Trump to the Republican Party, voters appeared to know better. The GOP did not lose control of a single state legislature after Election Day and made gains in swing states such as Pennsylvania, Iowa, North Carolina, and New Hampshire. After hundreds of millions of dollars, often in dark money, flooded these local races from Democratic groups, the stain left by a summer of race riots did nothing to reassure voters that giving the Left local control of government was a good idea.
That brings us back to Biden's initial question of what exactly a candidate will do when he's elected president. To win a race, it seems the answer can be as easy as "the opposite of the other guy." And in a time of a deadly pandemic, that can sound pretty convincing. The problem for Biden is that voters seemed to send the message that they like a lot of what the GOP does as well.
When he enters office in January, Biden seems unlikely to be able to deliver "the most progressive administration since FDR," as he often promised weary Sanders supporters; neither, should Mitch McConnell have his way, will he be able to deliver one as liberal as Obama's or even Bill Clinton's, both of whom enjoyed unified government after winning their elections. Odds of statehood for Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico have dropped precipitously, and Democrats could struggle to get a single appeals judge confirmed, forget stacking the Supreme Court, if the GOP retains control of the Senate.
Any fig leaf to the party's most radical wing, such as making Sanders secretary of labor, is likely to remain a dream, even though Biden was warming to the idea as the election drew closer. Despite his former boss's ban on the practice, a preliminary list of Biden's staff appointments includes at least 40 lobbyists. His future chief of staff, Ronald Klain, has enjoyed a rich career of bouncing back and forth between various Democratic administrations and campaigns, lobbying, and stints in finance.
One advantage of running a campaign based entirely on its utility in the general election is that it keeps expectations low. Deep down, progressives know they can't truly feel betrayed when they see former Goldman Sachs partner and for-profit-college board member Gary Gensler as a leading candidate for running the Securities and Exchange Commission. Neither can run-of-the-mill liberals feel frustrated about gridlock in Congress after they insisted that only Biden the Pragmatic Centrist could win. In fact, they were more right than they knew: Nominating Biden not only didn't spur a blue wave; it might have prevented a red wave.
The Biden campaign's strategy of hiding running mate Kamala Harris appeared to have backfired when it came to igniting enthusiasm for the ticket, instead doubling down on utility. On the one hand, Biden wanted to send the message that he was willing to elevate the progressive future of the Democratic Party, but he also made it clear in the face of mockery from Trump and other Republicans that he would be the one in charge. The California senator has held press conferences infrequently since her nomination. The only real way to get access to the future second-most powerful person in the world was to cough up thousands of dollars at a fundraiser. There remains little evidence that Harris was an electoral asset in any sense to Biden's ticket, but her deep ties to the California Democratic millionaire class helped usher in the money to create the most expensive presidential campaign in history.
The public remains skeptical of the choice. Her favorability ratings on Election Day remained underwater, and Biden hardly let her speak that night or in the subsequent days when it became increasingly obvious they had won. Harris's use, particularly as Biden will likely find himself at the mercy of Senate Republicans, has all but been spent.
There will be much to scrutinize Biden over in the years to come. Scandals related to his son, Hunter Biden, will likely find new life should the GOP keep the Senate. His plan to tackle the coronavirus pandemic no way substantively differs from Trump's. The economy remains the most damaged since the Great Depression, and the Democratic Party sees either a cure in Obama-era technocratic liberalism or a cynical opportunity to usher in a new era of a massively expanding welfare state to compensate those who may never see their previous jobs come back. A bipartisan consensus has emerged against China, creating one of the most serious foreign policy challenges since the Cold War.
But now that House Democrats are weakened and Senate centrists empowered in a close-to-even upper chamber, Biden will have more decision-making power relative to his left flank than previously thought. So what will he do? He got away with leaving that question unanswered so far. Come January, that ceases to be an option. Joe Biden has been in public life for a half-century, and we're about to find out why.
Joseph Simonson is a Washington Examiner political reporter.
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Search Tag: ECR 2018
ECR 2018: Radiologists talking to patients brings benefits
2018 13 Mar
Communicating radiological findings directly to patients following their MRI exam led to increased patient confidence in the radiology service, according to a study carried out at a private Swiss radiology clinic. Andreas Gutzeit, MD , of Hirslanden Klinik St. Anna Lucerne presented the research at the European Congress of Radiology, which was held... Read more
ECR 2018: CT patient information videos save time, increase satisfaction
2018 10 Mar
Did you know that the first airline safety video was produced by Virgin America in 2007 ? Now these videos are widely accepted, and in time patient information videos may be just as routine, according to Meinrad Beer of the University Hospital Ulm, who presented a study about patient information on CT at the recent European Congress of Radiology in... Read more
ECR 2018: Digital breast tomosynthesis: ready for prime time in Europe?
2018 07 Mar
Results from clinical trials of digital breast tomosynthesis in Sweden and Norway were reported at the recent European Congress of Radiology in Vienna. Screening with digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) has achieved impressive results in the United States, but adoption in European public screening programmes is awaiting clinical and economic data... Read more
ECR2018: The bionic radiologist of the future
2018 07 Mar
At last week's European Congress of Radiology in Vienna, taking value as his theme, Prof. Marc Dewey argued that radiologists should grasp the opportunities of new technology to drive their future. You're either a Jedi (Star Wars fan) or a Trekkie (Star Trek fan), says Prof. Marc Dewey, Heisenberg Professor of Radiology of the German Research Foundation... Read more
ECR 2018: Clinical decision support: ESR iGuide pilots report
2018 07 Mar
The European Congress of Radiology in Vienna last week saw the launch of the clinical decision support web portal for iGuide as well as reports on pilot projects. Radiologists outlined their experiences of clinical decision support for imaging at one of the informal "Coffee and Talk" sessions at the European Congress of Radiology in Vienna last week.... Read more
ECR 2018: CT dose lowered significantly with multicomponent intervention
2018 02 Mar
While computed tomography (CT) scans account for only around 10% of imaging exams, they account for 60% of radiation dosage. And when radiologists are seeking to lower radiation dose, CT is a modality that would seem ripe for interventions to reduce variability that is seen across patients, institutions and countries, as evidence suggest that CT doses... Read more
Samsung Presents its Latest Medical Equipment and Healthcare Solutions at ECR 2018
2018 01 Mar
Expanding its portfolio for the radiology segment, Samsung to introduce upgraded ultrasound systems, digital radiography, and related software and service solutions Samsung Electronics, a leader in medical imaging technology, is showcasing the latest diagnostic imaging medical devices at the 2018 European Congress of Radiology... Read more
ECR 2018 opens - radiology diverse and united
2018 28 Feb
A musical and computer graphics extravaganza greeted delegates to the biggest European Congress of Radiology (ECR) ever. European Society of Radiology(ESR) president, Prof. Bernd Hamm, in the opening ceremony tonight noted the record number of onsite and ECR Live delegates - over 28,000. The Society now has 75,502 members from 157 countries.... Read more
Samsung Satellite Symposia at ECR 2018 – Transforming Radiology with a New Healthcare Solution
2018 28 Feb
Today, every health system struggles with finding answer to enhance patient experience and meet the needs of healthcare providers. In this sense, Samsung made efforts to show transformational changes in radiology and make it possible to turn challenges into opportunities. Samsung aims to change the industry by incorporating innovations in physical... Read more
2018 20 Feb
A new and outstanding premium Ultrasound system. RS85 is Samsung's premium ultrasound system that adopted the integrated solution. It provides enhanced image quality, usability, and convenience for medical and radiology professionals. Built with exquisite image quality and expert tools, it empowers professionals to make faster and more confident... Read more


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Graham Crackers, Sailor Moon & Halloween Make For Some of Tennyson's Fondest Childhood Memories
Sibling duo Tennyson, Luke and Tess Pretty, has been making music since they were kids – (though they've only grown into young adults recently) – reportedly busking in Edmonton, Canada at the tender age of seven and nine. Luke's prodigal music talent were put on record even at the tender age of 12, having had made two jazz albums by then. It wasn't until he discovered Aphex Twin that the band we know today as Tennyson came into inception. Now firmly belonging in the realm of live electronic music, the brother-sister band makes songs that sit comfortably somewhere in-between the sort of twinkly bass music made popular by Hemmy and the LA beat scene while keeping their jazz background still intact, improvisational quality and all; just listen to the whimsy of their 2015 EP, Like What. Kuala Lumpur saw that trait performed live last Saturday 18 March thanks to The Bee's Upfront series. JUICE, as usual, managed to catch both siblings for a quickie…
Images Offical Press Photos + Albert Ng & Tang Chun Cheuh
Luke, we read that you'd convert images to sound, and that it'd result in similar frequencies. Have you expanded on that little experiment?
Luke Converting an image of say a field of clovers to frequencies, won't sound much different from an image of alphabet soup – like swimming in a pool of car keys. The better approach is representing the experience of alphabet soup in a melody.
You would feel 'terrorised' by an unfinished song, to the point you'd dream about it. Now having released more music and being more experienced, do you still feel the same?
L I'm definitely less 'terrorised' by the songs lately. I've been collecting different ways to get through roadblocks. Not as cool as dreams, but if I'm dreaming about it, it's because I've been labouring over it for too long.
We understand that what separated both your rooms was a barn-door hatch and that was your window which you'd communicate through when you were younger. How do you consult your sister now and do you still make most of your music in your bedroom?
L The barn door window is still fully functional, haha! And yes, my bedroom continues to be the most comfortable place to work.
What it's like going from making jazz albums at the age of 12 to doing an electronic record by 16?
L It helped with learning how to use the programmes, and also a style of using the programmes that doesn't really resemble the circulating knowledge of YouTube tutorials.
Tess, how do you translate Luke's production into live drumming?
Tess Learning the drum parts is like having a confusing robot teacher. Learning Tennyson songs at first was kind of like unlearning what I knew, and learning how to play again but in a completely different way.
Besides crawling under tables and watching Barney together (which just so happens to be one of your musical inspirations), what are some of the more prominent memories that you've shared when you were younger?
T Eating graham crackers with butter and watching Sailor Moon. Halloween was always my favourite – Luke and I went trick or treating and we wouldn't stop until our pillowcases were full of candy.
Do you guys have a set direction of where Tennyson should go next musically?
L I always have an idea of what direction I'd like to take, but when it actually comes to the writing, it'll end up sounding like whatever it ends up sounding like. It's actually really hard to interfere with the music's evolution.
Okay, last one – three albums that influenced Tennyson and why.
L Aphex Twin's Come to Daddy – hearing two songs on this album, 'Flim' and 'IZ-US', was the reason I first tried to write electronic music. Björk's Homogenic – finding out about Björk changed everything, not just for the music, but for my soul. James Blake's Overgrown – responsible for a brain-rewiring period that changed my entire approach. The boundaries of sound turned limitless and exciting.
Watch Tennyson talk about their awkward high school memories, the dreaded Canuck dish bannock, and their apathy for politics below:
Upfront Pres. Tennyson went down on Saturday 18 March '17 at The Bee, Publika.


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Hello eYeka!
Be brave enough to live life creatively. The creative place where no one else has ever been – Alan Alda.
This month, we are introducing one of our best creators 2hdesign.
Tell us a bit more about yourself
My name is Vincent, I'm 36 years old and I'm married. I have two children and I live in Verdun in the east of France. I like art in general (Impressionist painting, music, nature with these delicious mushrooms, cooking and graphics). It will be a little over 16 years that I'm in graphics and since my first photoshop everything has changed. I am totally self-taught as in all that I do (music, painting ...). Next to Eyeka with my wife we create and manage "mainstream" websites which are our main activity. I also develop several parallel projects related to graphics. Basically, we are busy but we still find time to participate in the Eyeka contest.
How did you find out about eYeka?
I knew Eyeka by chance while doing Google graphic design searches. In 2012 I tried my first contest which I lost and put the site aside. By chance we fell back on the site in 2016 and we retry our luck with more success this time. Since, we participate as often as we can.
Do you have a creative process? If so, can you share a bit of your secret with our community? Where do you look for inspiration?
I do not have a particular process. However, once I read the brief with my wife we always start with a little research on the product and the brand. Then I start by experimenting in photoshop and I see if the project hold the road and I take notes, I always choose several routes from the most reasonable to the wackiest, but all does not result often for lack of time. The inspiration can come from everywhere and sometimes has nothing to do with the subject of the competition, it can be a music, when I cook or any other, the important thing is to keep an open mind.
When submitting an entry, how do you keep positive if it is not selected as a winning entry?
It's always frustrating to be honest, especially when you think that the poster or project corresponds to the brief. However, this frustration can become an ally as it helps us push our limits and innovate. Each step is a victory because each time we improve and in the end, it is the most important. In the field of advertising and graphics, refusals are frequent. This does not mean that the work is bad, but that it does not necessarily correspond to the trends of the moment or the identity of the brand.
What would you like to achieve (or have already achieved) with the prizes you will win/have won?
We do not have a specific goal, but the awards won allow us to change the routine.
If you had to describe eYeka in 3 words, what would they be?
Freedom, Creativity, Challenge
Finally, is there anything you would like to share with our creators (secret, tip…)?
Unleash your creativity and trust yourself. Do not give up a project even if it seems completely crazy or too simplistic. Sometimes it's a mini detail that can win or become a big innovation.
Thank you so much Vincent! We can't wait to see further work from you!


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Come join a HUGE line-up of talented artists as they share how they get their creativity going!
This amazing line-up includes Prima's own: Anna Dabrowska, Birgit Koopsen, Donna Downey, Emeline Seet, Jamie Dougherty, Nathalie Kalbach and Sharon Laakkonen!
Creative Jump Start Summit 2012
January is approaching–a month that is full with promises, resolutions and intentions. A month that for many is following lots of holiday celebrations, family gatherings and other end-of-the-year events.
It's also time to start creating again. But suddenly there it is for some of us: that lost feeling on how to start. Here is the cure
A group of wonderful, inspiring and creative women from around the globe in the scrapbooking and mixed media fields have joined together for the Creative Jump Start Summit 2012. We are coming together to tell you how we get back into the creative groove and how we get our creative juices flowing. We want to share with you to help you jump start your creativity in 2012.
Let me show you who is participating:
Here's how it works:
- 1. Throughout January we will share videos, audio or pictures to inspire you –
- 2. You sign up for a newsletter HERE and, in January 2012, you will receive a link and the password to unlock the view of the daily materials as soon as they go live
- 3. You watch the presentations and you will be hopefully inspired to be more creative—all for FREE!
So come on—get inspiration from some of the most creative people in the community!
What are you waiting for? (Did we mention it's FREE?)


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Destiny: Rise Of Iron Trailer Leaks Online, Pre-Order Bonus Opens Up The Iron Gjallarhorn
Consider it a rumor no longer – come September, Bungie will set in motion the Rise of Iron for Guardians, and ahead of today's official Twitch reveal, a leaked trailer has showcased Destiny's upcoming expansion in motion.
Captured from the Wall Street Journal's Snapchat story, YouTube user Jhairehmyah has posted the snippet for all to see, confirming that, as earlier artwork for the DLC had suggested, Lord Saladin will be the one wreaking havoc on planet Earth. There's also a first look at all of the new weapons and armor arriving with the much-anticipated add-on, and those who pre-order Rise of Iron will gain access to the Iron Gjallarhorn, a revamped version of the fan-favorite Exotic from Destiny Year One.
Beyond that, Guardians can seemingly look forward to entering a new social space known as The Plaguelands Zone, which offers a change of scenery from The Tower and The Reef. There's also mooted reports that Rise of Iron will come bearing the standard Destiny content drop: new missions, gear and armor. Expect official details to be revealed later today when Bungie hosts a livestream of the expansion in question.
Just like Watch Dogs 2 before it, Bungie's imminent reveal event for Destiny: Rise of Iron has been somewhat spoiled by the early leak. Nevertheless, it's on course to release on September 20, and you can get a closer look at what's in store for Guardians later this year via Bungie's Twitch channel at 10am PT/1pm ET/6pm UK.


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Quality feedstuff for healthy livestock and quality foodInterview with Dr. Erich Erber, Founder and President, Erber AG of which Biomin is a part, Dr. Jan Vanbrabant, Chairman of Executive Board and CEO, Erber AG, Dr. Hannes Binder, Managing Director, Biomin Holding GmbH, Mr. Marc Guinnement, Managing Director, Biomin Asia-Pacific, and Mr. Jack AN, Managing Director, Biomin China.
Austrian firm Biomin was established in 1983 and started its business researching and producing the world's first-generation mycotoxin adsorbent. Since its establishment, Biomin has been active in the global feedstuff industry and dedicated itself to developing and producing feedstuff additives and premix compounds. Amid delivering technical services to clients, its mission is to improve livestock health, growth and quality in a natural and efficient manner. For over 30 years, Biomin has pioneered innovative solutions for mycotoxin risk management. By applying state-of-the-art technologies and carrying out extensive research and development to develop sustainable solutions, it delivers natural, sustainable and profitable solutions to the swine, poultry, ruminant and aquaculture sectors.
From 30-31 October 2017, Biomin hosted the grand opening ceremony of its latest plant and the Asia Nutrition Forum in Wuxi, China. Over 500 distinguished guests attended the opening ceremony, visited the Wuxi plant and participated in the Asia Nutrition Forum. The theme of the biennial forum this year was "driving the Asian protein economy". At the forum, founder of Biomin Dr. Erich Erber delivered the welcome address to the top global experts in attendance. The session provided an in-depth discussion of the challenges in food processing, the animal health and nutrition industry, and touched on the development trend of poultry, swine and dairy cow production. Dr. Erber also gave an overview of the influence of antibiotic-free livestock production on future opportunities of the Asian protein economy.
During the event, Multinationals in China conducted an interview with Dr Erich Erber, Founder and President, Erber AG, of which Biominis a part, Dr Jan Vanbrabant, Chairman of Executive Board, CEO, Erber AG, Dr Hannes Binder, Managing Director, Biomin Holding GmbH, Mr. Marc Guinnement, Managing Director, Biomin Asia-Pacific and Mr. Jack An, Managing Director, Biomin China.. The senior executives shared detailed insights into the latest developments of Biominboth globally and in China.
"Biomin was established in Austria in 1983, and now we have 50 own business units, 11 production facilities and 5 regional business units across the world. We currently employ over 1,500 excellent staff, with an extensive research network comprising of over 200 international colleges, universities and research firms. We are proud to serve clients in over 120 countries. At Biomin, we are dedicated to developing and producing feed additives and premix compounds while providing technical services to our clients to improve livestock health and performance in a natural, efficient manner. We strive to deliver natural, sustainable and profitable solutions to the swine, poultry, ruminant and aquaculture industries. For over 30 years, Biomin has been devoted to the research of mycotoxins, aiming at providing a series of target-oriented and innovative solutions for mycotoxin degradation and deactivation," said Dr. Binder.
"At Biomin and Erber Group we are guided by the "3Ss". The first S is Science. Science is the core value we deliver to our clients as well as the critical part of our expertise. Biomin lives and breathes science. In 1992, Erber Group acquired Romer Labs. Although the lab possessed limited technological capability at that time, we developed the lab continuously over the years and now, Romer Labs has become a leading global supplier of diagnostic solutions for food and feed safety.
The second S is Service. Science acts as a base, but needs be refined and perfected by service to maximise its utility for clients. Since 2004, Biomin has been conducting the annual Biomin Mycotoxin Survey, the longest running and most comprehensive survey of its kind. For this survey, Biomin cooperates with Romer Labs, and we also offer a complimentary testing of feed samples for over 380 types of mycotoxins to our clients. As part of the survey program, Biomin periodically releases quarterly global mycotoxin reports that provide insights into the incidence of the six major mycotoxins in the agricultural commodities used for livestock feed in order to identify the potential risk posed to livestock animal production in various regions across different species.
Finally, the last S is Speed. We value speed highly in multiple service and innovation aspects. First, we give clients a fast feedback and a timely solution to meet their requests. We have established an extensive and robust sales network across the world, through which we quickly deliver cutting-edge technologies and products to clients. Second, we drive innovation in a continuous and rapid way so that state-of-the-art technologies and quality products can be rolled out to the markets quickly.
Since the development of the first generation mycotoxin adsorbent, Biomin has successfully released five generations of mycotoxin adsorbent, degradation and deactivation solutions under the Mycofix® product line. Mycofix® is the world's first and only mycotoxin deactivation product with a purified enzyme that has achieved EU authorisation. Mycofix® is widely applied to feed, and its efficacy has been verified in scientific trials and on numerous farms across the world. We have also developed another innovative product, a multi-strain synbiotic consisting of both pre- and probiotics that is poultry-specific. This is a testament to the never-ending innovation of Biomin," said Dr. Erber.
"Biomin is committed to overcoming the increasing challenges of food and feed production, especially in regards to the safety aspect. A rising middle class in many countries has led to a stronger-than-ever demand for safe, healthy and nutritious food. Consequently, producers also turn their attention towards this growing demand. In the face of rising consumer concerns about antibiotics, producers are feeling the pressure to reduce the use of antibiotics as well.
Biomin solutions are tailored to provide producers tools to enhance their feed and livestock productions naturally, and can play a key role in a program with the aim of reducing or eliminating the use of antibiotics. Biomin is also committed to social responsibility. We actively promote food safety and sustainable development, and we utilise renewable energy sources throughout the organisation. We are proud to have achieved ISO 14040 life cycle assessment by the US Environmental Protection Agency," added Dr. Vanbrabant.
"At Biomin, we strive to meet the highest standards in many aspects of hygiene, product safety, raw material traceability, manufacturing process and end product development. We stress the importance of a long-term relationship and stable cooperation with reliable suppliers to ensure the superior quality of our products. Next to this, we conduct strict quality control of all raw materials and products, which is critical to our production," he continued.
"Biomin stands on the leading position in the industry, with a great corporate culture, while delivering cutting-edge technologies and products, and operates with a passionate team. Although Biomin has its roots in Austria, we have since gained recognition locally in China as a leading provider of mycotoxin risk management and gut performance solutions for over a decade. The opening of our Wuxi plant signifies a major milestone of Biomin China, and we will further enhance its service capacity and enrich product lines. We want to be the window and bridge connecting the East and the West, by introducing global experiences, technologies and the business concept of livestock husbandry to China, and help our clients scale to newer heights. Over the past few years, we have achieved accelerated growth. The annual business volume has increased at a double-digit rate. From now on, we expect to keep the growth at a rate over 25%," said Mr. An.
"China, which tops rankings in terms of scale in many aspects, impresses me greatly: globally, China's feedstuff production ranks first, its total population and middle class population also rank first. We have high expectations for our business of serving clients in the Chinese market, and we will set a long-term development objective in consideration of the change of the agricultural environment next. We are very pleased with the results of Mycofix®, our mycotoxin risk management solution, which enjoys a high level of acceptance and trust from our clients in the swine sector in China.
In the poultry sector, we have expanded into relationships with large-scale integrators, and we have also successfully developed our business in the dairy cow sector as well. Not forgetting aquaculture, for which we have a strategy in place. Beyond satisfying the market demands, we are committed to enriching our product lines with a reliable and robust production capacity," said Mr. Guinnement.
Biomin taps into the power of science to improve livestock health and industry efficiency and delivers natural, sustainable and profitable solutions with cutting-edge patented technologies to swine, poultry, ruminant and aquaculture industries. With forward-looking thinking, Biomin will focus on efficient and sustainable utilisation of resources, safety of food and feedstuff, environmental impact and contribute towards meeting the livestock protein product demands from the increasing global population in future.
This item originally appeared in China Economic Information.


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[JURIST] The Wisconsin Supreme Court [official website] on Wednesday unanimously upheld [opinion text] the state's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage [JURIST news archive] and civil unions. A voter challenged the passing of a referendum banning both same-sex marriages and civil unions, claiming that each type of union should have received its own vote as per a Wisconsin separate amendment rule. The Wisconsin Constitution [text] reads, "provided, that if more than one amendment be submitted, they shall be submitted in such manner that the people may vote for or against such amendments separately." The court established a test to determine if a referendum violates this rule and determined that this particular one did not:
In short, the sponsors of the amendment wanted to protect the current definition and legal status of marriage, and to ensure that the requirements in the first sentence could not be rendered illusory by later legislative or court action recognizing or creating identical or substantially similar legal statuses. The purpose of the marriage amendment, then, was to preserve the legal status of marriage in Wisconsin as between only one man and one woman. Both propositions in the amendment tend to effect or carry out this general purpose.
The court noted that its decision was based purely on whether the amendment was adopted in conformity with a constitutional requirement and "not whether the marriage amendment is good public policy or bad public policy." The state had also challenged the plaintiff's standing to file suit altogether, questioning whether he had been harmed by the referendum. The court ruled that the plaintiff could challenge the referendum because he at least had a trifling interest as a voter whose rights might have been violated.
Several jurisdictions in the US have legalized same-sex marriage. In March, the US Supreme Court [official website; JURIST news archive] denied an emergency appeal to prevent Washington DC's same-sex marriage law from taking effect. Chief Justice John Roberts, acting as circuit justice for the DC area, denied [JURIST report] an application [text, PDF] requesting a stay pending further review of the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Equality Amendment Act of 2009 [text, PDF]. With that, DC became the sixth US jurisdiction to allow for same-sex marriages, joining Vermont, New Hampshire, Iowa, Connecticut and Massachusetts [JURIST reports]. Supporters had looked to Wisconsin to be a leader in the gay rights movement before the state passed the marriage ban [JURIST report] in 2006, with more than 59 percent of the state vote.