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Which is better: a paper cup that you use once, or a metal mug that you drink from again and again? The decision is clear. Reusable goods are better for the environment and cheaper in the long run. What about people? Is it better to use someone once and then toss them aside, or to use them again and again? What?! Humans should not be treated like objects. We rightly feel confused and horrified by this example. But it happens everyday. There is a name for this modern crime: human trafficking.
People continue to be bought and sold in the world today. Prostitution and pornography are among the chief culprits. Or perhaps a young man is promised a big paycheck and citizenship in a wealthy country; all he must do is work in landscaping for a few months. Years later, he continues his backbreaking work–with just a few bucks in cash and a steady stream of lies and threats. He is trapped in a cycle of deception and oppression.
Pope Francis uses the term "throw away" culture to describe this dark side of our modern economy. He writes, "Today everything comes under the laws of competition and the survival of the fittest, where the powerful feed upon the powerless…Human beings are themselves considered consumer goods to be used and then discarded. We have created a 'throw away' culture which is now spreading" (Evangelii Gaudium, 53).
In stark contrast, we see the example of Jesus. He stands up for the woman trapped in adultery and sets her free. Jesus shows us that we are not objects. We are beloved sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father.
Vatican publishes new resources on combatting human trafficking
Prayer to Saint Josephine Bakhita for Intercession Against Human Trafficking By Pope Francis
Saint Josephine Bakhita, you were sold into slavery as a child and endured unspeakable hardship and suffering.
Once liberated from your physical enslavement, you found true redemption in your encounter with Christ and his Church.
O Saint Josephine Bakhita, assist all those who are entrapped in slavery.
Intercede on their behalf with the God of Mercy, so that the chains of their captivity will be broken.
May God Himself free all those who have been threatened, wounded or mistreated by the trade and trafficking of human beings.
Bring comfort to survivors of this slavery and teach them to look to Jesus,
as an example of hope and faith, so that they may find healing from their wounds.
We ask you to pray for us and to intercede on behalf of us all,
that we may not fall into indifference, that we may open our eyes
and be able to see the misery and wounds
of our many brothers and sisters deprived of their dignity and their freedom
and may we hear their cry for help. Amen


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1994 Honda Civic VX
Started on April 23 by jarrettp
Bought this VX to use a cheap, fun DD to replace my Tacoma-running-on-3-cylinders for the 50 mile daily commute. Totally stock except a junkyard EX swaybar, some 6th gen Celica seats, and 15" Si wheels. Soon to get the garbage rotors, pads, and leaking brake lines replaced in an effort to get it Auto-X ready.
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subset: commoncrawl


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Some nights just require a simple meal. In our case, our simple meal was a chicken sandwich which I made simply awesome … [Read more...]
Southwest Grilled Chicken with Avocado Pico de Gallo
For chicken that's kickin' with flavor, you've gotta try this Southwest Grilled Chicken with Avocado Pico de Gallo! A little zest with a hearty southwest flair in a meal that is healthy and super simple to prepare... that's what I'm talkin' about! … [Read more...]
Luau Boats
Aloha! Welcome to a dinner that will indulge your taste buds, satisfy your hunger, and transport you to an evening on the islands. From the impressive pineapple boat presentation to the vivid colors, this entree is as beautiful to look at as it is amazing to eat! Luau Boats brimming with … [Read more...]
BBQ Pork Baked Potato Nachos
You're so confused by the title right now, aren't you? Is it nachos with … [Read more...]
Enchilada Chicken Pasta
What do you get when you mix enchilada flavored chicken with pasta? … [Read more...]


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About the productThe versatile Disk table range embodies the concept of furniture freedom. It can be used in any workspace or context, whether a conference or meeting room, dining area or casual coffee setting. The elegant, simple disk comes in polished and stainless finishes, but can also be powder-coated. Its simple design offers maximum stability with minimal components and comes in custom sizes and shapes.
- Power and data compatible
Materials usedPowdercoated steel/laminate


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A mere 24 hours after Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush downsized his campaign, he told America that they should just elect Trump because he had better things to do than run for president.
While speaking in South Carolina on Saturday, Bush whined about gridlock and partisanship during a presidential town hall held by Senator Tim Scott. While sharing the stage with South Carolina congressman and Benghazi Select Committee chairman Trey Gowdy, Bush got noticeably agitated and threw GOP Donald Trump rival under the bus:
"If this election is about how we're going to fight to get nothing done, then I don't want anything, I don't want any part of it. I don't want to be elected president to sit around and see gridlock just become so dominant that people literally are in decline in their lives. That is not my motivation. I've got a lot of really cool things I cold do other than sit around, being miserable, listening to people demonize me and feeling compelled to demonize them. That is a joke. Elect Trump if you want that."
It sounds like Bush doesn't even want to keep running, or win the upcoming election at this point. Just the day before, Bush's campaign had begun taking action to save money by cutting salaries and staff, as the candidate's poll numbers started to drop.
In an interview with the Washington Post, a Bush fundraiser said that GOPer's 2016 efforts looked bleak. The fundraiser, who wished to remain anonymous, said, "It feels very much like a death spiral, and it breaks my heart. I don't know anyone who wants to reinvest now" and that the campaign has been "head-scratchingly bad in every element. I wouldn't be shocked in 60 days from now if he wasn't in the race."
Bush is falling apart, and he doesn't care if it shows. MSNBC recently reported that when "(a)ddressing the concern that his campaign is falling apart, Bush responded, 'Blah blah blah blah, that's my answer, blah blah blah.'" The GOPer seems uninspired and defeated, and it's unclear if he will even continue on the campaign trail much longer.
It might not be long until the GOP is down to Donald Trump and Ben Carson. Jeb Bush is, apparently, over America.
Featured image is a screenshot


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From Music and More:
Mikołaj Trzaska/Devin Hoff/Michael Zerang – Sleepless in Chicago (NoBusiness, 2013)
Dave Rempis/Joshua Abrams/Avreeayl Ra – Aphelion (Aerophonic, 2013)
A source for news on music that is challenging, interesting, different, progressive, introspective, or just plain weird
From Music and More:
Mikołaj Trzaska/Devin Hoff/Michael Zerang – Sleepless in Chicago (NoBusiness, 2013)
Dave Rempis/Joshua Abrams/Avreeayl Ra – Aphelion (Aerophonic, 2013)
From Arts for Art, Inc.:
Monday Evolving Series
WHEN: Monday, 3 sets beginning at 7:30
WHERE: Clemente Soto Velez Cultural & Educational Center
107 Suffolk St – between Delancey & Rivington
TICKETS: $11 per set / $16 for two sets / $22 for three sets
students & seniors : $8 per set / $12 for two sets / $16 for three sets
Monday, February 10th :
Matt Lavelle by Shayna Dulberger
Ras Moshe by Shayna Dulberger
Shayna Dulberger by Ras Moshe
7:30 Free Jazz
Ras Moshe – sax
Matt Lavelle – trumpet
Shayna Dulberger – bass
Warren Smith – drums
8:45 Andrew Lamb Trio
Andrew Lamb – sax
Tom Abbs – bass
Warren Smith – drums
10:00 Kitamura-Laubrock-Filiano
Kyoko Kitamura – vocals
Ingrid Laubrock – sax
Ken Filiano – bass
Monday, February 17th :
7:30 A Poetic Piano Slide or TPP
Steve Dalachinsky – words
Connie Crothers – piano
Steve Swell – trombone
8:45 <>
Kris Davis – piano
Chris Tordini – bass
Devin Gray – drums/composition
10:00 Conly+Jones
Sean Conly – bass
Darius Jones – sax
Monday, February 24th :
7:30 Sikora/Chase
Catherine Sikora – sax
Brian Chase – drums
8:45 Nu-Band
Thomas Heberer – trumpet
Mark Whitecage – sax
Joe Fonda – bass
Lou Grassi – drums
10:00 Jason Kao Hwang Ensemble
Taylor Ho Bynum – cornet/flugelhorn
Andrew Drury – drums
Ken Filiano – string bass
Chris Forbes – piano
Jason Kao Hwang – composer/ violin/ viola
Roy Campbell Day Memorial
Wednesday, February 26
at Roulette, 509 Atlantic Ave. Brooklyn
6:45 Slide Show
Roy Campbell's music
7:10 Intro Speak
Valerie Morris (Roy Campbell's sister)
7:20 Opening Song – Prayer
(composed by William Parker on the death of R.Campbell's father)
Fay Victor – voice
Charles Downs – drums
Andy Bemkey – piano
William Parker – bass, composition
7:30 Ahkenaten Ensemble
Brian Carrott – vibes
Hill Greene – bass
Jason Kao Hwang – violin
Warren Smith – drums
7:45 Speaker – Bob Craddock
7:50 Hempstead Music School
Donald Hanson – saxophone
Bruce Edwards – guitar
Hill Greene – bass
Chris Sullivan – bass
Bevin Turnbull – piano
Christine Bard – drums
8:05 Speaker
Matt Lavelle reading Roy Campbell's poem
8:10 Piano
Stephanie Stone
8:15 Nemesis
Matt Lavelle – trumpet
Flip Barnes – trumpet
Asim Barnes – guitar
Warren Smith – drums
8:40 Speaker – William Parker
08:45 Charles Gayle Solo
8:50 Tazz Quartet
Joe McPhee – trumpet and sax
Andy Bemkey – piano
Chris Sullivan – bass
Michael T.A. Thompson – drums
9:00 Poetry – Steve Dalachinsky
9:05 NU Band
Mark Witecage – alto clarinet
Joe Fonda – bass
Lou Grassi – drums
9:20 Speak
9:25 4 for Roy
William Hooker- drums
Connie Crothers – piano
Daniel Carter – sax, trumpet
Ras Moshe – sax
9:40 Speak
9:45 Roy Campbell Film by O'Haire and Sternbach
Short documentary
10:00 Roy Campbell's "Thanks to the Creator"
arranged & conducted by William Parker
Dave Douglas – trumpet
Lewis Barnes – trumpet
Matt Lavelle – trumpet
Taylor Ho Bynum – cornet
Ted Daniel – cornet
Graham Haynes – cornet
Joe Daley – tuba
Dave Hofstra – tuba
Steve Swell – trombone
Andrew Lamb – sax
Charles Gayle – sax
Mark Whitecage – sax
Avram Fefer – sax
Dave Sewelson – sax
Kali Fasteau – sax
Andrew Bemkey – piano
Jason Kao Hwang – violin
Hill Greene – bass
Chris Sullivan – bass
Henry Grimes – bass
Fay Victor – voice
Lisa Sokolov – voice
From CultureMap Austin:
When avant-garde guitar hero Fred Frith settled in with four effects pedals at his bare feet to perform for students at Austin Discovery School on Friday, January 31, the elementary school students weren't the only ones excited. Local luminary Pedro Moreno, who organized Frith's appearance at the school and subsequent show at North Door under the aegis of his grassroots Epistrophy Arts organization, was also smiling, thrilled at bringing the British innovator and improv master to Austin for the first time in nearly 30 years.
From NYTimes.com:
Barry Altschul's 3dom Factor (Wednesday) The drummer Barry Altschul, 71, has been a stealth eminence in jazz — known mainly within the avant-garde, and for music he made many years ago. But that's changing, thanks to work like "The 3dom Factor," his first album as a leader since the mid-'80s, which features the youngish saxophonist Jon Irabagon, who has been one agent of Mr. Altschul's recent re-emergence, and the veteran bassist Joe Fonda, who has been another. At 8:30 p.m., Cornelia Street Café, 29 Cornelia Street, Greenwich Village, 212-989-9319, corneliastreetcafe.com; $10 cover, with a $10 minimum. (Chinen)
Joel Harrison Five/Pannonia (Tuesday) Appearing on the adventurous Konceptions Music Series, Joel Harrison, a versatile and ever-productive guitarist, mingles new and old original music in a 10:30 p.m. set with Chris Cheek on tenor saxophone, Jacob Sacks on piano, Michael Bates on bass and Jordan Perlson on drums. An earlier set, at 9 p.m., features Pannonia, a chamber-like quartet led by the trumpeter Josh Deutsch, with Zach Brock on violin, Ryan Keberle on trombone and Gary Wang on bass. At Korzo, 667 Fifth Avenue, at 20th Street, Park Slope, konceptionsmusicseries.wordpress.com; $10 suggested donation, with a $10 minimum. (Chinen)
From Nicholas Tozier:
In 1990, New York-based composer John Zorn challenged himself to write one hundred tunes in one year's time. Each of the hundred tunes would touch on the Jewish musical tradition, and would follow some basic guidelines: a maximum number of staves; the use of certain musical scales… and the tunes would have to be playable by any small ensemble of instruments. How could Zorn know, as he composed the Masada Songbook's first short melody, that he was embarking on a project that would unfold over the next two decades of his life?


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Dear Editor,
I wish that Sugar Land's mayor had raised the same issues concerning Johnson Development's failed Imperial Market Development as Mayor Scarcella has raised with respect to The Grid.
Many of our so-called public servants actually serve the interests of developers and possible future residents rather than the folks who actually live in Sugar Land. Mayor Scarcella is right to make deals that favor Stafford's residents and hold developers' feet to the fire. Or is that quaint?
Best regards,
Yocel Alonso
Sugar Land


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The Oracle Cloud DBA/SA will be responsible for the support and administration of the Oracle cloud Platform as a Service (PaaS) databases, servers, and the various application, customizations, extensions, and integrations running on the production and development/backup servers. The Oracle Cloud DBA/SA will assist the Oracle Cloud Senior DBA/SA with administering the PaaS environments including upgrades, enhancements, patches, and overall maintenance.
Information Technology – Computer Science – Management Information Systems – Oracle – Database Administrator – System Administrator
We offer a comprehensive compensation and benefits package for full-time employees that includes:
Please inquire for details regarding benefits for non full-time positions.
Why Servco?
We are proud to be named one of Hawaii's Best Places to Work for the past 15 years. As Hawaii's largest privately-owned business, established in 1919, we are committed to providing a fun and collaborative environment where team members feel valued and appreciated. Team members have ongoing opportunities for growth and advancement within the company. We also believe in the importance of giving back to our community through partnerships with nonprofit organizations and providing annual student scholarships.
Visit www.servco.com/careers to apply online or email us at email@example.com.
Equal Opportunity Employer and Drug-Free Workplace


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NEW! Childcare available at The Pavilion located at 126 Phillip StreetThu Mar 29 2018
Member services and benefits
The NSW Bar Association childcare offering has expanded to The Pavilion Centre located at level 4, 146 Phillip Street. Guardian Early Learning Group is now taking enrolments for children and grandchildren of NSW Bar Association members and Chambers staff at the Pavilion and the two other centres in the Sydney CBD (Castlereagh Street Early Learning Centre located at 9 Castlereagh Street and Little Steps Early Learning Centre, located at 1 Bligh Street).
NSW Bar Association members and Chambers staff receive priority for a limited number of guaranteed places.
More information about the Pavilion centre is available here. More information about the childcare offering in general is available on our website.


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|"Deadpool" @ The Vista Theater
Photo: Michael Shinafelt
So off I sauntered to the best local theater in Los Angeles, The Vista. It has one screen and one fucking movie, thus no need to state what you want to see, just buy your damn ticket and enter.
Well I truly enjoyed Deadpool, however I would like to give you the best. review. ever. of it's from none other than Betty White.
As you may, or perhaps not recall Betty co-starred with Ryan Reynolds in The Proposal with Sandra Bullock, a film which caught my ass by surprise because I actually enjoyed it (romcoms = not my thing in general.)
White gives the DP "Four Golden Girls" and states "Ryan Reynolds is so fucking handsome."
Gee Betty, horny much? Jump to the quickie review below!
Deadpool, it's what horny & Betty White have in common!


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Virginia Ryan, PhD, is a Chartered Child and Adolescent Psychologist with the British Psychological Society (BPS) and a qualified Play Therapist and Play Therapy Supervisor with the British Association of Play Therapists. She follows both professional societies' ethical guidelines in all her work. Virginia also is a Certified Filial Therapist, Supervisor and Instructor with the Family Enhancement and Play Therapy Center, Boiling Springs, PA, USA. Virginia's original training was completed in the US, at the University of Minnesota (BA, summa cum laude, Psychology) and at the University of Texas at Austin (PhD, Educational Psychology) before she moved to the UK--with a second home in Ireland—over thirty years ago. She has a strong interest in developing and supporting play therapy and filial therapy in the UK and worldwide.
Virginia was the director of the University of York's former Master's programme in Non-directive Play Therapy and a former Senior Lecturer. She publishes books and journal articles, and gives international and national training, conference papers and addresses on play therapy, filial therapy and child abuse and neglect.
Virginia's clinical practice is Ryan Children's Services in Hull, East Yorkshire, UK. She brings her long standing experience in the UK to a wide range of difficulties, including statutory work, attachment-related problems, trauma and conduct problems, developmental delays and disabilities.


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Online booking to visit Fair Didacta Italy 2017 has been opened. Didacta is the most important Fair dedicated to school and education. The event is going to be held in Fortezza dal basso, Florence from 27 to 29 September.
To participate you just have to go to the "Visitors" section of the official Fair website and register to buy the ticket online, which will allow you to visit the exhibition and meet the business operators in the school sector, publishing, furnishing, scientific technologies, hardware, software and consumables.
Teachers' enrolment to the more than 80 workshops has been opened. Fair Didacta Italy was included by the MIUR in the events envisaged by the multiannual plan for teachers' in-service training. Enrolment is already open for teachers. These are the two options to participate to the workshops:
1) Teachers who buy IUL's training courses can choose to pay with the Teacher Card. The purchase of a course includes: the entrance ticket for the three-days Fair, IUL's inscription, distance learning, and participation to three Didacta workshops (1 university ECTS is recognised for each course).
2) The MIUR will soon issue an informative note addressed to the teachers participating to the workshops, who will be able to ask their school recognition of the course as in-service training. The teacher, when buying the ticket, will have to book 4 workshops (equivalent to 1 university ECTS recognition).
Workshops will be of various kinds:
- Talk conference: a large screen at the back of the stage with the audience sitting in a semicircle;
- Immersive conference: modular furniture, enhanced connectivity and technological devises enabling an innovative experience;
- Debate conference: a moderated and structured debate (50-100 seats).
During the three-days of Didacta there will be also major national conferences in the Main Hall.


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There are questions I believe for older men getting ready to date that sound a little like these! "Is it worth it?" "Do I have what it takes?" "Can I find a good woman who isn't too dependent?" "Am I able to attract someone who I will want to marry?"
These are all good and relevant questions, and as advice for the older dating man, for us, they are all very important. We have usually worked now for the majority of our lives and like most older women, we have a lot to bring into a relationship that we could end up loosing. This is a world in whose moral fibers seem to be slipping into darkness.
At the same time technology has advanced to the point where we have more options at our finger tips for finding that elusive soul mate or trying our hand at a second or third marriage.
My advice for the older dating man is this; as a connoisseur in this arena and over fifty, it is to get to know your perspective mate. Is there any hurry? In some cases there may be, only to avoid temptations that would go against any spiritual beliefs. On this subject I can only say that faith is an essential additive in your progress. If the potential mate that you finally find is of your spiritual persuasion then you need to look for the spiritual fruit that only comes through maturity in the belief that you share. Even a mature Christian or whatever persuasion of faith that may be shared can fall into their own willful rut of relationship suicide. This is sometimes unavoidable. In these matters, the only advice I can give is to grasp a healthy and potent dose of forgiveness for the offensive person's actions and heal thoroughly before trying again. For some, this seems to be an insurmountable task.
I want to address the questions posed above one at a time. A resounding, Yes, it is worth it! Man nor woman was not meant to be alone, nor to grow old without that intimate love and sharing that makes a person complete.
Do you have what it takes? Yes, all of us are of value, all of us have something to offer a potential spouse. We, no matter how ugly we may feel, we can be someone else's dream husband. There's an old adage that applies even to us men, and it goes like this, "one woman's trash, is another woman's treasure!" Of course it actually was, "one man's trash is another man's treasure," but that had to do with real trash! My advice for the older dating man is, remember what you're made of!
What's important is that we have to be able to accept ourselves, before we will be acceptable to our potential spouse. Men, it is imperative that we know who we are and where we have been. It's important to know what you want and where you want to go! While competence and maturity is an essential part of our character, keep it from becoming pride and arrogance. Your relationship, if it even begins to evolve will fall flat on its face in the midst of those two negative attributes. Women want a man who is confident in himself, but mixed with enough humility to create a proper balance.
As advice for the older dating man, women need a caring and loving man; not a boastful, cunning, arrogant, idiot. By the time we reach that over the hill status in our life we need to have shed those childlike qualities that say- this man never grew out of adolescence!
Can you find a woman who is not too independent? That is a good question! There are a lot of women out there who although their lifestyle or actions may say, I don't need a man, deep inside; they need us as much as we need them. We were made to be together and to be in love, and not any other way!
To answer the last question, we can be attractive in many ways. Women aren't as concerned as much at an older age about external qualities as they are with the inner man. We need to be mature, consistent, have integrity in what we do, be honest and being able to be romantic is a very necessary ingredient. At an older age, vanity is not as prevalent and many women can see through the love handles, the pitted facial qualities, the saggy skin and the bifocal lenses to the heart of a sincere, honest, humble, and warm heart and embrace your other qualities as well. So my final advice for the older dating man is this; show them a man who is real and that will last through the rest of the senior years. Better grow old together than to grow old alone.
Aaron Baker


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Cam to cam flirt random
Social sex video face to face sex cam chat paypal
speed dating 2016 short film
He was only in his underwear and I saw him half naked for the first time. There were little hairs on his chest and legs which add to his manhood. In response they both also gave a some what strange smile. ZAHID BHAYAA: Lagtha hay aaj meri tharaah meri dhono randian bhi full masti main hain, Q kuch galat tho nahi kaha meri pyaari randio?...


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General Info
Professional Track
- Green Tech
Areas of Expertise
- Renewable Energy
- Engineering, Electrical
- Engineering, Energy Resources
Professional Interests
- Solar
- Grid planning
- Energy Mix
The Top Three Things I Would Like to Learn or Experience During my Mentorship
- Developing and implementing projects such as community based microgrids aimed at providing solutions to energy challenges through the latest renewable energy technologies.
- Integration of renewables such as solar, wind and biogas to the grid, as well as design, installation, financing, operation and maintenance of mega-renewable projects.
- Energy strategic planning and development, policies (formulation and implementation) and regulations.
Ideal Company Type
My ideal company is a renewable energy focused organization contributing to sustainable development goal number seven, "affordable and clean energy," in a bid to provide more than affordable, reliable and sustainable renewable energy choices. The investment thesis should be driven by decentralization, decarbonization and digitization of renewable energy systems for sustainable development and universal access to energy. My ideal company's organizational culture is characterized by teamwork and a spirit to achieve a common goal. Communication should be the glue that holds the organization together and fosters oneness.
Programming Languages
Additional Technical Skills
Energy modelling using International Atomic Energy Agency software
What are three adjectives that best describe you in the work place?
- Pragmatic
- Inquisitive
- Vibrant
What impact will your mentorship have on your career and professional path?
I will be a better educated, trained and engaged woman in STEM passionate about driving change in marginalized communities. The mentorship program will compliment and boost my career development through encouragement and exposure. I will leverage the experience to serve as a positive role model to new talent, particularly to women and girls in STEM, and be their beacon of hope. The establishment of new relationships can lead to professional growth opportunities, thus resulting in the acceleration of my career development and increased profile visibility.
What will be your most valuable contribution to your TechWomen host company?
My TechWomen host company will be a recipient of broad based benefits which include learning a different culture that will certainly be a memorable and educational experience. I can also provide new perspectives and insights regarding the energy landscape in Africa, particularly Zimbabwe, which is zooming on the trajectory of renewables. I can also contribute in terms of sparking creativity within my host company, expand critical thinking and re-energize the careers of my colleagues by discussing new ideas, sharing contacts, sharing subject matter expertise and exploring new technologies or programs.
After participating in the TechWomen program, how will you leverage your mentorship experience to make an impact in your home country?
With wider access to new and valuable information, I am going to collaborate with various organizations to reach out to ostracized communities and provide solutions to energy challenges through innovative renewable energy technologies. I will continue to expand my network and connect with leading organizations and encourage women to rise up and occupy space in clean energy technology field either as consumers or as entrepreneurs. I will serve as a role model in STEM and inspire and motivate young professionals, especially women and girls. I will carry out clean energy technology campaigns in marginalized communities and promote the uptake of renewable energy and improve energy access.
Work History
Years of Full-time Work Experience6
Primary Professional Focus
- Energy, renewable technology or green technology
Current/Most Recent Job
- Title and Company: Power Planning and Research Engineer, Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company
- Direct Reports: 4
- Type: Full-time
- Location: Harare, Zimbabwe
- Dates: May 10, 2010 –
Carry out studies to ensure that power supply and demand are balanced at all times in order to assist management planning and decision-making; collect and analyze data needed to carry out studies for power development plan (least cost generation expansion plan for Zimbabwe); produce system and substation load forecasting; produce the power development plan through analyzing and modelling possible energy supply options to meet demand; carry out studies on the potential of renewable energy sources and cogeneration in order to improve security of supplies and energy access; update planning tools and manuals to reflect new trends in the power planning processes
Job #2
- Title and Company: Intern, Martindale Trading as Lyons Maid (subsidiary of Dairibord Holdings)
- Type: Part-time
- Location: Harare, Zimbabwe
- Dates: May 1, 2007 – May 31, 2009
Carried out planned and preventive maintenance tasks on plant equipment; identified, evaluated and justified CAPEX projects (e.g. energy management projects); implemented routine planned maintenance programs; tracked utilities (water, electricity, coal and diesel); rewound electrical motor and implemented 5S housekeeping system
Education History
Institution #1
- Institution: University of Zimbabwe
- Degree Awarded: Master's
- Major: Business Administration
- Minor: General Management
- Location: Harare, Zimbabwe
- Completion Date: January 1, 2017
Institution #2
- Institution: University of Zimbabwe
- Degree Awarded: Bachelor's
- Major: Engineering
- Minor: Electrical Engineering
- Location: Harare, Zimbabwe
- Completion Date: March 1, 2010


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I feel like I've been a bad blogger :( I had a nice twice-weekly update thing going on and then I just fell off the blogging train. Never mind, I'm back with some fun posts planned on wedding albums and one for the guys on how to masterfully dip your bride.
Anyhoo, perhaps I'll update with some ramblings and pictures from our recent trip to the UK, we landed back in the US last night. Here's a nice little English countryside picture for you:
We flew back as my mother-in-law was having surgery to remove her gallbladder which happily went very well and Dorothy was "a model patient". Other highlights of our trip included:
- a quick train ride up to Liverpool to spend the afternoon with my amazing Grandmother
- the eating of lots of bacon sandwiches and potato chips (in fact, I think the whole concept of US vs. UK chips might deserve it's own blog post)
- meeting my future sister-in-law (Paul's brother is getting married next October in Mauritius very exciting)
- buying the most amazing pair of Kurt Geiger shoes in duty-free at London Heathrow Airport
- and seeing Jack again (see picture below). Paul brought Jack home from a shelter at least 15 years ago; he'd been beaten and treated cruelly but recovered to be the nicest dog I have ever met (sorry Coco & Tiger) and also the first dog I wasn't afraid of as he's such a softy. He's now an old old man and is mostly blind and deaf but he still enjoys a sausage on Sunday and roast beef on Sunday.
I bought Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett in the bookstore at Logan airport on the fervent recommendation of a friend and although I was rather skeptical about a book based on 12th century England and cathedral building (I know - sounds thrilling right?) I couldn't put it down. So due to my new found love of all things cathedral, on Monday, we squeezed in a little trip to Wells cathedral which is close to where my parents-in-law live. The self-timer feature of my lovely Nikon D700 was put to rare use to snap this picture of me and Paul:
Paul took this one of me sitting on the famous worn steps, I just noticed that I appear to have broken my ankle, but I think it's just my usual awkward sitting:
Here's an interesting door in the cathedral. I had to make a small donation in order to get a yellow sticker that declared I was OK to bring my camera into the cathedral as long as I promised not to use flash - I wish more places would do something like this:
Here's the area where the choir sit with little lamps to illuminate their music.
Wells is also home to the oldest residential street with its original building all surviving intact in the whole of Europe, building started in 1348:
Normal blogging service will resume shortly with lots of lovely engagement and wedding pictures but thank you for stopping by to put up with the history lesson!
Have you read Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett? It's my new favorite book.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Posted by Leah Haydock
Labels: personal
1 comment
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text: This site uses cookies for analytics, personalized content and ads. By continuing to browse this site, you agree to this use. Learn more Becoming a Microsoft Global Challenger Deepen your Azure knowledge via free MOOC courses and learning pathsMOOC coursesMassive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are entirely online and asynchronous so participants can participate at a time that is convenient for them. These courses typically run 4 to 8 weeks and consist of 2-3 hours per week of video lectures, discussion forums, quizzes, and a weekly applied assignment. Those who fulfill the participation requirement and earn a passing score on the final assignment will receive a digital badge from Microsoft to share demonstrated capabilities on social media. Available Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) trainings: Course titles are hyperlinked to take you straight to each course. For questions, please contact Support.


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" Choosing the Right Entry Strategy : "
One of the first and most important issues for a multinational considering doing business in India is ownership structure. Multinationals that enter the country on a stand-alone basis, our experience shows, generally fare better than those that use Indian partners to create joint ventures. Most global companies that opted for them have exited the Indian market, while some have purchased the stakes of their partners or established majority shareholdings.
One global consumer goods company, for example, bought out its Indian partner because of differences over product marketing and brand positioning. The multinational is now doing well in all the segments where it competes.
Multinationals that choose joint ventures as their entry vehicle into India think that a local partner can better navigate the market's complexities and manage regulatory issues. There is some truth to that idea, but in practice, joint ventures often tend to emphasize short-term performance over long-term goals, long-term commitment, and an alignment between the interests of the global and local partner.
Without management control and a clear path to ownership, global companies may have no alternative but to exit the market. Joint ventures can be beneficial in some cases, but they are not essential if a multinational regards India as a priority market and regulations allow the company to have majority or complete. When joint ventures are necessary, multinationals should ensure that they have real management control and a clear path to ownership should that become necessary.
Partnerships with Indian companies need not be limited to joint ventures— multinationals should also consider strategic alliances with local players. An international technology manufacturer and an Indian company, for example, set up a local manufacturing plant that went on to double its production volumes every 18 months. This achievement set it on the path to becoming the largest of the multinationals' plants in India, with the world's lowest costs and high profit margins. From the multinational's point of view, the success of this strategic alliance moved India from the "nice to have" category into an essential part of its international operations.
A global pharmaceutical company established itself as a stand-alone entity but developed strategic alliances with a local manufacturer in licensing and supplies for the generic and off-patent segments. These agreements helped the multinational to enter India's fast-growing market for low-cost, easily accessible branded generics and off-patent medicines.
Winning in India requires an intense and concerted effort. The multinationals need top leaders willing to make a commitment to the Indian operation and to localize and empower it. They must adapt to the Indian consumer's demand for innovative, low-cost delivery systems and high value for money products, as well as identify and implement an appropriate ownership model.
Finally, senior executives of these companies should not neglect the management of local stakeholders, such as regulators and activists. The best efforts to localize an Indian business model will come to naught if these influential groups are overlooked.


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WICHITA, Kan. – Five players finished in double-figures to help No. 13 Wichita State hang on to defeat Tulane, 93-86, Wednesday night in Charles Koch Arena.
Wichita State (22-5, 12-3) survived the Green Wave's second half comeback without the services of sophomore guard Landry Shamet, who didn't suit up due to illness.
Shaquille Morris tallied his sixth 20-point game of the season with a game-high 25 points on 7-of-11 shooting. Morris also converted at the free throw line, going 10-of-13.
Conner Frankamp tied a career high with 18 points – 11 coming after halftime. Markis McDuffie and C.J. Keyser gave the Shockers a boost off the bench with 15 and 11 points, respectively. McDuffie's 15 points marked a season high and Keyser's set a new career best.
Austin Reaves added 10 to round out the double-figure scorers.
The Shockers finished the game 9-of-20 from behind the three-point line and shot 49.2 percent overall. Tulane (13-14, 4-11) shot 61.8 percent in the second half and scored 55 points after the break to make it a game after trailing by 16 at half. The Green Wave shot 50 percent overall and hit 11-of-19 three-pointers.
Melvin Frazier scored all 22 of his team-high points in the second half to go with a game-high 11 rebounds. Samir Sehic (16), Cameron Reynolds (14), Ray Ona Embo (12) and Caleb Daniels (11) all finished in double-digits for the Waves.
After missing 10 of their first 15 attempts to open the game, the Shockers started to heat up near the midway point. With just under seven minutes to play, Wichita State stretched its lead to nine following a Morris three-point play and three-pointer from McDuffie.
Tulane wouldn't go down quietly. Wichita State pushed its lead to double-figures, but the Green Wave responded twice to cut it back to single digits. The lead was 34-26 with 3:15 remaining in the first half before a 7-0 run upped it to 16.
Keyser came in and provided a spark off the bench in the final minutes, scoring seven points to help build a 47-31 lead at the break.
Morris led all scorers after 20 minutes of play with 12 points in only 12 minutes.
The Shockers hit 49 percent of their field goal attempts, including 5-of-11 from beyond the arc. Despite hitting 5-of-10 three-pointers of their own, the Green Wave shot just 36 percent overall.
Wichita State would score the first bucket to open the second half, but the Green Wave came back with a 13-2 run to shrink the lead to seven. Tulane started 10-of-14 from the field, as WSU saw its lead dip to as many as five with just over 10 minutes remaining.
A Reaves three-pointer was a brief Shocker answer, but Tulane again got it down to six with 9:05 to play.
Frankamp's long-range bomb would spark five straight to force a Green Wave timeout and the lead at 70-59. Just when it looked like that would be the knockout blow, Tulane again hit back to pull within six and only 6:54 remaining.
Tulane would come as close as four, but key turnovers would keep them from coming any closer. At the final media timeout with 3:33 to go, Wichita State held a slight 80-74 lead, but Frankamp would be at the line for two free throws when play resumed.
Three-pointers in the final minute saw the lead dip to four again, but the Shockers converted at the charity stripe and came up with stops when needed to hang on.


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Pulitzer-Prize Winning Poet Rita Dove to Kick Off Governor's School for the Arts' New Guest Artist Series
The SC Governor's School for the Arts and Humanities has announced a new program that will bring world-renowned artists to Greenville for... Read More
Drama teacher inspires Lexington High artists
LEXINGTON, S.C. — For shaping students on and off stage, Lexington High School Theater Teacher Christin O. Pirkle won the 2017 Educational... Read More
UofSC's Impact Tops $5 Billion Annually, New Study Shows
The annual statewide economic impact of the University of South Carolina system now totals $5.5 billion, supporting one in 35 jobs statewide... Read More
Pleasant Hill students take the stage
LEXINGTON, S.C. — Students at Pleasant Hill Middle School showed off their range of talent during a state competition this spring. On... Read More
Lake Murray students invited to summer arts intensive
LEXINGTON, S.C. — Six Lake Murray Elementary School students will refine their talents during a summer arts intensive. Eager to learn more... Read More
Higher math applies to music
Students from Lexington County School District One brought home not one, not two, but five state titles from the 2017 South Carolina... Read More
Peach Festival names GPS artwork winners
GILBERT — Gilbert Primary School students created award-winning artwork for a local contest. Prior to each year's Lexington County Peach Festival,... Read More
GES congratulates 'peachy' winners
GILBERT — Judges had a difficult time choosing the very best artwork created by Gilbert Elementary School students. Students submitted original work... Read More
LHS senior turns art 'gold'
Creating thought-provoking illustrations turned golden for talented Lexington County School District One Senior E. Clarke Wilson. A Lexington High student, she received... Read More
PHMS singers wow judges
LEXINGTON — Talented music students from Pleasant Hill Middle School wowed the judges at a recent state-level event. The Eighth-Grade Chorus and... Read More


text: VanessaReardon Report post Posted September 4, 2019 On 9/2/2019 at 2:54 PM, BoldRestless said: You'd make a lot of people very very happy if you were able to share them. My first piece of advice would be do not put them into a VCR that you're not sure is 100% functional. Because then if the tape messes up you won't know if it was the VCR or the tapes and you could ruin a good tape. Try it first with a tape you don't care about. If no one else can or if you don't have a VCR, I'd be willing to convert them for you, but I need to check my VCRs cause it's been a couple of years since I've done it. You might as well try since you weren't using them anyway and the more years go by, the worst the chances are. How many do you think you have? I went down to my basement and picked out 3 tapes. A couple of them did not work, but the third vhs tape played. It was a partial January, 1987 episode of Y&R (with Brenda Dickson) along with some GL and ATWT episodes from that same time. There was a high pitched sound in the background and some fuzzyness in the quality of the picture but it is playable. If you want it, it's yours. I don't have any plans to convert and upload my tapes, so I might as well give them away to people who will use them. Feel free to message me. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


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Infection Control
Norovirus is a virus which causes diarrhoea and/or vomiting and spreads like a cold or flu and is more common in the colder, winter months. It is also sometimes called 'gastric flu' or 'winter vomiting'. Symptoms can begin suddenly and may include nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, stomach-cramps, chills and muscle aches which tend to last for… Read more »


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Also Called
- Absolute Shapeshifting
- Existential Shapeshifting
- Limitless Shapeshifting
- Meta Shapeshifting
- Omni-Shifting
- Perfect Shapeshifting
- Self-Reality Warping
User has complete and absolute control over their own being, allowing them to manipulate their shape, density, size or to be solid, liquid, gaseous, or pure energy. They can spread their form into smaller segments that keep their ability to transform and recombine as they wish. User can take any form that they can imagine, independently from the laws of Physics and Logic.
They aren't immune to external alterations, but can change back instantly, rendering such efforts meaningless. Their mind remains immune to all external alterations and is as flexible as their body while still remaining whole and fully functional even if the body is separated in millions of smaller parts acting independently. While external/environmental effects can affect users, they can simply take a form more adapted to the dangers and thus ignore most dangers or simply reform themselves.
User cannot bestow themselves abilities but limitless Shapeshifting can mimic many such effects. Skilled users can notably access temporary empowering abilities, such as Super Form and Transformation, but not permanent ones, like Evolution, which requires stability.
Applications (General)
- All Physiologies
- All Bodily Powers
- All Mimicry Powers
- All Adaptation Powers
Applications (Examples)
- All Shifting Powers
- All Transformation Powers
- Many Defensive Powers
- Energy Resistance
- Intangibility
- Invulnerability
- Reactive Adaptation limited to physical changes.
- Reality Anchoring reversing the changes)
- Many Support Powers
- Various Basics
Advanced Applications
- Energy Manipulation/Magical Energy Manipulation by turning parts of the body into energy.
- Various advanced constructs generated from the user's being
- Hybrid Physiology combining several physiologies into one.
- Power Mixture combining them into more powerful ones.
- Meta Ability Creation by changing ones being to accustom any ability imaginable.
- Technomagic by turning the body into Technomagic devices.
- Self-Supernatural Properties Manipulation Supernatural-Shifting.
- Self-Particle Manipulation highest control of physical structure.
- Self-Soul Manipulation
- Spatial Mimicry becoming space.
- Users of Singularity cannot be copied.
- Cannot create/accumulate permanent abilities.
- Cannot create sentient entities (only one mind).
Known Users
- Malaugryms (Forgotten Realms)
- Proteus (Greek Mythology)
- Hagunemnons (Planescape)
- Lulu Bell (D.Gray-man)
- Golden Darkness (To Love-Ru: Darkness)
- Genie (Disney)
- Eden (Disney)
- Jafar (Disney)
- Chaos (Disney)
- 5D Imps (DC Comics)
- Impossible Man (Marvel Comics)
- Mystique (X-Men: Evolution); via becoming a Horsemen of Apocalypse
- The Beyonder (Marvel Comics)
- Perry (Shadow Falls Series)
- Chamelioian (Space Dandy)
- David Bowie/The Sovereign (The Venture Brothers)
- Morph (Treasure Planet)
- Jimmy T (Whateley Academy)


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BEIJING (AP) � Chinese police were seeking information today on two ethnic Uighur suspects believed linked to an apparent suicide car attack near Tiananmen Square in the country's capital that killed five people and injured 38.
Police released no word about a possible motive for yesterday's incident at Beijing's Forbidden City, one of China's most politically sensitive and heavily guarded public spaces. But investigators sent a notice to hotels in the city aimed at tracing the movements of two suspects and possibly at uncovering any other conspirators.
It was unclear whether the two Uighurs were believed to have perished in the car or were still at large, and whether they might have been linked to militant groups in the western region of Xinjiang, where radicals have been fighting a low-intensity insurgency against Chinese rule for years.
If yesterday's incident was such an attack, it would be the first in recent history outside of Xinjiang and the boldest and most ambitious given the high-profile target.
The sports utility vehicle veered inside a barrier separating a crowded sidewalk from a busy avenue and then plowed through pedestrians as it sped toward Tiananmen Gate, where it crashed into a stone structure near a large portrait of Mao Zedong that hangs near the entrance to the former imperial palace.
The vehicle's three occupants were killed, along with two bystanders, including a Filipino woman. The 38 injured included three other Filipinos and a Japanese man, police said.
The gate stands opposite sprawling Tiananmen Square, which was the focus of the 1989 pro-democracy movement that was violently suppressed by the military, and any incident there is highly sensitive.
If intended as a political statement, yesterday's attack could hardly have picked a more significant target. Just west of the square lies the Great Hall of the People, the seat of China's parliament, while many of China's top leaders live and work just a few hundred yards away in the tightly guarded Zhongnanhai compound.
Xinjiang is home to largely Muslim ethnic Uighurs, who are culturally, religiously and linguistically distinct from China's ethnic Han majority. Many have chafed under heavy-handed Communist Party rule.
Zhao Fuzhou, a security official at Beijing's Xinjiang Dasha hotel, said police had circulated a notice seeking information about two suspects with Uighur names in the aftermath of yesterday's incident. A clerk at the Hubei Mansion hotel also confirmed receiving the notice. Employees at other hotels said they had been told not to discuss the matter.
The notice asked hotels about the two suspects and to report any suspicious guests or vehicles registered with their establishments going back to Oct. 1. One of the men, identified in the notice as Yusupu Wumaierniyazi, was listed as living in a town in the northwestern Uighur homeland of Xinjiang in which 24 police and civilians and 13 militants were killed in an attack June 26.
Beijing police referred reporters' questions to a spokesman whose phone rang unanswered.
In Xinjiang this year, dozens of people have been killed in clashes between security forces and Uighur militants, who the government says have been inspired by global jihadist teachings and joined al-Qaeda-inspired fighters in Syria.
China has provided little direct evidence to back up those claims. However, Xinjiang borders Afghanistan and unstable Central Asian states where militant Islamic violence is a regular occurrence, and Uighurs are believed to be among the militants sheltering in Pakistan's lawless northwestern region.
Authorities had earlier warned that extremists were planning attacks outside the Xinjiang region, and yesterday's incident had the appearance of being deliberate.


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The Nature of Knock-Offs and Counterfeiting
Part Two of our Knock-Offs Report
Earlier this week we posted an article discussing knock-off IQOS HeatSticks (HEETS). In that article we briefly discussed the production and sale of knock-off Heat-Not-Burn components, like HeatSticks. In this article we want to dive a bit deeper into knock-off, or counterfeit, culture to better understand why it happens and how it affects you, the HnB/harm reduction product consumer.
Knock-Offs and Counterfeit Culture
Knock-off and counterfeit items are thriving in the current global market. In a 2018 interview with Forbes Magazine, Craig Crosby, founder of the Counterfeit Report, explained that "counterfeiting is now the largest criminal enterprise in the world." Our global society has a phenomena known as 'counterfeit culture,' which is when manufacturers create products that replicate other pre-established products in every aspect, including logo, then sell them as the real thing even though they are not. That is counterfeiting. The term 'knock-off' is often used interchangeably with 'counterfeit' but they are actually different. Knock-offs are items that mimic pre-established products in appearance and function, but do not claim to be those products. Sometimes, though, its difficult to draw the line between a counterfeit item and a knock-off. In our last post, the sellers never explicitly claimed the items were IQOS HEETS, they only inferred it. This indicates that the products they were selling were knock-offs. However, their HEETS packaging did replicate the official packaging perfectly, logo and all, which is characteristic of counterfeit items, so it becomes a bit of a blurred line as to what to call the items. For now, we'll stick with calling them knock-offs.
As discussed in our last article, there are pros and cons to counterfeit and knock-off items. For consumers, the main con tends to be that item quality can't be guaranteed and there is no warranty or refund option if you're not satisfied with the product. The seller also often times is not verified by any official source and therefore could scam you out of your money. This happened to our team last year, when we purchased 5 devices from AliExpress which never came. We contacted the seller who insisted that they had been shipped and were ready for pickup, despite us not having received them. We ended up losing over $200CAD.
Nevertheless, if you feel that the potential gain outweighs the potential loss, then knock-offs and counterfeit items can be a great investment for the consumer. They are a portion of the cost, but look similar enough to pass as the real thing. Moreover, in our experience knock-off HnB devices that come from China, one of the largest and most advanced manufacturers of such, tend to have features not included in some of the bigger name brands, such as a HeatStick eject button or environmentally friendly materials.
A Thriving Knock-Off Market
It's easy to say that there are pros and cons of knock-offs and counterfeit items for consumers, but what about the original manufacturers? Their designs are, essentially, being stolen and then someone else is profiting off it, while the original manufacturer loses money. It makes sense why companies like Philip Morris and British American Tobacco have copyrights to protect their products and their hold on the market.
Unfortunately for manufacturers, copyrights tend not to hold that much weight up against knock-offs and counterfeit items made in China and other developing countries, like Bangladesh, Singapore, etc. Oftentimes the knock-off and counterfeit producers simply ignore any existing legal rights. The scale and velocity of these producers makes it extremely difficult for companies, legal officials, and governments to pursue infringed upon copyrights.
There are thousands of knock-off and counterfeit producers, whose businesses open just as quickly as they close. Here at Heat180 we often have difficulty finding online retailers for knock-off devices since many of them close as soon as they sell their inventory. Just today we noticed that one seller from an order we are waiting on, has removed their their seller profile and business information from AliExpress. Our order is still being processed, so it is yet to be seen whether the device will arrive or not. The Chinese counterfeit situation has repeatedly been described as being like a game of whack-a-mole since it is so difficult to control.
Moreover, even if copyright infringement is established and brought before a judiciary committee, there are still going to be several obstacles, including;
- Choice of Law – if the original manufacturer is not based in the same country as the knock-off or counterfeit producer then whose laws will apply? (For example, if PMI, which is headquartered in Switzerland, sued a knock-off producer in Singapore, which nations' courts would they appear before and are they both held to the same business practise standards? Would they have to appeal to the ICC International Court of Arbitration?)
- Poor International Relations – current relations between the home countries of the original manufacturer and the knock-off or counterfeit producer may negatively affect any legal proceedings. (For example, tensions between China and the US are currently quite high as a result of the trade war and therefore one must ask if a suit were brought forward against a Chinese knock-off producer would China even be willing to cooperate?)
- Unwillingness to pursue to the full extent – Why would a country with a thriving knock-off market want to allow legal proceedings against unofficial HnB manufacturers anyways? While it is in now way good for the original manufacturer, knock-off products bring large profits into their home country's economy, the manufacturing process creates jobs, and thus raising the living standards of people employed. It is largely businesses like these that contribute to the economic and global advancement of developing countries. From a protective stance it makes sense to allow these sorts of operations to continue unless major national and international laws are being broken, such as producing devices that directly threaten peoples' health.
Because of these obstacles, there isn't alot done about knock-off and counterfeit items, in general. Some companies try to pursue producers (look to Juul who, in Sept 2018, sued 30 Chinese counterfeiters), but there always comes another.
Knock-Offs, Counterfeits, and Heat-Not-Burn
While manufacturers would ideally like to stop the creation of these items, they too benefit from them, albeit in smaller returns. Nobody knock-offs or counterfeits products that are of no value. If consumers don't value a product in the first place, why would they want a fake version of that product? Instead, knock-offs survive on exclusivity and prestige. Knock-offs are $50 newly released video games, $400 Gucci sunglasses, and $180 HnB device kits. The very existence of HnB knock-off and counterfeit products indicates that the industry as a whole has value. This means that there is a large enough existing market, and potential for a larger future market, for HnB devices. Knock-offs, in some strange way, validate original Heat-Not-Burn manufacturers' claims that HnB could become the future of smoking. Now, whether or not that will stand true in all regions of the world is unknown, but at the very least it proves that within the home country of knock-off and counterfeit product manufacturers the devices are proven to be profitable.
There is also the potential for industry growth and expansion as a result of knock-offs. The more people who being using the devices, whether name brand or not, the more people will become aware of HnB as a concept. If people can easily access knock-offs that mimic expensive/exclusive devices, then perhaps others would be more willing to try. This could bring new members into the Heat-Not-Burn community. If user numbers grow it will signal to exporters, tobacco retailers, and legislators/legislative bodies globally that HnB is in demand, which could potentially provide the push necessary to allow HnB in all regions where tobacco is currently available.
The Future of Knock-Off and Counterfeit Products
A large number of economists think that, eventually, as China, and other like countries, develop, the knock-off and counterfeit markets will begin to slow down. As business and innovation grow, national brands will begin to loose capital to knock-off and counterfeit products as well. Economists theorise, that the companies will, while looking out for their own best interests, enact anti-counterfeit measures. It is at this point that powerful players will emerge in the markets. In the meantime, we can choose to both embrace the positive aspects of knock-off and counterfeit products, while still working to minimise the negative.
Have you found any good HnB knock-offs on counterfeits? Let us know in the comments and we'll work to review them!


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Multicultural, Migrant and Refugee Services / Migrant Education and English Classes
47 found.
Phone, web or in-home services: 1.These services are between about 10 to 20km from Sans Souci.
- TAFE NSW Bankstown (Bankstown)
- UNSW Institute of Languages University of New South Wales (Kensington)
- The Multicultural Network (BAMN) (Bankstown)
- Navitas English Adult Migrant English Program - Bankstown College (Bankstown)
- Liberty Church of Christ (Greenacre)
- Melkite Catholic Welfare Association (Greenacre)
- Refugee Language Program (Sydney University)
- The Junction Neighbourhood Centre (JNC) - Information Service (Maroubra)
- Volunteer Tutor Scheme (Navitas) (Bankstown)
- Mission Australia Bankstown (Bankstown)
- Strathfield Main Library (Homebush)
- English Australia (Surry Hills)


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Double Walled Candle
Cotton wick- for clean burning.
Reusable Glass Vessel.
Burn time: 40-45hrs
Coconut wax with an essential oil and fragrance oil blend.
Castillo - Notes of Cypress, Salt + Smoke
Inspired by the natural setting of Saint Augustine's Castillo de San Marcos fortress, built in 1672. Today, the coquina fort is a beautiful waterfront gathering place with a strong ocean breeze and wafts of warming firewood in the fall and winter months.
Coquina - Notes of Spanish Moss, Amber + Salt
Inspired by coquina, a local tabby-like material comprised of compressed shell and limestone. After a fresh summer rain, a crisp blend of salt and heat fill the air as the sun works to dry the freshly cleaned hanging moss and coquina architecture.
Entenza - Crisp Notes of Eucalyptus, Rosemary + Birch
Candles are topped with sage green colored soy wax chips that melt into a light chartreuse tone.
Inspired by the natural surroundings of the Case Study Homes in the Pacific Palisades. The Entenza incense harnesses the essence of coastal California. Always fresh and timeless.
Wright - Warm Notes of Desert Rose, Sand + Amber
Candles are topped with merlot red colored soy wax chips that melt into a bright rust tone.
Inspired by the desert setting of the architect's Arizona home, the Wright candle and incense pairs light floral rose with warm sandy tones. The scent brings the outdoors in and crafts natural elements into a rich and distinct composition.


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We have some pretty cool members in our Rotary Club. One of them is Meghan Goldenberger.
Born in Alaska to a father who fished and built elementary school pools, and a mother, who was a nurse. She lived on the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana for a bit, before moving to Thurston County, where she met husband in her high school in French class and married him last year. Oddly enough, her best friend Megan, who co-leads Together! with her, was also born and raised in Alaska.
This adventurous sole taught snowboard lessons at White Pass in high school, yoga classes in Seattle after attending Western Washington University for college and left the state for a time to live in Guatemala and Belize. She's been at Together since 2006, first as a program manager, then worked her way to co-leading the organization with Megan.
During her spare time, she serves on Tumwater Planning Commission (since 2016) to learn more about her community and will be teaching a class at The Evergreen State College during the Fall 2018 semester on how to lead a community nonprofit.
And there you have it…another interesting life of a Gateway Rotarian.


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Vietnamese top striker Le Cong Vinh has been named in the AFF Suzuki Cup 2016 team of the tournament by the website fourfourwo.com (Singapore version).
"Vietnam's Le Cong Vinh will retire from international football after the Golden Stars' semi-final exit, but he will do so as their leading scorer in the tournament. The Vietnamese skipper surpassed Le Huynh Duc's record of 14 AFF Suzuki Cup goals, scoring two during the group stages to take him to an overall tally of 15 goals," the website wrote about Vinh.
"Both goals proved crucial each time, with the first being a winner against co-hosts Myanmar, while the second was an equaliser against Cambodia. Southeast Asia has little to boast of in striking talents and Vinh's scoring prowess will be hugely missed by the region," the website added.
Besides Vinh, it named Teerasil Dangda of Thailand, Boaz Solossa of Indonesia, Aung Thu of Myanmar and Hassan Sunny of Singapore.
Earlier, Vinh had also selected in the typical team of AFF football event by Fox Sport Asia and goal.com.
In the best young player category, the website listed Vietnamese defender Vu Van Thanh, Hansamu Yama Pranata of Indonesia and Anumanthan Kumar of Singapore.


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RNAV is more than just point-to-point navigation. All GPS RNAV approaches also have performance parameters baked into the procedure (for instance, required navigation performance values and distance holds instead of timed holds), allowing refinements to make them more accurate and efficient. The granddaddy of all GPS RNAV approaches is WAAS LPV, which offers similar approach minimums as ILS. Today there are more than 3,600 WAAS LPV approaches in the United States serving nearly 1,800 airports.
COURSE INDICATOR: The approach procedure and its waypoints are shown in the center of the plan view of the approach chart. The same procedure and waypoints will be shown once the approach is activated on your GPS, making it easy to know if you are on the right track.
RAIM: RAIM stands for receiver autonomous integrity monitoring. It's not a type of approach but rather technology that assesses the integrity of GPS signals. If, for example, you fly an LNAV/VNAV procedure and don't have WAAS, you are required to check predictive RAIM on your GPS receiver before starting the approach.
Chart courtesy of Jeppesen


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Hello gorgeous! Sleek and sculptural home of today. This sexy never lived in new construction combines modern minded spaces with approachable warmth. Setback from the street you have a grand approach and a huge backyard. With approximately 20,000 SF of land you have plenty of room for pool parties and barbeques. The dramatic 2-story foyer entry with double sweeping staircase sets the tone. Beautiful Mia Cucina kitchen, several outdoor patio spaces, two-car garage, and double master up are just a few of the luxuries offered. Located in exclusive Bay Point, security is paramount. This lush, leafy community owns their own streets. Just minutes to the Design District, Wynwood, Midtown and the heart of Miami Beach.
|Elementary School
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He owned pistols at age 12, but with MST was able to get a fresh start
I'm a sucker for a great success story. Whether it is an athlete's training that results in a fantastic win or listening to my neighbor's story about beating cancer. I think it is my love of people conquering great odds that attracted me to the Multisystemic Therapy (MST) treatment model almost a dozen years ago. The process of change is fascinating, and it's good to be a part of a program that helps families use the therapeutic process to create their own success stories.
Last month, I read a Chilean news article that again reminded me of why I work in MST. I was involved with our Chilean MST teams for more than four years while they served 4,000-plus families. They are hard-working and dedicated professionals who deeply care about the young people they help. Like youth advocates in many countries around the world, Chile sought out MST because they needed a treatment model that would help them with the most serious behavior problems in youth. This includes kids who have grown up in a community environment of criminal activity where extreme violence and theft is normalized.
"El Retiro de un Joven Pistolero," the story of Enrique Troncoso, is an example of the serious kind of behaviors MST therapists have worked with in Chile and throughout the world. Enrique was born to a drug-addicted mother who used pasta base, a cocaine derivative, throughout her pregnancy. He grew up in a neighborhood filled with
Treatment programs didn't work until...
By the time Enrique turned 17, he was one of the leaders of a gang in Cerro Navia and was responsible for assaults and attempted homicides. He also took part in a string of robberies on other drug dealers. Enrique was referred to Multisystemic Therapy after he had been shot nine times. There were still numerous hits out on his life. He had been through many therapeutic intervention programs that had all failed. Enrique's MST therapist was asked to do what many would have deemed impossible, work with Enrique and his grandmother to transform him from a gangbanger to a normal kid who could expect to see adulthood.
Given the intensity of Enrique's behavior, the process was not easy and involved a host of dedicated professionals beyond the MST therapist. Through what MST refers to as the analytical process, the therapist,
Ultimately, the boy's relapses proved so dangerous that the court took over and detained him again. However, this time they consulted with the MST therapist and the grandmother to determine the best way to help Enrique choose a different path. The entire team working with him agreed that an extreme intervention was needed to help the teenager sustain the changes he had started in MST. Enrique and his grandmother decided to move to the south of Chile where he had no friends and could have a new start.
Not everything went smoothly in the new environment, but Enrique's grandmother and therapist developed extensive behavior plans to support the transition to a new home and community. They also made sure that Enrique had the additional drug treatment and educational services that he would need to further his progress. Although the direct intervention of an MST therapist is only three to five months in most cases, Enrique is a good example of the process continuing after the MST treatment ends.
Enrique has lived to see his 18th birthday. He is getting an education and is working with his grandmother and other professionals to address the temptations of his old lifestyle as soon as they arise. Enrique is still walking the long road to change, but he is a powerful success story.


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We have reported that endothelial interleukin 8 (IL-8) induces apoptosis in leukemic cells in vitro and in vivo, and that interaction between endothelial cells and leukemic cells causes induction of apoptosis through the release of endothelial IL-8 (Y. Terui et al., Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun., 243: 407–411, 1998; Y. Terui et al., Blood, 92: 2672–2680, 1998). Here, we examined whether a pentapeptide corresponding to the NH2-terminal region of endothelial IL-8 can induce apoptosis in leukemic cells. The NH2-terminal pentapeptide Ala-Val-Leu-Pro-Arg (AVLPR) was found to significantly induce apoptosis in the leukemic cell lines K562, HL-60, Jurkat, and Daudi, as compared with the COOH-terminal pentapeptide Arg-Glu-Ala-Asn-Ser (REANS). Moreover, the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR significantly inhibited growth of i.p. and s.c. tumor masses of K562 cells and induced apoptosis in these cells in vivo. The active site of endothelial IL-8 is the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR, and this may serve as a new therapy for hematological malignancies.
Leukemic cells are known to undergo apoptosis under several conditions, and the basic strategy of leukemia therapy is the induction of apoptosis (1) . We have purified an apoptosis-inducing factor to homogeneity from a medium conditioned by phorbol-12,13-dibutyrate-treated HL-60 cells (2) . NH2-terminal sequence analysis revealed that apoptosis-inducing factor is identical to endothelial IL 3 -8. Human recombinant endothelial IL-8 induces apoptosis in most leukemic cell lines, but monocyte-derived IL-8 does not. Endothelial IL-8, which has an additional five amino acids at the NH2 terminus as compared with monocyte-derived IL-8, is active in the induction of apoptosis. We showed that interaction between endothelial cells and leukemic cells induces apoptosis in leukemic cells through the release of endothelial IL-8 (3) . Moreover, we also demonstrated the antitumor effect of endothelial cells in vitro and the antitumor effect of endothelial IL-8 in vivo. It has been reported that the pentapeptide Glu-Glu-Asp-Cys-Lys (EEDCK) has inhibitory effects on normal hematopoietic cells and malignant cells, especially leukemic cells, because of a redox-mediated mechanism for demand-induced hematopoietic regulation (4 , 5) . This pentapeptide EEDCK was also found to protect stem cells from cytotoxic agents both in vitro and in vivo, suggesting that this pentapeptide may be useful for the purging of tumor cells from stem cell grafts (6) . No peptide is known to induce apoptosis in malignant cells or normal cells. In this study, we first examined whether the pentapeptide Ala-Val-Leu-Pro-Arg (AVLPR), which corresponds to the NH2-terminal amino acids residues of endothelial IL-8, has the ability to induce apoptosis in leukemic cells in vitro and in vivo.
Materials and Methods
Recombinant human TNF-α was purchased from R & D Systems, Inc. (Minneapolis, MN). Recombinant human endothelial IL-8 was purchased from Genzyme (Cambridge, MA). All peptides were synthesized by TaKaRa Co. (Shiga, Japan).
Cell Lines and Cell Culture.
A human chronic myelogenous leukemia cell line, K562 (7) , was obtained from American Type Culture Collection and was maintained in GIT medium (Wako, Tokyo, Japan; Ref. 8 ). Human myelogenous leukemic cell line HL-60, human monocytic leukemia cell line U937, human T-cell leukemia cell line Jurkat, and human myeloma cell line Daudi were also obtained from American Type Culture Collection.
TUNEL Assay.
Residual cells were incubated with a digoxigenin-dUTP terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase mixture and subsequently were stained with peroxidase-conjugated antibody to digoxigenin (Apop Tag PLUS; Oncor, MD; Ref. 9 ), counterstained with 1% methyl green in sodium acetate (pH 4.0), and mounted. Specimens were examined and photographed under a microscope. The percentage of apoptotic cells was determined by counting >200 cells. Statistical analysis was performed by Student's t test.
In Vivo Experiments.
Male BALB/c nu/nu mice were purchased from Japan Charles River and were age matched (5 weeks of age) at the onset of each experiment. Nude mice were inoculated with 106 K562 cells injected into the peritoneal space. A preparation of the NH2-terminal or COOH-terminal pentapeptide of endothelial IL-8 was injected into the i.p. tumor masses of K562 cells daily for 2 days. As controls, saline and endothelial IL-8 were injected. i.p. cells were collected daily and washed with 5 ml of PBS. Cell counting, Wright-Giemsa staining, and the TUNEL assay were also performed. Mice were inoculated with 5 × 105 viable K562 cells by s.c. injection in the midline ventral position in a total volume of 0.1 ml of PBS. Test mice bearing s.c. established K562 tumors (confirmed 4 days after inoculation) were treated daily (for 11 days) with the NH2-terminal or COOH-terminal pentapeptide of endothelial IL-8 in a total volume of 0.1 ml saline, injected into the tumor. As controls, saline and TNF-α were injected. Tumor size was calculated using the formula described by Kyriazis et al. (10) as: tumor volume = width2 × length × 0.4.
Tumors were resected in toto, fixed in 10% neutral formalin solution (Sigma), embedded in paraffin, sectioned with a thickness of 4 mm, and stained with H&E or by the TUNEL method. The dose of each of the peptides was 100 μg/mouse. The injected dose of IL-8 was 100 ng/mouse/day. The dose of TNF-α was 200 units/mouse. Statistical analysis was performed by Student's t test.
Induction of Apoptosis in K562 Cells by the NH2-Terminal Pentapeptide AVLPR of Endothelial IL-8.
Endothelial IL-8 induces apoptosis on leukemic cells, but monocyte-derived IL-8 does not. Because we noticed a difference in the NH2 terminus of these two forms of IL-8, the NH2-terminal pentapeptide Ala-Val-Leu-Pro-Arg (AVLPR) and the COOH-terminal pentapeptide Arg-Glu-Ala-Asn-Ser (REANS) were synthesized, and we examined their ability to induce apoptosis in K562 cells. When K562 cells were cultured with the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR, the percentage of apoptotic cells increased to 15.0 ± 1.5% from 1.0 ± 0.5% (Fig. 1A) ⇓ . On the other hand, when K562 cells were cultured with the COOH-terminal pentapeptide REANS, there was no increase in the percentage of apoptotic cells compared with the control (saline only). This indicates that the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR of endothelial IL-8 is effective to induce apoptosis in K562 cells.
We also investigated the dose dependency of the effect of NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR in terms of induction of apoptosis (Fig. 1B) ⇓ . Apoptotic cells significantly increased to 5.0 ± 1.0% from 1.0 ± 0.5% of K562 cells in the presence of 10 μm AVLPR, and the percentage of apoptotic cells became 15.0 ± 1.0% maximally in the presence of 1000 μm AVLPR. This indicates that the induction of apoptosis in K562 cells by the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR occurs in a dose-dependent manner.
We also examined the susceptibility of K562 cells in each cell cycle phase to apoptosis induced by AVLPR using the counterflow centrifugal elutriation as described in the previous study (8) . K562 cells could be separated into the fractions enriched for G0-G1 phase (100% of cells), S-phase (75.5%), and G2-M phase cells (87.1%), and then the cells from each elutriated fraction were seeded at 1 × 105 cells/ml and cultured in the absence or presence of AVLPR. After 24 h, the percentage of apoptotic cells was determined microscopically by the TUNEL method. When the cells in G0-G1, S, and G2-M phases were cultured without AVLPR, the proportion of apoptotic cells after 24 h was 4.9 ± 1.5%, 6.8 ± 1.0%, and 5.8 ± 0.5%, respectively. When the cells in G0-G1, S, and G2-M phases were cultured with AVLPR for 24 h, the proportion of apoptotic cells was significantly increased and reached 34.4 ± 4.7%, 9.3 ± 0.9%, and 8.5 ± 1.2%, respectively (P < 0.01 between G0-G1 and S or G2-M).
We also examined the effect of the pentapeptide AVLPR on fresh leukemic cells. Fresh leukemic cells prepared from 12 cases with acute leukemia (7 cases of acute myelogenous leukemia and 5 cases of acute lymphocytic leukemia) were cultured with or without AVLPR for 48 h, and then TUNEL assay was performed. In ten cases (6 of acute myelogenous leukemia and 4 of acute lymphocytic leukemia), the percentage of apoptotic cells in fresh leukemic cells was significantly increased to 43.9 ± 8.7% by AVLPR as compared with controls (10.1 ± 2.9%; P < 0.01). Moreover, we investigated the effect of combination of AVLPR and VP-16. When fresh leukemic cells were treated with both 0.1 μm VP-16 and 1.0 mm AVLPR for 48 h, the proportion of apoptotic cells was significantly increased to 58.9 ± 14.2% as compared with treatment with only 0.1 μm VP-16 (17.7 ± 6.5%).
Deletion Analysis of the Active Site of NH2-Terminal Pentapeptide AVLPR.
To investigate the active site of the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR, various derivatives of this peptide were synthesized. When K562 cells were cultured with the peptide AVLPR, AVLP, or VLPR, the percentage of apoptotic cells increased significantly to 17.0 ± 1.2%, 13.0 ± 1.1%, and 16.0 ± 1.4%, respectively (Fig. 1C) ⇓ . On the other hand, the peptides AVL, VLP, and LPR failed to induce apoptosis in K562 cells (Fig. 1C) ⇓ . These findings indicate that AV or PR is an essential residue in the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR for induction of apoptosis in K562 cells.
To confirm that this phenomenon is not limited to K562 cells, we examined whether the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR could induce apoptosis in other leukemia cell lines, i.e., HL-60, U937, Jurkat, and Daudi. This peptide induced apoptosis in 18 ± 0.8%, 16 ± 2.2%, 14 ± 3.1%, and 19 ± 2.0% of the cells in the case of HL-60, U937, Jurkat, and Daudi cells, respectively (Fig. 1D) ⇓ . The COOH-terminal pentapeptide REANS did not have the ability to induce apoptosis in these cell lines, similar to the finding for K562 cells (Fig. 1D) ⇓ . These results demonstrate that the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR can induce apoptosis in various leukemic cell lines.
NH2-Terminal Pentapeptide AVLPR Suppresses Tumor Growth and Induces Apoptosis of K562 Cells in Vivo.
We also investigated whether the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR can induce apoptosis or suppress the growth of leukemic cells in vivo. The peptide was injected daily for 2 days into i.p. tumor masses of K562 cells in nude mice (Fig. 2) ⇓ . Apoptosis and suppression of cell growth were observed after 2 days (Fig. 2) ⇓ , and the apoptotic cells were phagocytosed by macrophages. After 2 days, the percentage of apoptotic cells increased to 12.0 ± 4.0%. Moreover, the number of K562 cells decreased to 26.7% of the control level. The COOH-terminal pentapeptide REANS did not significantly suppress cell growth or induce apoptosis in i.p. K562 cells.
In addition, we investigated whether AVLPR could suppress cell growth or induce apoptosis in the case of s.c. implanted K562 cells (Fig. 3) ⇓ . The peptide was injected daily from day 4 to day 11 into s.c. K562 cell tumors established in nude mice, and its antitumor and apoptosis-inducing effects were examined. The mice showed an obvious response to intratumor administration of AVLPR, and apoptosis was evident (data not shown). The tumor size in the case of AVLPR treatment declined to 50.1% of the size observed in the case of the control (saline; Fig. 3 ⇓ ), and TNF-α treatment decreased the tumor size to 41.3% of the size observed in the case of the control (Fig. 3) ⇓ . On the other hand, the COOH-terminal pentapeptide REANS did not induce apoptosis or suppress the growth of s.c. implanted K562 cells (Fig. 3) ⇓ .
Antitumor Effect of NH2-Terminal Pentapeptide AVLPR Is Attributable to Induction of Apoptosis.
To investigate whether the antitumor effect of the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR is attributable to induction of apoptosis, pathological examination was performed by H&E staining and TUNEL staining (Fig. 4) ⇓ . Histologically, s.c. K562 tumors that responded to AVLPR (10 mice/group were examined) generally displayed homogenous central necrosis with intratumor bleeding (Fig. 4E) ⇓ . Within the viable tumor tissue, many tumor cells became smaller than control cells and showed either condensation or fragmentation of nuclei (Fig. 4E) ⇓ . Neutrophil and lymphocyte infiltration was unremarkable in both groups. Control K562 tumors (saline- and REANS-treated groups) displayed little or no tumor necrosis and showed no change in cell size or nuclei (Fig. 4, A and C) ⇓ . Tumor sections were stained by the TUNEL method, which is specific for apoptotic cells. The TUNEL assay showed that apoptosis was induced in 45.2% of the K562 tumor cells in mice treated with AVLPR (Fig. 4F) ⇓ . However, control tumor cells showed little apoptosis (Fig. 4, B and D) ⇓ .
In a previous study, we purified an apoptosis-inducing factor derived from differentiated HL-60 cells (2) . This apoptosis-inducing factor was found to be identical to endothelial IL-8. Human recombinant endothelial IL-8 is effective to induce apoptosis in most leukemic cell lines, whereas monocyte-derived IL-8 is not. IL-8 was originally isolated from culture supernatants of stimulated human monocytes and was identified as a protein consisting of 72 amino acid residues (11 , 12) . The open reading frame of IL-8 cDNA encodes a polypeptide consisting of 99 amino acid residues (13) , and the mature form is processed further at the NH2 terminus, yielding several biologically active truncation analogues (14, 15, 16) . Of the two major forms, the 72-amino acid form (monocyte-derived IL-8; SAKELRC ) is predominant in cultures of monocytes and macrophages (15) , and the 77-amino acid form (endothelial IL-8; AVLPRSAKELRC ) is predominant in cultures of endothelial cells (17) and fibroblasts (18) . Endothelial IL-8 has five extra NH2-terminal amino acids lacking in monocyte-derived IL-8, and it is converted to a form identical to monocyte-derived IL-8 by serine proteases such as thrombin (19) . The difference of five extra NH2-terminal amino acids may decide the effectiveness in induction of chemotaxis or apoptosis. In this study, we observed that the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR derived from endothelial IL-8 is effective to induce apoptosis in leukemic cells such as K562, HL-60, U937, Jurkat, and Daudi cells. Moreover, this peptide displays the ability to inhibit the growth of K562 tumor cells and to induce apoptosis in vivo. It is evident that the NH2-terminal region of endothelial IL-8 corresponding to the peptide AVLPR plays an important role in the induction of apoptosis by endothelial IL-8.
Various short peptide fragments derived from the prohormones proopiomelanocortin and proencephalin A have been studied and described (20) . Methionine enkephalin is a pentapeptide with a variety of functions; it displays an anticancer effect, and it is effective in activation of the immune system (21) . Previous studies have shown that the pentapeptide Glu-Glu-Asp-Cys-Lys (EEDCK) and the peptide acetyl-Ser-Asp-Lys-Pro (acetyl-SDKP) function as negative regulators in normal hematopoietic cells and malignant cells, especially leukemic cells (22 , 23) . In our preliminary experiments, the pentapeptide AVLPR did not inhibit colony formation by hematopoietic stem cells, although the pentapeptide EEDCK and the peptide acetyl-SDKP showed an inhibitory effect on colony formation by stem cells. These findings suggest that the pentapeptide AVLPR may provide us with a new therapy for hematological malignancies.
Recently, it has been demonstrated that vascular cells are important participants in antitumor host defense. The mechanism of the antitumor host defense system associated with vascular cells has not been clarified, although vascular cells expressing nitric oxide synthase in response to stimulation by IFN-γ and TNF-α can kill leukemic cells (24) . Many researchers have discussed the role of angiogenesis in tumor vascularization and tumor metastasis (25) . Tumor cells secrete a metalloproteinase that acts to destroy matrix proteins and to damage endothelial cells, and then they invade extravascular spaces (26) . In our previous study, it was demonstrated that endothelial IL-8 can protect against tumor invasion (3) . This is a novel function of endothelial cells involving tumor cell eradication in the body, mainly via endothelial IL-8. In this system, the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR may be released or produced from endothelial IL-8 and then induce apoptosis in tumor cells. This peptide may have an important role in induction of apoptosis in tumor cells in the bloodstream when they become anchored to endothelial cells.
Surprisingly, in our in vivo experiments, the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR inhibited the growth of K562 cell tumors in the same manner as TNF-α. We demonstrated that TNF-α does not directly suppress cell growth or induce apoptosis in K562 cells, but rather it allows endothelial cells to secrete IL-8, and it can indirectly kill leukemic cells (3) . TNF-α modulates the expression of various biological molecules in endothelial cells (27) . The in vivo effect of TNF-α in killing tumor cells may be explained in terms of both a direct death signal mediated through its receptor and in terms of the indirect release of biological modulators such as endothelial IL-8 from endothelial cells. Therefore, it is possible that the antitumor effect of TNF-α in vivo may be mediated by the secretion of endothelial IL-8 from intratumor endothelial cells, and then the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR may be released from endothelial IL-8. The peptide AVLPR was found to inhibit the growth of K562 cell tumors more strongly than endothelial IL-8. However, angiogenesis for tumor vascularization would aid tumor progression, and tumor cells produce and secrete some endogenous regulators such as endostatin and angiostatin (28 , 29) . In this study, injected TNF-α acted on endothelial cells growing in tumors, and endothelial IL-8 might then be released from endothelial cells.
We noticed that the difference of the quantities of endothelial IL-8 versus pentapeptide administered in the in vivo experiments was a log order of magnitude. This result suggests two possibilities of differences in stability of molecules and affinity to cells. The shorter peptides may not have enough stability to act biologically because of ubiquitous peptidases such as aminopeptidase N (CD13). The pentapeptide AVLPR lost the biological activity to induce apoptosis when only two amino acids of NH2 or COOH terminus were deleted from AVLPR. We need to modify the pentapeptide to stabilize it. There may be some differences in binding characteristics. IL-8 has two major receptors, IL-8RA and IL-8RB, and binds to receptor by its internal sequence ELR (13) , which is the COOH-terminal site of AVLPR. In contrast, binding characteristics of AVLPR have not been clarified yet. AVLPR production from endothelial IL-8 may occur in the cells after internalization of IL-8/IL-8 receptor complex. Therefore, a higher concentration of the pentapeptide AVLPR is needed to induce apoptosis than that of endothelial IL-8.
If we understand how to stimulate the release or production of the NH2-terminal pentapeptide of endothelial IL-8, we may be able to develop a new approach to treatment. In 10 of 12 clinical cases, we have observed that apoptosis was significantly induced in fresh leukemic cells by the NH2-terminal pentapeptide of endothelial IL-8 in vitro. Endothelial IL-8, with five extra NH2-terminal amino acid residues, can induce apoptosis, whereas monocyte-derived IL-8, which lacks them, cannot. Because most IL-8 in blood plasma exists in the form of monocyte-derived IL-8 (30) , which is not effective to induce apoptosis in leukemic cells (2) , this phenomenon may be important in relation to leukemia therapy. In cases of monoblastic leukemia with poor prognosis, a large amount of monocyte-derived IL-8 is released, and this may act as a competitor of endothelial IL-8. VP-16 is well known to be an anticancer agent and an inducer of apoptosis in leukemic cells. When leukemic cells were treated with both 0.1 μm VP-16 and 1.0 mm AVLPR for 48 h, the percentage of apoptotic cells increased as compared with treatment with only 0.1 μm VP-16. This result suggests that the NH2-terminal pentapeptide of endothelial IL-8 can enhance the effect of VP-16 in induction of apoptosis, and it may therefore be clinically promising in combination with VP-16.
Our observations concerning the NH2-terminal pentapeptide AVLPR are consistent with data on endothelial cells as follows; about 15% of the target cells (K562 cells) undergo apoptosis upon treatment with the peptide AVLPR. We separated the whole population of K562 cells into three fractions according to cell cycle phases, i.e., G0-G1 phase, S-phase, and G2-M phase fractions, by means of a counterflow centrifugal elutriation system and then examined the susceptibility of K562 cells in each cell cycle phase to apoptosis induced by AVLPR. This experiment showed that the susceptibility to apoptosis is higher in the G0-G1 phase of the cell cycle than in the S phase or the G2-M phase in the case of K562 cells. In conclusion, endothelial cells involved in a novel apoptotic system have been identified. In this system, release of endothelial IL-8 plays an important role. It is not only a mediator of inflammation, but it also serves as an apoptosis-inducing factor toward leukemic cells, and the NH2-terminal pentapeptide of IL-8 is responsible for the induction of apoptosis and its antitumor effect.
We thank S. Kurokawa and H. Ishikawa for technical assistance.
The costs of publication of this article were defrayed in part by the payment of page charges. This article must therefore be hereby marked advertisement in accordance with 18 U.S.C. Section 1734 solely to indicate this fact.
↵1 This work was supported by a Grant-in-Aid from the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture of Japan; Research on Advanced Medical Technology, from the Ministry of Health and Welfare; a grant for International Health Cooperation Research from the Ministry of Health and Welfare of Japan; the Japanese Foundation for Multidisciplinary Treatment of Cancer; and Mochida Medical and Pharmaceutical Foundation.
↵2 To whom requests for reprints should be addressed, at Department of Hematology, Jichi Medical School, 3311-1 Yakushiji, Minamikawachi, Kawachi, Tochigi 329-04, Japan. Phone: 81-285-58-7353; Fax: 81-285-44-5258; E-mail: kiyohiko{at}jichi.ac.jp
↵3 The abbreviations used are: IL, interleukin; TNF, tumor necrosis factor; TUNEL, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated nick end labeling; VP-16, etoposide.
- Received June 15, 1999.
- Accepted October 1, 1999.
- ©1999 American Association for Cancer Research.


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Raising the stakes on the compact travel stroller scene is the Jet Stroller from Silver Cross. The Jet is an ultra-compact stroller which easily folds down to a compact size so it can be carried on board an aircraft and stored in the overhead compartment on most major airlines. Not only compact, the Jet is light-weight at only 5.9kg.
The Jet easily wheels along with you once it has been folded down, similar to a suitcase. The protective cover ensures travel is fuss-free.
Newborns are comfortable in the deep padded lie-flat seat. Toddlers can also enjoy the jet due to it's roomy and smart design. Suitable up to 18kg.
Stroller Dimensions: 90cm x 45cm x 96cm