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Well, let's see. PEVs have had $120 million thrown at them in California (NRG/eVgo settlement) by the state government in just the past few years for for-profit charging, and will have another $800 million thrown at them over the next 10 (VW settlement) primarily for the same thing, not to mention the $1.2 billion that will be thrown at them in the rest of the U.S. over that period from that same settlement, or the hundreds of millions if not billions that had already been thrown at them over the past 25 years or more (CalSTART etc.) H2 stations are getting a max of $200 million over 10 years in California, although they may be able in future (not in the first $200 million/30 month increment) to get some of the VW settlement money.TonyWilliams wrote:Excellent deduction... Hydrogen just needs tax payer funds thrown at it to "figure out" how to make it cheaper, but an EV that plugs in... no further cost reductions possible (even though it beats both hydrogen and gasoline per mile costs by HUUUUUUuuuuge margins).GRA wrote:Oddly enough, lots of governments and companies around the world disagree that we've gone as far as we can on cost reductions, which is why so much money is being spent on research intended to reduce costs in all three areas. I do agree that there seems to be little room for cost reductions as far as PEV charging, and the only likely way to make for-profit charging equal or less expensive than fossil fuels is to let the utilities do it directly..
Are you sure that you aren't paid by the fossil and hydrogen lobbies?
25 cents per mile and up - Toyota H2 car
10-25 cents per mile typical - Gasoline car
Pennies per mile - EV car
GetOffYourGas wrote:Yes, I follow that thread with great interest. If there is one for trucking (e.g. To-Be-Announced Tesla Semi, Cummings...), I have missed it.
http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=22441AFV Truck and (non-BEV) Bus thread
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2017/09 ... -npmc.htmlBallard, Nisshinbo collaborate to offer first PEM fuel cell using non-precious-metal catalyst
. . . Ballard has successfully incorporated the Non Precious Metal Catalyst into a high performing catalyst layer under a Technology Solutions program and plans to launch a new 30-watt FCgen-1040 fuel cell stack product incorporating NPMC for commercial use in late-2017.
- We are delighted that this collaboration with Nisshinbo has enabled the development of an innovative breakthrough technology to reduce the amount of platinum in an air-cooled fuel cell stack by more than 80%. The NPMC-based FCgen-1040 stack represents a step-change in PEM fuel cell technology with high performance at a reduced cost. Since platinum contributes 10-to-15% of the cost of a fuel cell stack today, we are very excited about the potential cost savings NPMC technology can enable moving forward. . . .
—Dr. Kevin Colbow, Ballard's Vice President – Technology and Product Development. . . .
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2017/09 ... -emec.htmlEMEC produces first hydrogen from tidal energy
. . . EMEC said that this marked the first time that hydrogen has been created from tidal energy.
By harnessing the power of the tide at EMEC's tidal energy test site at the Fall of Warness, Eday, Orkney, prototype tidal energy converters—Scotrenewables' SR2000 and Tocardo's TFS and T2 turbine—fed power into an electrolyzer supplied by ITM Power situated next to EMEC's onshore substation. The electrolyzer is housed in a standard 20' by 10' ISO container with hydrogen generation capacity of up to 220 kg/24 hours. . . .
The system's principal component, a 0.5MW polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) electrolyzer, comes with integrated compression and up to 500kg of storage.
The Surf 'n' Turf project will see the electrolyzer producing hydrogen using electricity from EMEC's test site as well as power from a 900kW Enercon wind turbine owned by the Eday community. The hydrogen will then be transported to Kirkwall, where a fuel cell installed on the pier will convert the hydrogen back into electricity for use as auxiliary power for ferries when tied up overnight. The project is also developing a training programme with a view to green hydrogen eventually being used as a fuel source on the inter-island ferries themselves.
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2017/09 ... llard.htmlBallard receives Nisshinbo P.O. for development program to advance use of non-precious metal catalyst fuel cells in material handling
Also GCC:. . . As announced last week, we are interested in exploring uses for the NPMC-based product for various commercial applications. Building on the new FCgen-1040 stack, which we plan to launch in late-2017, we are starting a program to assess the potential incorporation of Non Precious Metal Catalyst technology into our existing FCgen-1020 air-cooled stack as well as our next-generation liquid-cooled stack. With this purchase order from Nisshinbo, a new multi-year Technology Solutions program will be initiated to work on this challenging next-step.
Both air-cooled and liquid-cooled fuel cell stacks are used to power fork lift equipment in the field. Our goal is to ultimately implement lower-cost NPMC-based air-cooled and liquid-cooled stacks into certain mobility applications, with an initial focus on the material handling space, where blue-chip brands such as Walmart and Amazon have demonstrated the strong value proposition offered by current fuel cell-powered forklift trucks operating in high throughput distribution center environments.
—Dr. Kevin Colbow, Ballard's Vice President – Technology and Product
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2017/09 ... 18-go.htmlOntario seeking design concepts for hydrogen-powered regional rail trains
I'd think that for a high-density, high-frequency service like this, overhead rail would be cheaper. H2/FC is most likely to win out on cost grounds on low traffic density routes (such as across Canada's western plains), where the cost of building and maintaining all the overhead-wire infrastructure could outweigh the extra costs of the H2/FC combo. It will be interesting to see the conclusions and cost breakdowns when the study is complete.The Canadian province of Ontario is electrifying its GO rail network to transform how people move around the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA), and is seeking design concepts for hydrogen-powered trains as an alternative to conventional overhead wires. A division of Metrolinx, GO Transit is the regional public transit service for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area. . . .
As part of planning the electrification, Ontario is undertaking a feasibility study on the use of hydrogen fuel cells.
Recent advances in the use of hydrogen fuel cells to power electric trains in other jurisdictions makes it important that Ontario consider this clean electric technology as an alternative to conventional overhead wires. The Hydrogen Rail (Hydrail) Feasibility Study will inform a decision on how Ontario will proceed with the electrification of GO rail services.
A number of rail vehicle manufacturers will be commissioned to prepare designs and to demonstrate the impact that incorporating hydrogen fuel cells into bi-level trains would have on the performance of the GO rail network. This work is an important part of studying the feasibility of hydrail. . . .
Ontario is investing $21.3 billion to transform GO Transit from a commuter transit service to a regional rapid transit system. The Hydrail Feasibility Study is anticipated to be complete by the end of 2017, with a decision on electrification technology to follow.
The province has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for concept design work to show how a hydrogen fuel cell system could be integrated into a Bi-level Electric Multiple Unit (EMU) train.
An EMU train is an electric-powered train consisting of multiple self-propelled carriages linked together. An EMU does not require a separate locomotive, as electric motors are incorporated in each carriage. Examples of EMUs currently in service include the Heathrow Flyer in the UK, the AGV in France and the TTC's Toronto Rocket subway trains.
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2017/09 ... 0-p2g.htmlNavigant forecasts transportation demand for hydrogen to accelerate Power-to-Gas growth
Direct link to Navigant report: https://www.navigantresearch.com/resear ... ntegrationNavigant Research forecasts that the transportation segment, with hydrogen demand as a catalyst, will jump-start power-to-gas (P2G) demand and further drive down electrolyzer and other infrastructure costs.
P2G—the conversion of electrical power into gaseous energy carriers—has been held back from mass adoption by high costs, regulatory hurdles, and difficulties with infrastructure. However, Navigant suggests, as the levelized cost of renewable energy falls and as electrolyzer technologies improve and decline in price, P2G business models are taking shape.
Navigant notes that P2G offers benefits to the electric grid through the integration of renewable energy sources. By ramping production up or down from a 50% setpoint, a P2G plant can emulate a load or generator from the grid's perspective—thus ramping and smoothing renewables power output and time-shifting energy supply on a scale from hours to months. . . .
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2017/09 ... panh2.htmlReport: Japan to ease regulations on H2 fueling stations to cut setup and operating costs in half
It seems that japan's retail H2 regs are currently much more restrictive and costly than those in the U.S. or most European countries. In a country as addicted to tech as Japan, it's bizarre that they use a human being to record data that can and is easily done electronically.The Nikkei reports that the Japanese government will ease regulations on hydrogen refueling stations, with the goal of making the refueling points less costly to set up and to operate in the hope of spurring the adoption of fuel cell vehicles.
As of the end of August, Japan had 91 hydrogen stations in operation. The government aims to have 160 up and running by fiscal 2020 and to have 320 by fiscal 2025.
- Setting up a hydrogen station costs 400 million yen to 500 million yen ($3.5 million to $4.4 million), and operating one costs 40 million yen to 50 million yen per year, according to METI. The body aims to have both setup and operating costs slashed in half by 2020 through development of lower-cost facilities and loosened regulations. . . .
One step in the regulatory easing will be lowering operating costs by loosening the requirements for station supervisors. Those supervisors currently must have experience at a facility that handles hydrogen, but in the future, experience with natural gas and other high-pressure gases will suffice, according to the report.
Stations will also no longer be required to have an employee who takes down cars' license plates and keeps track of who buys hydrogen, a change that should cut labor costs.
METI will also reevaluate safety standards by fiscal 2019, incorporating the latest technology and knowledge to avoid overly strict rules.
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2017/09 ... roton.htmlProton OnSite additional electrolyzer order as part of $22M deal; green hydrogen for fuel cell buses in China
andProton OnSite, a wholly owned subsidiary of Nel ASA, received an order for the fourth M Series, Megawatt scale hydrogen electrolyzers in a thirteen M Series delivery agreement with Guangdong Synergy Hydrogen Power Technology Co., Ltd. (Synergy). (Earlier post.)
The original agreement between Proton OnSite and Synergy for 13 PEM megawatt systems, and naming Proton as the exclusive supplier of electrolyzers to Synergy, has a total value including installation and associated services of just over US$22 million. Installations and commissioning of the remaining units are planned for Q4, 2017 and through CY 2018. . . .
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2017/09 ... ton-1.htmlProton OnSite, Nel Hydrogen receive $8.3M hydrogen electrolyzer fueling station contract
See http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.p ... it#p492332 and http://www.mynissanleaf.com/viewtopic.p ... it#p499806 for details of the bus deal and FC supplier (Ballard).Proton Onsite and Nel Hydrogen Solutions, divisions of Nel ASA, have received a purchase order of US$8.3 million on a combined hydrogen PEM electrolyzer and H2Station fueling solution for SunLine Transit Agency (SunLine) in California. The combined solution will have a hydrogen capacity of up to 900 kg per day, making it the world's largest combined hydrogen production and fueling facility currently being contracted.
SunLine will use the solution for fueling of their growing fleet of fuel cell electric buses operating in the Palm Springs area in California.
The facility will be delivered turn-key, consisting of one Proton PEM M400 electrolyzer, and two H2Station units from Nel. Expected delivery and installation is during 2018. . . .
The project is supported by the Californian Air Resources Board (CARB) under the California Climate Investments (CCI) program.
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2017/09 ... linde.htmlLinde submits LCFS pathway application for compressed H2 from natural gas reforming
. . . The hydrogen is liquefied at a facility in Ontario, California, then re-gasified and compressed at Linde refueling stations.
Linde is basing its application on three months of electricity use data at two Linde hydrogen fueling stations. The company is requesting a provisional carbon intensity (CI) of 165.88 gCO2e/MJ for the proposed pathway. The CI value is based on lifecycle analysis conducted using the CA-GREET 2.0 Tier 2 model.
The well-to-wheel (WTW) fuel cycle analysis includes the production of liquid H2 at the Praxair facility in Ontario, California; transportation to the Linde stations; and compression at the fuel stations.
The proposed CI for this particular pathway is higher than other pathways for natural gas reforming to hydrogen, which range from from 105.13 to 151.01 gCO2e/MJ. As a contrast, the production of hydrogen from landfill gas can have a negative CI, while H2 production via electrolysis using renewable energy can have a CI of zero.


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Well, we're here. For so long, the Caps have been hunting the Hurricanes like the great whale of yore (or Hartford). We found a fan who knows something about hunting whales, too, for some insight on the matter. Sir, your name?
"Call me Ishmael."
OK...Ishmael. The Caps have been chasing the Hurricanes for most of the last few months. I take it you have some experience of your own in chasing down the beast. Any advice?
"Aye, aye! It was that accursed white whale that razeed me; made a poor pegging lubber of me for ever and a day!... an' what you have to say is, 'I'll chase him round Good Hope, and round the Horn, and round the Norway Maelstrom, and round perdition's flames before I give him up.'"
"It smells like the left wing of the day of judgment."
But now that we're finally here, it seems the boys have not yet reached their goal. They have to finish the job, isn't that right? After so long on the hunt, what do you say to your enemy?
"Towards thee I roll, thou all-destroying but unconquering whale...uh, Hurricane; to the last I grapple with thee; from hell's heart I stab at thee; for hate's sake I spit my last breath at thee."
You seem to have some anger issues, there, Ish...
"Yeah, well...I used to be a Whaler fan."
Like two fighters that have been eyeing one another for months before the inevitable match, so these two teams have been circling about one another for the past two months. Since February 1st, they've been inching toward this, the first of two games that will settle the Southeast Division matter and go a long way to determining whether one or two Southeast teams (at least the second club being the Capitals) make the playoffs. The tale of the tape since February 1st:
Each are surprising in their own right. The Capitals have done it without their captain (Chris Clark), top center (Michael Nylander), and a top-four defenseman (Brian Pothier). The Hurricanes have done it without their captain and Mr. Everything – Rod Brind'Amour (out since February 14th), Mr. Underrated – Ray Whitney (out since February 28th), and Justin Williams (30 points in 36 games when he went out on December 20th.
But what
Sergei Samsonov was left for the NHL equivalent of dead. After a 29-41-70 season with
He was. On January 8th, Samsonov found himself in
There was the trade of forward Andrew Ladd to
As for consequential, there was the trade of Cory Stillman and Mike Commodore to
But losing a player of Brind'Amour's skill and leadership, and Whitney's steady contributions isn't necessarily the kind of thing one can address completely via trade. Someone had to step up. Eric Staal has done that, going 8-19-27, +5 in 22 games since the beginning of February. More to the point, he is 7-18-25, +9 in 16 games since Brind'Amour went down.
In goal, the Hurricanes have put their season on the back of Cam Ward. Ward has not been spectacular as much as he has been steady – 14-5-1, 2.56, .911 since the beginning of February. Only four times in 21 appearances has Ward allowed more than three goals. The word that comes to mind in looking at Ward's performance since February 1st is "dependable." For a team that is averaging a little better than three goals-per-game over this stretch, that kind of performance is completely in line with
Thus far this year, the Caps have not been especially successful against
Record: 2-4-0
Goals for/against: 14/19
Power play: 8/30 (26.7%)
Penalty killing: 24/31 (77.4%)
The Caps have had an especially hard time in
For the Caps, there is also key information to be mined in Ward's statistics. He has those four games in which he's allowed four or more goals. He lost all of them in regulation, and in three of them gave up at least two goals in the first period (twice he gave up four).This is a game the Caps have been pointing to for weeks. There is the possibility that after so long anticipating such a match, an egg will be laid. Well, eggs go nicely with pork products, and there is that mascot for the Hurricanes. Rather than laying an egg, we're seeing "pulled pork"...
Caps 5 - Hurricanes 3

subset: commoncrawl


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Sapphire's eagerly awaited Pure Black X58 will cost around £210, with the much-anticipated motherboard landing in the next couple of weeks.
Sapphire's mobo builds on the company's graphics card expertise, and is pitched firmly at the enthusiast.
The board supports the Intel Core i7 processor, as well as all the modern bits of kit that are making enthusiasts a bit weak at the knees.
Stick it in
That includes USB 3.0, SATA 6Gbps, six dual channel DDR3 memory slots, 3 gen 2 and one gen 1 PCI-E expansion slots and all the ports you could shake your USB stick collection at.
Hell, it's even got an ol' school IDE port for those legacy HDDs in your collection.
With Sapphire's ATI/AMD heritage though don't expect any SLI certification...
Of course, overclockers are set to be catered for as well – with stable power sections, solid capacitors and Sapphire's Diamond Black chokes.
The price tag is obviously pretty high, but Sapphire has brought in experts from EVGA's old motherboard team to try and make it worth your while. If you're looking for a top-end Intel board then this may just be for you.
Check out TechRadar's in-depth Sapphire Pure Black X58 motheboard review.


text:
Not much time to post tonight, but I wanted to post this photo of motorcycles taking off (in motion) away from me yesterday morning. Can't wait to buy my own.
This entry was posted on October 12, 2012 by darthbergen. It was filed under Uncategorized and was tagged with Jakarta, Jakarta Selatan, Kemang, Life, Motion, people, Photo, Photo Friday, Photograph, photography, Photos, Pictures, Random, Transportation.
Damn, my spelling so here I do again – Good shot you did there and the title is becoming. Will teach me to proof read before "enter" 😀
October 12, 2012 at 5:02 pm
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1 Products
Milk Frothers
Using a unique patent-pending frothing disk, the Capresso milk frother creates the perfect frothing action by gently but quickly whipping as much air as possible into the milk while heating it to one of three temperature settings: hot, warm or cold. No longer do you have to practice the art of frothing milk with a steaming wand; simply add milk to the pitcher, press a button and the frother does all the work for you. To heat milk without froth, simply replace the frothing disk at the bottom of the pitcher with the flat heating disk and the machine will stir the milk while it is being heated to prevent scalding. The heating disk is perfect to warm milk for lattes, hot chocolate or for cooking. You can even use the cold setting for making cold froth for an authentic iced cappuccino or for incorporating powdered mixes together.


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Environment isolation prevents resource types from leaking between your various environments.
If you use multiple environments with Puppet, you might encounter issues with multiple versions of the same resource type leaking between your various environments on the master. This doesn't happen with built-in resource types, but it can happen with any other resource types.
This problem occurs because Ruby resource type bindings are global in the Ruby runtime. The first loaded version of a Ruby resource type takes priority, and then subsequent requests to compile in other environments get that first-loaded version. Environment isolation solves this issue by generating and using metadata that describes the resource type implementation, instead of using the Ruby resource type implementation, when compiling catalogs.
Enable environment isolation with Puppet
To use environment isolation, generate metadata files that Puppet can use instead of the default Ruby resource type implementations.
- On the command line, run
puppet generate types --environment <ENV_NAME>for each of your environments. For example, to generate metadata for your production environment, run:
puppet generate types --environment production
- Whenever you deploy a new version of Puppet, overwrite previously generated metadata by running
puppet generate types --environment <ENV_NAME> --force
Enable environment isolation with r10k
To use environment isolation with r10k, generate types for each environment every time r10k deploys new code.
- To generate types with
r10k, use one of the following methods:
Modify your existing r10k hook to run the
generate typescommand after code deployment.
Create and use a script that first runs r10k for an environment, and then runs
generate typesas a post run command.
- If you have enabled environment-level purging in
r10k, whitelist the
resource_typesfolder so that r10k does not purge it.
Troubleshoot environment isolation
If the
generate types command cannot generate certain types, if the type generated has missing or inaccurate information, or if the generation itself has errors or fails, you will get a catalog compilation error of "type not found" or "attribute not found."
- To fix catalog compilation errors:
- Ensure that your Puppet resource types are correctly implemented. In addition to implementation errors, check for types with title patterns that contain a proc or a lambda, as these types cannot be generated. Refactor any problem resource types.
- Regenerate the metadata by removing the environment's
.resource_typesdirectory and running the
generate typescommand again.
- If you continue to get catalog compilation errors, disable environment isolation to help you isolate the error.
- To disable environment isolation in open source Puppet:
- Remove the
generate typescommand from any r10k hooks.
- Remove the
- Remove the
- To disable environment isolation in Puppet Enterprise (PE):
- In
/etc/puppetlabs/puppetserver/conf.d/pe-puppet-server.conf, remove the
- In Hiera, set
puppet_enterprise::master::puppetserver::pre_commit_hook_commands: []
- On the command line, run
service pe-puppetserver reload
- Delete the
.resource_typesdirectories from your staging code directory,
- Deploy the environments.
- In
generate types command
When you run the
generate types command, it scans the entire environment for resource type implementations, excluding core
Puppet resource types.
generate types command accepts the following options:
--environment <ENV_NAME>: The environment for which to generate metadata. If you do not specify this argument, the metadata is generated for the default environment (
--force: Use this flag to overwrite all previously generated metadata.
For each resource type implementation it finds, the command generates a corresponding metadata file, named after the resource type, in the
<env-root>/.resource_types directory.
It also syncs the files in the
.resource_types directory so that:
Types that have been removed in modules are removed from
Types that have been added are added to
Types that have not changed (based on timestamp) are kept as is.
Types that have changed (based on timestamp) are overwritten with freshly generated metadata.
The generated metadata files, which have a
.pp extension, exist in the code directory. If you are using
Puppet Enterprise with Code Manager and file sync, these files appear in both the staging and live code directories. The generated files are read-only. Do not delete them, modify them, or use expressions from them in manifests.


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Google lawyer: Why the patent system is broken
Lax grants to rights has led to tangled legal wars, he says
Google stands at the center of the escalating mobile patent wars, as the developer of the Android operating system that triggered scores of lawsuits and countersuits.
Depending on whom you ask, the company is either the high-minded adult in the debate du jour over intellectual property - or a blatant patent thief.
In an interview with The Chronicle, Google's patent counsel, Tim Porter, argues that the system itself is broken.
For too long, the patent office granted protection to broad, vague or unoriginal ideas masquerading as inventions. That inevitably led to the legal dramas now unfolding, he said.
There's certainly no question that the Mountain View online giant's smart-phone software has been hugely successful. By offering a free operating system, it enabled companies like HTC, Motorola and Samsung to deliver devices that could compete with Apple's breakthrough gadgets.
Android now claims 43 percent of the smart-phone operating system market, compared with 28 percent for the iPhone and 18 percent for RIM's BlackBerry, according to a recent Nielsen report.
But companies including Oracle, Apple and Microsoft all claim that Android is built on technology protected by their patents. Oracle sued Google outright. Apple and Microsoft have gone after the companies using the software, demanding injunctions against selling devices or licensing fees.
More recently, the battlefront shifted to patent portfolios, as the major players scrambled to buy up intellectual-property holdings of companies like Novell and Nortel. Google was dramatically outbid on the Nortel portfolio by a group including Apple, Microsoft and RIM.
That deal prompted regulatory scrutiny - and excoriation from Google.
In an unusually heated blog post, the company claimed that its competitors were "banding together" to impose a "tax" on Android with "dubious patents." More broadly, it argued that intellectual property is now being used to squelch rather than promote innovation.
In the interview, Porter explained that the perpetual wrangling is sucking up time and resources that would otherwise go toward pushing this technology forward and developing the next disruptive inventions.
Q:Let's talk about Microsoft. They sued at least one of your Android partners and have pressured others into licensing agreements, arguing that they have patents that cover critical parts of the software. What do you make of that?
A: Unfortunately, the way it works is you don't know what patents cover until courts declare that in litigation. What that means is people have to make decisions about whether to fight or whether to reach agreements.
This is a tactic that Microsoft has used in the past, with Linux, for example. When their products stop succeeding in the marketplace, when they get marginalized, as is happening now with Android, they use the large patent portfolio they've built up to get revenue from the success of other companies' products.
Q:Google has said these lawsuits and tactics are a threat to innovation. Do you think the uptake or development of Android has slowed because of these issues?
A: I don't think we've seen that happen yet. But the concern is that the more people get distracted with litigation, the less they'll be inventing.
You can look at the development of the software industry and see a point when (software wasn't being patented) and it was a period of intense innovation. You didn't see Microsoft's first software patent until 1988. By that time it had come out with Word, not to mention DOS.
So there's just no question you can look back and see that innovation happens without patents. It's also true that since there weren't patents, there wasn't software patent litigation.
Q:The obvious next question is: Do you think software should be patentable?
A: I think the question is whether the current system makes sense. During the period I talked about, software was protected by copyright and other legal protections. There are certainly arguments those are more appropriate.
But I think what many people can agree on is the current system is broken and there are a large number of software patents out there fueling litigation that resulted from a 10- or 15-year period when the issuance of software patents was too lax.
Things that seemed obvious made it through the office until 2007, when the Supreme Court finally said that the patent examiners could use common sense.
Patents were written in a way that was vague and overly broad. (Companies are) trying to claim something that's really an idea (which isn't patentable). There are only so many ways to describe a piston, but software patents are written by lawyers in a language that software engineers don't even understand.
They're being used to hinder innovation or skim revenue off the top of a successful product.
Q:Apple has also sued some of your partners, including HTC and Samsung. Back in September, Google sold a handful of patents to HTC, which it turned around and used to sue Apple. Was that use part of Google's rationale for the sale?
A: We've said in the past that we aggressively stand behind our partners and want to defend the Android ecosystem. I think that transaction was definitely part of that.
Q:So where should the line be drawn? How, in legal terms, do we define what's an innovation worth protection and what's just fodder for patent trolling?
A: Really, the challenge that's facing the courts and patent office and all of us is to put some teeth (in the law) and use common sense, like the Supreme Court said in 2007. The legal system should say you shouldn't patent something that's obvious.
What we have to do is have real standards for what is patentable. Patents are supposed to be a form of property. The property system doesn't work if you don't have clear boundaries.
Also, at the end of the day, damages, injunctions and remedies have to be proportional to the value of the invention. Very often, what is fueling patent-troll lawsuits is the ability to go into court and seek astronomical damages based on what any rational person would consider a minor component of the product.
Q:In my recent interview with Horacio Gutiérrez, Microsoft's patent attorney, he characterized the current tangle of lawsuits as unfortunate, but a normal historic event that follows disruptive technologies. What's your take on that?
A: Microsoft was our age when it got its first software patent. I don't think they experienced this kind of litigation in a period when they were disrupting the established order. So I don't think it's historically inevitable.
The period of intense patent assertions (against things like the steam engine) resulted in decades-long periods of stagnation. Innovation only took off when the patents expired.
So what I think we're hoping to avoid is this intense focus on litigation to the degree that we all stop innovating.
Q:Google has attempted to buy a few patent portfolios, including Nortel's. Can you talk about the goal of these sorts of acquisitions? Has this become a sort of nuclear standoff, where you can only prevent getting blown up when there's mutually assured destruction?
A: It's fair to say that one of the most effective ways to respond to a threatened patent assertion is to be able to assert patents of your own.
Google is a relatively young company, and we have a smaller patent portfolio than many others. So it's certainly true that part of our intent in buying these portfolios is to increase our ability to protect ourselves when people assert patents against us or our partners.
Dot-commentary runs Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Follow @jtemple on Twitter or e-mail firstname.lastname@example.com.


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This Just In: COMSOL Multiphysics 4.3b
We've been dropping hints for the past few weeks here on the blog, and the time has finally come when we can officially unveil the release of COMSOL Multiphysics 4.3b. Five new products extend our product suite, and there are plenty of new features to enhance your simulation experience. The latest version of COMSOL Multiphysics is here, and you do not want to miss out on the news.
COMSOL Multiphysics 4.3b Adds Five New Products
Over the past several weeks on the blog, we've identified difficulties in simulating problems within wave optics, molecular flow, and electrochemistry, and highlighted the need for the ability to model multibody dynamics and semiconductor applications. You didn't think we were going to leave it at that, did you?
With the release of COMSOL Multiphysics 4.3b, we bring the solutions to these problems for you, via five new application-specific modules:
- Multibody Dynamics Module
- Wave Optics Module
- Molecular Flow Module
- Semiconductor Module
- Electrochemistry Module
Learn all about these brand new additions to our product line on the COMSOL Multiphysics 4.3b Release Highlights page.
These New Features Will Help Make Your Job Easier
New simulation capabilities and enhancements have been added across all application areas, from our base package to the multipurpose tools, and each module in between.
Some of the new features include:
- COMSOL Multiphysics and LiveLink Products:
- 2D modeling work planes from 3D CAD cross sections
- Curvilinear Coordinates interface for curved geometric shapes
- Increased automation for swept meshing
- File locking
- One Window for LiveLink™ for Inventor®
- Export material data from Excel® to your material library
- Fluid:
- Frozen rotor for rotating machinery in CFD
- SST Turbulence model and an upgraded CFD solver
- Thin screens for CFD applications
- Mechanical:
- Multi-wavelength heat radiation
- Heat transfer with phase change
- Thermal contact
- Electrical:
- New magnetics solver
- Periodic structures for electromagnetic waves
- Chemical:
- Thin impermeable barrier
- Multipurpose:
- Optimization study node includes gradient-based and gradient-free methods
- Control which model a material is added to
- Velocity reinitialization and Monte Carlo elastic collisions in particle tracing
The Release Highlights page contains a full and detailed list of the new capabilities released with COMSOL Multiphysics 4.3b.
Want to learn more about COMSOL Multiphysics 4.3b?
We will continue to cover the new add-on modules as well as the extended capabilities of our software on the blog — be sure to check back often. There are also many other ways for you to learn more about the latest release. For one, we are hosting a webinar introducing COMSOL Multiphysics 4.3b on May 14th. In the meantime, you're also advised to browse the Release Highlights page, watch the release video, and check out the press release.
Don't forget to share these updates with your colleagues and friends — and let us know how you like the release, too. We'd love to hear from you in the comments section below and on our social media pages!
Comments (2)
Pavel DergachevMay 4, 2013
Stunningly )))
SaeidSMay 8, 2013
- Chemical
- COMSOL Now
- Electrical
- Fluid
- General
- Interfacing
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- Today in Science


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HyperGrammar2 is a self-teaching tool designed to help you improve your knowledge of English grammar, spelling, punctuation and capitalization.
This tool is an adaptation of HyperGrammar, a self-teaching software developed by the Department of English at the University of Ottawa.
Note: HyperGrammar2 is available in English only. However, a similar writing tool, Le Bellerive, is available in French.
© Public Works and Government Services Canada, 2020
TERMIUM Plus®, the Government of Canada's terminology and linguistic data bank
Writing tools – HyperGrammar2
A product of the Translation Bureau


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Black Embossed Jewelry Boxes
Impress your customers and supply them with a classy, simple box that is available in a range of sizes sure to fit all kinds of jewelry. The wrap contains 30% recycled content and has FSC/SFI certified fibers.
* Disclaimer: Sold out items will be removed from the website, however delays can occur. We will contact you if an item is sold out and cannot be filled on your order. Closeout items cannot be returned. Due to color variations in monitors and printers, including settings and lighting, actual color may vary. For a true color representation, please call 888.429.5673 or email email@example.com for actual sample(s).


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Relationships with
Photo Credit: Katherine Moennig's picture is courtesy of The L Word Online. Photographic illustrations of Katherine Moennig are copyright © by their respective holders. The images are published with permission or as allowed by the copyright law's fair use or quotation provisions. If any copyright holder objects to an image being included, please notify us and it will be removed immediately.
Disclaimer: This information about Katherine Moennig is derived from astrological interpretation of Katherine Moennig's date, time, and place of birth.


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GiliSoft Video Converter 10.0.0 Portable | 22.8 MB
GiliSoft Video Converter is easy, fast, reliable, and loaded with features. It's capable of converting videos of all popular formats like AVI, MPEG, WMV, DivX, MP4, H.264/AVC, AVCHD, MKV, RM, MOV, XviD, 3GP, and audio MP3, WMA, WAV, RA, M4A, AAC, AC3, OGG. Now you can convert video, audio, andanimated images to play on your PSP, PS3, iPod, iPhone, Apple TV, Xbox, Google phones, iPad and other digital multimedia devices.
Features and Benefits:
*Convert video to video
Convert videos various formats;
Convert HD videos to common formats;
Converted video are compatible with iPad, iPod, iPhone, PSP, PS3, Android phones, etc.
*Convert video to audio
Extract audio from video as m4a, wma, wav, mp3, aac, ac3, ape, mka, ogg, etc;
*Convert audio to audio
Convert audios to various formats;
*Cut/trim video
Trim your video files to convert your favorite movie clips;
*Cut/trim audio
*Crop Video
Crop video to create ideal video with different screen size;
*Rotate Video
*Add watermark to Video
Add either text or image as watermark to coin and color your video files;
*Add subtitle to Video
Add and edit subtitle with .MKV as source file and plug-in subtitle in SRT format to your video.
*Preview and capture pictures
*Edit videos freely as you wish
Set video brightness, contrast, saturation and volume as you like.
*Advanced setting and optimized profiles
Configure output video/audio settings such as Resolution, Frame Rate, Encoder, Sample Rate, and Bit Rate to produce exactly the wanted video/audio for mobile devices;
Home Page –
Download Via RapidGator
Download Via Uploadednet


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This Q400 of the regional subsidiary of Poland's LOT sports a special livery promoting the Carpathian foothills as a vacation destination
MicroMiles Credit: Purchasing this product will give you 20.95 MicroMiles - currently valued at 0.84
Release info:
New Releases November-December, now available for pre-order.
For more information, please visit this products webpage.
For other countries click here!
disclaimer: Description and pictures may be different from the delivered product. Pictures are always from pre-production samples. MicroWings is not responsible for the correctness of this information. If you need to know the exact registration number of the model that will be delivered, please contact us before your purchase.
< € 150: -10%
From € 150: -20%
From € 250: -25%
From € 500: -30%
From € 1000: -40%
(discount will be applied at checkout)
Take advantage of these discounts to complete your collection!


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The Livestock Marketing Information Center (LMIC) has provided economic analysis and projections about issues and conditions concerning the livestock industry since 1955. Center resources contribute to economic education, support applied research projects and policy evaluation. The LMIC is a unique cooperative effort between state university extension specialists, USDA economists, industry cooperators and Center staff.
The following information can be accessed through the Livestock Marketing Report :
- Market Situation and Analysis
- Prices and Production
- Key Graphs
- Quick Market Reports
April 7, 2016 — LMIC Analysis and Comments — Sheep and Lamb Market: 2015 Review and 2016 Outlook


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Will security video reveal identity of thief after $1 million closet heist?
Investigators in the Woodlands are again studying surveillance footage of a burglar who broke into America's most famous closet and stole around $1 million of designer bags, jewelry and watches.
The three story, 3,000 square foot "she cave" that homeowner Theresa Roemer showed off on Good Morning America less than two weeks ago was burglarized, Friday, leaving the mammoth homage to all things girlie plastered all over the news once again, but for the wrong reasons.
"You're just numb," said Roemer Saturday as she surveyed the scene of devastation in her once perfect closet, "How can this happen? I live in a gated community with all this protection?" she said.
That's exactly what investigators are trying to figure out today as they scour security video collected from the house Friday. The tape may be released to the press later but early descriptions suggest it shows exactly how it happened.
"The video shows one suspect inside the residence wearing a jumpsuit and gloves," said Brady Fitzgerald of Montgomery County Sheriff's Office, confirming that the suspect spent almost an hour inside relaying items worth tens of thousands of dollars back outside.
"Deputies discovered forced entry through a bathroom window," Fitzgerald went on, revealing a simple break in.
A burglar alarm fitted to the house did not sound because, as Roemer herself admits, it had not been set. The couple, who had just stepped out for dinner at the local country club, also neglected to lock the glass door which is designed to secure the closet with all their valuables safe inside.
Security experts say the intruder probably realized the alarm was off as soon as the window was broken.
"Most home alarms are not silent," said Chris McGoey of Crimedoctor.com, "If they enter a home and they don't hear an alarm they assume it's not set .. I think they took a risk."
MSCO confirmed Saturday that they did not receive an alarm call and said if they had it would have taken only a matter of minutes for them to get to the property on Grand Regency in the Carlton Woods gated community.
"We do patrol in Carlton Woods, county deputies have access to all the gates," Fitzgerald said.
Today the Roemer's are picking up the pieces in their lavish 20,000 square foot home and don't hold out much hope the security video will lead to the identification of the thief who may have been plotting his attack since the day the designer goods treasure trove appeared on TV.
"It doesn't show anything, he was covered up, he knew he was on video," Roemer said Monday.
Crime scene investigators did swab for DNA and fingerprint evidence but it is likely an arrest may depend on someone "ratting him out," according to security expert McGoey, or someone catching an attempt to sell unique items in a public place.
"We're getting an inventory together," said Roemer, "So the police can start checking on eBay."


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Veterinary Technician
- San Francisco, CA
Credentialed Veterinary Technician Careers at Banfield Pet Hospital
Our Vet Techs work alongside pet health care industry experts with the chance to make a difference in the lives of pets and the clients we serve through skilled veterinary knowledge and effective communications. As a Banfield Veterinary Tech, you will have the opportunity to put your love of pets to work in a career with a growing company that offers a clear career path if continued growth and learning is your goal.
Job Description Summary: The primary purpose and function of the Veterinary Technician is to support veterinarians in ensuring quality veterinary care, advocating for pets and educating clients.
Employment Type: Full-Time
Required Education/Licenses: Veterinary Technician Certification or Licensure (CVT, RVT, LVT, and LVMT)
A Day in the Life of a Banfield Veterinary Technician
Vet Techs may have just a single job title, but in fact they fill many important roles as they move throughout their day in the hospital. They are an integral part of an effective team and support our hospitals by:
- Acting as the extra eyes, ears and hands for the veterinarian to ensure the best quality pet care and to maximize the veterinarian's productivity.
- Assisting veterinarians and veterinary medical teams through the day-to-day function of the hospital and communicating with the team to maintain the flow of patients.
- Assisting with surgery and using your technical skills to the fullest, within state practice acts regarding duties of credentialed veterinary technicians.
- Communicating with clients about unique pet health concerns and offering guidance on Optimum Wellness Plan® options, preventive care, medications, and other treatments.
- Obtaining relevant information and history from clients and maintaining proper and complete medical charts to benefit individual clients and the pet owner community as a whole.
- Using safe restraining techniques, following standard protocols and maintaining clean, sterile and organized treatment areas, exam rooms and labs.
- Mentoring other team members.
Commitment Beyond Qualifications
Being a Vet Tech requires AVMA certified credentials, skill, dedication and a desire for continuing education, but most importantly, a passion for animals and caring for them. We aim to hire and develop Vet Techs who believe preventive care is the key to achieving a long and healthy life for each pet.
Like all associates, we look to our Vet Techs to embrace our Five Principles - Quality, Responsibility, Mutuality, Efficiency and Freedom. As much as we value on-paper qualifications, we actively seek out Vet Techs who thrive on delivering outstanding client and pet experiences. At Banfield, we take pride in hiring passionate Vet Techs who:
- Utilize high quality medical skills
- Educate clients on all aspects of pet health
- Advocate for the wellness of pets
- Contribute to an engaging hospital environment and positive team dynamic
Caring for Those Who Care: Benefits for Banfield Veterinary Technicians
Our approach to rewarding our vet techs includes programs for both personal wellness and professional development. As the world's largest veterinary practice, Banfield is uniquely positioned to offer a wide array of benefits and programs that help you take care of yourself and your family, as well as care for pets.
Personal Health, Savings, and Wellness Benefits
All Vet Techs receive competitive salaries in addition to a number of savings, health, and insurance benefits, ranging from 401(k) participation to Optimum Wellness Plans® for your pets. In addition, medical, vision, dental, life and disability insurance is offered to associates based on eligibility. Because pet health care can be stressful at times, we also offer a number of work-life balance benefits and programs including paid vacation that help you balance your life in the hospital and your life at home.
Potential as Big as Your Passion
Whether you are a newly certified or an experienced Vet Tech, a job at Banfield opens the door to exploring the next best move in your career. We are committed to helping Vet Techs grow by providing:
- Performance development plans designed to help you define and achieve your career goals
- Practice-paid continuing education opportunities
- Vet Tech networking opportunities
- Opportunities to lend your skills to the communities you serve and live in
A Support Structure That Helps You Thrive
We've created a structure that includes leadership and support at the hospital level, in the field and at our Corporate headquarters, all with one goal in mind: to help you focus on delivering quality care for all pets.
Together we are a team, making a real impact on pet health care in hospitals, communities and the field of veterinary medicine.
Start your Banfield Career as a Veterinary Technician
Learn more about the impact you can make as part of a Banfield hospital team and see how we support the wellness of our people and profession.
View the official job description or if you're ready to make your move, apply today!
Banfield Pet Hospital® strongly supports and values the uniqueness of all individuals and promotes a work environment where diversity is embraced. Banfield Pet Hospital is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, genetic information, status as a protected veteran, or status as a qualified individual with disability. Banfield Pet Hospital complies with all applicable federal, state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every Banfield location.
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Policy on accessible education for students with disabilities
The Ontario Human Rights Code recognizes the importance of creating a climate of understanding and mutual respect for the dignity and worth of each person, so that each person can contribute fully to the development and well-being of the community and the Province. The Code guarantees the right to equal treatment in education, without discrimination on the ground of disability, as part of the protection for equal treatment in services.
This Policy replaces the Guidelines on accessible education (2004).


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I'm talking about a bank in GT where you can lend and invest wls/dls.
There will be a specific world for these, where you can find a huge block, which you can officialy wrench
How the Investment works:
When you invest wls/dls into the bank, you can get an interest percentage of 2% every month. Lets say you invested 100 wls, the 2% of 100 is 2 wls. So next month, you would get 102 wls back. This would also be a good way to save your wls/dls if you dont know anymore what to do with them.
How borrowing works:
You will be able to take up to a certain amount of wls at first and you will have to pay them back by a definite time. If you dont, you get taken interests from it (up to 2%). But the more tou return your wls back in time, the more wls you will be able to lend next time. Lets say, you lend 5 wls ,and you have one week to pay it back but a minimum of 2 days, so that no bots spam these to get even more wls the whole time. If you pay, next time you get 7 wls and so on.
BUT on the other hand, if you dont pay the 5 wls back, you get an interest onto it, so that you have to pay lets say 6 wls.. and until you pay it back, you wont be able to lend any more wls until you take the debt.
This would reduce some newbies from asking for donations and also some friends from asking for wls the whole time, since they can get the wls quick to build up again. Another positive aspect would be that this would help growtopians have a plan on when to spend what, so that we have rythm, and because it isnt your wls, you have to be more careful of not getting scammed.
These systems will be produced and conducted by Ubisoft himself with the help of some mods..
I dont think this would be too hard to progam. It doesnt have negative things as well, so why dont we get something like this as a V3.00 update??
Waiting for replies in peace


text: Thank you for choosing UltimateGolf.ca to plan your next Golf getaway. We are a dedicated team of Golf travel specialists, committed to providing you with the "ultimate" vacation experience. All our pricing is in Canadian dollars no matter where the Destination is - that means some amazing Deals for you.


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I need some help:
I have just purchased two software items that use Libronix.
I loaded them into the computer, and when I went to register them, I was told to go to "Account Manager", which I did.
I entered the serial numbers for them both but the "next" button would not highlight for me to continue. The "Help File" says that I have to go through "Account Manager" in order to set up an account in order to register them but it won't let me even get to that stage.
I have double checked.
Triple checked.
Removed the software and started again and still nothing.
Has anybody had this problem before?
How did you resolve it?
Many thanks .


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2 Pre-Owned Hyundai Sonata Weslaco Texas
CARFAX Vehicle History Report Highlights
- CARFAX 1-Owner
- Vehicle Qualifies for the CARFAX Buyback Guarantee
- No Total Loss Reported to CARFAX
- No Structural/Frame Damage Reported to CARFAX
- No Airbag Deployment Reported to CARFAX
- No Indication of an Odometer Rollback
- No Accidents / Damage Reported to CARFAX
- No Manufacturer Recalls Reported to CARFAX
*Not all accidents or other issues are reported to CARFAX. The number of owners is estimated. See the full CARFAX Report for additional information and glossary of terms.
Didn't find the right fit?
Just let us know what you're looking for and we'll email you as soon as it arrives!
All pricing and details are believed to be accurate, but we do not warrant or guarantee such accuracy. The prices shown above, may vary from region to region, as will incentives, and are subject to change. Vehicle information is based off standard equipment and may vary from vehicle to vehicle. Call or email for complete vehicle specific information.


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Still need more hints about surviving that inevitable robot uprising? Robopocalypse author Daniel H. Wilson is here to help — he is putting out an anthology called Robot Uprisings, full of short stories that illustrate just what it'll take to remain in one piece after our robot overlords have taken over. His co-editor is prolific anthologist John Joseph Adams, so you can expect these robots to run like well-oiled machines. So to speak.
Top image: Windstorm Studios. [Publishers Marketplace]


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Anni used All Yule Need in such a folk-whimsical way - VERY COOL card!!! The little touches are what makes me keep taking it all in :)
and um....awwwwww, how adorable is this Chilly Chums card??? I have never seen that walrus and seal look so darn cute! Anni was a dream guest. I think she is amazing and I feel lucky to know her. I look forward to showing off more of her projects next month.
And here is the final sneak of our NEW November set called CYBER CAFE. Teri used the images and sentiment in such a clever way. The stacked paper pieced cups ROCK!! Stamping one of the sentiment words in white and cutting around it (and other accents) really ties in the design - awesome!
CONGRATULATIONS to our girl Emily! She was chosen as one of the World Card Making Day winners by Paper Crafts magazine. You can read about the announcement HERE. We think Emily is fabulous and we are thrilled to know that Paper Crafts thinks so too!
Today is not only Halloween, it's my Great-nephew's Birthday...and ALSO release night - woooooohoo! What a FUN day!!
Have a good one :)


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Planting corn hybrids containing Bt traits is a popular grower solution to control pests, improve quality of corn and decrease use of pesticides. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requires all fields with Bt crops to have refuge areas to help prevent the development of insect resistance. A refuge area includes non-Bt corn seed in addition to the Bt seed.
The industry trend is toward making traits available as "integrated refuge" solutions. "Single bag, integrated refuge delivers the utmost convenience for farmers, allowing them to more easily comply with refuge requirements while helping manage against the development of resistant insects due to the use of multiple modes of action," said Jill Wenzel, Syngenta product lead for commercial traits.
Syngenta has two traits stacks available as single bag, integrated refuge. Each package contains five percent seed of a hybrid without Bt traits and 95 percent seed of a corn hybrid with insect control technology. Both seed hybrids in the bag feature tolerance to glyphosate herbicides.
Agrisure Viptera™ 3220 E-Z Refuge™ trait stack is a targeted solution for corn growers in regions where corn rootworm management is not a primary concern. It offers dual modes of action for control of multiple above-ground lepidopteran pests and corn borer and features the breakthrough Agrisure Viptera trait for best-in-class control of the multi pest complex.
Agrisure® 3122 E-Z Refuge trait stack is intended for use in areas where both corn rootworm and lepidopteran pest management are primary concerns, including corn-on-corn acres. Packages contain dual modes of action against both corn borer and corn rootworm.
Agrisure Viptera 3220 E-Z Refuge and Agrisure 3122 E-Z Refuge trait stacks are available for the 2013 planting season from Syngenta seed brands Garst®, Golden Harvest® and NK®.
©2013 Syngenta. Important: Always read and follow all bag tag and label instructions before buying or using Syngenta products. The instructions contain important conditions of sale, including limitations of warranty and remedy.
Agrisure®, Agrisure Viptera™, E-Z Refuge™, Garst®, Golden Harvest®, and NK®, are trademarks of a Syngenta Group Company.


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Relationships with
Photo Credit: Hayden Christensen's picture is courtesy of SF-Film. Photographic illustrations of Hayden Christensen are copyright © by their respective holders. The images are published with permission or as allowed by the copyright law's fair use or quotation provisions. If any copyright holder objects to an image being included, please notify us and it will be removed immediately.
Disclaimer: This information about Hayden Christensen is derived from astrological interpretation of Hayden Christensen's date, time, and place of birth.


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|Credit Cards Discuss credit cards - user experiences, credit card rates, and which companies offer the best credit card.
|Thread Tools
Don't take that cash advance!
If you've been thinking about getting a cash advance on your credit card.. might want to stop for a moment and consider what the costs are.
Let's say I want a $500 cash advance. How much is this going to cost me in all?
1) First, the upfront fee. Some creditors charge between 2% and 4% just for the privilege of loaning you money.
So that's a potential $20.00 right there down the toilet.
2) Second, creditors don't give you a 30 grace period on cash advances.. they start charging you interest from DAY 1. So if you're the type of person who pays the balance in full to avoid finances charges.... you're TOO LATE if you used a cash advance.
3) Third, the interest rates are HIGHER on cash advances (25% - 30%) then they are on regular purchases.. so not only do they stick you from DAY 1, but they REALLY stick you from DAY 1.
4) Fourth, most cash advances are done at ATM's so you get a fee from the ATM owner too.. So if the other three weren't bad enough... the bank providing the ATM has to get a piece too.
So.. the bottom line is.. avoid cash advances.
What's your cash advance horror story??


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Catalog #
|1 ml
|Human LEAP-2 precursor cDNA and deduced amino acid sequence. Coding regions are printed in capital letters. The typical secretory signal sequence 1–22 is printed in italics, whereas the positions of introns 1 (198 bp) and 2 (320 bp) of the LEAP-2 gene are marked by vertical lines. Two TATAAA sequences located 31 and 84 bases upstream of the translational start were identified. The putatively mature and antimicrobially active LEAP-2-(38–77) isolated from hemofiltrate and the putative polyadenylation signal are underlined. The position of the primers used for nested 5'-RACE-PCR and for preparative PCR from six different species is indicated.
Alignment of LEAP-2 from mammalian species. Standard PCR carried out with primers originally designed for the human LEAP-2 gene revealed homologous LEAP-2 forms in rhesus monkey, cow, pig, mouse, and guinea pig. The depicted putative peptide sequences are deduced from the cDNA sequences obtained. Underlined amino acids represent the putative signal peptide sequences as predicted by the SignalP V2.0 program (Nielsen et al. 1997), and the mature LEAP-2 (38–77) form is hyphenated. The nucleotide sequence data reported in this paper have been submitted to the GenBank/EBI Data Bank with accession numbers AJ306405 (Homo sapiens mRNA), AJ409013 (Sus scrofa mRNA), AJ409014 (Bos taurus mRNA), AJ409054 (Cavia porcellus mRNA), AJ409055 (Mus musculus mRNA), AJ409056 (Macaca mulatta genomic DNA), AJ409063 (Mus musculus genomic DNA), AJ409064 (Homo sapiens genomic DNA), and AJ409065 (Homo sapiens alternative promoter sequence).
Ghrelin, an appetite-stimulatory hormone secreted by the stomach, was discovered as a ligand for the growth hormone secretagogue receptor (GHSR). Through GHSR, ghrelin stimulates growth hormone (GH) secretion, a function that evolved to protect against starvation-induced hypoglycemia. Though the biology mediated by ghrelin has been described in great detail, regulation of ghrelin action is poorly understood. Here, we report the discovery of liver-expressed antimicrobial peptide 2 (LEAP2) as an endogenous antagonist of GHSR. LEAP2 is produced in the liver and small intestine, and its secretion is suppressed by fasting. LEAP2 fully inhibits GHSR activation by ghrelin and blocks the major effects of ghrelin in vivo, including food intake, GH release, and maintenance of viable glucose levels during chronic caloric restriction. In contrast, neutralizing antibodies that block endogenous LEAP2 function enhance ghrelin action in vivo. Our findings reveal a mechanism for fine-tuning ghrelin action in response to changing environmental conditions.
Xuecai Ge, Hong Yang, Maria A. Bednarek et al., Cell Metabolism 2018 ; Published online: December 7, 201
Interleukin-1β (IL-1β), an inflammatory cytokine of the IL-1 family, is primarily produced as a precursor protein by monocytes and macrophages, then matures and becomes activated through proteolytic catalysis. Although the biological characteristics of avian IL-1β are well known, little information is available about its biological role in songbird species such as house finches that are vulnerable to naturally-occurring inflammatory diseases. In this study, house finch IL-1β (HfIL-1β) was cloned, expressed, and its biological function examined. Both precursor and mature forms of HfIL-1β consisting of 269 and 162 amino acids, respectively, were amplified from total RNA of spleen and cloned into expression vectors. HfIL-1β showed high sequential and tertiary structural similarity to chicken homologue that allowed detection of the expressed mature recombinant HfIL-1β (rHfIL-1β) with anti-ChIL-1β antibody by immunoblot analysis. For further characterization, we used primary splenocytes and hepatocytes that are predominant sources of IL-1β upon stimulation, as well as suitable targets to stimulation by IL-1β. Isolated house finch splenocytes were stimulated with rHfIL-1β in the presence and absence of concanavalin A (Con A), RNA was extracted and transcript levels of Th1/Th2 cytokines and a chemokine were measured by qRT-PCR. The addition of rHfIL-1β induced significant enhancement of IL-2 transcript, a Th1 cytokine, while transcription of IL-1β and the Th2 cytokine IL-10 was slightly enhanced by rHfIL-1β treatment. rHfIL-1β also led to elevated levels of the chemokine CXCL1 and nitric oxide production regardless of co-stimulation with Con A. In addition, the production of the acute phase protein serum amyloid A and the antimicrobial peptide LEAP2 was observed in HfIL-1β-stimulated hepatocytes. Taken together, these observations revealed the basic functions of HfIL-1β including the stimulatory effect on cell proliferation, production of Th1/Th2 cytokines and acute phase proteins by immune cells, thus providing valuable insight into how HfIL-1β is involved in regulating inflammatory response.
Park M, Kim S, Adelman JS, Leon AE, Hawley DM, Dalloul RA. Identification and functional characterization of the house finch interleukin-1β. Dev Comp Immunol. 2017;69:41-50.
Besides its widely described function in the innate immune response, no other clear physiological function has been attributed so far to the Liver-Expressed-Antimicrobial-Peptide 2 (LEAP2). We used the Xenopus embryo model to investigate potentially new functions for this peptide. We identified the amphibian leap2 gene which is highly related to its mammalian orthologues at both structural and sequence levels. The gene is expressed in the embryo mostly in the endoderm-derived tissues. Accordingly it is induced in pluripotent animal cap cells by FGF, activin or a combination of vegT/?-catenin. Modulating leap2 expression level by gain-of-function strategy impaired normal embryonic development. When overexpressed in pluripotent embryonic cells derived from blastula animal cap explant, leap2 stimulated FGF while it reduced the activin response . Finally, we demonstrate that LEAP2 blocks FGF-induced migration of HUman Vascular Endothelial Cells (HUVEC). Altogether these findings suggest a model in which LEAP2 could act at the extracellular level as a modulator of FGF and activin signals, thus opening new avenues to explore it in relation with cellular processes such as cell differentiation and migration.
Thiébaud P, Garbay B, Auguste P, et al. Overexpression of Leap2 impairs Xenopus embryonic development and modulates FGF and activin signals. Peptides. 2016;83:21-8.
BACKGROUND: Immune activation is one of the main features of HIV/Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections and has been linked to the disturbance of the gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT). In chronic HIV infection, loss of GALT integrity results in translocation of microbial products and chronic immune activation. We explored the relationship between bacterial translocation and specific colonic proteins, including liver expressed antimicrobial peptide (LEAP 2) which may play a role in modulating the bacterial translocation process.
METHODS: A total of 40 subjects (10 HIV/HCV, 10 HIV, 10 HCV-infected patients and 10 controls) were enrolled and underwent serum and colonic tissue sampling. The levels of immune activation were evaluated by measuring plasma sCD27, and the levels of choosen proinflammatory, Th2 and regulatory cytokines in both the plasma and supernatant of CD3-stimulated intraepithelial lymphocytes. We also evaluated LEAP-2 expression in the colon biopsies using Affymetrix Human Gene 1.0 ST (HuGene) and fluorescent immunohistochemistry.
RESULTS: Increased levels of sCD27 were observed in HIV/HCV coinfected (p=0.03) and HIV monoinfected (p=0.04) patients compared with controls consistent with the presence of immune activation. The chip array identified LEAP-2 expression as a key marker associated with immune activation. LEAP-2 expression in HIV, HCV and HIV/HCV-infected patients was significantly lower compared with controls, and was significantly negatively correlated (p=0.03, r=-0.44) with sCD27.
CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggests that HCV and HIV infections are associated with decreased expression of LEAP-2 in colonic tissue. This may represent a key mechanism for enhanced microbial translocation and immune activation in HIV/HCV-infected patients.
This publication used a LEAP-2 antibody (#H-075-40) from Phoenix Pharmaceuticals.
Shata MT, Abdel-hameed EA, Hetta HF, Sherman KE. Immune activation in HIV/HCV-infected patients is associated with low-level expression of liver expressed antimicrobial peptide-2 (LEAP-2). J Clin Pathol. 2013;66(11):967-75.
Human serum samples were assayed using our internally developed LEAP-2 (38-77) EIA kit (#EK-075-40). All samples were assayed in duplicate. On average, LEAP-2 levels increased by 21% (6.54 ng/ml vs. 7.92 ng/ml) after feeding (compared to overnight fasting).
Human plasma samples were assayed using our internally developed LEAP-2 (38-77) RIA kit (#RK-075-40). All samples were assayed in duplicate. On average, LEAP-2 levels increased by 21% (7.34 ng/ml vs. 8.67 ng/ml) after feeding (compared to overnight fasting).
|Alternative splicing in the LEAP-2 gene. (A) Standard PCR conducted with the primer combination E1-S and E3-AS (Fig. 2) and 20 ng of DNase-treated cDNA. LEAP-2350 is mainly expressed in liver, kidney, and colon, whereas LEAP-2550 is the main transcript in lung, trachea, and heart. PCR products at 650 bp, 720 bp, and 870 bp represent splicing variants of LEAP-2, and the band at 480 bp could be identified as a PCR artefact. (MW = marker, 100 bp DNA ladder, Life Technologies). (B) Standard PCR performed with the primers PROM-S (5'-GGTGCA GATTAGGGTGACAGTCCATC-3'), which is located 565 bp upstream of the transcriptional start depicted in Figure 2, and E3-AS. Lung, heart, and trachea exhibit the same pattern of bands, including the 565 bp shift in size caused by the upstream primer PROM-S. The main transcript identified in liver, kidney, and colon, however, changes from the completely spliced LEAP-2350 to the intron 1-retaining LEAP-2 variant. All bands obtained were characterized by DNA sequencing.
|Northern Blot analysis. Human MTN Blots I+II (Clontech, A+B) were hybridized under high-stringency conditions with a 32P-labeled LEAP-2-specific cDNA fragment. A transcript size of 0.7 kb identified in liver, kidney, and small intestine represents the complete LEAP-2 cDNA including a poly(A)-tail of 200 bp. The signal at 2.0 kb corresponds to the LEAP-2 form coded by the distal promoter, which could also be identified in 5'-RACE-PCR, whereas the bands at 4.2 kb and 8.0 kb might either represent additional alternative promoter variants or homologous proteins related to LEAP-2.
|Antimicrobial activity of LEAP-2-(38–77) and LEAP-2-(44–77). Colony-forming unit assay of synthetic LEAP-2-(38–77) (solid triangles) and LEAP-2-(44–77) (open circles), the two main peptide forms isolated from hemofiltrate, against S. cerevisiae ATCC9763. Incubation without peptide represents 100% CFU. Synthetic and native LEAP-2-(44–77) led to similar results. The bars indicate the minimum and maximum value of the triplicates used in this representative assay. The inset depicts the dose-dependent effect of LEAP-2-(38–77) against S. cerevisiae in a radial diffusion assay. LEAP-2-(44–77) showed no effect in this sensitive antimicrobial assay. The antimicrobially active casocidin-I (11 µg/well) served as a positive control ( Zucht et al. 1998). One inhibition unit (1 IU) corresponds to 0.1 mm diameter of growth inhibition zone, and the error bars represent the S.D. calculated from three experiments performed.
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What happened to Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 may eventually be discovered, but there is something else that has been missing for much longer and its "disappearance" has far greater implications for America. It is our foreign policy. Can anyone say what it is?
With Russia's Vladimir Putin behaving like a modern Catherine the Great in his efforts to annex Crimea and possibly all of Ukraine, what is our policy toward Russia, which is behaving increasingly like its former, supposedly dead, communist self?
In a New York Times op-ed column last week, Arizona Republican Senator John McCain wrote: "...Crimea has exposed the disturbing lack of realism that has characterized our foreign policy under President Obama. ... For five years, Americans have been told that 'the tide of war is receding,' that we can pull back from the world at little cost to our interests and values. This has fed a perception that the United States is weak, and to people like Mr. Putin, weakness is provocative."
Secretary of State John Kerry warns of a "strong response" by the United States and severe economic sanctions against Russia if Putin proceeds as he has threatened in Ukraine. Whose threats are more credible? President Obama has retreated on everything from Iraq and Afghanistan, to Iran's nuclear program and his "red line," which Syria crossed and paid no price when it used chemical weapons against its own people. He has even retreated on domestic policy issues, most glaringly on the individual mandate in the misnamed Affordable Care Act.
Not only does the "emperor" have no clothes, he appears to the world as having no backbone and no guts. It's not just a question of military power. It is about formulating, articulating and implementing a consistent foreign policy that is credible and produces results in support of U.S. interests.
Somewhere between Ron Paul's isolationism and neo-con interventionism is what the U.S. should be modeling to the world. Somewhere between John F. Kennedy's noble, but impractical ideal of "pay any price, bear any burden" in the defense of liberty and George McGovern's "come home America," is a foreign policy we should pursue. It's up to the president to articulate that policy and then make it credible by consistently acting on it. John Kennedy also noted, "Domestic policy can only defeat us; foreign policy can kill us."
Former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton spoke last week at the 2014 Conservative Political Action Conference. He said, "Our biggest national security crisis is Barack Obama." Bolton suggested the president allowed the murderers of America's ambassador to Libya, Christopher Stevens, and three others to "get away scot free" after he had repeatedly promised they would be brought to justice.
Tyrants, terrorists and dictators watch an indecisive president and take note. Action matters far more than words.
President Obama, perhaps our most self-absorbed chief executive, has said: "I would put our legislative and foreign policy accomplishments in our first two years against any president -- with the possible exception of (Lyndon) Johnson, FDR, and Lincoln -- just in terms of what we've gotten done in modern history."
Leaving aside his hubris and a debate over whether retreat from the world and pressuring Israel to give up more land to its enemies are accomplishments, what should be concluded from such a ridiculous statement about America's foreign policy?
Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger has observed: "No foreign policy -- no matter how ingenious -- has any chance of success if it is born in the minds of a few and carried in the hearts of none."
American foreign policy in 2014 hasn't been born, because under this administration it does not even appear to have yet been conceived.


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Best of Americana
Just this month, Vanity Fair featured some of American's most historic grand hotels. Find out where America's "royal" families vacationed, from the Kennedys to the Rockefellers to the Pitts (Yes, as in Brad…), and get a taste of Americana yourself at these ten luxurious hotels. [Vanity Fair]
Escape to Switzerland
"The exquisitely renovated Hotel Pilatus-Kulm outside of Lucerne, Switzerland, is nestled into a rocky ridge and accessible only by gondola […] and only the faint tinkling of cowbells and the hint of distant city lights to remind you that the world is still moving along 7,000 feet below," says Virginia Van Zanten, associate editor at W magazine. If it's good enough for the fashion set, it's good enough for us. [W magazine]
It's Ski Season…
And, Oyster.com got a peek inside Hotel Jerome in Aspen, Colorado. No marketing shots here. Take a look and get your ski gear ready! [Oyster.com]
Link Love: Best Hotel Scenes From Around the Web
Best of Americana


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The Houston Dynamo suffered yet another disappointing defeat on Sunday night, this time against a team likely to be in the running down the stretch for one of the final playoff spots.
When asked after Houston's 2-0 loss to the Seattle at Qwest Field whether there were any positives on the night, Dynamo head coach Dominic Kinnear was brutally honest: "No."
With Lovel Palmer suspended, Houston went with a central midfield partnership of Richard Mulrooney and Brad Davis. For 45 minutes, at least, both did their part and kept the Dynamo competitive, along with midfielder Danny Cruz, who found plenty of space out wide early.
But the second half was fairly one-sided for the home team, as Houston struggled to get the ball out of their half of the field. Whenever the Dynamo did gain possession, they played hopeful long balls forward into space as opposed to stringing several passes together as they had done in the first half.
The final stats showed Seattle with nine shots on goal to none for Houston - the second straight game the Dynamo failed to get a shot on goal - and 10 corner kicks for the Sounders to five for Houston. The end result of that one-sided pressure in the second half was an inevitable lead for Seattle. It came through their talismanic forward Freddy Montero.
"[Montero] was battling with Eddie [Robinson] and it was a bad turn," said Washington native Hall. "He is a crafty player, a good player, and he got a turn inside. The shot was low and in the corner, a difficult place to make the save."
Kinnear was frustrated with how his team conceded the first goal.
"I saw a long ball from the back that we did not deal with, and they scored," said the Dynamo head coach. "It was a winnable ball. We didn't deal with it."
The game's second goal was simply a matter of Houston getting caught pressing for an equalizer and a beautiful pass by Montero to open up the defense.
"We were throwing as many numbers as we could to equalize," said Hall. "I was able to get something on it, but that wasn't enough. We are two more in the hole than the start of the game; it's difficult to come back from a deficit like that."
For a Dynamo team trying to pull itself back into the playoff race, the 2-0 defeat against Seattle may just be the first nail in the team's postseason coffin. The team needs victories, but three points seems as far away for the Dynamo as their last victory over an MLS side on May 22.
"It's a hard thing to do, but an easy thing to talk about," said Kinnaer. "A win, it is as simple as that. We need a win."
Dwain Capodice is a contributor to MLSsoccer.com. Questions or Comments can be sent via email to firstname.lastname@example.com.


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Below is information for an upcoming TVA fish hatchery related meeting in Knoxville, TN. on May 27th, 2014 at 6PM (more info below for location specifics). I encourage people to attend, no matter what your interest, group, or affiliation with the river. If you will note for those who cannot attend you can sign up for onlline access. It's easy to critique something but only by particiapating in these type of events will officials be conscious and aware that we are out here and care, get involved!
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. Representatives from the Tennessee Valley Authority, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and Georgia Department of Natural Resources (the Agencies) will host a public meeting on Tuesday, May 27, 2014, to receive input on long-term funding recommendations under consideration by the Agencies that will continue popular trout stocking programs in reservoirs and tailwaters of certain TVA dams across the region.
The Agencies are seeking ideas and input from angling groups, local and regional businesses, tourism organizations and the local governments that realize the direct and indirect benefits of having fishable trout waters in their communities.
The public meeting will run from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm at TVA headquarters, 400 W. Summit Hill Dr., Knoxville, TN in the East Tower Library auditorium. The public can attend the meeting either in person or by webinar that you can sign up for at http://www.tva.com/trout.
The session will include a brief presentation summarizing the issue and the Trout Hatchery Funding Stakeholder Working Group recommendations. Attendees can ask questions and provide comments on the recommendations. The meeting will be recorded and posted to the Agencies websites where additional comments may be posted via the internet.
On May 17, 2013, U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander and representatives from the Agencies formalized an agreement to cooperate in seeking a permanent source of funding to support the continuation of trout hatchery production by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Services National Fish Hatchery System for stocking in TVA tailwaters and reservoirs in Tennessee and Georgia.
As part of the agreement, TVA committed to provide more than $900,000 per year from 2014 through 2016 to support federal fish hatchery operations that produce the trout for stocking. The Agencies also agreed to form a working group with key stakeholders who benefit from the recreation-based trout stocking to help identify a long-term funding source.
The Trout Hatchery Funding Stakeholder Working Group conducted two meetings in 2013 and developed four recommended long-term funding alternatives for the Agencies to consider.
Currently, non-native trout stocked near some of TVAs dams are raised at three federal fish hatcheries operated by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service: Erwin National Fish Hatchery in Erwin, TN.; Dale Hollow National Fish Hatchery in Celina, TN.; and Chattahoochee Forest National Fish Hatchery in Suches, GA.
The Fish and Wildlife Service stocks trout at a number of TVA facilities; and provides eggs and fingerling trout to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency for further grow out and stocking at TVA facilities. TVA supports the stocking programs by enhancing the aquatic habitat through oxygenation systems, foregoing electric generation and providing minimum flows to help adequately maintain cooler water temperatures. However, in most of the waters, the trout cannot naturally reproduce, requiring regular stocking to maintain fishable populations.
The short-term funding agreement allows for the continuation of trout stocking for recreational fishing in the colder water of the reservoirs or tailwaters at 12 TVA dams in Tennessee and Georgia: Appalachia Dam on the Hiwassee River; Blue Ridge Dam on the Toccoa River; Cherokee Dam on the Holston River; Ft. Patrick Henry Dam on the South Fork Holston River; Normandy Dam on the Duck River; Norris Dam on the Clinch River; Ocoee Dam No. 1 on the Ocoee River; South Holston Dam on the South Fork Holston River; Tellico Dam on the Little Tennessee River; Tims Ford Dam on the Elk River; Watauga Dam on the Watauga River; and Wilbur Dam on the Watauga River.
The Tennessee Valley Authority is a corporate agency of the United States that provides electricity for business customers and local power distributors serving 9 million people in parts of seven southeastern states. TVA receives no taxpayer funding, deriving virtually all of its revenues from sales of electricity. In addition to operating and investing its revenues in its electric system, TVA provides flood control, navigation and land management for the Tennessee River system and assists local power companies and state and local governments with economic development and job creation.


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WASHINGTON, DC — Revisions to the federal Franchise Rule took effect on July 1, but the changes won't become mandatory until July 1, 2008, according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The rule has been in place since 1978 to offer potential franchisees the information they need to weigh the risks and benefits of investment in a franchise.
"Overall, I think for everyone it's a positive development," says Susan Grueneberg, partner with the law firm Dreier Stein & Kahan in Santa Monica, CA. However, Grueneberg says the changes affect franchisees and franchisors differently.
The revisions were passed to bring the federal rule into closer alignment with state franchise disclosure laws, which are based on the Uniform Franchise Offering Circular (UFOC) guidelines.
Although the amended rule closely tracks the UFOC guidelines, in some instances it requires more extensive disclosures — mostly with respect to certain aspects of the franchisee-franchisor relationship.
The amended rule requires more extensive disclosures on lawsuits the franchisor has filed against franchisees, the franchisor's use of so-called "confidentiality clauses" in lawsuit settlements, a warning when there is no exclusive territory, an explanation of what the term "renewal" means for each franchise system, and trademark-specific franchisee associations. For more information, go to www.ftc.gov.


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Check out the latest RPG news | Podcasts | Twitch Streams
I'm assuming I wasted my time with that post.
Too tired for more coherent thoughts.
Here's 2 more pennies.I think what Ashton sees in feminism are those that use it as a pretense for their own Misandry (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misandry)I do think there are probably plenty of those within the ranks and they are the vocal majority.The other thing is about divorce. When I was younger, I always thought it was weird that my mom lived in a house and my dad in a crappy apartment.Later when we moved and I was helping to pack some of my mom's stuff, I found a receipt for her cashing in her child support check.Lets just say I felt really bad for my dad when I saw the amount. Me and my brother never costed this much and he basically paid for her house.I lost a lot of respect for my mom at that point because I realized she was just a leech.
I think you are missing the point...
Quote from: Ashton on September 06, 2013, 01:54:14 PMI think you are missing the point...100%Not every divorce is because of conjugal violence =/and we agree that your aunt should have called the cops on your uncle.


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Maino: Up Close & Personal - "Rappers & Respect" [Webisode 5] (Speaks On Knocking Out Lil Cease, Tragedy Khadafi. & Smacking At The Club & Yung Berg Incident) "I Don't Like To Be Talked To Like That"
Maino officially shuts it down in the 5th installment of Maino: Up Close and Personal "Rappers & Respect". The new face of Brooklyn speaks strongly on street credibility and equality in the streets.
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Re: Rob's HH #12: Sisterhood of the Pattinson
Posted: Thu Mar 20, 2014 9:29 pm
I saw that on Facebook!!! I'm so sorry, that's awful! Wasn't she just using a cane to get around as well? :/Tornado wrote:Again, just a quick post. My mother fell out of bed on the weekend and now they think she has broken a rib and her pelvis. *sigh* Really not something I wanted to here!


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My friends, We are glad to present you a free game Sonic the Hedgehog 2 for Wii.Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Redeem Code Free
Dr. Eggman (aka Dr. Robotnik) is back to continue his zealous search for the Chaos Emeralds needed to fuel his new Death Egg contraption. The evil doctor secretly follows Sonic to his vacation spot, Westside Island, and launches a full-scale attack, imprisoning all the helpless animals of the island and turning them into mindless worker drones. Now Sonic must thwart the doctors plans at all costs. This time he isnt alone, as a peculiar two-tailed fox named Miles Prower (aka Tails) decides to aid him in the battle. Together they must locate the Chaos Emeralds before Dr. Eggman does, and put an end to his diabolical scheme.


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Red Sox bats wake up in hurry to even ALCS
BOSTON -- These Red Sox won't cop to the idea that their optimism was dented through the first 16 innings of this American League Championship Series, even as they seemed to be overmatched by the Tigers' stellar starting pitching, flailing their way into the record books with an eye-popping strikeout total.
It takes a good deal of cajoling just to draw an acknowledgement that there was any frustration growing in the home dugout while Max Scherzer mowed them down, carrying a no-hitter into the sixth. It also doesn't matter anymore, as the momentum of this series changed in a flash.
"They say you need kindling to start a fire. We just couldn't find that kindling for a while," said Boston's Jonny Gomes, who raced home on Jarrod Saltalamacchia's walk-off single in the ninth. "The way this team's built, there were no doubts in our mind when we had no hits in the sixth that we were going to win it."
And then trailing by four runs with four outs to go? The odds didn't really agree, but you would have been wasting your breath to say anything to the contrary. Gomes said that fearlessness was built by the Sox all season long, and of course no lead is really ever safe at the Fens.
It's obvious that no one on Boston's side was pleased by seeing the scorecards littered with forward and backward K's; Scherzer racked up 13 of them over his seven innings before the Tigers bullpen' tried to put a 2-0 series advantage in Justin Verlander's pocket for Tuesday's Game 3 (8 p.m. ET on FOX).
"As frustrating as it is to see our offense not do it, hey, we ultimately did it in the end," Shane Victorino said. "That's what it's all about, going out there and playing until the end. Could you say we were as frustrated as frustrated could be? Absolutely."
"As a team in that situation, you have to just do what you can -- work at-bats, grind at-bats, get the pitch count up," Will Middlebrooks said. "As much as they don't seem like they're human at the time, they are. They're going to get tired and we're going to get in that bullpen."
Once they did, there was certainly blame to go around for Detroit's relievers -- each of the runs scored on Ortiz's slam off Joaquin Benoit were charged to a different pitcher, a statistical rarity that allows Jose Veras, Drew Smyly and Al Alburquerque to share some blame.
Even more remarkably, in a career highlighted by clutch hits, the grand slam was Ortiz's first in the postseason and just the fourth in Red Sox postseason history.
"We needed it, man," Ortiz said. "We needed to start some momentum going on. Going back to Detroit 1-1 ... in that game we're going to have on Tuesday against Verlander, I'm pretty sure you're going to see guys having better at-bats."
Outside the ancient clubhouse on Fenway's first-base side, the capacity crowd rushed past the doors, many wearing their playoff beards -- some false, many real -- and thunderously chanting, "Papi! Papi!"
Inside that room, Red Sox backup catcher David Ross relayed a story about how one supporter with choice seats over the Boston dugout never seemed to give up hope, loudly and repeatedly reminding the Sox how the New England Patriots earlier had pulled off a stunning 30-27 victory over the New Orleans Saints with five seconds left on the clock.
"This guy kept saying, 'You know what happened with the Patriots today,' literally from the fourth inning on," Ross said. "I was like, 'Well, that guy's got more hope than I do.' I threw him a ball after that inning because he was so positive. It's a good day for Boston, right?"
Indeed it was, and it was another good example of October faith being rewarded in New England. Forget Tom Brady's toss that shamed those who'd left Gillette Stadium early to beat the late-evening traffic; the Red Sox found a way to one-up the Foxboro show as midnight approached.
"It was tough. We didn't get much since last night, and tonight was going the same way," Saltalamacchia said. "We felt that sense that we were going to break out of it. We had to."
Red Sox manager John Farrell said it was "almost a tale of two different games inside one," and shame on anyone who missed the nightcap.
After becoming the first team in postseason history to be no-hit through five innings in consecutive contests, the Red Sox offered a reminder that they aren't in the business of heading home quite so soon.
"I've been on some teams where if you take the wind out of the sail, it's a wrap," Gomes said. "I think we've done a great job of doing that to teams, you know? It's not 2013 Sox baseball by any means."


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The sign, reading "Decade of Dominance," flashed on the television screen.
The sign, reading "Decade of Dominance," flashed on the television screen.
And, Demetrius Perry was floored. Perry watched Navy celebrate its 10th straight victory over his alma mater last December.
"It hurts my heart," said Perry, who scored the go-ahead touchdown in Army's 1996 Navy win.
Army teams have defeated Navy only twice (1998 and 2001) since Perry graduated from West Point in 1997.
The thought of Navy continuing its dominance Saturday irritates Perry.
"You know the deal when you first walk in (at West Point), it's all about beating Navy," Perry said. " 'Beat Navy' is written on everything. You eat, 'Go Army, Beat Navy' cake and you hate them, period. I still haven't gotten to that point where we are all brothers in arms and we are all a happy family."
Major Demetrius Perry, a fullback on Army's last Commander in Chief's Trophy team, is serving in Afghanistan. Perry hopes to follow the game on the Internet, where connections aren't the strongest around base. Beating Navy, ending the streak and taking back the trophy to West Point would end Navy's chirping overseas.
"I can't stand Naval officers," Perry said. "I don't like anything about the Navy. It took me a long time before I could give a Naval officer credit for being a legitimate officer. There's only one that I've given credit."
Josh Jackson says he's walked through the "Beat Navy" tunnel on campus more in the last three weeks than the rest of the season. Jackson, Army's senior cornerback, stops and looks at footballs, which indicate Army wins, on one side of the wall. He focuses on 1998 and thinks about cornerbacks coach Tony Coaxum's interception, which sealed the victory.
"I see the football and so many spaces where we haven't done that in a while," Jackson said. "You just think what I will mean when you get that win this year."
Once again, Army (2-9) is an underdog — seven points - in this game and rightfully so. Navy (7-4) is headed to the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl on Dec. 29 to play Arizona State.
But this game is bigger than a bowl game, Army players say. West Point football alumni compare this year's game to a national championship for Army.
It's make-or-break time. An Army victory would validate a record-setting career for quarterback Trent Steelman. And, Army seniors would be in rare company. They can leave the field as the first West Point senior class since 1988 with a bowl win (2010 Armed Forces) and a CIC Trophy.
"If you ask anyone on the team, a Commander in Chief's Trophy is more important than a bowl trophy or anything else out there that we could win," Army senior left tackle Ben Jebb said.
Sixteen years later, Perry's lasting memory isn't his touchdown run or key blocks, which helped quarterback Ronnie McAda pick up chunks of yards.
"What I do remember is that it was pretty cool to have President Clinton present the trophy to us (at the game)," Perry said.
Jebb has the same vision in mind. "I'm hoping that we end the season, partying in the White House with the President," Jebb said.


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[Mumbai, circa 1981. Interior]
In a room the size of a sweaty handkerchief, I and some seventy other members of the Alliance Française film club are watching François Truffaut's The 400 Blows. The film is about to end. On screen, we see the right side of a young boy's head and shoulders.
I wonder whether to risk a yawn.
The boy is walking towards the sea with no clear purpose in mind.
I know I am not worthy of my membership. Even though the film is one of the central pillars of modern French cinema I cannot focus on it because the auditorium is too uncomfortable. The folding metal seats have been designed by an evil orthopaedist looking for customers. The floor is uniformly flat and viewers are forced to strain their Kurosawas and Renoirs through a sieve of other viewers' hair. In summer, the lack of air-conditioning guarantees death by B.O. And of course the majority of the movies are wrist-slittingly sad.
This one, for instance, is centred on a troubled fourteen- year-old boy living in Paris. The story moves at the pace of an arthritic sloth while packing the punch of a land- mine in the gut.
I want to inform my companion of the evening that I simply do not have the mental energy for films like this. Yes, yes, they're beautiful, haunting, memorable, and all the rest of it, but what about the emotional wreckage they leave in their wake? I am, after all, a Hollywood junkie. I admit it without shame, like an addict who wears her needle-tracks with pride. I thrill to my Technicolor sunsets, my MetroGoldwynMayer lions and my air- brushed, peroxided heroines. Assisted Reality is what I call these films, and I love them all the more for knowing they will never kick me in the Jiminy Cricket or leave me bleeding in the Mekong.
Meanwhile my companion, whom I shall call B–, is even then, thirty years ago, so steeped in his knowledge of films and his passion for them that he seems to my eyes practically incontinent with world-weariness. We are both in our twenties, me late, he early. I enjoy his intensity and his seriousness even though I know he does not consider me girlfriend material. I often wonder what he sees in me. Nothing, probably. When a young man has watched enough art cinema, he knows that romantic love will never make it past the editing table.
Onscreen, our boy is still walking. The scenery continues to move away to the left, behind him, which is how we know he's in motion. It's a pleasant summer's day and the French countryside looks suitably tranquil and inviting, even in black and white.
I begin to wonder why we've been watching the same damn scene for so long.
I turn towards B–.
He is sitting at the very edge of his seat, like a gundog on point.
He's muttering to himself, 'Come on, come on.' That's all he says. He's fidgeting, he's leaning forward with his elbows on his knees, he's sweeping back the comma of hair that falls over his forehead and giving his fingernails a quick chew. In a word, he's doing the adult equivalent of a child jumping up and down, screaming encouragement to Luke Skywalker taking on the Empire single-handed.
Yet before us on the screen is nothing more than a boy, walking.