A friend of mine called me up earlier today and said "Can you tell me about this hashtag thing? I really need to understand it for my business, and haven't a clue where to start." Rather than keeping the information between "just the two of us," I decided to write a quick post and show you just what hashtags are capable of doing.
Hashtags are a quick and easy way of organizing information on Twitter. Due to some tools that allow you to post on multiple social networks at once (like Hootsuite and TweetDeck), you'll find hashtags used on other social networks as well, but they were first used with Twitter and there are Twitter-related sites that make them extremely powerful. Thus, the examples I use in this blog post will all be Twitter-oriented.
So, first – What is a hashtag? Wiktionary defines it as: A tag embedded in a message posted on a microblogging service, consisting of a word within the message prefixed with a hash sign (#).
Now that that's clear, let's move on. Oh! Wait! It didn't make sense? Okay. Let's try again. If I want to highlight certain terms in a tweet as keywords in my text, I start them with a hash sign. The combination of the hash sign and the word that immediately follows it is my "hashtag." So, when I tweet something about my brand (Aleweb Social Marketing), I use a hashtag of #Aleweb to highlight that keyword.
A common use of hashtags is to refer to virtual and real-world events (like TweetChats, conferences, SXSW, etc.). People interested in finding out what everyone's saying about that event will search for the hashtag and see a running stream of commentary filtered on that one subject. Brown Estate, a winery in Napa Valley, created the #brownzin hashtag to put on the label of their 2009 Napa Zin label to facilitate conversation among the various people who enjoy that particular wine, and they're tweeting about it to this very day!
How do I create a hashtag? Well, you create one by simply starting to use it. There's no place to register a tag. You start using it, and invite your followers use it too. Over time, this leads to greater visibility, especially when you actively promote its use, like Brown Estate did by including the tag on their labels.
Sometimes, multiple hashtags appear that all relate to the same thing (like #job and #jobs, and #FollowFriday and #ff). Remember that the hashtag counts in your character count for your tweet. So, you want something short and sweet, but meaningful. Play around with searching for the hashtag you want to create. If it's not in use, run with it and let others know what it means, and encourage them to use it too!
How else can hashtags help me? You can also use other sites like BlastFollow to automatically follow everyone who's using a particular hashtag. Or you can create an RSS feed of a hashtag for posting on your website or pulling into your Facebook newsfeed. You can use Storify to create a story out of a collection of posts for archiving and sharing purposes, and you can use TwapperKeeper to periodically archive hashtag posts so that nothing gets lost over time.
A hashtag by itself is a simple thing. But what you do with it is as rich and powerful as you make it. Promote your business. Find a job. Attend a conference. Learn something new. The choice is yours!
And when you share this post, try adding #Aleweb to it. Then see what everyone else is saying and join the conversation!
Thanks a ton. This post has really influenced me in my ability to understand Hash Tags. I am however certain I will be back numerous times to make sure I retain all the great information in this post.


text:
Kragujevac város Szerbiában, a Lepenica mellett, Šumadija régió legfontosabb települése.

Története
A régészeti ásatások őskori, ókori, és középkori leleteket tártak fel. A település első írásos említése 1476-ból való, a Tapu-Defter török dokumentumban. A város neve valószínűleg a terület első tulajdonosát, Kragujt idézi, de a legenda szerint nevét a héjáról (szerbül kraguj) kapta.

A középkorban a szerb uralkodók székhelye volt, majd a középkori szerb állam végleges bukása (1389) után a régió egészével együtt török uralom alá került.

Kragujevac volt az újkori szerb állam fővárosa 1818–1841 között; ezt a korszakot tartják a város aranykorának. A 19. században számos jogi, oktatási és kulturális intézmény jött létre, ekkor vetették meg a modern városi lét alapjait. 1918-ban 44 katonát végeztek ki akik összeesküvést szőttek hogy dezertálhassanak. A 20. században az első és a második világháború súlyos pusztításokat vitt véghez, de utána megindult a demográfiai és ipari fellendülés.

Napjainkban Kragujevac az autóipara (Fiat) és fegyvergyártása miatt ismert.

Híres személyek
Itt született Jovan Ristić (egyes forrásokban Risztics János vagy Jovan, 1831–1899) szerb politikus, diplomata és történész, teret neveztek el róla, ahol a szobra  is megtalálható.
Itt született Dušan Simović (1882–1962) szerb nemzetiségű tábornok, a jugoszláv légierő, később a hadsereg főparancsnoka, hadügyminiszter, politikus, miniszterelnök.
Itt született Katarina Bulatović (1984) szerb születésű montenegrói válogatottságú kézilabdázónő.
Itt született Bogoljub Jevtić (1886–1960) szerb nemzetiségű diplomata, politikus, jugoszláv miniszterelnök.
Itt született Tomislav Nikolić (1952) Szerbia elnöke. 2003–2008 között a jobboldali radikális Szerb Radikális Párt (SRS) alelnöke, 2008–2012 között a jobbközép Szerb Haladó Párt (SNS) elnöke.
Itt született Saša Stevanović (1974) szerb labdarúgókapus, a Győri ETO csapatának korábbi tagja.
Itt született Danko Lazović (1983) szerb válogatott labdarúgó, a MOL Vidi FC, a PSV Einthoven és a Zenit Szentpétervár korábbi csatára.
Itt született Marija Šerifović (1984) szerb énekesnő.
Itt született Holender Filip (1994) szerb-magyar kettős állampolgárságú labdarúgó, jelenleg a Budapest Honvéd játékosa.
Itt született Nikola Pantović (1994) szerb labdarúgó, jelenleg a Békéscsaba 1912 Előre SE játékosa.

Jegyzetek

Források

 Kragujevac története a város honlapján

Szerbia települései

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
← Die Crew: Reist gemeinsam zum 9. Planeten – Review by Eric Edens
Patrick Brennan: Game Snapshots –2019 (Part 27) →
The Opinionated Gamers opine about the classics
Posted on December 25, 2019 by Joe Huber
Recently, thinking about the question of classic boardgames, I wondered – what do the other Opinionated Gamers think about such games? Are they beloved? Warmly remembered? Or barely tolerated?
So, I asked. And – the answers run the gamut. But there was a strong response, so I decided to put together this article, allowing folks to share their memories of various games. Not all of the games I asked about are included here; only those with some reasonable measure of support.
Oh, and before anyone asks: no games first published after 1975 are included, no public domain games are included, and only games from major mass-market publishers are included. And, unfortunately, there is a US-centric tone to the list; that's my fault.
Thoughts from Opinionated Gamers:
Joe Huber: My wife is not a big fan of games, playing some party games on occasion, but not many others. But we have been playing an online implementation of Boggle for many years now; it's particularly fun when one or the other of us is traveling, as another way to feel in touch.
Melissa: This was a great game to play with our kids when they were younger. I enjoy word puzzles, and this one is fun. Easy to handicap for early readers.
Brandon K: We've always enjoyed a game of Boggle now and then. It's a simple word game that is easy for everyone to understand, with time constraints, but even in the simplicity it will always reward the player with the larger vocabulary.
Tery: I usually love word games, but I just don't love Boggle. It's fine, but to me it feels like it is more about pattern recognition and less about the words.
Mark Jackson: Tery's right – it is pattern recognition. But I still have fun with it.
Larry: Boggle and Upwords are the two word games that I frequently played with my wife for many years. I was never a fan of Scrabble, as it seems too artificial, but both of these classics were big favorites of ours and would both get dozens of plays a year.
Ratings from the Opinionated Gamers:
I love it! Dale Y., Dan B., John P, Craig M., Frank B., Karen M.
I like it. James Nathan, Larry L., Jonathan F., Mario P., Mark J., Melissa R., Brandon K., Tery N., Michael W., Greg S., Eric E., Erik A., Ted C., John P, Patrick Brennan
Neutral. Joe H., Alan H., Fraser, Simon N., Matt C., Tery
Matt Carlson: I can't remove thoughts of this game with my interactions with my grandparents and their generation. In the midwest, standard playing cards were still somewhat suspect and Rook got around that by using just numbers and colors. It was the game that taught me trick-taking – I still remember "fondly" when my grandpa took every single trick in the round. I was born loving games (pretty much) and Rook was the most substantive game my grandparents enjoyed so I played many games at reunions while I was younger.
Removing myself from the nostalgia, I think the game still has a lot to offer. There are points for high cards, but also some available for the middle and low ones (5's and 10's.) Sometimes sloughing off a few low ones to your partner was just enough to set a particularly high opponent's bid. It reminds me of Hearts (technically, Hearts reminds me of Rook) but whereas I dislike Hearts as it is sort of a take-that, pick on someone game, Rook has that same gameplay but here it is a positive thing (try to slough off cards for positive gain rather than slough off cards for someone else's negative gain.)
Ted C: My original go to card game. No spades, no hearts, Rook. As time progressed, no one had heard of it and you needed a special deck. Hearts and Spades just took over. I have not played this game for 30 years….and don't own a copy. I did really like it.
Jeff Allers: I learned this game as an adult from my wife and some retired friends who had become unofficial "adopted parents" to her, back when she had her first job out of college. I would choose this over their other favorites–Nerts and Mexican Train Dominoes–any day. But after one of them died a few years ago, it's been difficult to find a replacement player for the partnership game, and it also just wouldn't be the same.
Tery: I learned this game at camp and I loved it. Like Matt, this is how I learned to play trick-taking games. I was pleasantly surprised when I played it again a few years ago that it held up really well; all this discussion about it has reminded me that I should pick up a copy.
Mark Jackson: Rook was the game my mom's family played… and I have fond memories of playing not only the basic game but also I Doubt It and Tuxedo.
I love it! Matt C., Ted C, Tery
I like it. Dale Y., Chris W., James Nathan, Jonathan F., Mark J., Tery N., Greg S., Erik A., Ted C., Jeff Allers
Neutral. Joe H., Larry L., Craig M., Brandon K.
Not for me… Frank B.
Clue / Cluedo
Fraser: Similar to a number of games on this list that I grew up playing, this mostly disappeared off my radar for a while and then came back into rotation when we started playing games with our children. In our Cluedo set, Reverend Green is the murderer much more often than he should be. Including the time where in a three player game I was playing Reverend Green and made a triple blind guess on my first turn in a room and was correct! Our shortest Cluedo game ever. Unlike Larry's mother, I still haven't finalised my notation scheme.
Melissa: Not only is this the only game to spawn a successful movie, it's also still great fun to play. Love the more complex variants too, but I'm not a fan of the new edition with cards and random events.
Brandon K: I'll still say it to this day, Clue is a better game than most deduction games on the market, with an easier rule set that plays most of the time in a fraction of the time of others. We've only been playing recently with the new version and the random cards and events that Melissa speaks of and while they can make the game a bit swingy and speed it up, they really aren't that bad.
Greg S: A true favorite from my childhood. I enjoyed the deduction aspects of it, even though I now find myself terrible at such tasks. I also enjoyed the theme and nifty little miniatures. The dice rolling always bothered me, as luck played too important of a rule. Perhaps one day I will try it again with some of the more strategic variants.
Ted C: Yes used to play this a lot as well. Expanded to other deduction style games over time. I must tell the story….two player game set up. I took my first turn and said something like, "Colonel Mustard in the dining room with the lead pipe" I won. The other person did not even get a turn. And, no….I was not cheating. It was one of those monkeys typing shakespeare episodes. I have not played the base game since.
Tery: One of all-time favorite childhood games. I loved the theme and the components, and at the time wasn't bothered by the random elements. I've played it again as an adult and it didn't hold up well, but it was still fun and I felt that same satisfaction checking boxes off my sheet.
Mark Jackson: Clue was a game I loved growing up… but has faded over time. The dice-rolling movement is especially irritating in a deduction game.
Larry: Clue is a classic and a game we played quite a bit as a family when I was growing up. My brother and I would dutifully mark down the information we had learned, but my mother played the game at an entirely different level. She noted who had asked what, who had passed a card, and all sorts of other data. The notes on her sheet would have required a Egyptian archaeologist to decipher, but they all made sense to her. She regularly smoked us at the game and we could never figure out why. Guess my love of deduction games comes totally from her ability at them!
Clue is remarkable in that it succeeds in getting families to enjoy a fairly challenging deduction game. However, as the others have noted, the dice rolling that makes it more acceptable to families, reduces the enjoyment for serious deduction fans. There are better options out there, but none of them would have been designed were it not for good old Clue.
I love it! Fraser, Melissa R., Craig M., Brandon K., Michael W., Karen M.
I like it. Jonathan F., John P., Mario P., Tery N., Greg S., Ted C., Frank B.. Tery
Neutral. Dale Y., Joe H., Dan B., James Nathan, Larry L., Mark J., Simon N., Eric E., Erik A., Matt C., Jeff L., Jeff Allers, Patrick Brennan
Not for me… Chris W., Alan H.
Joe Huber: A coworker once set up Yahtzee in his cube, with a competition as to who could manage the best game; folks were welcome to play as often as they liked. This was quite fun – particularly when I took the lead, and then when someone else topped it with a really impressive score.
Brandon K: The original Roll and Write game, and you could make the argument that it's still better than modern designs that use it as a crutch, I mean as a design inspiration.
Tery: This is still a fun game. It's simple to teach, it's fun to play and it's quick. You don't even need the game as long as you have 6 dice. Yahtzee and the many games it inspired are perfect pub games.
Mark Jackson: I'm so-so on basic Yahtzee… but I'm still happy to play Triple Yahtzee.
Larry: I don't consider Yahtzee to be a Roll and Write game, but it's still reasonably fun to play. I prefer the slightly more involved variants–Kismet (which gave "suits" to the dice faces by coloring them) is my favorite.
I like it. Dale Y., Chris W., John P., Mario P., Craig M., Brandon K., Tery N., Greg S., Erik A., Ted C., Jeff L., Frank B., Tery
Neutral. Joe H., Dan B., James Nathan, Larry L., Alan H., Jonathan F., Mark J., Melissa R., Simon N., Michael W., Matt C., Karen M.
Not for me… Patrick Brennan
Joe Huber: When I was growing up, my mother re-connected with her pen-pal in England from when she was growing up. And as a result we ended up getting a couple of games from the U.K. Most were fairly standard games – the U.K. edition of Monopoly, for example – but Buccaneer was unique – and rather fun.
Simon Neale: I spent many hours of my youth playing this game, and I still really enjoy a good pirate themed game now with my favourite being Merchants and Marauders. Buccaneer was ahead of its time with the use of cards in combat instead of just rolling dice. The gameplay itself allowed for two main strategies: collect gems and gold or build up a fighting force and plunder the riches of your opponents.
I like it. Simon N., Frank B.
Neutral. Joe H., Ted C.
Joe Huber: One of my favorite memories in gaming comes from a play of Pit with Greg S. We were playing with nine players – the 1983 edition of the game handles as many as 10 players – and I can still hear Greg yelling "Three! Three! For the love of God, three!". It was – beautiful.
Matt Carlson: I come from a loud family (of 6) and it didn't get much louder than when we'd all play Pit together (sometimes with guests to up the number further.) Nowadays when I see the game, I instantly picture us all playing the game in our dining room – one of the few non-holiday times we would be in there using the table. Probably my first introduction to a real-time game, the thrill of the hunt for those wanted cards kept your heart beating. And, of course, just when you were about to get that last needed card, someone else would hit the bell. Other great memories: When it was clear all someone had was corn and no one wanted corn, they just seemed to be put on the blacklist. It was also a great feeling if you could regroup mid-game… when the only thing that people were passing was wheat, so then you ditch your current goal and switch mid-stream to wheat… and still win the round.
Greg S: I, too, remember the game Joe Huber mentions. It was my first exposure to Pit (never played it in my childhood) and I was left extremely frustrated. Three? Three what? What are you trying to trade? The lack of information was enraging and the game was, for me, little more than a shouting match. I just don't see the appeal, although that one playing with Joe was certainly memorable!
Jeff Allers: I actually just learned Pit, as it is a popular closer at an Asheville boardgame group I am visiting while in the U.S. If I didn't already know how old it was, I would not have guessed–it's aged that well…at least in the category of "loud, hectic games you can play with a lot of people in a short time" (for which Happy Salmon is the most recent entry).
Tery: One of my favorite memories from the Gathering is a game of Pit where we had 8 players, one of whom had never played and got really into it. We were already laughing as his request for 1 card got louder and involved more epithets. Everyone completely fell apart in laughter when the round ended and he apparently only needed one card – "where is my hecking wheat?? Who is holding my wheat?" So, the game is a little random for my tastes, but you can certainly have a fun party game experience with it, and I am happy to play it with a fun group of people.
Mark Jackson: I played a lot of this growing up… and have had some wonderful adult experiences with the game, including managing to have hotel security called on us late one night at Gulf Games IV.
Larry: We played Pit growing up and it had its charms. But after a while, it all seemed pretty pointless–either won by the player who could scream the loudest or, eventually, locked in a stalemate when the players were too savvy to make risky trades. It's been a long time since I've had any desire to play it.
I love it! Joe H., Mark J.
I like it. Dale Y., Lorna, Alan H., John P., Mario P., Brandon K., Tery N., Erik A., Matt C., Frank B., Jeff Allers, Patrick Brennan
Neutral. Dan B., Jonathan F., Craig M., Jeff L.
Not for me… Larry L., Michael W., Greg S., Ted C.
Dale Y: I am by no means a Scrabble expert; in fact I think I"m probably just average. But this game kept me sane in college. Before we had things like phones and Words with Friends, we had three magnetic boards in my dorm room that were constantly in use between us three roomies.
Simon Neale: my interest in Scrabble grew during a few years of playing in a Scrabble league at work. But once discovering the wider range of boardgames, I don't think I could cope with the thinking downtime now.
Melissa: My interest in Scrabble sinks when I realise that so many people are professionals – or at least experts. I'd be happy to play with other non-regulars.
Greg S: I used to really enjoy Scrabble until my wife and I discovered Upwords. While we still play Upwords 40 or more times per year, Scrabble hasn't been played in years. Like Melissa, I was turned off by the "professional" players as the game became one of who knows the most obscure and unusual words. I'm happy to play with regular folks!
Matt C: I never appreciated the game until I started playing Words with Friends. Then I saw how much board placement trumped actual word-making. (Of course, wordsmithing then comes into play once everyone knows how to play the board.) Doesn't change my neutral rating, though.
Tery: I love Scrabble, but don't enjoy playing with people who study the word lists and play it competitively.
Mark Jackson: Reading Word Freak both fascinated me and pretty much killed my interest in actually playing Scrabble.
Larry: As I mentioned earlier, Scrabble was never a favorite, even though I love word games. It never seemed to reward a good vocabulary, but instead favored those who could memorize highly obscure 2 and 3 letter words. It just seems very artificial and I much prefer Upwords, where cleverness and a good imagination seems to win the day much more often than Scrabble.
I love it! Dale Y., Eric E., Patrick Brennan
I like it. Chris W., Dan B., Jonathan F., John P., Craig M., Tery N., Erik A., Jeff L., Frank B., Karen M.
Neutral. Lorna, James Nathan, Larry L., Alan H., Mark J., Fraser, Melissa R., Brandon K., Simon N., Michael W., Ted C., Matt C., Jeff Allers
Not for me… Joe H.
Joe Huber: Playing this growing up, we ran out of the sheets for selecting our goals and tracking progress. So my mother typed up more. Individually. On a typewriter…
Matt Carlson: Not one we owned, so didn't play it often, but remember enjoying picking out the careers more than playing the game itself. Kinda fun to try to see yourself in the future.
Simon Neale: Another game with some innovative ideas to offset a roll and move mechanic. The challenge of deciding your own victory conditions worked really well and you then had to set your strategy to meet those conditions.
Mark Jackson: The ability to manipulate your die rolls with cards and the variable win conditions make Careers a game ahead of its time. We owned the 70s version where you could be an environmentalist or an astronaut.
Larry: Truly one of the most innovative games ever created, based on when it first appeared. Even as a youngster, I recognized how much better it was than all the other Roll and Move games we played. I continued to play it regularly as an adult, up until I discovered German games. As an illustration of how skillful it is, I once racked up something like 30 consecutive wins against the same two opponents. Just a remarkable game for its time.
Fraser: Never owned this, so rarely played but I do remember liking it.
I love it! Mark J., Frank B.
I like it. Dale Y., Larry L., John P., Fraser, Simon N., Michael W.
Neutral. Joe H., Dan B., Mario P., Craig M., Tery N., Greg S., Ted C., Matt C.
Not for me… Alan H., Eric A., Patrick Brennan
Rack-O
James Nathan (22 plays): Playing games with my family has proven difficult. Rather, teaching my family games has proven difficult. We also didn't play much growing up, though we had Monopoly, Life, Scrabble, etc.; had them, yes, but they weren't actually played. Rack-O is one that my grandmother had and aside from Rummikub, also hers, was the closest we ever came to having a game we played as a family at gatherings.
My grandmother passed away in the last few years and now we still occasionally play Rack-O as a sort of way to remember her, and it's one we don't need to teach the rules to.
That said, the last 5 or 6 plays, um, I have taught them new rules. I love the process of ordering of the cards, but I've grown weary of the card selection process, so each time we play, I crib a card selection mechanic from another game (e.g. a Ticket to Ride style face up selection; 7 Wonders style drafting; Small World/Majesty like payments for a face up row) and it retains the accessibility for my family while adding a bit of whimsy and keeping me entertained.
(I haven't played the "10 Days…" series, but did once buy the game Mad Dash! from a used bookstore in Syracuse that does a similar thing, and while I'm a sucker for maps and geography, I prefer the number ordering of Rack-O.)
Jeff Allers: Just as with Nathan, Rack-O was one of the few games my grandmother had, and she taught me the game at an early age. I have several games in the 10 Days… series and they remind me of her, just as much as original Rack-O does. Shortly before she died, I had the chance to return the favor, finally teaching her a new game. It was Ticket to Ride, and she actually pulled off a surprise victory in a 5-player game, thanks to accidentally building the longest rail. We all cheered and she just smiled and turned a little red. It reminded me how much more important the people are than the games.
Mark Jackson: In our house, this has pretty much been fired by 10 Days in the USA.
Larry: A nice game, that we played fairly often during my childhood. The luck element is pretty high and it seems as if it could benefit from a little more refinement. Still, we had fun with it for an extended period of time.
I like it. Dale Y., James Nathan, Mario P., Mark J., Tery N., Greg S., Erik A., Jeff Allers
Neutral. Joe H., Dan B., Larry L., Jonathan F., John P., Craig M., Brandon K., Ted C., Matt C.
Simon Neale: This puzzle of a game has now been superseded by various electronic implementations which work well as effectively it is a solo game. I even had a version called Mastermind 44 – a four player version!
Melissa: I remember this so very fondly – and used to have a real strategy for playing it. I feel I should get back into training. Definitely scratches that puzzle itch.
Larry: Challenging, but also very bare bones. I always preferred Jotto, which is superior, since the goal and the questions all had to be words, which reduced the number of possibilities and gave it an additional dimension. My mom and I played Jotto together for well over 40 years and it was always great fun.
Patrick Brennan: Well it doesn't get much more repetitive in a game than what it does here, but this is a super game to teach kids the process of elimination. You can obviously ramp up the difficulty so that the black/white markers are not space specific, add more colours, etc, as needed, and then it becomes quite challenging and that's what I'm basing my rating on. It's still fairly one dimensional though, and not very interesting at the basic level which is usually where you play it with kids.
Fraser: One that I played with my parents and then many years later was played again with our children.
I like it. Alan H., Jonathan F., Fraser, Melissa R., Craig M., Simon N., Michael W., Erik A., Matt C., Frank B.
Neutral. Dale Y., Joe H., Dan B., James Nathan, Larry L., John P., Brandon K., Tery N., Ted C., Jeff L., Karen M., Jeff Allers, Patrick Brennan
Not for me… Mark J.
Jeff Allers: We had a decent collection of mass market games that we played as a family, and this was one of our favorites, for a time. I don't remember the elimination aspect bothering any of us at the time. In fact, we were often overly dramatic with each drop of the marble–especially when a player's last marble fell into the plastic tray. It started to lose its luster when we discovered that the game was usually decided in the initial placement rounds, where the safest spaces were fairly obvious. But I'm sure that we got enough plays–and laughs–out of the game to justify the purchase.
Patrick Brennan: A memory game, memorising where all the holes are and moving the sliders so as to sink opponent's marbles. There ain't much you can do to protect your own, so it's a race to sink 'em faster. Nothing too clever, and not a lot of fun.
I like it. Jonathan F., Mark J., Frank B., Jeff Allers
Neutral. Dale Y., Joe H., John P., Craig M., Ted C.
Not for me… Erik A., Patrick Brennan
Joe Huber: While it's been a while since I did much looking at thrift stores – and a much longer time since I found much of interest – I did, many years ago, find two copies of Stratego with wooden pieces. I don't play two player games enough to play this regularly any more, but I do still enjoy it when it does come out.
Greg S: Another game I adored in my childhood. There was some deduction and logical thinking involved, as well as strategy and bluffing. Still, there was always that horror when a piece was unexpectedly destroyed by a bomb … or glee if your unsuspecting opponent was the victim! I have played the more strategic Lord of the Rings: Confrontation several times since its release, but haven't played a good, old-fashioned game of Stratego in probably 25+ years.
Ted C: My son Doug played this at a Gulf Games and had to have a copy. I scoured the internet and ebay to finally get a copy for him. He loved it when he was younger.
Jeff Allers: My parents had lots of high school and college friends they would visit as I was growing up. We would all pile into the car for a weekend with a family my sister and I did not really know, and we'd have to find some way to bond with the other children while our parents were visiting. One of those children taught me Stratego, and we played it the whole weekend. It wasn't long before I received my own copy as a birthday present, and I taught the game to my own friends and family.
Larry: Meh. Probably a better game than I gave it credit for, as I'm sure there are strategies I was too impatient to implement. But it always felt like an extended guessing game and even as a youngster, I never cared for games like that.
I like it. Dale Y., Chris W., Joe H., Craig M., Michael W., Erik A., Frank B., Jeff Allers
Neutral. Dan B., Larry L., Alan H., John P, Mario P., Mark J., Brandon K., Simon N., Greg S., Ted C., Matt C.
Not for me… James Nathan, Jonathan F., Tery N.
Karen M: I still have my copy of this game from my childhood and pull it out every once in a while to play it. It's purely nostalgia, but I love this game. The actual game play is very straightforward, but the forgeries make it interesting. I love the paintings. I give this game (and Clue) credit for turning me into the boardgamer I am today.
Ted C: This was a family classic. One of the few games I remember (Landslide was another) that we still talk about at family reunions today. So many fond memories. The bluffing element for the paintings and passing around forgeries just had us all laughing.
Patrick Brennan: Once you get past the attractive theme, you have a roll and move game followed by auctions for goods where the value is a complete lottery, somewhere between 0 and a million. The question being how high over the "remaining likely average" will you be prepared to pay. That's not a lot of interest or fun. Then remember the cards and their values as best you can and hope that you land on good spaces to take advantage of it. Too much luck to warrant replay except with the kids occasionally.
Fraser: Another one I didn't own. I remember playing it a few times as a youngster and enjoying even though I knew the values of the paintings were completely random.
I love it! Karen M.
I like it. Jonathan F., Mark J., Erik A., Ted C.
Neutral. Joe H., Alan H., Mario P., Fraser, Craig M., Tery N., Frank B.
Not for me… Dale Y., James Nathan, Patrick Brennan
Melissa: I remember my dad teaching me Othello on the old green folding case board. For someone who doesn't like abstracts now, I have really fond memories of this.
Ted C: This is my first real absract (after chess and checkers of course) that I remember playing. Solid game that I still own but have not played in years. Another story….Went to a board game meet up years ago that got cancelled and I did not get the word. I showed up and no one was around. However, across the hall was a "GO" group and I wandered in. The marvelous group took me in and taught me "GO" which I played for the evening. I think GO could replace this one.
Tery: My dad and I would often play games on Saturday mornings, and he bought a copy for us to try. It was okay and it was a nice break from Monopoly and Rummikub, but it was apparently a good predictor of my adult taste in board games, because I still don't really like most abstracts.
Larry: Like Tery, I'm not a big fan of abstracts, but this one interested me more than many. Still, my enjoyment was limited because I'm not very good at it. It's actually quite a skillful game, but I never really mastered the "grab side spaces, then corners, then crush" strategy required to do well.
Fraser: I used to play this a lot as a teenager.
I love it! Fraser
I like it. Melissa R., Brandon K., Michael W., Ted C., Jeff Allers
Neutral. Joe H., Dan B., James Nathan, Larry L., Jonathan F., Mark J., Craig M., Simon N., Tery N., Erik A., Jeff L., Frank B., Patrick Brennan
Not for me… Dale Y., Alan H., John P., Matt C.
Joe Huber: I have very fond memories of playing this growing up. We would typically play either six months or a year. And, for some reason – I really have no idea exactly why – _sing_ "Sweet Sunday" when landing on that space…
Matt Carlson: My brother and I would play this without end. We would get to the end of a typical game, and then keep going but just multiply all the game numbers by 10. We had to raid the monopoly money more than a few times to keep the bank flush.
Tery: I cannot count the number of times I played this game with my cousins. We all loved it. I played it again when I was in my early 20's and the nostalgia wasn't enough to make it good; we abandoned the game part-way through. If I'd been writing this when I was 10 I would have been extolling its virtues, though.
Mark Jackson: As a kid, this was fascinating to have a board that went through a month… and getting mail was awesome. As an adult, the theme (mail contains mostly junk mail and bills) cuts a little too close to home.
Fraser: Like Careers and Life we didn't own this, but I remember liking it.
I like it. Fraser, Michael W.
Neutral. Dale Y., Joe H., Mark J., Craig M., Tery N., Ted C., Matt C., Jeff Allers
Not for me…Frank B.
Matt Carlson: I respect the game, but it's typically not for me. My personal favorite variation (that I might even put down as "I Love It" would be double-deck real-time Uno. Take two decks, deal out plenty of cards, and play as normal. However, any player that has an exact (number and color) card as the one played, can jump in and play it instantly. Play then resumes, going right or left from that new player (skips or double or triple skips excepted.) All hell would break loose when someone played a "Draw 4" – if you played on top of a Draw 2 or Draw 4, the cards would accumulate and all be drawn by the next person after the last card was played. In reflection, one thing I like about this version is that the more cards you have, the more likely you are going to get to play one (as long as you're fast enough.)
Melissa: I like this for its ubiquity. Every time I talk about games on radio, someone calls in with a Uno anecdote. And is it You-know or (italian) uno? We used to play it with a double deck late into the night.
Jeff Allers: My favorite memory is playing this with my family together with my German host family (half of whom could not speak English). We used a German deck, and called out the German names and numbers (zieh zwei, aussetzen, etc.). They taught us Matt's real-time variant. There was also wine. And Schnapps. My father tried to read out everyone's score in German between hands, and his mispronunciation was even more hysterical than the actual game.
Tery: I like it fine as a card game that can be played by many ages. Well, unless you make me play Uno: Card Attack because that game takes HOURS. However, there are so many other better games out there that have the same ability to cross ages that I am not really interested in playing it.
Larry: OMG, I still bear the scars! My first job was in 1980 and I thought it might be fun to introduce some lunch-time games. But before I could do that, someone brought in a copy of Uno and we were soon playing 8 person games, to the delight of all and the utter boredom of me. It would take quite a while before interesting gaming would appear at my workplace…
Fraser: Another of those inter-generational games. I remember comparing rules over the decades and the published rules have got "nicer" or "friendlier" than the rules from the 70s. Mainly around the multiple draw 2 or draw 4s.
I love it! Patrick Brennan
I like it. Dale Y., John P., Fraser, Melissa R., Tery N., Eric E., Ted C., Jeff Allers
Neutral. Chris W., James Nathan, Alan H., Jonathan F., Craig M., Brandon K., Simon N., Greg S., Erik A., Matt C., Jeff L., Frank B.
Not for me… Joe H., Dan B., Larry L., Mark J., Michael W., Karen M.
Simon Neale: You only needed a pencil and paper to play this game, so it became a favourite for wet lunchtimes at school. Such a simple idea of placing your ships where you thought your opponent would not think to look for them. We even invented super attacks such as a bombing run which hit every other location in a row or column! Great fun but soon outgrown as a game.
Melissa: Another problem-solving game. I wouldn't choose to play it, but I wouldn't run screaming.
Greg S: Again, a game of simple logic and deduction, but I had a ton of fun with it as a child. I played it a few times when my daughter was young, but haven't played in 25+ years. Probably wouldn't hold up very well, but I still have fond memories.
Larry: Again, even as a kid, I recognized how trivial and luck-ridden this game was. Just a way for bored children to pass the time.
Patrick Brennan: Classic kid favourite that's 20 minutes of systematic guesswork. The only fun really is going boom and splash, but at kid level that's all that's needed and it works just fine; better than fine if some luck based gaming within the family is needed. If you want a stretch, it at least offers some meta-game potential between the same 2 opponents when changing your placement patterns from game to game.
Fraser: Used to play this quite a bit at school with pen and paper.
Joe H.: I _did_ enjoy watching the game of this played on The Grand Tour…
I like it. Dale Y., John P., Fraser, Michael W., Ted C.
Neutral. Chris W., Dan B., James Nathan, Alan H., Jonathan F., Mario P., Mark J., Melissa R., Craig M., Simon N., Tery N., Greg S., Eric E., Erik A., Matt C., Frank B., Jeff Allers
Not for me… Joe H., Larry L., Brandon K., Jeff L., Patrick Brennan
Joe Huber: For many years, Bruce Linsey kept track of all of the games played at The Gathering of Friends. And while many classics were played – there were no recorded plays of Monopoly. So – I decided that there really should be at least one game of Monopoly played there. To make it more German-looking, we used the Perry Rhodan edition; otherwise, however, we simply set out to play by the rules, and play quickly. And so we finished the whole four player game- to all but one player going bankrupt – in 45 minutes.
Dale Y: The game is actually fairly interesting when played with all the rules – including auctions for un-purchased properties. It's not the sort of game that I'd play with families though; it's really quite cut-throat.
Simon Neale: Despite Dale's comment above, many a family evening years ago would be spent playing boardgames of which Monopoly was one. The game is quite random in that even with the best properties you can be bankrupted by unlucky dice rolling.
Melissa: Please, no.
Greg S: Played many, many, many times as a child, but probably never played using the correct rules back then. My daughter went through a thankfully brief Monopoly phase in her youth, and I did play once with nephews and nieces about 15 years ago using the correct rules. It is better with the correct rules, but nothing I would seek out.
Jeff Allers: As was already mentioned, this game really is too cut-throat for families. During family game nights while growing up, my baby sister always pleaded for a loan from the bank to keep from going bankrupt early, and she would never get out of that hole, which also meant that I never finished a game of Monopoly during my childhood. It didn't help that we played with incorrect rules, only allowing you to buy what you land on (instead of auctioning it off). My son was taught the game recently, and my wife wanted us to play with him, so I insisted on finally playing by the correct rules. I won that game, thanks to my 2 opponents always landing on the 3 matching properties I had, which I quickly developed and used to bankrupt them. They haven't asked to play that game again, so "mission accomplished."
Mark Jackson: Yep, I'm the guy in love with Monopoly… as long as we play by the rules (for crying out loud). (I posted about this years ago – https://akapastorguy.blogspot.com/2007/12/giving-away-your-own-monopoly-money.html). For those of you who don't mind weird DVD-augmented games, Rob Daviau did a wonderful take on Monopoly with his Tropical Tycoon version.
Larry: It's not as bad as many make it out to be, but it's still not very good. The main skill is in trading properties, but the rules make that unnecessarily difficult, so even that's unsatisfying. Of course, my family played it a ton when I was growing up, but it was soon replaced by more interesting (and a bit more rules-heavy) clones from other publishers. But I had to wait until I discovered Tom Lehmann's Fast Food Franchise before I found a property game I could actually enjoy.
Fraser: Starting money is 2*$500, 2*$100, 2*$50, 6*$20, 5*$10, 5*$5, 5*$1. I still remember this, thus I know I played this a lot as a child!
I love it! Mark J.
I like it. Dale Y., John P., Craig M., Eric E.
Neutral. Dale Y., Joe H., Dan B., James Nathan, Mario P., Fraser, Tery N., Michael W., Greg S., Ted C., Matt C., Frank B., Jeff Allers
Not for me… Larry L., Alan H., Melissa R., Brandon K., Simon N., Erik A., Jeff L, Karen M., Patrick Brennan
Matt Carlson: I used to love this game, up until a computer version came out. Once I knew I could play the game in under 5 minutes (or less), sitting down for an hour or two just didn't sound that fun. (Even a multiplayer game on the computer would be under 10 minutes.)
Simon Neale: Another game from my youth, where a group of school friends and I would bash our way across the map seeking world domination. We even developed our own unbalanced way of stopping a player turtling in Australasia by removing it from the world map! Ah, school children and their ideas!
Greg S: Oh, my. This is THE game that was the stepping stone into more sophisticated games. I spent many, many weekend nights with friends attempting to conquer the rules. We experimented with a variety of house rules to help improve the game, some of which helped, while most didn't. Still, we had some amazing times around the Risk board. Now, I am sure I would find the game very basic and luck-driven, but, oh, the memories …
Ted C: I have played a lot of risk and never really cared for it. The whole hunker down in Kamchackta thing and the varied armies by the cards, etc. Later versions that added time tracks and mission points were more to my liking.
Jeff Allers: When I was in elementary school, my architect father designed and built a new home for us at the edge of town in the middle of a beautiful forest. But I was suddenly separated from my school friends and felt very lonely, until a family with 3 sons from the East Coast moved in just up the hill. They were sci-fi geeks, and they also taught me Risk. Together with their uncle, who lived with them for a time, we spent many nights in their basement rolling dice, playfully trash talking, and pretending to conquer the world (as well as listening to Devo, looking at Star Wars trading cards and discussing the science and engineering behind Star Trek). It was Geek Heaven. And even then, I had an affinity for Europe, though I never won a game of Risk by making that my base.
Larry: Much like Stratego, this is a game that I probably didn't have the patience to play well. But like so many games based on elimination, it just takes too freaking long to finish. Plus, there's the whole "I turn in a valuable set of cards, go on the attack, and control half the world, then you turn in an even more valuable set and counter-attack to control two thirds of the world, and so on, until someone finally finishes does the job". Plus, I hated the fact that a single army could hold off a much bigger force as long as it kept rolling 6's. I still love the idea of games of conquest (Eon's Borderlands is one of my all-time favorite games), but Risk always kept me wanting something better.
Fraser: Playing this in Australia, most people wanted to start in Australia, so competition to control Australia was always fierce. A relatively simple wargame that escalated somewhat as the values of sets of cards increases over time. The games usually tended to turn into a big ebb and flow between the last two surviving players. A tad long for what it is.
Joe H.: Fraser, we always fought fiercely for Australia as well, so that focus wasn't just based upon where one resided…
I love it! Erik A.
I like it. Mario P., Mark J., Fraser, Craig M., Greg S., Eric E., Jeff Allers
Neutral. Chris W., Alan H., John P., Brandon K., Simon N., Michael W.
Not for me… Dale Y., Joe H., Dan B., James Nathan, Larry L., Jonathan F., Tery N., Ted C., Matt C., Frank B., Patrick Brennan
2 Responses to The Opinionated Gamers opine about the classics
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
airBaltic Carries 500 000 Passengers on Bombardier CS300
Download: Printable PDF Date: 18 Oct 2017 03:15 category:
Country: Latvia Aircraft: Airplanes Airline: Air Baltic
The Latvian airline airBaltic has carried over 500 000 passengers on the brand new CS300 aircraft and now every fourth passenger of airBaltic is flying CS300. In total airBaltic has flown to 40 destinations in the Baltics, Europe, Scandinavia, CIS and the Middle East with the Bombardier CS300 aircraft.
Martin Sedlacky, Chief Operations Officer of airBaltic: "CS300 is the most advanced jet aircraft in its class and is showing good operational results. Like all new aircraft, the implementation requires additional attention in terms of linking parts and systems of different manufacturers but our team together with Bombardier and other partners are doing excellent work so that our passengers could have the best flying experience."
airBaltic currently has seven CS300 aircraft operated on many popular routes. Thus far, airBaltic has completed more than 12 167 scheduled flights and flown over 4 560 block hours with the Bombardier CS300 aircraft.
By the end of 2019 airBaltic plans to have 20 Bombardier CS300 aircraft in its fleet. By 2021, as an all-Bombardier operator, airBaltic will have one of the youngest jet fleets in Europe. With the next order, already being negotiated, eventually, airBaltic will increase the number of Bombardier C Series aircraft on its fleet to at least 34.
The new Bombardier CS300 aircraft, with a total of 145 seats, offers excellent flying experience with such benefits for passengers as wider seats, larger windows, more hand luggage space in the cabin, improved lavatories and more. New aircraft is also much quieter – with four times smaller noise footprint. Moreover, at the moment, it is the greenest commercial aircraft in the world, as it is the first aircraft to have a transparent declaration of the life-cycle environmental impact, helping to reduce CO2 and NOX emissions by 20% and 50% respectively.
airBaltic operates direct flights from Riga to over 60 destinations. airBaltic offers convenient connections via Riga to its network spanning Europe, Scandinavia, the CIS and the Middle East. In addition, airBaltic also offers direct flights from Tallinn and Vilnius.
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Full slate of Gulfstream customer-centric support events 2020
Gulfstream Aerospace Customer Support organization will host a comprehensive schedule of customer-focused events in 2020, including its biennial Operators & Suppliers Conference, two Customer...
FACC received CAAC Part-145 maintenance organization approval
CAAC has granted FACC approval as a maintenance organization according to Part-145. This CAAC certification represents a further milestone for the Austrian aerospace group in its latest "Aft...
New partnership - Etihad Airways and easyJet
Etihad Airways has become the most recent airline to partner with easyJet, one of the world's largest airlines. This new partnership means customers can purchase tickets through the ea...
Sheremetyevo Airport Officially Opened Terminal С
Sheremetyevo International Airport's new passenger terminal - built and equipped in compliance with the highest global standards - was opened to the public. The official opening ceremony was atten...


Explain technical product or service information to customers. Deliver promotional presentations to current or prospective customers.
Answer clients' questions regarding construction work, financing,maintenance, repairs, and appraisals. Advise real estate clients.Accompany buyers during visits to and inspections of property, advising them on the suitability and value of the homes they are visiting. Advise real estate clients.
Interview clients to determine what kinds of properties they are seeking. Gather customer or product information to determine customer needs Review property listings, trade journals, and relevant literature, and attend conventions, seminars, and staff and association meetings to remain knowledgeable about real estate markets.Attend events to develop professional knowledge.
Inspect condition of premises, and arrange for necessary maintenance or notify owners of maintenance needs.Examine condition of property or products.


text:
package junior.contactlist.repository;

import junior.contactlist.model.Contact;

import java.util.List;

public class SQLiteContactsRepo implements ContactsRepository {
    @Override
    public long create(Contact contact) {
        return 0;
    }

    @Override
    public Contact read(long id) {
        return null;
    }

    @Override
    public List<Contact> readAll() {
        return null;
    }

    @Override
    public void update(Contact contact) {

    }

    @Override
    public void delete(long id) {

    }

    @Override
    public void delete(Contact contact) {

    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


How does IUCN determine the status of a species?
from: International Gorilla Conservation Programme (lead author), Gorilla Doctors, the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, World Wildlife Fund, Wildlife Conservation Society, and Primate Expertise.
There are a variety of criteria for determining the current status of a species, including total numbers, rate of decline, and certain aspects of their geographic area.
What were the major factors in setting the new status for the mountain gorillas?
In the past, mountain gorillas were ranked as critically endangered due to their very small population size (fewer than 250 mature individuals, which is the criteria for critically endangered), high levels of threats, and declining numbers. With the population slowly but consistently increasing over the last few decade and now at an estimated 600 mature individuals, they were reclassified as endangered.
Is there enough forest area for continued expansion of the mountain gorillas?
It is not clear yet exactly how many mountain gorillas can be accommodated within their limited geographic range, but there is probably room for some additional expansion, though this can create new challenges for them. Their habitat is only about 300 square miles.
Why are other types of gorillas still listed as critically endangered?
Grauer's gorillas, which live only in the Democratic Republic of Congo, have seen nearly an 80 percent decline in recent decades. Cross River gorillas are a tiny population of only several hundred. Western lowland gorillas have the largest population and the biggest range, but their numbers are estimated to be declining as well. Ebola has also affected western lowland gorilla numbers.
Click here to support the successful work of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund!


text:
import * as React from 'react';
import { ExtendButtonBase, ExtendButtonBaseTypeMap } from '../ButtonBase';
import { OverrideProps } from '../OverridableComponent';

export type TabTypeMap<P = {}, D extends React.ElementType = 'div'> = ExtendButtonBaseTypeMap<{
  props: P & {
    /**
     * This prop isn't supported.
     * Use the `component` prop if you need to change the children structure.
     */
    children?: null;
    /**
     * Override or extend the styles applied to the component.
     */
    classes?: {
      /** Styles applied to the root element. */
      root?: string;
      /** Styles applied to the root element if both `icon` and `label` are provided. */
      labelIcon?: string;
      /** Styles applied to the root element if the parent [`Tabs`](/api/tabs/) has `textColor="inherit"`. */
      textColorInherit?: string;
      /** Styles applied to the root element if the parent [`Tabs`](/api/tabs/) has `textColor="primary"`. */
      textColorPrimary?: string;
      /** Styles applied to the root element if the parent [`Tabs`](/api/tabs/) has `textColor="secondary"`. */
      textColorSecondary?: string;
      /** Pseudo-class applied to the root element if `selected={true}` (controlled by the Tabs component). */
      selected?: string;
      /** Pseudo-class applied to the root element if `disabled={true}` (controlled by the Tabs component). */
      disabled?: string;
      /** Styles applied to the root element if `fullWidth={true}` (controlled by the Tabs component). */
      fullWidth?: string;
      /** Styles applied to the root element if `wrapped={true}`. */
      wrapped?: string;
      /** Styles applied to the `icon` and `label`'s wrapper element. */
      wrapper?: string;
    };
    /**
     * If `true`, the component is disabled.
     * @default false
     */
    disabled?: boolean;
    /**
     * If `true`, the  keyboard focus ripple is disabled.
     * @default false
     */
    disableFocusRipple?: boolean;
    /**
     * The icon to display.
     */
    icon?: string | React.ReactElement;
    /**
     * The label element.
     */
    label?: React.ReactNode;
    /**
     * You can provide your own value. Otherwise, we fallback to the child position index.
     */
    value?: any;
    /**
     * Tab labels appear in a single row.
     * They can use a second line if needed.
     * @default false
     */
    wrapped?: boolean;
  };
  defaultComponent: D;
}>;

/**
 *
 * Demos:
 *
 * - [Tabs](https://material-ui.com/components/tabs/)
 *
 * API:
 *
 * - [Tab API](https://material-ui.com/api/tab/)
 * - inherits [ButtonBase API](https://material-ui.com/api/button-base/)
 */
declare const Tab: ExtendButtonBase<TabTypeMap>;

export type TabClassKey = keyof NonNullable<TabTypeMap['props']['classes']>;

export type TabProps<
  D extends React.ElementType = TabTypeMap['defaultComponent'],
  P = {}
> = OverrideProps<TabTypeMap<P, D>, D>;

export default Tab;


text:
HomeSci-FiSpaceX rocket makes a beautiful pre-dawn landing at seaa
SpaceX rocket makes a beautiful pre-dawn landing at seaa
July 23, 2018 admin Sci-Fi 0
SpaceX's rocket landings are back and better than ever.
After a months long dry spell, SpaceX just completed its latest and greatest rocket landing on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean after launching a satellite to orbit from Cape Canaveral, Florida at 1:50 a.m. EDT.
The rocket's first stage touched down on the SpaceX drone ship "Of Course I Still Love You" (yes, that's what it's called), shortly before 2:00 a.m. and less than 9 minutes in total after the initial liftoff. You can see the start of the landing at around the 23-minute mark in the video below, but the feed cuts off before the rocket actually enters the scene.
The landing marks one of the first landings and launches of the company's newest, upgraded Falcon 9 rockets, called Block 5.
Before this launch, SpaceX got rid of a backlog of their Block 4 rockets by launching without landing them back on Earth. That type of launch without landing is the traditional way of getting things to orbit, but SpaceX managed to change that.
The whole point in the company's rocket landings hinge on the fact that it could reduce the cost of flying to orbit.
By reusing rocket stages for multiple launches, it could drive down the exorbitant cost of flying to space for companies and nations around the world.
SpaceX has been killing it the past couple years.
The company — founded by Elon Musk — launched 18 times in 2017.
This year, the Elon Musk-founded company launched its maiden voyage of the huge Falcon Heavy rocket, which is effectively three Falcon 9 boosters strapped together.
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On Black Friday of this year, the cable TV channel [...]


I have had a few journal submissions rejected over the summer. There is no surprise there: I could decorate my office wall with the rejection letters I have received over the years. I simply send the manuscripts somewhere else and eventually they get published. What is surprising, however, is that the reason the articles were rejected.
Quite simply, the articles were mixed methods (a mix of qualitative and quantitative) and so did not fit the preferred orientation of the journals. It is, of course, perfectly acceptable for journals to favour particular disciplinary perspectives and to become a home for a particular long-running debate or accumulation of knowledge. What is disappointing, however, is that there are very few outlets for work that combines both qualitative and quantitative work.
In keynote addresses, and funding competitions, we repeatedly hear and see encouragement for mixed methods work. The reality is that there are very few journal editors and referees who are prepared to tolerate work that is outside of their preferred disciplinary silo.
The problem is, I am running out of other journals to try. What happens when there isn't "another journal"?
The study of peace and conflict faces a real challenge. We seem to be stuck in silos (the same people, the same arguments, the same methods, the same conference panels, the same few journals for each silo) and be unable to find ways out of them. The ensuing epistemic closure means that the added value of much scholarship is limited. The published material may be diverting, entertaining, well-argued and structured, and magnificently embedded in the relevant literature. But often its contribution to knowledge is limited.
Mixed methods research is often messy and contradictory. Mine attempts to mix my long-running critical qualitative interest in international intervention (influenced by ethnography and post-colonialism) with empirical studies from the Peace Accords Matrix and the Everyday Peace Indicators project. You can see how it is neither fish nor fowl. Yet, if only "safe" material can be published, where is the room for innovation, risk-taking and creativity? Instead we are limited to the realm of replication, discipleship and … well … dullness.
Of course, it could be the case that my articles have been rejected because they are of poor quality (and plenty of my work falls into that category). But in these cases all of the rejection letters cite the 'does not fit' reason. If we all have to fit all of the time, what does this say about ourselves and our own – very conservative – thought processes?
Hey Roger, Jason Quinn here, quit complaining and go work in your vegetable garden!!! Don't forget that trick I told you.


Now, you can even start work with a cake literally in 5 pieces. No need to worry at this point, because the frosting will act like some sort of glue to all the ingredients. Begin frosting your sides and continue with the top of the cake. Most of the times, the advice is to fashion a crumb coat at first, before applying the frosting or icing. Because when decorating in the barrel cake way, it's not like changing the interior design of your room: it can be clean, or messy, or in between. Because the candy will cover it! So, grab the thin bars of candies or cookies. Use the frosting as adhesive on the back of each candy and attach them to the cake, making sure they all touch each other at the end, all the way round the cake. Don't be afraid to cut them in order to fit the pattern. When this step is done, you can move on to filling the top of the cake with strawberries or other jelly beans. Bon appetite!
5 Responses to "Easy Barrel Cake – Easter Idea"
I'm not a huge sweets person but those little hard shelled chocolate eggs are the tastiest things ever!
That looks really good! I don't know how much I could eat but it looks soo simple and easy to do!


text:
You are here: Home > All > Istanbul Photo Awards 2020
Deadline: Jan 31, 2020
Entry: Free Entry
Istanbul Photo Awards 2020
Istanbul Photo Awards is an international news photography contest organized by Anadolu Agency. The contest aims to contribute to the sphere of news photography and offers a perspective shaped by the region's unique position at the center of diverse cultures. The awards reward endeavors of courageous and talented photojournalists from around the world on merit. Although it is only the fifth edition of the contest, Istanbul Photo Awards has become one of the most widely known news photography contests in the world.
Along with the generous awards of the contest aiming to support the hard work and dedication of news photographers worldwide, the application is totally free.
Istanbul Photo Awards receives a lot of attention from photojournalists from all around the world. 10,000 photographers from 150 nationalities sent almost 100,000 photographs to the contest in five years.
In 2015, Daniel Berehulak won the Photo of the Year award with his photograph depicting the Ebola crisis. In 2016, Abd Doumany's image of an injured Syrian boy was chosen as Photo of the Year by the international jury and in 2017, photographer Frederic Lafargue's image titled "Escaping from Daesh" was chosen Photo of the Year 2017. In 2018, Damir Sagolj won the Photo of the Year award with the image of a dead boy in refugee camp in Banglades. Ahmad Gharabli's photo of a Palestinian women and Israeli police security officer taking photo of each other chosen as Photo of the Year 2019.
All the winning photographs have the power to engage people against wars and conflicts, and to familiarize them with different cultures. The jury had a very tough time selecting the most powerful photos of the year from such a strong field. Every year international jury meets in Turkey.
In 2019 edition, Visual Media Advisor Georges De Keerle, AFP Director of Photo Business Development Michel Scotto, Photojournalist at NOOR agency Yuri Kozyrev, Paris Match Senior Digital Broadcasting Director Marion Mertens, Photographer and Author Deborah Copaken, Anadolu Agency Visual News Editor-in-Chief Ahmet Sel and Photography Editor Fırat Yurdakul are the jury members.
Every year online applications are accepted between Nov. 1- Jan. 31 via http://istanbulphotoawards.com. The results of the contest announced by the end of jury gathering each year. Award winning photographs will be published in photobook which will be send almost everywhere all around the world to the photography professionals and displayed at significant galleries around the world such as Istanbul, Shanghai, New York, Vienna and Moscow. Turkish Airlines and Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) sponsor the contest in 2019.
PRIZE DETAILS: Single News 1st prize winner will be nominated as "Photo of the Year", the laureate receives 8.000 USD in total.
Categories First Second	Third
SINGLE NEWS	8,000 USD	3,000 USD	1,500 USD
STORY NEWS	5,000 USD	3,000 USD	1,500 USD
SINGLE SPORTS	5,000 USD	3,000 USD	1,500 USD
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So it's been a couple of days since my last post. I wanted to do a post a day and as you can tell I'm a little off. I thought I would do more since it's summer, but alas I find myself relaxing after work instead of blogging. Funny thing is that I have a bunch of drafts I started, but never finished.
So the plan is to get the drafts published (they might be old) and get back on track to a post a day. So hopefully tonight I will have another post on something done.


text:
https://www.thebody.com/article/interleukin-2-il-2-proleukin
HIV Drugs In Development
Interleukin-2 (IL-2, Proleukin)
Project Inform
What Does the Research Show?
Who Should Use it?
What About Side Effects?
How to Use it?
Dosing Considerations
Interleukin-2 (IL-2) is a naturally occurring substance made by cells in your immune system. Its main function is to signal cells (most often CD4+ cells) to become active and reproduce.
A man-made version of IL-2 (aldesleukin, Proleukin) has been studied for over 20 years in HIV-positive people as a way to increase the number of CD4+ cells. It is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for treating other conditions, though some people living with HIV have found ways to make it part of their overall treatment strategy. Whether or not IL-2 therapy helps people with HIV to live longer or preserves their ability to fight infections is the subject of two large international studies.
CD4+ cells are central to managing your body's response to infections. In HIV disease, these cells become infected with HIV and eventually die or begin to function improperly. Over time, as the total number of these cells declines and their functions fail, the immune system gradually weakens and loses its ability to fight disease.
IL-2 stimulates CD4+ cells to become active and reproduce. This can help restore or maintain a normal number of CD4+ cells and might also improve their function.
Researchers have experimented with 3 ways to give IL-2: injection under the skin (subcutaneous, or subQ), injection in the stomach muscles, and infusion into a vein (intravenous or IV). They have tried different schedules -- daily, weekly, monthly and every 2 months. They have also experimented with different doses, from very low daily doses (1 million International Units, or IU) to higher intermittent doses (18 million IU).
Experimental formulas of IL-2 have been tried and more are being studied. Large studies are underway to evaluate a cycled strategy of twice a day subQ IL-2 injections, at doses of 9 MIU (4.5 twice a day) or 15 MIU (7.5 twice a day), for 5 consecutive days, every 2 months. This approach is effective in producing large increases in the number of CD4+ cells. Increases of 100?400 or more CD4+ cells have been routinely achieved, beyond the improvements seen from standard anti-HIV therapies.
In lab research, IL-2 is often used to stimulate HIV-infected cells to reproduce. When IL-2 is used this way, it causes the infected cells to produce large amounts of new HIV particles. Because of this, some researchers feared using the drug in humans, where they certainly don't want to see increased production of HIV. However, these fears have not been seen in studies.
To the contrary, changes in HIV levels are similar among groups taking IL-2 together with anti-HIV therapy compared to those on anti-HIV therapy alone. After a course of IL-2, there is often a burst of HIV activity, but it's not sustained and there's no evidence that these temporary elevations in HIV levels cause harm. Nonetheless, this concern causes most researchers to use IL-2 only in people using anti-HIV therapies.
Researchers tailor IL-2 dosing and scheduling to fit the individual's needs -- trying to optimize CD4+ cell count increases and minimize side effects. If side effects occur, doses are reduced and/or courses are shortened to improve tolerability. If CD4+ cell counts rise to normal ranges, therapy is given less often to maintain those increases. So far in studies, people who started IL-2 therapy while CD4+ cell counts were high (above 400) generally had more immediate and pronounced increases in CD4+ cell counts, resulting in the need for less frequent IL-2 therapy.
One study at the National Institutes of Health included people with CD4+ cell counts around 600. Within the first three cycles, IL-2 recipients experienced CD4+ cell count increases to about 1,200. The average time between cycles that kept CD4+ cell counts at this level was about one year. However, if CD4+ cell counts are below 300 when IL-2 is started, then CD4+ cell count increases are usually less immediate and pronounced. Therefore, to maintain ideal CD4+ cell counts in such people, a much longer time on bi-monthly IL-2 cycles may be required before the period between cycles can be extended.
Using IL-2 as part of structured treatment interruptions (STIs) has also received attention. This is discussed briefly in Project Inform's publication, Strategies for Attempting Structured Therapy Interruptions.
A few completed studies looked at using IL-2 as part of an eradication strategy. So far, they have not shown that completely removing HIV from a person's body is possible -- with or without IL-2.
Studies of low dose daily injections of IL-2 have not resulted in the dramatic CD4+ cell increases seen with the higher dose cycle, although this approach may cause fewer side effects. Following less than remarkable results from a moderately sized study, the company developing IL-2 at that time (Chiron Corporation) stopped major development efforts on low dose IL-2. Nonetheless, some individuals and doctors still experiment with this approach, hoping to find an ideal balance between potential benefits and known side effects.
Finally, a moderate size study in people with very low CD4+ cell counts (below 200) and controlled HIV replication (below 1,000 copies HIV RNA) showed that IL-2 therapy could lead to modest increases in CD4+ cell counts. Results have led the French regulatory agency to approve a Compassionate Use Program for IL-2 for people with low CD4+ cell counts and HIV levels below 1,000. These data, combined with other study results, provided French authorities with enough confidence to make IL-2 more widely available to people with more advanced-stage HIV disease. The FDA in the US has taken a more conservative approach and has not approved access to IL-2 in the same way. Despite this, some people in the US manage to get IL-2; since once a drug is approved by the FDA, doctors have the right to use it however they choose. However, private insurance and other payers may not be willing to pay for the drug.
IL-2 is not currently approved or proven for use in treating HIV. Use in people with HIV is experimental. IL-2 has been studied in people with a wide spectrum of CD4+ cell counts. Emerging information suggests that a person's CD4+ cell count at the time of starting IL-2 might be useful in predicting the outcome of therapy. This information may indicate how quickly the CD4+ cell count might rise and how high it will reach. Still, even people with low CD4+ cell counts when starting IL-2 appear to experience higher CD4+ cell increases than those seen from anti-HIV therapy alone.
Studies suggest that IL-2 therapy can be used safely (though with significant side effects) by people at all levels of CD4+ cell counts. IL-2 provides the greatest increases in CD4+ counts when it is used together with anti-HIV therapy. The most pronounced and immediate increases in CD4+ cell counts are seen among people who start IL-2 therapy together with anti-HIV therapy while their CD4+ cell counts are above 300, and preferably when their lowest ever CD4+ cell count (nadir count) has never been below 200.
There are several situations in which IL-2 therapy should be avoided or approached with extreme caution. As a general rule, it is discouraged for people with high detectable viral loads, since IL-2 can at least temporarily cause the viral load to increase even more. Some doctors urge caution using IL-2 in anyone who has a detectable viral load at all. However, this strict position seems unnecessary to others, since all early studies of IL-2 that showed benefit were conducted before potent three-drug anti-HIV therapy made it possible to reduce viral load to undetectable levels.
People with an active infection (e.g. opportunistic infection) should avoid IL-2 or use it carefully. IL-2 can produce temporary immune suppressive effects. Therefore, anyone with an infection should wait until the condition has resolved before using IL-2.
This also applies to people currently on an IL-2 regimen. If you have an infection, consider waiting until it's resolved before starting your next IL-2 cycle. If you're taking IL-2 and develop an infection, delay IL-2 therapy until it's resolved.
People with heart problems should also be cautious since IL-2 decreases blood pressure. People on medicine to lower blood pressure should consider either avoiding IL-2 therapy or consider stopping blood pressure medication, in consultation with a doctor, during the five-day courses of IL-2. The combination of IL-2 with blood pressure lowering medication could result in dangerously low blood pressure levels that could be fatal.
IL-2 should not be used by people with lung disease. People with autoimmune diseases, including Crohn's disease, psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis should not use IL-2, or use it with great caution because it may worsen these conditions. There are concerns that IL-2 therapy might also worsen diabetes, so people with diabetes and people with signs of insulin resistance should be cautious. Because IL-2 side effects include flu-like symptoms, including fatigue, people experiencing extreme fatigue are encouraged to seek treatment for its cause and delay IL-2 therapy until the condition has resolved. In rare instances, IL-2 has caused hypothyroidism and thus should not be used by people with thyroid problems.
Pregnant Women and Children
IL-2 has not been studied in pregnant women. In studies, women who become pregnant must stop IL-2 but can remain in the study. IL-2 can raise bilirubin levels which may cause serious harm to the developing child. Studies of IL-2 in children are ongoing.
The type of side effects produced by IL-2 is generally predictable, though their severity varies widely. Nearly everyone experiences flu-like symptoms during the time therapy is administered. When the body fights off infections, cells produce IL-2 to stimulate other cells necessary to control the infection. It's the natural production of IL-2 and other immune chemicals that result in the aches and fevers associated with the flu.
Unlike anti-HIV therapy where only a relatively small percentage of people may experience a particular side effect, flu-like symptoms are both predictable and expected among the vast majority of IL-2 users. This side effect may be lessened by taking antihistamines and ibuprofen before taking IL-2. (NOTE: Some antihistamines may have serious interactions with protease inhibitors.)
People who are careful to follow side effect pre-treatment guidelines report that the first few days of IL-2 therapy are relatively easy. If side effects emerge, they usually are worst on the last two or three days of a five-day course. To minimize interference with day jobs, some people begin their five-day course of IL-2 on a Wednesday. This plan helps time the worst side effects to occur over a weekend or at a time when a person is not working.
People who take IL-2 recommend that you ask someone to stay with you overnight if possible, through the first five-day course. If that's not possible, ask a friend to check on you periodically. If you have children, see if a friend or family member can take care of them for a few days as you may not feel up to the task yourself.
Experienced IL-2 users say that the more prepared you are, the easier it is and less likely that you'll experience severe side effects. The worst side effects seem to happen when you let your guard down, aren't prepared and don't pre-treat for side effects. Ask for your doctor's emergency number in the event you need or want support through the side effects.
Another relatively common side effect is swelling, red marks or lumps where you inject yourself. Long-time IL-2 users note that putting an ice pack on the injection site before and after injections can help diminish the development of swelling and bumps. The cold temperature has an effect that is identical to that of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents, such as ibuprofen, although it's more concentrated at the site of the injection. Sometimes these lumps, or nodules at the site of injection, can last as long as a few months and they may even produce a scab. In nearly all cases they go away over time.
Other less frequent side effects include sinus congestion, low blood pressure, liver toxicity, swelling due to water retention, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, peeling skin, changes in mental status and altered blood levels including albumin, potassium, magnesium, calcium, red blood cells and platelets. Nearly all side effects diminish quickly when the drug is stopped, usually at the end of a five-day course. In rare cases, IL-2 has been linked to hypothyroidism, vision problems (including blindness) and depression leading to suicide. There is a long list of potential side effects associated with IL-2. The most serious of these occur relatively rarely in doses used in people living with HIV.
As mentioned earlier, IL-2 can also temporarily stimulate HIV replication. Studies show that this viral activity can be controlled with the use of anti-HIV therapy. More importantly, these temporary increases don't appear to have negative long-term consequences.
Certain side effects are potentially more severe and of greater concern than others. Contact your healthcare provider immediately if:
You notice that you are making less than normal amount of urine or if you stop urinating altogether
You have shortness of breath
You have fever over 102° F that doesn't go away with over-the-counter drugs
You experience major changes in mental status, like confusion
You faint or
You have major swelling in your face, neck, and/or feet
For more information on IL-2 side effects and side effects management, read Taking IL-2 and Managing Its Side Effects.
IL-2 is given by injection under the skin in starting doses ranging from 4.5 million international units (MIU) twice daily (total daily dose of 9 MIU) to 7.5 MIU twice daily (total daily dose of 15 MIU), over a period of five consecutive days. This five-day course is repeated every eight weeks.
To manage toxicity and side effects, individuals reduce the daily dose of IL-2 in three MIU increments. For example, if 15 MIU daily schedule was very difficult for an individual to take, then the next five-day course dose would be 6 MIU twice daily (total daily dose of 12 MIU), for five consecutive days. Unlike anti-HIV therapy, lowering the dose of IL-2 does not lead to drug resistance.
Studies show that people who tolerate the higher starting doses (15 MIU) for three cycles are most likely to see immediate CD4+ cell count increases. People who start with the lower 4.5 MIU twice daily dose (total daily dose of 9 MIU) still get substantial increases in CD4+ cell count, but these increases usually take longer. In this situation, it often takes a number of cycles before any significant change is seen.
When trying to measure how IL-2 affects CD4+ counts, it's important not to take the CD4+ test too quickly after using IL-2, as this produces exaggerated and false results. Immediately after taking IL-2, CD4+ cells initially are depressed and then are highly stimulated and stirred up in the blood, causing potentially meaningless changes in the CD4+ count. Great increases might be seen a few days to a few weeks after IL-2, but these immediate changes generally decline rapidly after that.
Changes in the CD4+ count are only real and meaningful when the CD4+ test is taken a month or more after the last use of IL-2. For many people, no significant change is seen for several months, despite the short-term ?bursts? of CD4+ activity seen right after IL-2 is taken. Over time though, the average level of CD4+ cells begins to rise and remains consistently above the levels seen before IL-2 use began.
Once someone has reached a goal in terms of CD4+ cell count increase, the time between courses of IL-2 therapy will be increased by four-week periods or longer if CD4+ cell counts are sustained. Blood work for CD4+ cell counts and HIV levels should be run two weeks before an IL-2 cycle. (Note: Lab test results done within four weeks after a cycle are considered unreliable.)
When IL-2 is prescribed as part of a study or through off-label use, it's important that a doctor or nurse teach you how to:
Prepare the IL-2 (it may or may not come in pre-filled syringes, other times you will have to prepare the syringe yourself)
Inject yourself
Safely dispose of used syringes and
Monitor for and manage side effects (and provide you with prescriptions for side effect management medications).
For more information on IL-2 side effects and side effects management, see Taking IL-2 and Managing Its Side Effects.
Some people using subQ IL-2 who failed to achieve CD4+ cell increases over time attained these increases when they switched to continuous intravenous (CIV) therapy. Early studies of IL-2 involved five-day continuous intravenous (in the vein) infusions, every eight weeks. Starting doses ranged from 9?18 MIU, daily. In general, the 15?18 MIU CIV daily doses were not well tolerated. Starting doses of 9?15 MIU were slightly more tolerable in CIV IL-2 studies.
CIV IL-2 side effects are more common and severe than side effects seen with the subcutaneous injection dosing. A large percentage of people taking IL-2 will see sizable CD4+ cell count increases with the less toxic and easier-to-use subQ approach. However, for those who don't experience CD4+ cell count increases with subQ injections, CIV IL-2 represents another option. Optimally, the first few CIV IL-2 cycles should be done in a hospital or clinic setting with skilled staff to support with side effects management. For more information, see Dosing Considerations.
Treating HIV disease with IL-2 is experimental. It's available through several ongoing studies. For more information about the US sites, call 1-800-TRIALS-A or visit www.clinicaltrials.gov.
Because it's already FDA-approved for treating cancer, some doctors prescribe IL-2 for off-label use (giving a drug for purposes other than what it was approved). Insurance companies don't always pay for off-label use and IL-2 can be quite expensive. It should be used only under close doctor supervision, and blood should be checked for liver and kidney toxicity and lab abnormalities. For more information on the assistance program, call 1-866-385-4729.
Studied doses that appear to greatly impact CD4+ cell increases:
Daily subcutaneous injection (under the skin) with starting doses of 9?15 MIU (4.5?7.5 MIU, twice daily), five consecutive days, every eight weeks. Lower doses have been used, resulting in less significant CD4+ cell count increases.
Continuous IV (in the vein) infusion of 9?12 MIU, daily, five consecutive days, every eight weeks. This approach is associated with greater and more severe side effects and may only be desirable for people who fail to achieve CD4+ cell count increases using subcutaneous injections. People using IL-2 in this way are encouraged to do so in a hospital setting. This IV approach is rarely ever used today, though it was standard for the lion's share of early research on IL-2.
Dosing strategies to consider:
Reduce dosing to manage side effects in increments of three million IU (15 to 12, 12 to 9, etc.). You should also take antihistamines and ibuprofen before starting IL-2.
If you use subQ IL-2 and experience no CD4+ cell increases, in studies some success has been observed in those switching to CIV IL-2. (Note: People who start IL-2 with lower CD4+ cell counts may take longer to experience increases in CD4+ cell count; in any case, people should not assume a dose isn't working unless it has been used for six months or longer).
If you use IV IL-2 and experience pronounced and sustained CD4+ cell increases, consider switching to maintenance therapy with subQ injections.
If CD4+ cell counts are high and sustained (above 600), consider increasing the time between IL-2 dosing in four week increments (every twelve weeks instead of eight). If CD4+ cell counts remain high after lengthening time between IL-2 therapy for three cycles, consider increasing it again, in four-week increments (8 to 12 weeks, 12 to 16 weeks, etc.).
IL-2 and CD4+ cell count, viral load and general health
Measure CD4+ cell and viral levels before taking IL-2 (preferably getting results before starting a five-day course).
If viral levels are high or increasing, consider re-evaluating your anti-HIV regimen (read Project Inform's Anti-HIV Therapy Strategies). Consider delaying IL-2 therapy until viral levels are under control.
If you experience an active infection or condition, consider delaying five-day IL-2 course of therapy until it's resolved. IL-2 therapy temporarily suppresses the immune system and may interfere with your body's ability to fight off infection in the short term.
IL-2 and other therapy
Maintain optimal anti-HIV therapy while on IL-2, preferably a three-drug combination.
Regardless of CD4+ cell impact from IL-2, consider continuing preventive therapy for opportunistic infections (PCP, etc.) if it was warranted before starting IL-2. Be cautious and conservative about stopping preventive therapy when CD4+ cell counts rise. The value of IL-2 therapy and CD4+ cell count increases realized as a result of therapy is still not known.
In recent years it has become obvious that preserving the immune system is necessary for people with HIV to live longer lives. IL-2 shows much promise as part of a total treatment plan for people living with HIV, and it is currently the only immune based therapy to produce such significant and easily measured results. It may eventually become standard care to use an immune modulator (like IL-2) with anti-HIV therapies in order to maintain a person's immune system at healthy levels. However, as with any drug, the benefits of IL-2 must be weighed against the severity of its side effects.
Two major obstacles in developing IL-2 for HIV disease are the difficulty of taking the therapy and its side effects. Some people may not be willing to undergo twice daily injections for five days, every two months. Moreover, people who otherwise feel good might be unwilling to endure the flu-like symptoms. Because IL-2 has had such a pronounced and sustained increase on CD4+ cell counts, enthusiasm for it continues despite the challenges that taking the drug and side effects pose.
Despite pronounced and significant increases in CD4+ cell counts induced by IL-2 therapy, there is as yet no clear proof that these increases result in longer life or longer disease-free time. At the heart of the debate is whether increased CD4+ cells from IL-2 therapy function properly. So far, data overwhelmingly suggest that these cells do function properly, and in general those with sustained CD4+ cell increases have not experienced opportunistic infections at abnormally high CD4+ cell counts. When the cells are tested they appear normal and functioning, yet researchers readily admit that the tests to measure cell function leave a lot to be desired. These tests, however limited, suggest that the cells work at least as well as new CD4+ cells produced through anti-HIV therapy.
As of February 2007, one of the two largest studies of IL-2 is in jeopardy. Despite nearly two decades of drug developing in HIV under the auspices of Chiron Corporation, another company (Novartis Pharmaceuticals) bought out Chiron. Novartis originally seemed to suggest it would honor its obligations to the HIV affected community and complete these studies. In the eleventh hour, however, they seem not committed to carrying this important research to fruition and will abandon years of effort and turn their backs on the HIV affected communities. If this should be the case, it should not be allowed to happen without large public outcry.
IL-2 shows greater CD4+ cell increases than almost any anti-HIV therapy, particularly when used together with standard anti-HIV therapy.
Those who have had dramatic and sustained increases end up dosing less frequently (maybe as little as one or two times a year) and retain high CD4+ cell numbers.
Opportunistic infections have not generally occurred at unusually high CD4+ cell counts, suggesting that IL-2 may preserve or improve immune function.
Side effects associated with IL-2 can be severe.
IL-2 requires subcutaneous (under the skin) injection or, more rarely, intravenous (in the vein) administration, both of which are invasive.
Studies to confirm the benefits of IL-2 are ongoing, and it's currently unknown if IL-2 will slow disease progression or prolong survival.
IL-2 should not be used by people with other autoimmune diseases (like rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, and Crohn's disease), heart disease or diabetes.
IL-2 should be used with caution by people taking medicine to lower blood pressure.
Not everyone taking IL-2 experiences immediate CD4+ cell increases. Especially for those who start therapy with lower CD4+ cell counts, CD4+ cell increases may take up to six months.
How to Get It:
IL-2 is available through several ongoing studies.
IL-2 is approved for use in kidney cancer and is available through off label use.
IL-2 is available through an assistance program for those whose insurance will not cover it and/or for people without third party payer (e.g. insurance) coverage, based on income eligibility. People should call 1-866-385-4729 for more information.
Tags:News


Sterling bank of Nigeria is one of the new generation banks that are making waves in the Nigerian banking sector. They have a massive customer base, and many of their services are personalized and user-friendly.
Sterling bank also offers mobile banking products and services to meet the ever-increasing needs of her customers. Mobile banking provides a platform for the bank customers to access account information, make inquiries, monitor account activities and also carry out a number of basic transactions from any location via a network-enabled device; that is, without ever stepping into the bank premises.
There is a fixed limit to the number of mobile banking inquiries and transactions that can be carried out in a day; and also, not every bank transaction can be carried out on the mobile banking platform. As stated earlier, only basic transactions like airtime recharge, local funds transfer, bill payment and account balance enquiry are available on the mobile banking platform.
Mobile banking features can be accessed in a variety of ways. One is through USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) channel. This method is very unique, and all banks have this channel. In USSD banking, every bank has a special code/shortcode which links the customer to their account on the bank's database; and so the customer only has to dial the bank's special shortcode via his/her registered mobile number and from a network-enabled mobile phone to be connected to his/her account with the bank. When such connection is established, the rest is relatively easy; he simply follows the prompts to access whichever basic services are provided.
To check your Sterling bank account balance via USSD banking, simply dial *822*6*ACCOUNT NUMBER# and follow the on-screen commands to see your balance.
Another way of accessing mobile banking feature is through the mobile application software. All banks have downloadable mobile banking apps: and so to access your account on your bank's database, simply go to your device app store (Google Playstore for Android, Apple iOs store for iOS devices, etc) and download the bank's app for free. Install, configure, and go!
He asking me to make transfer to his account . And I want to know.


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