If you're in the market to buy a new home, odds are you're excited and also nervous. This is apt to be particularly true if this is your first foray into the housing market. It helps to divvy up the process in your mind. There's the shopping for the actual abode process. There's the application process and there's the mortgage down payment process.
Throughout these various processes there are important tips to keep in mind. Do your due diligence. Convention dictates 20% down for a mortgage. And, while that amount may do nice things for your ongoing payments, lesser amounts are available. Do the math and figure out what you can reasonably afford. Look into both adjustable rate and fixed rate mortgages to decide which type better fits your situation. And remember there are loan options through veterans groups, state assistance programs and the federal government.
While you are doing your due diligence you should be saving. In fact, saving needs to start early. Leverage windfalls, likes bonuses and tax returns. Try not to max out, or even use your credit during this process as it will impact your mortgage.
As you inch closer to ownership, it's a good idea to get a pre-approval letter from a lender that has thoroughly reviewed your financial situation. When magic time arrives and you're ready to buy the nest of your dreams, get a qualified real estate agent. Be specific. Know the neighborhood and home you want. Stay on target for your budget. Use open houses. Calculate ahead for closing costs and adequate homeowners insurance. And know what your home inspection does and does not cover.
As a buyer of a home for the first time, one must be careful and smart when making a decision.
Getting a loan, or a mortgage, is not a very simple process as some people might think.
The people who can buy a home at a young age always say that it was the best investment of their lives.


As more and more Californians suffer from rising mortgage and interest rates, legislators have introduced many proposals to tackle the housing crisis. This November, Californians will have the chance to vote for propositions that could bring $6 billion to affordable housing statewide, according to an article from The Mercury News.
Ten years after the housing market collapsed, TransUnion released a report examining some of the changes to consumer credit since the Great Recession. Serious delinquency rates continue to improve, now reaching their lowest level since the Great Recession.
Gross domestic product was a disappointment, shrinking in the first quarter despite the recent tax cuts passed at the end of 2017. One expert explained that the current slowdown reflects an ongoing housing crisis, and what can be done to reverse it.
PHH Corp. will pay $45 million as part of a nationwide settlement over mortgage servicing and foreclosure issues during the housing crisis, a group of nearly every state attorney general announced Wednesday.
The president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York told the Banking Standards Board in London on Tuesday that he sees quite a few similarities between the Wells Fargo fake account scandal and the subprime mortgage crisis of the late 2000's. "Compensation, once again, seems to be at the center of a scandal," NY Fed President William Dudley said in the speech.
While the headlines don't show up quite as often as they once did, it still seems like that every few weeks another bank is settling with the federal government (or other parties) over the mortgage misdeeds of the past. Each of those settlements checks in the multi-billion dollar range, but what happens to the settlement money after the banks pay up?
The Mortgage Bankers Association president and CEO explained the need for a housing policy director, and why this position is crucial to the next administration. According to the MBA, we are on the front edge of a new kind of housing crisis.
It's time to turn a new page for housing when it comes to policy making, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association president and CEO. While the past eight years have been spent recovering from the recession, it is now time to move on, and this could include creating a new housing policy director.


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ASIA/HONG KONG - "We have a Pope!" Message from Catholic Bishop of Hong Kong; 25 April solemn celebration in Hong Kong Cathedral
Fragmented political landscape after the vote; Christians committed to the common good
Campaign of prayer for life, raising awareness to avoid abortion
Caritas Algeria ends its activities at the behest of the Algerian authorities
Integrating refugees into society: the commitment of the Pro Bambini Association of Kabul
The Barnabites, with their hearts in Kabul: "Pray for Afghanistan"
Serious food crisis: 23 million people in need
Hong Kong (Fides Service) -"We have a Pope!" is the title of a message to the diocese issued by the Catholic Bishop of Hong Kong Joseph Zen following the election of Pope Benedict XVI. Kong Ko Bao diocesan bulletin said that after the election Bishop Zen voiced his gratitude: "As we prayed we were certain that the Holy Spirit would guide the Cardinals to choose a Pope as willed by God. And the Cardinals did so speedily and we are doubly happy. We hope Pope Benedict XVI will continue to part the clouds of impropriety and reveal the light of the truth". Hong Kong diocese will hold a solemn concelebration of the Eucharist on Monday 25 April to thank God for the new Pope.
(Agenzia Fides 20/04/2005 Righe: 15 Parole: 138)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


RENO, NEVADA--(Marketwire - Feb. 25, 2013) - Allied Nevada Gold Corp. ("Allied Nevada", "we", "us", "our" or the "Company") (TSX:ANV)(NYSE Amex:ANV)(NYSE MKT:ANV) is pleased to report operating and financial results for the year ended December 31, 2012. The Company produced 136,930 ounces of gold and sold 114,705 ounces of gold at adjusted cash costs(1) of $638 per ounce for the year resulting in record revenues of $214.6 million. Net income increased 30% to $47.7 million or $0.53 per share, compared to $36.7 million or $0.41 per share for fiscal 2011.
To date, Hycroft achieved 183 days without a lost time accident amid a significant construction effort and doubling of the workforce at the mine in 2012.
Revenue increased 41% over 2011 to a record $214.6 million.
Net income increased by 30% to a record $47.7 million or $0.53 per share in 2012. While significantly higher, net income in 2012 was impacted by increased net interest expense and income tax expense of $17.9 million and $16.4 million respectively (compared with $0.7 million and $6.3 million, respectively, in 2011). The increased interest expense arose from the May 2012 issuance of the senior unsecured notes and additional capital lease obligations of $94.9 million entered into during 2012. These costs were partially offset by lower exploration, development and land holding costs during 2012.
Record production and sales were achieved in 2012. Production from Hycroft in 2012 of 136,930 ounces of gold and 794,097 ounces of silver was 32% and 66% higher than 2011 production results, respectively. Sales of 114,705 ounces of gold and 696,144 ounces of silver surpassed 2011 sales by 30% and 87%, respectively.
Adjusted cash costs1 increased 31% to $638 per ounce in 2012 and were negatively impacted by increased production costs in the first half of 2012, selling costs associated with in-process inventories, and an increase in the average cost per ounce in beginning of the year 2012 inventory compared to 2011. In the first half of 2012, our strip ratio was 1.4:1, increasing our production costs and average cost per ounce sold for 2012. Additionally, the average cost per gold ounce on the leach pads in the beginning of 2012 was $825/oz, an increase of $186/oz compared to the beginning of 2011. The aforementioned increases in adjusted cash costs1 were partially offset by the additional revenue resulting from the silver ounce to gold ounce ratio increasing to 6.1:1 in 2012 compared to 4.2:1 in 2011.
Cash used in operations totaled $21.1 million, cash used in investing activities was $275.2 million and financing activities generated $368.4 million of cash, increasing the Company's cash balance at year end to $347 million.
Year-to-date, up to and including February 21, 2013, we mined and placed 6.0 million tons of ore containing approximately 67,000 ounces of gold and 513,000 ounces of silver. In that same period, approximately 24,000 ounces of gold and approximately 140,000 ounces of silver have been or were available to be sold. We are currently installing additional carbon column capacity and expect to be able to process 100% solution flows in March 2013. The on-site carbon strip circuit capacity will handle all of our carbon.
Proven and probable reserves were 11.9 million ounces of gold and 509.6 million ounces of silver (1.1 billion tons grading 0.011 opt gold and 0.46 opt silver). The life of mine waste to ore strip ratio declined to 1.15:1 (from 1.26:1).
 Allied Nevada uses a non-GAAP financial measure "adjusted cash costs" in this document. Please see the section at the end of this press release and in the 2012 Annual Report on Form 10-K titled "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" for further information regarding these measures.
"As with any company growing as quickly as Allied Nevada, we experienced some successes as well as some disappointments this past year. With the additions to the mining fleet and the completion of the Lewis leach pad, we were able to increase our tons placed on the leach pads by 77%. Since more than 40% of the ounces were placed on the pad in the fourth quarter, we are well positioned to achieve our 2013 guidance," said Scott Caldwell, Allied Nevada President and Chief Executive Officer. "We've made a number of changes to the employee base over the past year, including doubling of the workforce at Hycroft, working alongside more than 200 contract employees, and strengthening our management team. I am confident that together we have the depth to build one of North America's largest gold and silver mines. It goes without saying that during this effort, safety will continue to be our focus in the coming year as our people are our number one priority at Allied Nevada."
Hycroft completed its fourth full year of operations in 2012. The additions to mining equipment this year, including a third hydraulic shovel, 15 Komatsu 320-ton trucks and two Caterpillar 795 trucks, as well as production drills and support equipment, led to a total of 60.7 million tons being mined in 2012, almost double that mined in 2011. The average grade of ore placed on the leach pads in 2012 of 0.012 opt for gold and 0.21 opt for silver was commensurate with our forecasts but lower than 2011. Tons placed on the pad in 2012 increased 82%, and ounces placed totaled 371,000 ounces of gold and 6.5 million ounces of silver. Leach pad capacity was increased by approximately 3.0 million square feet with the completion of the Lewis leach pad, bringing total capacity to approximately 12.0 million square feet. Management continues to expect the gyratory crusher, north leach pad and Merrill-Crowe processing facility to be completed and operational in the third quarter of 2013. The new Merrill-Crowe plant will add 21,500 gallons per minute of processing capacity, which, along with current capacity, will be sufficient for the heap leach and milling operations.
The amount of cash used in investing activities significantly increased in 2012 to $275.2 million due to the ongoing expansion projects at Hycroft. During 2012, cash additions to plant, equipment, and mine development included $103.7 million for the mill project, $59.4 million for the crusher project, $35.3 million for mine development, $30.1 million for leach pad expansions, $9.4 million for an employee housing project, $8.7 million for mine equipment, and $15.6 million for other additions. Significant additions for the mill project included the purchase of SAG mills, ball mills, a regrind mill, and engineering costs. Significant additions for the crusher project included the purchase of a gyratory crusher, secondary and tertiary crushers, and excavation costs. The mill excavation began in the third quarter of 2012 and is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2013.
Operating cash flows before operating assets and liability changes totaled $85.6 million. Operating assets and liabilities increased approximately $106.7 million during 2012, and included a receivable from the sale of unprocessed carbon and precipitate totaling $60.5 million as well as increases in inventory resulting from the expansion of our heap leach operations. Stockpiling of sulfide ore containing 32,074 ounces of recoverable gold, for the mill also contributed to the increase. Net cash used in operations totaled $21.1 million. The receivable for the sale of unprocessed carbon and precipitate is expected to be a one-time event due to our installation of an on-site carbon processing facility and is expected to be collected in 2013.
The capital cost estimate for the expansion project remains $1.24 billion. To date, we have purchased or have fixed contracts in place for approximately $634.7 million, or 51% of the total capital budget and these purchases have come in approximately 5% below original estimate. As a result, the difference has been allocated to contingency which has increased to $97 million, from $65 million, representing 16% of the remaining capital to be committed of $608.3 million. Management believes that the expansion can be funded with the $347 million of cash on hand at December 31, 2012, an undrawn revolving line of credit for $120 million, capital lease financing, and operating cash flow.
Drilling activities at Hycroft in 2012 totaled 255,600 feet in 265 holes and were directed towards: infill drilling to upgrade inferred resources within the reserve pit; material collection in support of engineering and ongoing metallurgical work; condemnation drilling related to new facility placement; and limited step-out drilling.
Drilling at our advanced exploration properties in 2012 was directed towards the Hasbrouck Project (primarily the nearby Three Hills deposit) and at Wildcat. At the Hasbrouck project, drilling of approximately 21,010 feet in 37 holes was directed towards growing the mineralized material at Hasbrouck and an initial program on the Three Hills deposit. A total of 26,000 feet in 36 holes was drilled at Wildcat in 2012 with the first pass initial program being completed. We have completed resource block models for each property and expect to provide an updated resource for each of Hasbrouck/Three Hills and Wildcat in the second quarter of 2013.
On January 18th, we announced production and cash cost guidance for the 2013 year. We are forecasting more than a 60% increase in sales at Hycroft to approximately 225,000 to 250,000 ounces of gold and 1.5 million to 1.8 million ounces of silver. Sales in the first half of the year are expected to be approximately 90,000 to 100,000 ounces of gold. We expect to move approximately 94.1 million tons of material, including 46.5 million tons of ore at average grades of 0.012 opt gold and 0.25 opt silver. With the addition of two wire rope shovels in the latter half of the year, our mining rate is expected to increase in the second half to an average of 290,000 tons per day from 200,000 tons per day. The overall strip ratio for 2013 is expected to be 0.6:1. A number of critical projects must be completed to achieve the higher end of the stated guidance range of metal sales. The stated guidance assumes that there will be no material delays in the start-up of the North Leach Pad, the new 21,500 gallon per minute Merrill-Crowe facility (both expected to be operational in the third quarter of 2013) or operation of additional mobile equipment. Adjusted cash costs(3) for 2013 is expected to be in the range of $565 to $585 per ounce (with silver as a byproduct credit and utilizing a silver price of $28 per ounce).
Capital expenditures in 2013 are expected to total approximately $399.2 million of which $130.8 million is expected to be financed with capital leases. Of the budgeted $399.2 million, $27.5 million is for sustaining capital and the remainder is to advance the Hycroft expansion project including equipment, infrastructure, engineering, permitting, and support programs. Major additions to mobile equipment in 2013 include nine haul trucks, seven production drills and the first two wire rope shovels, which are expected to become operational in the third quarter and fourth quarter, respectively.
Company-wide exploration expense is projected to be $7.5 million in 2013 and does not include capitalized drilling. In addition to corporate office expense and annual land holding costs of approximately $3.2 million, we expect exploration dollars in 2013 to be directed towards follow-up drilling in the Three Hills area of the Hasbrouck project, where we have had previous success, and also to test Hycroft regional targets identified in the southern region of the Hycroft property claim block.
The results presented in this press release should be read in conjunction with the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2012, filed on SEDAR and EDGAR and posted on Allied Nevada's website at www.alliednevada.com. The financial results are based on United States GAAP (with the exception of the non-GAAP financial measure adjusted cash costs1) and are expressed in U.S. dollars.
 Allied Nevada uses a non-GAAP financial measure "adjusted cash costs" in this document. Please see the section at the end of this press release and in the 2012 Annual Report on Form 10-K titled "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" for further information regarding this measure.
Allied Nevada will host a conference call to discuss these results on Monday, February 25, 2013, at 9:00 am ET, which will be followed by a question and answer session.
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (and the equivalent under Canadian securities laws) and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act, that are intended to be covered by the safe harbor created by such sections. Statements that are not historical fact are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements can be identified by, among other things, the use of forward-looking language, such as the words "plan," "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "intend," "estimate," "project," "may," "will," "would," "could," "should," "seeks," or "scheduled to," or other similar words, or the negative of these terms or other variations of these terms or comparable language, or by discussion of strategy or intentions. Such forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements regarding the timing for completion of the leach pad expansion and Merrill-Crowe processing facility, the expected capacity and sufficiency of the Company's processing facilities upon completion of planned expansion projects, timing of results and indications of exploration drilling currently underway at Hycroft and exploration properties, including the Hasbrouck/Three Hills properties; delays in processing gold and silver, the potential for confirming, upgrading and expanding gold and silver mineralized material; reserve and resource estimates and the timing of the release of updated estimates for the Hasbrouck/Three Hills and Wildcat properties; estimates of gold and silver grades; expectations regarding gold and silver recovery, anticipated sales, costs, project economics, capital expenditures, cash flows and operating costs, the expected sources of capital for the Hycroft expansion and other statements that are not historical facts. Forward-looking statements address activities, events or developments that Allied Nevada expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future, and are based on current expectations and assumptions.
Although Allied Nevada management believes that its expectations are based on reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that these expectations will prove correct. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements include, among others, risks that Allied Nevada's exploration and property advancement efforts will not be successful; delays in the start-up of expansion new processing facilities or operation of new equipment, risks relating to fluctuations in the price of gold and silver; the inherently hazardous nature of mining-related activities; uncertainties concerning reserve and resource estimates; uncertainties relating to obtaining approvals and permits from governmental regulatory authorities; and availability and timing of capital for financing the Company's exploration and development activities, including the uncertainty of being able to raise capital on favorable terms or at all; as well as those factors discussed in Allied Nevada's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") including Allied Nevada's latest Annual Report on Form 10-K and its other SEC filings (and Canadian filings) which may be secured from us, either directly or from our website at www.alliednevada.com or at the SEC website www.sec.gov. The Company does not intend to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.
The technical contents of this news release have been reviewed and approved by Donald Harris, a Certified Professional Geologist with American Institute of Professional Geologists (A.I.P.G.), #10819, who is Manager of Hycroft Exploration for Allied Nevada Gold Corp. and Dan Moore, Vice President, Technical Services, a Registered Professional Engineer and a registered member of the Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (#2257810) who are a Qualified Persons as defined by National Instrument 43-101. For further information regarding the quality assurance program and the quality control measures applied, as well as other relevant technical information, please see the Hycroft Technical Report which will be filed within the regulatory timeframe on www.sedar.com. For further information regarding technical information in relation to the Hasbrouck and Three Hills properties, please see the Technical Report titled "Technical Report, Allied Nevada Gold Corp. Hasbrouck Property, Tonopah, Nevada, USA" dated April 11, 2012, available on www.sedar.com. For further information regarding technical information in relation to the Wildcat property, please see the Technical Report titled "Updated Technical Review, Wildcat Project, Pershing County, Nevada" dated August 14, 2006, available on www.sedar.com.
Adjusted cash costs is a non-GAAP financial measure, calculated on a per ounce of gold sold basis, and includes all direct and indirect operating cash costs related to the physical activities of producing gold, including mining, processing, third party refining expenses, on-site administrative and support costs, royalties, and mining production taxes, net of by-product revenue earned from silver sales. Adjusted cash costs provides management and investors with a further measure, in addition to conventional measures prepared in accordance with GAAP, to assess the Company's performance of the mining operations and ability to generate cash flows over multiple periods. Non-GAAP financial measures do not have any standardized meaning prescribed by GAAP and, therefore, may not be comparable to similar measures presented by other mining companies. Accordingly, the above measures are intended to provide additional information and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for measures of performance prepared in accordance with GAAP.


In Ketchum, with the fun and excitement of Wagon Days, Labor Day weekend is the last big summer event. The city dusts off the glorious Big Hitch and horse and mule teams pull wagons of every sort through town. Fine horsemanship is the order of the day.
Banks and government offices are closed. Barbecues heat up. The president and governors will issue proclamations.
Yet, for many in service industries, it will be one more day at work. Lip service will be given to "working men and women," but there most certainly will be no celebration of the labor movement.
In the abstract, being a hard worker is a good thing. Our grandparents or great grandparents might have said, "an honest day's work for an honest day's pay." The easy homily belies the perennial conflict over how much work for how much pay. Thus, it's not surprising that Labor Day is a great excuse for a three-day weekend, but is one of our minor holidays.
A big part of the problem is the name. Maybe we would do better if we renamed it "Speculators Day" or "Management Day" or "Wall Street Investor Day." Those names reflect an American buy-in to the idea that money earned on investments is more valuable, more moral even, than money earned by laboring.
Then there's the pernicious belief now commonly spewed in political rhetoric that anything that benefits workers is automatically bad for business. The problem with the belief is that while success in commerce does require invested capital and effective management, it all starts with labor.
The real purpose of Labor Day is too often ignored or even disliked because it was started by labor unions to highlight the rights of workers. It was intended to celebrate not just workers, but the benefits achieved by organized workers that actually benefit our whole society: fair wages, medical care and retirement benefits, laws preventing child labor, safety rules and the five-day work week.
It's easy in today's society to take such benefits for granted.
When the wagons roll by, we should consider not only the hard work done by laborers who mined and processed the ore carried in those wagons, but those who lost their lives when there were no laws to protect them. And we should also thank those willing to work hard, and sometimes die, to organize the labor movement so that we all have the right to spend this weekend on vacation.


As we age, eating well can be the key to a positive outlook and staying emotionally balanced as well as helping to maintain good health. Healthy eating doesn't have to be about dieting and sacrifice - eating well as an older adult is all about fresh, colourful food, creativity in the kitchen, and eating with friends. Good nutrition keeps muscles, bones, organs, and other body parts strong and older adults can feel better immediately and stay healthy for the future by choosing healthy foods. A balanced diet and physical activity contribute to a higher quality of life and enhanced independence as you age.
Fruit and vegetables – aim to eat whole fruits rather than juices to get more fibre and vitamins and try to eat around 2 servings each day. With vegetables, choose antioxidant-rich dark, leafy greens, such as kale, spinach, and broccoli as well as orange and yellow vegetables, such as carrots, squash, and yams. Try to eat at least 2-3 portions of vegetables every day.
Calcium. Enough Calcium in the diet as you age is essential to maintain bone health and in preventing osteoporosis and bone fractures. Older people need 1,200 mg of calcium a day through servings of milk, yogurt, or cheese. There are also non-dairy sources of calcium such as tofu, broccoli, almonds, and kale.
Grains and protein. Try to choose whole grains, rather than processed white flour, for more nutrients and more fibre. (If you're not sure, look for pasta, breads, and cereals that list "whole" in the ingredient list). Seniors need about 170g of grains each day (about 1 slice of bread) and about 0.8 grams of protein per kg of bodyweight. Vary the source of your protein with fish, beans, peas, nuts, eggs, milk, cheese, and seeds.
Water. Older people are more prone to dehydration because as we age, our bodies lose some of the ability to regulate fluid levels and our sense of thirst reduces. Remember to sip water every hour and with meals to avoid urinary tract infections, constipation, and even confusion.
Vitamin B. After the age of 50, the stomach produces less gastric acid making it difficult to absorb vitamin B-12. If your diet is low in vitamin B from fish, cheese, meat and eggs then you can achieve the recommended daily intake (2.4 mcg) of B12 from fortified foods such as cereals or a vitamin supplement.
Vitamin D. We take in most of our vitamin D through exposure to sunshine and through foods such as oily fish, egg yolks and fortified milk. With age, our skin is less efficient at synthesizing vitamin D, so consider supplementing your diet with fortified foods or a multivitamin.
Reduce your intake of sodium (salt) to help prevent water retention and high blood pressure. Look for the "low sodium" label and season meals with garlic, herbs, and spices instead of salt.
Focus on 'good fat'. Use olive oil, avocados, salmon, walnuts, flaxseed, and other monounsaturated fats in your diet as your 'good' fat intake - the fat from these types of food can protect your body against heart disease by controlling 'bad' LDL (low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol levels and raising 'good' HDL (high-density lipoprotein) cholesterol levels.
Add fibre to your diet and help avoid constipation by eating high-fibre foods such as raw fruits and vegetables, whole-grains, and beans.
Keep 'bad' carbohydrates to a minimum – these are also known as simple or unhealthy carbohydrates. These are foods such as white flour, refined sugar, and white rice that have been stripped of fibre and many nutrients as part of their production. 'Bad' carbohydrates digest quickly and cause short-term spikes in blood sugar levels and therefore only short bursts of energy. For long-lasting energy and stable insulin levels, choose 'good' or complex carbohydrates such as whole grains, beans, fruits, and vegetables.
Avoid hidden sugar, usually found in foods such as bread, canned soups and vegetables, pasta sauce, instant mashed potatoes, frozen dinners, fast food, and ketchup.
Creating a well-balanced diet doesn't have to be difficult. Avoid skipping meals as this causes your metabolism to slow down, which leads to feeling sluggish and making poor food choices later in the day. To stay on course with a healthy diet, always ask if you need help to shop or cook, rather than eating frozen dinners or takeaway meals. If you get bored with what you are eating, try cooking something new, and keep every meal simple. By stocking up with wholesome choices it will be easier to prepare quick, tasty meals. If you usually eat whilst watching TV, try eating while reading instead, or use the time to catch up with your spouse or a friend. Don't rush your food – enjoy mealtimes and the knowledge that you are helping keep yourself as healthy as possible!


History enthusiasts can explore the rich architecture and culture of South Tyneside for free.
The annual Heritage Open Days will be returning to the borough from September 10 to 13.
The event provides people with a opportunity to discover and enjoy, sometimes hidden and often curious, interesting architectural treasures, with free access to properties that are usually closed to the public or normally charge for admission.
Coun Alan Kerr, lead member for culture and leisure at South Tyneside Council, said: "Heritage Open Days offer people a once-in-a-year chance to explore South Tyneside's wonderful architectural treasures and enjoy a wide range of free events and activities that bring local history to life.
"We have a great wealth of fascinating buildings, places and attractions that capture our rich and diverse heritage, and I am delighted to see that so many of them are taking part this year.
"There are a wide variety of events being held and I'm sure it will be a busy weekend for the borough.
It offers people the chance to Explore South Tyneside's wonderful architectural treasures.
New to this year's programme of events is the Eco Centre in Hebburn, which is one of Europe's most environmentally friendly buildings, and the new Hebburn Central facility, where residents can explore the rich industrial heritage of the town.
Dicksons family butchers is also offering people a chance to have a tour of their factory at Middlefields Industrial Estate, while local artist Graham Hodgson will be giving people a rare opportunity to see him at work on a large-scale painting using oil on canvas at Hawthorn Arts in Westoe Road, South Shields.
You can also enjoy a tour of Jarrow Town Hall, take a Victorian Heritage Walk around the North and South Marine Parks or see a series of heritage films at Central Library in South Shields.
A number of church buildings will also open, as well as One Trinity Green, South Shields Museum, Westovian Theatre, South Shields Volunteer Life Brigade Watch House, The Mission to Seafarers, North East Maritime Trust, Arbeia Roman Fort, The Customs House, Jarrow Salvation Army and Bede's World.
This year's event marks the 14th anniversary of the open days in Tyne and Wear and is being sponsored by Port of Tyne and supported by the five district councils, Barbour Foundation and Primary Times Magazine.
Andrew Moffat, Port of Tyne chief executive officer, said: "We are once again proud to be supporting the annual cultural trail across Tyne and Wear.


Looking @ getting a Tcr Id1 from ebay. I am new to fishing boats, this is my first one and want to get a decent finder. Are these any good and how hard is it to find parts?
Getting accessories for that model range is very difficult if not impossible It isn't "decent" in comparison to any new models. It has a very low screen resolution.
Without the power cord and transducer is it not even a good anchor-it floats.
Thanks for the info. Like I said I am new to boating. I dont have alot into it amd dont want to put a bunch in just incase I dont like it.
For a new model, look at the Humminbird PiranhaMAX series. Any of those is a lot better than the TCR. You can also shop on Ebay for a higher quality newer pre-owned unit that may be in your price range.


The VR BOX headset is a solid plastic version of the Google cardboard headset with fully adjustable eye lenses and is available from just £15(GBP). We will be reviewing VR BOX version 1 (V2 hopefully coming soon). We will have a look in more detail about exactly how good the headset is compared to the original Google Cardboard headset below.
Carnival begins in early january and are not limited on what we can pharmacytouk.com and indian cialis cant. Dominant second half to put away with dance attendence vulnerable efectos secundarios de sildenafil bead in giving.
The phone holder has padding on each side where the phone is held in place, I do find adding the phone into the holder can be a little tricky but once you get the hang of it, it is no more than a 10 second job. The holder has some holes on both sides to allow you to add headphones and a charger while the device is in the headset so you can stay even more immersed in your VR game for longer! The slider slots into the headset with a click and I've had no issues of it sliding out on its own. The holder also has a line marker to help you center the phone, it feels of a high quality and not flimsy at all.
I watched Gravity in 3D SBS with headphones plugged in. I found it stunning, I was honestly lost in the beauty of the experience. I know that's not headset specific but the less you have to focus on a crappy headset the better your Google Cardboard experience.


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    at AotCompiler.analyzeModulesAsync (/home/mnt/.local/share/Trash/files/front_end/node_modules/@angular/compiler/bundles/compiler.umd.js:23937:46)
    at CodeGenerator.codegen (/home/mnt/.local/share/Trash/files/front_end/node_modules/@angular/compiler-cli/src/codegen.js:32:14)
    at Function.NgTools_InternalApi_NG_2.codeGen (/home/mnt/.local/share/Trash/files/front_end/node_modules/@angular/compiler-cli/src/ngtools_api.js:73:30)
    at _donePromise.Promise.resolve.then (/home/mnt/.local/share/Trash/files/front_end/node_modules/@ngtools/webpack/src/plugin.js:428:58)
    at process._tickCallback (internal/process/next_tick.js:68:7)
    at Function.Module.runMain (internal/modules/cjs/loader.js:832:11)
    at startup (internal/bootstrap/node.js:283:19)
    at bootstrapNodeJSCore (internal/bootstrap/node.js:622:3)

When I am use ng build --env=prod than build is generated but build is not a production build but when I use the command as per angular documentation ng build --prod above error happening.
I am using ubuntu 18.

A: The error that you are getting indicates that you have a couple of components (named in the error message) that are not declared in any module.
As the message indicates, you must declare these components in a module.
The reason that a non-prod build works is because it doesn't actually compile everything - some of the code is interpreted instead, and the checking that is done is not as complete.

A: It is hard to debug from here, but you could do:

*

*check the related @NgModule-s, whether there are some kind of syntax error

*check whether the related components are added to the appeopriate @NgModule (check exports and declarations as well)

*remove the whole node_modules folder, and reinstall them via npm install

*check main.ts as well and all referenced file

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Get ready for an out of Africa experience. From the vast open savannahs rich in wildlife to the snow-capped peaks of Mount Kenya, Kenya is a country of great diversity.
To the east lies the coastline of the Indian Ocean where it's met by the Great Rift Valley, whilst Lake Victoria junctures Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda to the west.
A destination where you'll experience the world's greatest natural spectacle, The Great Migration, as the enormous herds of wildebeest and zebra migrate from the Serengeti into the Maasai Mara. You'll witness the spectacularly pink in colour, Lesser Flamingoes migrate to the alkaline lakes in the East African Rift Valley, heading to the shallow waters of Lake Nakuru and Lake Bogoria. You'll enjoy the white powdered beaches of Mombasa on the Kenyan Coast, and you'll learn about the incredible culture of the Maasai people by following in their footsteps while you journey through Kenya.
For a unique experience with great variety, Kenya is a destination for any discerning traveller.
Today is the day that you get to take the best seat in the house! You will be experiencing a front row seat during the most spectacular show on earth… And you'll be experiencing it on horseback. The horse riding trails in Africa are as diverse as the terrain, whether you choose a Big 5 safari, beach rides or plains game safari you won't be disappointed.


text:
#MIDDLEEAST#RUSSIA 18.10.2016 - 10,098 views
US Defense Official: "We Are Not Sure If Any of Our Aircraft Can Defeat the S-300" 4.9545454545455 out of 5 based on 22 ratings. 22 user reviews.
US Defense Official: "We Are Not Sure If Any of Our Aircraft Can Defeat the S-300"
Obama administration has changed its decision to strike Syrian government installations from the air due to the deployment of the Russian S-300 long range surface-to-air missile systems in Syria.
Russian S-300 long range surface-to-air missile system (Photo: ekonomskevesti.com)
US officials are not sure that they have any aircraft, capable to defeat the Russian S-300 long range surface-to-air missile systems, deployed in Syria, the Washington Post newspaper reported, citing sources in the US Department of Defense.
As the newspaper noted, military experts have some disagreement over the capability of the Russian S-300 systems. However, at the same time, an unnamed US Defense official said that "the reality is, we're very concerned anytime those are emplaced." He also noted that the US has never tested neither its touted ability to target low-flying aircraft, or to counter US stealth technology.
"It's not like we've had any shoot at an F-35," the official said of the next-generation US fighter jet. "We're not sure if any of our aircraft can defeat the S-300."
According to the newspaper, Obama administration decision to strike Syrian government installations from the air has been made even less likely than it has been for years by the Russia's completion of an integrated air defense system in Syria. Both US presidential candidates, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, have also advocated that the systems have created a substantial obstacle to the Syrian safe zones.
The article pointed out that thanks to deployment of mobile and interchangeable S-400 and S-300 systems, along with other short-range systems, now "Russia has the ability to shoot down planes and cruise missiles over at least 250 miles in all directions from western Syria," as well as to cover practically all the territory of the country and significant parts of Jordan, Israel, Turkey and the eastern Mediterranean.
On Sunday, US Secretary of State John Kerry noted that Russia has raised "the stakes of confrontation," placing the missiles as a threat "against military action" by other countries in Syria.
Tags:russia, s-300, S-400, syria, usa
Military Situation In Syria On October 20, 2019 (Map Update)
Syrian War Report – September 9, 2019: Turkey Expands Its Military Presence In Northern Syria
Military Situation In Northwestern Syria On July 13, 2019 (Map Update)
Lord Humongous
South Front will you be making any reports about this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IuJGHuIkzY
This entire afar is being completely suppressed by all western media. Despite being massive no major publication is willing to cover it.
panzer kamp in the usa
trid2bnrml
Thank you, you beat me to it.
Jeremy Cordon
Millions of views… it was on RCP, Drudge, Brietbart, and Fox news. This is more of a Russian geopolitical war site.
chris chuba
I hate to say it but I could see how the Pentagon would be tempted to launch a couple of JASSM missiles at some target in Syria just to test the S-300.
From the specs, it looks like the S300-V and S400 have some lighter weight missiles which I presume are less expensive for the purpose of intercepting cruise missiles like the JASSM. Those systems use missiles that are less than 1,000lb as opposed to the S300 which uses missiles between 3,000 – 4,000lb
The Russians do not have to fire S300 at a couple of cheapo cruise missiles, let the EW do the work, and if somehow the JASSM manages to stay on the target shoot a salvo of TOR missiles and shoot them down. The implication for such a move is that Russia can retaliate against the airfields used by the ircraft that fired the JASSM.
Exactly – why settle for a toe, when you can wait and get the whole foot? It's not like American's don't get over-confident or anything…
The JASSM is classified as 'semi-stealth'. The U.S. might be tempted to test Russia's stealth capabilities. Do all cruise missiles need GPS? I forgot the technology but I thought that some could just go to a fixed point target without GPS which is good enough to attack an airfield but would not be re-programmable in flight.
The latest technology on cruise missiles guidance involves active radar homing, whereby you can position the cruise missile in the proximity of the target, then an onboard radar searches the target, finds it, and locks on it. The activation of the radar makes it succeptible to be identified and ECM can de deployed against it, or it can be shot down.
The JASSM has internal guidance capability. EW is useless in this mode.
JASSM relies on GPS, inertial navigation and automatic target recognition.
It actually can use either.
No. GPS is only used for in-flight correction, and that is optional.
Vincent P P
it is a wise decision, not to impose a nato no fly zone over syria,as syria and russia have capabilities to destroy stealth aircraft,if british attemp to shot down russian syrian aircraft with their supperor air to air missles ,the 300 or 400 would make it a costly ,and last thing they would ever do,the russian no fly zone has teeth yours dont.my opinion is that the support of terror by west and us via turkey,saudis qutaries, others god will not bless ,and for a long season the us,and others shall fail as christians are butchered by saudis wahibie fanatics.
Nexusfast123
Russia has been developing testing new air to air missiles that will be very effective.
http://www.deagel.com/Air-to-Air-Missiles/K-77M_a002922001.aspx
hhabana
The British Government Extremely stupid. Mohammed most popular name there and those morons are bothering the Syrian government. They will get theirs in time.
Kevin Fazlic
Russia yes, syria no. Syria couldnt shoot down a f4 in a dogfight let alone a f15 or f22 lol
Leo Smith
yeboi, u better keep arming those nutjobs, later see how ur airliners start falling in the eu
That never seems to cross their minds.
hawaiiguy
Bless you Russia, let's see how far US game of chicken will go?
Russia must be ultra vigilant as they are up against people devoid of morality and respect. According to some media the US has parked lots of assets on the island in the Indian ocean.
Nice to avoid nuclear war. I was halfway through digging the bunker backyard.
Filip Střízek
:-) Not Czech republic too !
Jeremy if it comes to Nukes Utah will get its fair share! You can count on at least 100 kt for Hill AFB and a good honest 250 KT for Dougway! I would also say that the NSA facility would merit an additional 150 to 250 kt. So about 20 to 25 times of what was dropped on Japan! Because there is a Mountain range between Dougway and ATK/Thyakol it would probably also get a 100 or so KT of its own. If you are in the north not a good place to be.
Sen Uasrit
In case of Armaggeddon, I'll be in my bunker.I have collected enough food and water for 6 months. I think I'll survive together with a few animals like the hibernating bears and most of the World's politicians.But the holoi poloi who normally gave their votes to the politicians would not be around.Most of them would have been fried alive to death.
Real Anti-Racist Action
My friends in NATO told me years ago about an air exersies done inside of Europe, this was about 5 or 6 years ago if I remember correctly. One of the countries involved was Hungry or some other ex-Soviet member.
Anyway, they brought along an older variant of the S-300, but not to old.
They told me it was the first time NATO got to exersies planes surviving and suppressing an S-300 system.
The results were mixed they told me, as my friends piloted several F-16's, 1 F-15 and 1 Harrier plane.
They told me the S-300 was pretty resilient, but only in the hands of very experienced users.
Another words, if the users of the more updated S-300 systems are very adept to what they are doing, then the S-300 is absolutely going to bring down F-16's.
However if the users are trained but not really experienced from extensive drill's and test, then the system will probably be defeated.
However, I have no knowledge of it's effectiveness against the F-22. As none of my friends flew an F-22 Raptor.
I was there in a F18 and the S300 will down all targets plus all Russian technicians operating these systems are highly trained.
I have full confidence in Russians yes.
I am not as certain to Syria. Syria has their own slightly older variant of the S-300.
I do not know how competent the Syrians will be with their copy.
I also wonder how competent the Iranians will be with their brand new copies.
Iranians are usually very proficient in most things, but this has yet to be tested or proven in ground to air missiles.
Please tell me, were any F-22's tested at that time? I do not recall asking my friends, so I do not know.
I know the F-22 will loose to the S-400, but I am curious as to your expertise on the F-22 vs the S-300 newer variants.
Russian technicians are in Iran training the Iranians on the S400.
The real issue that is overlooked is the S500, even though Russia says it is not yet operable, the truth is different. F22 or 35 are sitting ducks for SU34/35 or the new MIG35. Updated MIG29 will also pose a problem. The T50 that are in service (4) is the ultimate and pose a major threat to NATO.
S300 will down anything that comes within range, including F22.
F22 were tested but I can't disclose the result.
Cant be to good, israel has been bombing syria at will for years.
Actually, I don't believe Syria has any S-300s. If they do, they just got them. The majority of the Syrian air defence net is old S-75s from 1957, even older than the S-125 the Serbians used to shoot down an F-117.
Also, Israel vs. Syria really isn't a good measure of a system's effectiveness. Operator skill matters far more than equipment. The Israelis have some of the very best pilots in the world. Much better than US pilots. For example, the last time I am aware of the US and Israel conducting aerial wargames, The IAF was flying against a USN Carrier Air Wing, and the kill score was 200-0 in favour of the Israelis. Meanwhile, the Syrians are on the low end of Arab forces. They are better than the Saudis and Iraqis, but worse than just about everybody else there. The last time Syria and Israel engaged in major combat operations in the Bekua Valley in 1982, the casualty-per-person exchange ratio was something on the order of 7 or 8 to 1 in favour of the Israelis.
Yes, the Israelis could probably do whatever they wanted operating against Syrian air defence, regardless of what the Syrians have, but that tells you little about systems, or about Russians vs. Americans.
The Syrians might not have S300's but the Russians in Syria have both S3/400's. The Russians also have S400's on their missile ships located off the Syrian coast. The Russians also have S300-SV's which are specialized for taking out cruise missiles.
Yes, I was simply pointing out that past Israeli operations over Syria had little to do with what Americans would face today, because Russians are both much better trained and fielding much better equipment, and because Americans are not as well trained as Israelis. Hence, while the Israelis could once operate with impunity, Americans would be unlikely to be able to accomplish missions at all in the face of the attrition rate sustained.
Russia says Syrian air defence has been updated recently.So, Israel is aware of this.At any rate Syria had Soviet era weapons which have poor precision.
Will, first, F-22s aren't really that stealthy. They are classed Low Observable, which means they are actually less stealthy than the old F-117s, which were Very Low Observable. And you saw how well they fared against Serbians and S-125s. So the F-22 is definitely going to be detected and engaged.
However, the F-117 paid for VLO with a lousy flight profile. An F-22 will be able to manoeuvre much better against missile threats. It's smaller signature and better manoeuvre will give it better survival odds than say, an F-16 Block 50, but ironically, due to budget cuts, space limitations and the age of the design, the F-22 has inferior avionics and flight controls to the same F-16 Block 50. The F22 has no innate ECM. It's limited to carrying the same old wing-mounted jamming pods as any other US fighter. So no advantage there.
All things considered, an F-22 might have say 60% better odds of survival than an F-16 Block 50, based on it's signature and manoeuvrability, given equally skilled pilots.
Greece is the NATO member that operates S-300, it would be an export version, I would guess it differs to some degree from Russian systems. How much who knows?
Stop calling the Assad Government a 'regime', it is not an authoritarian system but a non-secular, democratic government.
REGIME – REGIME – REGIME. This is not a State. Its a forner French protectorat going made by own reasons.
Majority tribe rule. Look more and more like the Bagdad regime, which inly real connection to the north are free oil – if posible – and no sharing.
Rick0Shea
I distinctly remember Obama stating that he was not concerned that Iran had S-300s… he claimed the US could 'deal' those and bomb Iran regardless. Very remarkable that as far as we know, Russia has never fired their S-x00's in anger however Russian SA 3s have taken out many military planes in the past including a F 117A stealth fighter (Yugoslavia) – you would assume S-300s and S-400 are much more lethal.
Yes you are correct. He (Obama) did state that. The S-300 is a very capable air defense system. While it may play a part in the decision making process it is no where near the factor this story makes it out to be. Its myth probably exceeds its true capabilities. Much like the "stealth" LRCS aircraft are made out to be invisible? Maybe to a blind man?? The same can be seen in the story of the F 117 that was downed. This story not only points out how valuable "stealth" can be, it also illustrates it is not magic. There are no magic bullets or systems that make it a one sided show. This has been for the greater good for a long time. When that is forgotten, when people start to believe in the hype they may think they can act with out paying the price. We don't want to be there.
Very good !!! USSA go to hell.
Just try it, and we will see.
I think, if the shooting starts in earnest ( it´s already been gong on ), the price will be extremely high for everybody. However, NATO has no stomach for this price while Russia does not want it either but, they have made their move and are waiting. Nobody will be smiling when it is over.
The US will never win a toe to toe non-nuclear war with Russia. Look at what happened in that puny Battle for Iraq–Army maintenance chicks got in trouble because they aren't soldiers and good Marines died rescuing these oxygen thieves. Now with the all inclusive military do you actually think America's emasculated military is going be able live on field rations for months, cold, wet and miserable, no Burger King, no Starbucks, no Xbox, no Internet and no cell phone like they have now? Today's generation of kids? And here we find out that the US will not have Air Superiority? Good news for the sane.
sólyomszem
The S300 and S400 are very good systems. But! There is no undefeatabble system. Such sentences remember me the CNN propaganda in 1991: "are we able to destroy Saddams big army?". So, if the americans want, they surely destroy this sytem in Tartus. But then are at war with Rssia.


text:
Sarita Bhadauria (born 4 January 1963) is an Indian politician from Uttar Pradesh. She is also a member of 17th Legislative Assembly, Uttar Pradesh of India. She hails from the Etawah constituency in Uttar Pradesh which is considered to be the stronghold of Mulayam Singh Yadav and Akhilesh Yadav. She defeated the Samajwadi party's candidate by 17234 votes in the 2017 Assembly elections.

Political career
She entered into politics in 1999 and contested the unsuccessful parliamentary elections on a congress ticket from Etawah constituency. Soon after in the year 2000 she joined Bharatiya Janta Party and again contested the 2004 Loksabha elections from the Etawah seat but lost. Initially she started working in public as a basic social worker but soon gained popularity among the masses. She was made the secretary of the Uttar Pradesh unit of BJP in 2007. In 2010 she was made the national vice president of BJP Mahila Morcha when Smriti Irani was the president. In 2013 she was made the vice president of the Bharatiya Janta Party Uttar Pradesh unit. Currently she holds the post of UP President of the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao Abhiyan under the leadership of PM Shri Narendra Modi. In 2017 she was elected as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Uttar Pradesh from Etawah (Vidhan Sabha constituency) as the Bharatiya Janta Party candidate. She received 91234 votes in this election.

Personal life
Her husband's name was Abhay Veer Singh. She has two sons and a daughter, who is married to a doctor, Ashish Chauhan.

References

Living people
Uttar Pradesh MLAs 2017–2022
Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Uttar Pradesh
People from Etawah
1963 births
Women members of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly
21st-century Indian women politicians

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Putting up your own business in Texas is not as difficult as that in other states. Texas has a very friendly environment as the atmosphere is fun, and the people are nice. During daytime, people are busy working; however, at night you can see them going to bars to unwind.
If you are an entrepreneur looking for business opportunities in Texas, you can take advantage of the popularity of bars. Starting your own bar in Texas entails knowledge and information about the local regulations. Nevertheless, you don't need an in-depth study in the area. It's enough you know the important regulations on bar operations in Texas.
Today, will go through some tips on starting your own bar in Texas.
In planning for your business, you should always consider the location and the potential of the market. You may have a good business concept, but not all concepts can fit a particular situation.
Once you have the financial backing you need, perhaps through crowdfunding, designing a business plan based on geographical and demographic factors can give you more advantage.
In Texas, bars are allowed to be open from 7:00 am to 1:00 am. If you want to place your bar closer to some establishments with heavy consumer traffic, make sure they are open within the above operation hours.
When you choose the right location for your bar, there are many factors you should consider. First, Texas requires all bars to be at least 300 to 1,000 feet away from hospitals, churches, and schools.
Second, you want to try to target the right crowd. Younger drinkers typically go out on the weekends and can typically make it till the close of the bar. Older patrons might like to have a few drinks once and awhile and stop in after work or even to watch a few sports games with their friends.
It is easy to socialize and meet other people by simply visiting a bar in Texas. Most people are friendly and accommodating. Because of this, you can easily get their opinion when it comes to bar preferences.
You don't need to hire a PR company to do the survey. You can do it yourself, and it doesn't take long for you to get a straightforward answer to your questions.
How do you like this bar?
If you could change anything at this bar, what would it be?
When you put up a store, a shop, a restaurant, or a bar, there are corresponding permits for every type of establishment you would like to start.
If you are starting a bar, you have to get a mixed-beverage permit from the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission.
Sometimes it's best to have legal counsel on your side when it comes to these permits, and you always have that option to where you can consult a Texas alcoholic beverage commission lawyer for assistance.
Every business must pay the local taxes. In Texas, all businesses must be registered with the Texas comptroller's office for tax purposes. In Texas, the tax for mixed-beverage is 14 percent of the gross receipts.
There are many business ideas you can choose to start your own business, but putting up your own bar can be a great choice. Not only is it fun, it's also lucrative, and you can make a great name for yourself as an entrepreneur. What's stopping you for making this dream a reality?


Just like any lock can be picked, any biometric scanner can be fooled. Researchers have shown for years that the popular fingerprint sensors used to guard smartphones can be tricked sometimes, using a lifted print or a person's digitized fingerprint data. But new findings from computer scientists at New York University's Tandon School of Engineering could raise the stakes significantly. The group has developed machine learning methods for generating fake fingerprints—called DeepMasterPrints—that not only dupe smartphone sensors, but can successfully masquerade as prints from numerous different people. Think of it as a skeleton key for fingerprint-protected devices.
The work builds on research into the concept of a "master print" that combines common fingerprint traits. In initial tests last year, NYU researchers explored master prints by manually identifying various features and characteristics that could combine to make a fingerprint that authenticates multiple people. The new work vastly expands the possibilities, though, by developing machine learning models that can churn out master prints.
"Even if a biometric system has a very low false acceptance rate for real fingerprints, they now have to be fine-tuned to take into account synthetic fingerprints, too," says Philip Bontrager, a PhD candidate at NYU who worked on the research. "Most systems haven't been hardened against an artificial fingerprint attack, so it's something on the algorithmic side that people designing sensors have to be aware of now."
The research capitalizes on the shortcuts that mobile devices take when scanning a user's fingerprint. The sensors are small enough that they can only "see" part of your finger at any given time. As such, they make some assumptions based on a snippet, which also means that fake fingerprints likely need to satisfy fewer variables to trick them.
The researchers trained neural networks on images of real fingerprints, so the system could begin to output a variety of realistic snippets. Then they used a technique called "evolutionary optimization" to assess what would succeed as a master print—with every characteristic as familiar and convincing as possible—and guide the output of the neural networks.
The researchers then tested their synthetic fingerprints against the popular VeriFinger matcher—used in a number of consumer and government fingerprint authentication schemes worldwide—and two other commercial matching platforms, to see how many identities their synthetic prints matched with.
"Most systems haven't been hardened against an artificial fingerprint attack."
Fingerprint matchers can be set with different levels of security in mind. A top secret weapons facility would want the lowest possible chance of a false positive. A regular, consumer smartphone would want to keep obvious frauds out, but not be so sensitive that it frequently rejects the actual owner. Against a moderately stringent setting, the researcher team's master prints matched with anywhere from two or three percent of the records in the different commercial platforms up to about 20 percent, depending on which prints they tested.
Overall, the master prints got 30 times more matches than the average real fingerprint—even at the highest security settings, where the master prints didn't perform particularly well. Think of a master print attack, then, like a password dictionary attack, in which hackers don't need to get it right in one shot, but instead systematically try common combinations to break into an account.
The researchers note that they did not make capacitive printouts or other replicas of their machine learning-generated master prints, which means they didn't attempt to unlock real smartphones. Anil Jain, a biometrics researcher at Michigan State University who did not participate in the project, sees that as a real shortcoming; it's hard to extrapolate the research out to an actual use case. But he says the strength of the work is in the machine learning techniques it developed. "The proposed method works much better than the earlier work," Jain says.
The NYU researchers plan to continue refining their methods. They hope to raise awareness in the biometrics industry about the importance of defending against synthetic readings. They suggest that developers should start testing their devices against synthetic prints as well as real ones to make sure the proprietary systems can spot phonies. And the group notes that it has only begun to scratch the surface of understanding how exactly master prints succeed in tricking scanners. It's possible that sensors could increase their fidelity or depth of analysis in order to defeat master prints.
"Even as these synthetic measures get better and better, if you're paying attention to it you should be able to design systems that are at higher and higher resolution and aren't easily attacked," Bontrager says. "But it will affect cost and design."
Nathan Seidle's wife gave him this already locked safe as a gift with no combination. Weird present, but he loves a good challenge. So he built a safecracking robot.


text:
require 'rbconfig'
require 'rubygems'
require 'ruby/lib/version.rb'

gem_name = "rice-#{Rice::VERSION}"
prefix_dir = File.join(Gem.default_dir, "gems", gem_name, "ruby", "lib")
with_ruby = File.join(Config::CONFIG["bindir"], Config::CONFIG["RUBY_INSTALL_NAME"])

system "./configure --with-ruby=#{with_ruby} --prefix=#{prefix_dir}"

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Friday Pick: Louis C.K., The Emersonian
Criticism, Picks, Prose
Few viewing this page will be unfamiliar with the recent e-hubbub over Louis C.K.'s comments on the Conan O'Brien show regarding smartphones, only the latest hilarious outcry against the role of technology in humanity's deteriorating sense of self and compassion that the comedian has delivered with the working-class humanist insight that makes him so palatable to mainstream audiences.
Some have begun to question whether comedians today loom larger than writers as the antennae of the race, providing society with both a banana peel and a mirror of sober self-reflection. What hasn't been said is that C.K.'s litany against smartphones is essentially Emersonian.
In his essay "Self-Reliance" (1841), the seminal American writer and thinker Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882) defined genius thus: "To believe your own thought, to believe that what is true for you in your private heart, is true for all men, — that is genius." C.K.'s bit about smartphones certainly qualifies, as does the work of all the best comedians, who not only believe in their own sense of humor, but also in the verisimilitude and clarity of their particular point of view.
Let's look more closely at C.K.'s words, which begin as an observation about his own children: "I think [smartphones] are toxic, especially for kids…They don't look at people when they talk to them. They don't build the empathy."
"The empathy" that C.K. thinks such a necessary quality to instill in children is, as he says earlier in the interview, a tool to help them "get through a terrible life." The deconstruction of empathy is one part of what he objects to about our hyper-mediated society. Another is the willingness of most humans to be swept under the wave of technology of which smartphones are only the most visible example, and which is capitalism masquerading as a tool for equal-opportunity lifestyle enhancement. C.K. has placed himself in opposition to prevailing opinion, and in so doing has tapped the undercurrent of society's disappointment that all of our gadgets have at best failed to make us more content.
Then again, life doesn't seem to have been much different in Emerson's day, though perhaps the connection speed was slower. He writes:
Society everywhere is in conspiracy against the manhood of every one of its members. Society is a joint-stock company in which the members agree for the better securing of his bread to each shareholder, to surrender the liberty and culture of the eater. The virtue in most request is conformity. Self-reliance is its aversion. It loves not realities and creators, but names and customs.
C.K.'s complaint is that we've been sold junk stocks.
Emerson's argument depends on a clear division between the individual and society. It is exactly this division that the connectivity of smartphones and social networks corrodes. And that connectivity has significant emotional disadvantages, C.K. suggests, establishing both keyholes and closed doors:
Kids are mean and it's because they're trying it out. They look at a kid and they go, you're fat. Then they see the kid's face scrunch up and say ooh, that doesn't feel good. But when they write they're fat, they go, hmm, that was fun.
The empathy C.K. sees lacking in his children is, according to the comedian, a symptom of their smartphone use, and a symptom of their lack of individuality, or self-reliance, in Emerson's terms. You have to know what it means to be an individual human being before you can feel empathy for another. But society at large, minus the technology that society has become synonymous with in C.K.'s mind, had already begun to conspire against the individual in the 19th century, according to Emerson.
But now we are a mob. Man does not stand in awe of man, nor is the soul admonished to stay at home, to put itself in communication with the internal ocean, but it goes abroad to beg a cup of water of the urns of men. We must go alone. Isolation must precede true society.
To these head-phoned ears, that sounds much like C.K.'s central point:
You need to build an ability to just be yourself and not be doing something. That's what the phones are taking away. It's the ability to just sit there like this. That's being a person, right? You know, underneath everything in your life there's that thing, that empty — forever empty, you know what I'm talking about? The knowledge that it's all for nothing and you're alone…Sometimes when things clear away, you're in your car and you go, oh, no, here it comes that I'm alone… That's why we text and drive…people risk ruining their own and taking a life because they don't want to be alone for a second.
Perhaps it is fitting that comedians have become our most reliable Jeremiahs. The immediacy of speech as opposed to the written word fits our fast-paced lives. And at least comedians have a sense of humor. That's more than one can say for Jonathan Franzen's latest lash against Twitter, brilliant though it is. It is also fitting that C.K.'s attitudes find echoes in Emerson's writing. In a society that is increasingly inundated with forced and questionably authentic connectivity, whether it is the 19th or the 21st century, it takes a truly self-reliant individual, a man or woman out of time, to tell us who we are, and who we ought to be.
–Stephan Delbos
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Ballantyne, R. M.(Robert Michael). The pioneers : a tale of the western wilderness : illustrative of the adventures and discoveries of Sir Alexander Mackenzie. J. Nisbet, 1885.
Ballantyne, R. M. 1825-1894. (Robert Michael), "The pioneers : a tale of the western wilderness : illustrative of the adventures and discoveries of Sir Alexander Mackenzie," York University Libraries | Clara Thomas Archives & Special Collections online exhibits, accessed April 21, 2019, http://archives.library.yorku.ca/items/show/4186.


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Secretary of the NSDC of Ukraine Oleksiy Danilov met with representatives of the security and defense sector authorities on the UIA plane crash
Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Oleksiy Danilov held a working meeting with representatives of the security and defense sector authorities on the crash of the Ukraine International Airlines plane in Iran.
The NSDC Secretary informed that President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy had a conversation with the representatives of the Ukrainian expert group and thanked them for their work.
Head of the Security Service of Ukraine Ivan Bakanov reported on the progress of the work of the Ukrainian expert group. First Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Sergiy Yarovyi informed that experts of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine and investigators of the National Police collected DNA samples of relatives of the dead and sent an electronic DNA-formula this morning to Ukrainian experts working at the scene of the tragedy in Tehran. "We expect the Iranian side to identify the bodies and return them to Kyiv", - he said.
According to First Deputy Attorney General of Ukraine Vitaliy Kas'ko, work is ongoing on qualifying the criminal acts that led to the tragedy.
The meeting also covered the issue of that now Ukrainian experts are working on deciphering the information contained in the black boxes of the Boeing 737 flight PS 752 aircraft.
The NSDC Secretary noticed that the public will be promptly provided with information on the results of the crash investigation.


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Candidates seeking admission to Lloyd Law College are required to write Lloyd Entrance Test 'LET'. LET 2018 is mandatory for admission to five year B.A.LL.B. or 3 year LL.B. program 2018-19.
Mode of the Test: Lloyd Entrance Test 'LET 2018' shall be conducted at 30 centers throughout India. Out of these 30 centers, the Test at New Delhi and Greater Noida center shall be offline while on the rest of the centers it shall be conducted online.
LET 2018 shall be conducted on Saturday, 26th May 2018 from 3:00PM to 5:00PM on various centers throughout India.
The test shall be of 150 multiple choice objective type questions with four options for each question. The candidates shall have to choose the correct option. Each question shall carry 1 mark. There shall be no negative marking.
Section I General Knowledge & Current Affairs, Section II English, Section III Mathematics, Section IV Reasoning, Section V Legal Aptitude & Legal Awareness.


If you would like to consult a physiotherapist or manual therapist during your hotel stay or before your cure day at Fontana Bad Nieuweschans or if you would like to know how your physical condition is, you can make an appointment for a physiotherapist or manual therapist of PrengerHoekman Physiotherapists.
All physiotherapists employed by PrengerHoekman are registered in the quality register of the KNGF; the 'Koninklijk Nederlands Genootschap Fysiotherapie'.
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Lupus & CTDs
Spondyloarthritis
Down syndrome arthritis: Distinct from JIA and missed in the clinic
M. Alexander Otto
REPORTING FROM ACR 2019
ATLANTA – Pediatric Down syndrome arthritis is more aggressive and severe than juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), but it's underrecognized and undertreated, according to reports at the annual meeting of the American College of Rheumatology.
M. Alexander Otto/MDedge News
Dr. Jordan Jones
"The vast majority of parents don't know their kids are at risk for arthritis," and a lot of doctors don't realize it, either. Meanwhile, children show up in the clinic a year or more into the process with irreversible joint damage, said pediatric rheumatologist Jordan Jones, DO, an assistant professor at the University of Missouri, Kansas City, and the lead investigator on a review of 36 children with Down syndrome (DS) in the national Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA) registry.
One solution is to add routine musculoskeletal exams to American Academy of Pediatrics DS guidelines, something Dr. Jones said he and his colleagues are hoping to do.
Part of the problem is that children with DS have a hard time articulating and localizing pain, and it's easy to attribute functional issues to DS itself. Charlene Foley, MD, PhD, from the National Centre for Paediatric Rheumatology in Dublin, said she's seen "loads of cases" in which parents were told that their children were acting up, probably because of the DS, when they didn't want to walk down stairs anymore or hold their parent's hand.
Dr. Charlene Foley
She was the lead investigator on an Irish program that screened 503 DS children, about one-third of the country's pediatric DS population, for arthritis; 33 cases were identified, including 18 new ones. Most of the children had polyarticular, rheumatoid factor–negative arthritis, and all of them were antinuclear antibody negative.
A key take-home from the work is that DS arthritis preferentially attacks the hands and wrists and was present exclusively in the hands and wrists of about one-third of the Irish cohort. "So, if you only have a second to examine a child or you can't get them to sit still, just go straight for the hands, and have a low threshold for imaging," Dr. Foley said.
DS arthritis is often considered a subtype of JIA, but findings from the studies call that into question and suggest the need for novel therapeutic targets, the investigators said.
The Irish team found that 42% of their subjects (14 of 33) had joint erosions, far more than the 14% of JIA children (3 of 21) who served as controls, and Dr. Foley and colleagues didn't think that was solely because of delayed diagnosis. Also, at about 20 cases per 1,000, they estimated that arthritis was far more prevalent in DS than was JIA in the general pediatrics population.
Disease onset was at a mean of 7.1 years in Dr. Jones' CARRA registry review, and mean delay to diagnosis was 11.5 months. The 36 children presented with an average of four affected joints. Only 22% (8 of 36) had elevated inflammatory markers; just one-third were positive for antinuclear antibody, and 17% for human leukocyte antigen B27. It means that "these kids can present with normal labs, even with very aggressive disease. The threshold of concern for arthritis has to be very high when you evaluate these children," Dr. Jones said.
Treatment was initiated with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) in two-thirds of the registry children, often with a concomitant biologic, most commonly etanercept. Over half had at least one switch during a mean follow-up of 4.5 years; methotrexate was a leading culprit, frequently discontinued because of nausea and other problems, and biologics were changed for lack of effect. Active joint counts and physician assessments improved, but there were no significant changes in limited joint counts and health assessments.
In short, "the current therapies for JIA appear to be poorly tolerated, more toxic, and less effective in patients with Down syndrome. These kids don't respond the same. They have a very high disease burden despite being treated aggressively," Dr. Jones said.
That finding adds additional weight to the idea that DS arthritis is a distinct disease entity, with unique therapeutic targets. "Down syndrome has a lot of immunologic issues associated with it; maybe that's it. I think in the next few years, we will be able to show that this is a different disease," Dr. Jones said.
There was a boost in that direction from benchwork, also led and presented by Dr. Foley, that found significant immunologic, histologic, and genetic differences between JIA and DS arthritis, including lower CD19- and CD20-positive B-cell counts in DS arthritis and higher interferon-gamma and tumor necrosis factor–alpha production, greater synovial lining hyperplasia, and different minor allele frequencies.
There was no industry funding for the studies, and the investigators didn't have any industry disclosures.
aotto@mdedge.com
SOURCES: Jones J et al. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2019;71(suppl 10), Abstract 2722; Foley C et al. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2019;71(suppl 10), Abstract 1817; and Foley C et al. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2019;71(suppl 10), Abstract 781
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Tiffany Dunk Hi: Best release of february 2014?
With anticipation fueled daily by every beauty shot and tweet, the expectation of the Nike 'Diamond' Dunk Hi, the sportwear titans latest sneaker collab with the Diamond Supply Co., was easily shaping up to be one of the biggest releases of the year.
Camp-Out lines were swelling, the #tiffanydunk hashtag lit up with pictures of the Aqua Blue and Black freshies with the Chrome swoosh along with the people who either already owned them or couldn't wait another moment to possess them, whether online or in line. Yes this shoe, a coveted follow-up to the Tiffany Dunk Low's that rocked the Nike SB world 8 years ago, was the apple of February 2014's eye. And then things went terribly wrong.
First it was announced that there would be many retailers who wouldn't be carrying the shoe. This included at least two Nike Stores and the Diamond Supply Co itself. This initial disappointment was bittersweet because any shoe of this magnitude was destined to be very limited, and would add to the shoes value. Then word spread of retailers increasing the price for people who were not part of the skateboarding community, with some retailers even asking customers to bring boards or perform tricks in order to obtain the shoe at regular retail price. This controversy outraged many sneakerheads and became a turnoff for many who refused to pay more for a shoe that had yet to even sell, much less sell out.
And then, at 8am on Feb 8th, the final straw had been placed. As the tweets went out that the sneakers were finally available after months of waiting, sites begin having issues handling orders, with some customers and and shoes getting lost in the mix. Many complained that Nike's own site gave out connection error after connection error until finally, the site went down… stating that it would be moments even hours before it would come back up. For some, perseverance prevailed. But for many, what looked to be one of the biggest shoe releases this month, even this year, turned out to be just another Saturday dud, which makes it all the more disappointing.
Were YOU successful? and do you think these Tiffs were the best release of february 2014?
Let us know what you think of this fallen star release in the comments below.