text:
10:30 AM | *Early signs for a potential cold and snowy winter in the Mid-Atlantic region*
NOAA's CFSv2 sea surface temperature anomaly forecast map for the upcoming winter season of December/January/February features an El Nino concentrated in the central part of the tropical Pacific Ocean and a large patch of warmer-than-normal water in the Gulf of Alaska. Data source: NOAA/CPC
The summer solstice has just passed and the days will grow shorter and shorter from here on out until the winter season gets underway. While winter is still a long way off, there are already some clues that can provide some insight as to what kind of weather we can expect around here in the Mid-Atlantic region. First, signs point to the formation of warmer-than-normal sea surface temperatures by the upcoming winter season in two key areas of the Pacific Ocean: 1) the central equatorial region and 2) the Gulf of Alaska. Second, there is little doubt that solar activity will remain on the low side through the upcoming winter season as we are rapidly approaching the next solar minimum phase from an already historically weak solar cycle #24. Finally, one important wintertime cold air source region for the Mid-Atlantic is Greenland and it is currently experiencing above-normal snow and ice cover. While this is in the speculation phase, all of these factors point to the possibility of cold and snowy conditions in the Mid-Atlantic region during the upcoming 2018-2019 winter season.
Centrally-based El Nino in the equatorial Pacific Ocean and warming in the Gulf of Alaska
The Pacific Ocean is by far the planet's biggest ocean and it has a tremendous influence on all weather and climate around the world. Sea surface temperature anomalies in the equatorial part of the Pacific Ocean can be quite useful in the formulation of a winter season outlook for the Mid-Atlantic region, but the magnitude and exact positioning of the anomalies must be factored in. For instance, a strong El Nino (i.e., warmer-than-normal water) based in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean can flood the Mid-Atlantic region and the eastern third of the nation with persistent warmer-than-normal air during a given winter season (e.g., 1972-1973, 1997-1998). On the other hand, a weak-to-moderate El Nino based in the central part of the tropical Pacific has been associated with cold and snowy winter conditions in the Mid-Atlantic region (e.g., 2002-2003, 2009-2010).
There are two reasons why a weak-to-moderate and centrally-based El Nino can increase the chances for snowy winter weather in this part of the country. First, it tends to provide added moisture and "lift" to the southern branch of the jet stream which, in turn, raises the chances for east coast storms - the type of storm track that tends to favor snow in the big cities of the I-95 corridor. Second, a weak-to-moderate and centrally-based El Nino is less likely to flood the eastern US with warmer-than-normal air; in fact, it tends to allow for cold air masses to drop southward into the northeastern US from Canada, Greenland and/or Siberia.
In addition to the equatorial part of the Pacific Ocean, sea surface temperatures in the northern part can play an important role in a Mid-Atlantic winter season. For example, if there is a persistent area of warmer-than-normal water tucked in near the southern Alaskan coastline, it can result in consistent high pressure ridging along the US and Canadian west coasts, a condition known to meteorologists as the negative Eastern Pacific Oscillation (-EPO). This, in turn, often results in a dip of the upper-level jet stream in the eastern US which allows for the penetration of cold air masses from the northern latitudes into the Mid-Atlantic region during the winter season. This kind of pattern with a persistent Canada/US west coast ridge of high pressure has actually taken place on multiple occasions in the middle part of this decade (e.g., 2014-2015, 2013-2014).
This graph show forecasts made by dynamical and statistical models for sea surface temperature anomalies in the "Nino 3.4" region of the Pacific Ocean for nine overlapping 3-month periods. The vast majority of the models feature weak-to-moderate El Nino conditions by the upcoming winter season of December/January/February (indicated by arrow).
Data source: International Research Institute for Climate and Society/Columbia University
Numerical model forecasts of sea surface temperature anomalies
Many computer forecast models suggest a weak-to-moderate and centrally-based El Nino is likely by later this year and it could last right through the upcoming winter season. Furthermore, numerous models suggest warming will return to the northern part of the Pacific Ocean by the upcoming winter season near the southern Alaskan coastline. Both of these oceanic anomalies would increase the chances for a cold and snowy winter in the Mid-Atlantic region.
The Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) sea surface temperature anomaly forecast map for the upcoming winter season of December/January/February features an El Nino focused in the central part of the tropical Pacific Ocean and a large patch of warmer-than-normal water in the Gulf of Alaska (base period for estimation of anomalies is 1983-2006). Click here for data source
The Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) computer forecast model predicts a centrally-based El Nino for the upcoming winter season (December-to-February). In addition, the JAMSTEC forecast map of sea surface temperature anomalies features a warmer-than-normal large patch of water tucked in near the southern Alaska coastline and this tends to favor the development of high pressure ridging along the west coasts of Canada and the US which, in turn, can lead to frequent cold air outbreaks into the northeastern US. There is support for this sea surface temperature anomaly forecast by NOAA's CFSv2 (climate) model which also predicts an El Nino for next winter concentrated in the central part of the tropical Pacific Ocean as well as a large patch of warmer-than-normal water in the Gulf of Alaska.
Low solar activity and high-latitude blocking
In addition to the analysis of sea surface temperature anomalies in the Pacific Ocean, it is valuable in the long-range forecasting of winter weather in the Mid-Atlantic region to evaluate the prospects for high latitude blocking events in the atmosphere. High-latitude blocking during the winter season is characterized by persistent high pressure in northern latitude areas such as Greenland, northern Canada, and Iceland. Without this type of upper-level pattern, it is quite difficult to get sustained cold air outbreaks in the Mid-Atlantic region during the winter season and that is usually a critical requirement for snowstorms in the big cities of the I-95 corridor.
This plot shows the daily observations of the number of sunspots during the last four solar cycles back to 1 January 1977 according to Solar Influences Data Analysis Center (SIDC). The thin blue line indicates the daily sunspot number, while the dark blue line indicates the running annual average. The current low sunspot activity is indicated by the arrow at the lower right of the plot. Last day shown: 31 May 2018. Click here for data source.
Research and empirical observations have shown that low solar activity tends to be correlated with frequent high-latitude atmospheric blocking wintertime patterns in the atmosphere and we are now experiencing one of the weakest solar cycles (#24) in more than a century. Furthermore, this already weak solar cycle is heading rapidly towards the next solar minimum - usually the least active time in a given cycle. In fact, the last solar minimum phase from 2007-to-2009 registered the quietest solar activity period in at least a century and when the inactive sun coincided with a moderate El Nino event in the winter of 2009-2010, the Mid-Atlantic region experienced a cold and snowy winter. In fact, some spots ended up with their snowiest winter on record during the 2009-2010 winter season such as in Washington, DC.
Low solar activity years are well correlated with abnormally high heights at 500 millibars (shown above in orange, yellow) over high-latitude regions like Greenland and Iceland (i.e., high-latitude blocking patterns); data courtesy NOAA/NCAR
The "analog years" plot (above) shows 500 millibar height anomalies in previous low solar activity years (i.e., during solar minimum phases). Higher-than-normal heights tended to dominate near Greenland and Iceland which typically leads to high-latitude blocking patterns and sustained cold air outbreaks into the northeastern US. Based on these empirical observations from previous low solar activity years, odds do favor high-latitude blocking scenarios this upcoming winter season given the strong likelihood for low solar activity to continue right through the winter months.
Greenland as a source region for cold air
An important cold air source region for the Mid-Atlantic region during a given winter season is Greenland and this area becomes especially critical when there are frequent high-latitude blocking patterns in the atmosphere. The snow and ice extent on Greenland is always a useful feature to monitor – even several months before the actual winter season. In fact, Greenland has generally had above-normal snow and ice extent in recent months and continues to do so now as we begin the summer season of 2018. Above-normal snow and ice extent in Greenland is a favorable factor for the formation of colder-than-normal air masses during the fall and winter seasons when the nights grow longer and longer.
Top: The total daily contribution to the surface mass balance from the entire ice sheet (blue line, Gt/day). Bottom: The accumulated surface mass balance from September 1st to now (blue line, Gt) and the season 2011-12 (red) which had very high summer melt in Greenland. For comparison, the mean curve from the period 1981-2010 is shown (dark gray). The same calendar day in each of the 30 years (in the period 1981-2010) will have its own value. These differences from year-to-year are illustrated by the light gray band. For each calendar day, however, the lowest and highest values of the 30 years have been left out. The arrow (upper right) indicates the current level of snow and ice extent in Greenland with amounts higher than the mean period of 1981-2010. Click here for data source.
While this is still in the speculation phase, there are early signs for cold and snowy weather conditions in the Mid-Atlantic region during the upcoming 2018-2019 winter season. Specifically, these signs include the current observation of above-normal snow and ice extent in Greenland, low solar activity, and the outlook for warmer-than-normal sea surface temperatures in two key areas of the Pacific Ocean. We'll continue to closely monitor these important factors here at perspectaweather.com to see how they evolve over the next several months. One word of caution on the sea surface temperature anomaly forecasts, many of these same numerical computer models incorrectly predicted early last year that an El Nino would form by the summer of 2017. That actually never materialized and the neutral conditions in the equatorial Pacific Ocean actually resulted in a much more active tropical season in the Atlantic Basin than expected.
In addition to these early signs, we'll monitor the overall pressure, wind and temperature patterns over the North Atlantic Ocean as we approach the fall and winter seasons to better determine what to expect next winter in terms of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) and Arctic Oscillation (AO). Also, the snow pack that builds up in Siberia during the autumn season is an important factor that I like to closely monitor every year as it has an influence on that important cold air source region (similar to Greenland) for the Mid-Atlantic region.
Stay tuned…it could be an exciting 2018-2019 winter in the Mid-Atlantic region.
Meteorologist Paul Dorian
Perspecta, Inc.
perspectaweather.com
An extended video discussion on an early preview of the 2018-2019 winter season in the Mid-Atlantic region:
categories Climate Info, DC, NYC, PHL, Seasonal Outlooks
7:00 AM | *Heat and humidity build by the end of the week and uncomfortable conditions continue well into next week*
7:00 AM | Bermuda high pattern sets up with persistent heat and humidity around here


I know you've heard it before: if you want to lose weight you just have to "eat less and move more".
The whole "calories in, calories out" thing sounds completely reasonable: expend more energy than you take in so your body will adapt to burn through extra fat and lead to weight loss.
Except when it doesn't actually result in weight loss.
Or maybe it sort of results in weight loss, but at the cost of feeling tired, frazzled and hungry on the regular. Here's a look at what eating less and moving more actually results in.
Eating less and moving more will make you want to eat more.
If you've skipped on breakfast and eaten a light, calorie controlled lunch, I know you're familiar with that eat-everything-but-the-kitchen-cupboards feeling when you get home from work. Your hunger hormones are screaming at you to eat and they're likely screaming for sugar and carbs because your blood sugar is dipping low. Try resisting temptation to eat when your body is throwing you all the signals to shovel pretzels by the handful - it won't work for long. You'll give in and likely end up eating more than you need.
I see it far too often with clients: undereating, or "being good" during the day and overeating at night. If you're in this pattern and wondering why you can't "just control your portion sizes" or thinking you "just need to have carrots and celery sticks instead" or you're hoping that by "just avoiding eating after 6 PM" will help your efforts to stay on track - I'm sorry to break it to you, but you're fighting hundreds of years of human evolution and you're going to lose the battle.
Moving more, (and more and more) causes systemic, low level inflammation.
Maybe you're thinking you'll just "move more" by hopping on the treadmill or elliptical for an hour or so a day. You might see the scale move in the beginning as you're getting more physical activity than you were before, but eventually, if your routine doesn't change, you'll be fitter! Your body will become more efficient and burn fewer and fewer calories with each long cardio session. Soon, you'll see a plateau with your weight loss so maybe you add on a mile or two, or tack on an extra 20 minutes to see additional results. But, when does it end? It's a slippery slope to overtraining and inflammation.
Not to oversimplify this concept, but inflammation, no matter what the root cause, is a fat loss killer and will hinder your goals for better body composition. Consider some steady state cardio activity in your routine if you enjoy it, but put priority on strength training and high intensity interval training for fat loss.
Eating less and moving more will eventually slow your metabolism.
Contrary to popular belief, metabolism can be manipulated. You are not doomed to a slow metabolism, causing you to gain weight when you just look at a cupcake. While there are a lot of factors that contribute to your metabolism, one of the most effective ways to impact a faster, healthier one is to eat more.
You see, by demanding more of your body with less fuel (read: fewer calories, food, macros) you effectively force it to make adaptations to conserve energy. Non-essential body functions slow down, while essential body functions stay constant - which means your heart will keep pumping and your brain will keep firing, but only at the expense of your metabolic rate. At the most basic level: digestion of food, absorption of nutrients and the production of energy from that food takes a back seat. Your metabolism will slow if you eat less and move more, especially if you do both at the same time.
Ask yourself, when does it end?
Do you just continue to eat less and less and move more and more until you've achieved an "ideal" weight and size? Based on the experience I have working with real people, eating less and moving more has never resulted in effortless weight maintenance and long term improved body composition.
Instead, try something different. Rejecting the idea that you need to "do more with less" is your first order of business.
Eating more whole, real food in the right macronutrient balance for you will not only deliver incredible body composition changes, but will help you feel full of energy so you can lead the active life you want to.
so how do you know if you're eating enough to support the body composition changes that you want? i'll show you what i mean by "eating enough" in my free guide.
What Does Eating Enough Really Look Like?
Check your email for a message from me!


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Q: Пример применения паттерна "Фабричный метод". В чём преимущество? Здесь приведён пример из реальной жизни:
https://refactoring.guru/ru/design-patterns/factory-method/php/example#example-1
У меня два вопроса касательно этого примера:

*

*В чём преимущетсва данных классов-фабрик? Абстрагировать клиентский код от конкретных классов? Но ведь можно это сделать и без фабрик вовсе. Я переписал данный пример без фабрик и привязки к конкретному классу-коннектору: https://pastebin.com/c6bEHbYw

*Почему в классе SocialNetworkPoster присутствует метод post, который не относится к его обязанности? Не нарушает ли это SRP?

A: 1 Вопрос
UPD. Это шаблон Фабрика
Не всегда мы знаем, экземпляр какого именно класса нужно создать. Например, я захотел написать HTTP клиент по PSR:
namespace Psr\Http\Client;

use Psr\Http\Message\RequestInterface;
use Psr\Http\Message\ResponseInterface;

interface ClientInterface
{
    /**
     * Sends a PSR-7 request and returns a PSR-7 response.
     *
     * @param RequestInterface $request
     *
     * @return ResponseInterface
     *
     * @throws \Psr\Http\Client\ClientExceptionInterface If an error happens while processing the request.
     */
    public function sendRequest(RequestInterface $request): ResponseInterface;
}

При этом я не хочу обременять пользователей какой-то конкретной реализацией PSR-7
Тогда я в конструкторе своего клиента буду получать фабрику ответа (фабрики HTTP-сообщений, кстати, тоже есть в PSR, это PSR-17).
namespace Some\Namespace;

use Psr\Http\Client\ClientInterface;
use Psr\Http\Message\RequestInterface;
use Psr\Http\Message\ResponseFactoryInterface;
use Psr\Http\Message\ResponseInterface;

class HttpClient implements ClientInterface
{

    /**
     * @var ResponseFactoryInterface
     */
    private $responseFactory;

    public function __construct(ResponseFactoryInterface $responseFactory)
    {
        $this->responseFactory = $responseFactory;
    }

    public function sendRequest(RequestInterface $request): ResponseInterface
    {
        // ...
        // посылаю запрос, получаю сырой ответ
        // ...
        $response = $this->responseFactory
            ->createResponse($status, $phrase)
            ->withHeader('Content-Type', $contentType)
        ;
        $response->getBody()->write($contents);
        $response->getBody()->rewind();
        return $response;
    }
}

Теперь пользователь моей библиотеки точно знает, какого класса будет ответ.
Шаблон фабричный метод
Иногда в конструкторе класса можно передать параметры, значения которых зависят друг от друга и программист может допустить ошибку.

class Address
{
    public function __construct($street, $build, $letter, $apartment)
    {
    }
}

По адресу может быть частный дом и там квартира не нужна.
Можно запретить явно вызывать конструктор и сделать фабричные методы

class Address
{
    private function __construct($street, $build, $letter, $apartment)
    {
    }

    public static function createApartment($street, $build, $letter, $apartment)
    {
        return new self($street, $build, $letter, $apartment);
    }

    public static function createHome($street, $build, $letter)
    {
        return new self($street, $build, $letter, null);
    }
}

Теперь программист не ошибется.
2 Вопрос.
Возможно, данный пример и нарушает SRP, но в целом пример остается корректным, т.к. не имеет отношения к принципу единой ответственности.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
John Dornhoffer, M.D., Sees Personal...
John Dornhoffer, M.D., Sees Personal Account on Cochlear Implants Published in JAMA
By Amy Widner
March 21, 2019 | John Dornhoffer, M.D., of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) is a cochlear implant surgeon who also understands what it is like to receive a cochlear implant. His insights are the topic of an article published today in JAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery.
Dornhoffer is chairman of the Department of Otolaryngology — Head and Neck Surgery in the UAMS College of Medicine. Like many of his patients, he has severe hearing loss. He received his cochlear implant in August 2015.
"This has been one of the most fascinating experiences I have ever had, both personally and professionally, and I feel that I have learned more from this one cochlear implant in my head than the 1,000-plus devices I have implanted in others," Dornhoffer wrote in the piece, "An Otologist's Experience as a Cochlear Implant Patient — The Power of Neuroplasticity."
JAMA is a prestigious peer-reviewed medical journal published by the American Medical Association. Dornhoffer was invited by the JAMA editorial board to write the piece because of his rare opportunity to combine the perspective of both physician and patient.
Dornhoffer has performed more cochlear implant surgeries than anyone working in Arkansas and is world-renowned for his contributions to the surgical treatment of hearing loss. His deep understanding of the science behind implants allowed for some interesting — and surprising — discoveries as he observed his own hearing and brain change after surgery.
Cochlear implants are surgically implanted devices that replace lost hearing function in the ear. However, cochlear implants stimulate the cochlea with electrical impulses rather than auditory ones, so the brain has to learn how to interpret the new information and translate it into understandable sounds and speech. If the patient has some residual hearing, the brain has to reconcile the natural hearing ability with the information provided by the implant.
Not every brain relearns as quickly or as completely. Not every patient has the same success with cochlear implants.
For Dornhoffer, watching his brain adjust — in other words, observing its neuroplasticity — was one of the most amazing takeaways. Over time, tones he knew were being heard at the wrong frequency slowly slid into their correct place. Things that sounded abnormal corrected themselves. Music is always a little troublesome for cochlear implant patients, but even that improved once Dornhoffer realized his brain — and not his actual hearing ability — was filling in some of the missing details.
"I had no idea how important neuroplasticity of the brain was and how powerful it could be when learning how to hear with an implant," Dornhoffer said.
His observations have resulted in changes to the advice he gives patients. For example, patients with hearing in the other, non-implanted ear were traditionally instructed to wear an ear plug while they adjusted to the implant. After his own experience, Dornhoffer now believes residual hearing actually helps the brain learn to work with the cochlear implant.
Dornhoffer concludes the piece by asking how physicians can better harness the neuroplasticity of the brain to improve the cochlear implant experience for more people.
"[Cochlear implants are] medicine's first successful attempt to replace a special sense, and we have so much more to learn!" he said.
Dornhoffer has served on the UAMS faculty since 1994, as vice chairman of the department since 2009, and as chairman since 2017.
Dornhoffer has served in many clinical and academic leadership posts. He has directed audiology services since 1994 and the cochlear implant team since 2000. He has held the Samuel D. McGill Jr. Endowed Chair in Otolaryngology Research since 2002. He has authored or co-authored more than 120 articles and numerous book chapters. He lectures internationally and serves on several editorial review boards. He has served since 1999 as executive director of the Prosper Ménière Society, an international organization of physicians and scientists who specialize in the inner ear and Ménière's disease, a condition that causes hearing loss and profound dizziness.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Do you think that buying an expensive sedan with an impregnable lock security will put an end to all your woes? Let us tell you that it is not the case, because even the most advanced locking system is prone to failure. In cases where the key is inside and the door is suddenly locked, you are left with no option, but to wait outside. Contacting any shop in the vicinity for fixing the lock can be a bad decision as the technician may not have the technical know-how to open the lock and retrieve the key. It is the job that's best to auto locksmith professionals in the area and that is where Hikes Point KY Locksmith Store comes into the picture.
We have a wide array of experts ready to solve the lock & key woes of customers, whether it is a lockout or an issue with the ignition system. They not only have the experience, but are also trained to handle the cutting-edge technology locks with ease. During an emergency, you can call us any time and we will be by your side in a flash. For the last decade, we have been getting top accolades for delivering exemplary auto locksmith service to our customers.
Instead of forcing customers to visit the workshop to avail auto locksmith service, we provide immediate assistance right at the doorsteps. You do not have to worry a bit, when we are around to resolve the problem. Wherever you are in the area, we are ready to serve you at a very short notice. On receiving the call, the team of experts would visit the place of incident in a special mobile van equipped with top of the line locksmith equipment.
The one attribute that separates us from the rest is that we are always available for the customers, no matter whether it is night time, a festival or a holiday. In short, our experts are always geared towards helping the clients, as soon as the call is received. Hikes Point KY Locksmith Store has redefined the quality of the customer service in the area and that is why, it is highly acclaimed among the people looking for help, when their car locks refuse to work.
So, call us for auto locksmith service by dialing 502-480-3076 today!


We've been watching XV for awhile and while his age indicates veteran, I think we all know that the heat XV has been giving us is only a premonition of what's to come. After coming down to SXSW earlier this year to capitalize on his success with Zero Heroes, XV graced us with a few dope singles and eventually his Popular Culture project that really took off.
Casually over Twitter yesterday, Vizzy gave us his newest record "Rise", produced by none other than his aptly named tour DJ and cousin The Awesome Sound. The song itself is a little heavier than XV's usual production but the wordplay is still all there as the old Vizzy. Nothing wrong with getting on a new type of beat and XV executes in an incredible manner.
If you're not hip to Vizzy I don't know where you've been but check out his social links below and get familiar!


The percentage of people who are overweight has not changed compared to 2014. The percentage of smokers and excessive drinkers decreased slightly. The prevention goals the government set on these fronts are still far from being achieved, the RIVM and Statistics Netherlands concluded.
Last year 9 percent of Dutch adults were heavy drinkers, around the same percentage as in 2014. Heavy drinkers are women who drink four glasses of alcohol and men who drink six glasses of alcohol in one day at least once a week.
8.2 percent of the Dutch adult population were excessive drinkers in 2018, compared to 9.9 percent in 2014. These are women who drink more than 14 glasses of alcohol per week, and men who drink more than 21 glasses per week.
The percentages of smokers, excessive and heavy drinkers, and overweight and obese people are still far above the targets the government and over 70 organization set in the National Prevention Agreement. The goal is to reduce the percentage of smokers and heavy- or excessive drinkers to 5 percent in 2040, and the percentage of overweight people to 38 percent.


TORONTO, Feb. 14, 2013 /CNW/ - TD Bank Group today celebrated 10 years of support for Canadian music with an in-branch concert at its flagship King and Bay branch. A longtime supporter of community initiatives that create access to music for young people, TD has proudly been bringing music to Canadian communities since 2003. Every year, TD has shared its love of music with communities and customers by sponsoring 60 major music festivals from coast to coast.
"As the Bank of Music, we are thrilled to celebrate our 10-year milestone of support for Canadian music with a special concert featuring some of the country's brightest talents," said Chris Stamper, SVP of Corporate Marketing, TD Bank Group. "This year, we look forward to bringing special music experiences to fans across the country; and to helping young people discover a love of music."
To celebrate this special anniversary, the TD Music programme staged the "For the Love of Music" event. Artists from a range of musical genres performed love songs at an acoustic concert hosted by and starring Jully Black, and featuring Eva Avila, KAI, Devin Cuddy and Karl Wolf. Each artist serenaded the audience with two of their favourite love songs.
Artists spoke about the importance of corporate support in contributing to the development of Canadian musical talent and engaging the next generation in music. Allan Reid, Director of MusiCounts, echoed this sentiment, "With TD's support, we are moving closer to our goal of ensuring that all children in Canada, regardless of socio-economic circumstances and cultural background, have access to music education programs."
TD's decade-long involvement with music began with its sponsorship of world-class music festivals in cities across the country. TD has also, for many years, supported outreach programs for youth via music workshops, educational initiatives, awards and scholarships.
TD supports MusiCounts, Canada's music education charity associated with the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS). And as a National Sponsor and the Official Bank of the 2013 JUNO Awards, TD encourages music lovers to cast their vote for the 2013 JUNO Fan Choice Award presented by TD. TD is also the official bank partner of Live Nation, and invites music fans to enjoy Live Nation's year-long concert series with peak activity at the Molson Amphitheatre between May and September 2013.
Music fans can keep up-to-date on all TD Music initiatives and events by visiting www.TDLiveMusic.com.
Since 2003, TD has helped customers and communities experience the love of music by sponsoring major music festivals across Canada. Each year TD supports many music-based community and educational programs. Continuing with its commitment to support music programs throughout Canada, TD is a proud National Sponsor the 2013 JUNO Awards and Live Nation's year-long concert series.


Dc Fawcett Tips – When is the appropriate time to buy a home?
There are some life-changing happenings in our life. One such thing is definitely buying a house. And again, you cannot obviously take it very simply. So now we are posed with the big question: what is the most feasible time to purchase a house?Here Dc fawcett give some tips about appropriate time to buy a home ,then you should see to it that you take a decision for which you won't repent later. In all ways, it should be a studied decision.
So now we are delving into the question:When is the appropriate time to purchase a house.
Your money is no doubt the biggest thing that when you contemplate on when to purchase a home. In case you are in requirement of a mortgage you should be cognizant of the fact that generally the lenders will ensure that you have a substantial down payment. Getting that cash can be a herculean task. However, you can have a look at the down payment assistance programs. Besides, the way you pay your previous debts will be looked by the lenders to ensure that you pay their money too in a quick manner.
Well, the bottomline is that you take this life-changing decision of buying a home at the time you are able to pay for it. To be precise, its affordability that counts here. One suggestion is not to place a "timing calculator" on mortgage rates. This can also apply to home values. This is mainly due to the reason that these two factors are quite hard to forecast. So just go for buying the property you desire as soon as you set your eye on it.
You may think of purchasing the expensive property on the area. But here then the question is, are you bent on reselling the property eventually? When you think of the appreciation factor that goes with these homes, they have the least appreciation. Well, by now you would come to a conclusion which would turn against buying such a house.
After deciding on purchasing the house as soon as considering your affordability you can question about property taxes etc.
Inspection is one important aspect while purchasing a home. Don't overlook this since though it may cost you some money it will eventually lead you to save a substantial amount.
Well, you have made that great decision of buying a house. Here then, don't attempt at involving in any other big investment.
When you are all set for buying your house, keeping into account your affordability, don't be pre-occupied with the thought of the prices to see a slump. In fact, when purchasing a home it's about the mortgage rate. Your affordability to pay the mortgage rate even after few years from the current time since the rates have seen a surge, has an impact on your affordability to purchase the house.
Purchasing a home involves a lot of upfront costs and its wise that you don't carry out selling off the property following the closing of the property deal. Besides, home buyers can reside in their property for atleast a period of five years to fructify the investment.
Computers have made our lives wonderful; they have made our lives more simpler. But have you wondered whether the set of steps followed can be a substitute to the astute thinking of the human mind? Well, now the topic of discussion given by DC Fawcett VREIC is none other than real estate valuation.
You may be planning to sell off your home and would have certainly done some meticulous research. You may even used an online tool to give you the quick estimate. Well now the question of the day is whether these sites are really accurate in giving you the exact worth of your home? One of the drawbacks of using these sites is that they overprice the property. Or for that matter these sites will even undervalue the property.
Real estate valuation sites have some smart set of steps to estimate the worth of your property. But that doesn't mean that it is always correct. In fact home values are impacted by several aspects and the things like public records can't take note of everything. Can the latest home sales be the total determining factor for finding your home's worth? Certain things like the home's features, the likings of the potential buyers etc, can be taken into account only by a human brain. and also know about Deposit on Home Purchase.
Now let's pose this question. Is there any latest sale of comparable homes in the vicinity? If not, the chance of online estimate accuracy is quite restricted. It may be the case that the home has a distinct facet that the other properties in the area don't possess. Also, the local market may also have seen a drastic change. These are just some of the factors that imply that the online estimate need not be accurate.
A qualified appraiser can guide you in knowing the true worth of your home. Or for that matter even a licensed real estate agent will help you in this case.
The online algorithms have chances of showing errors on the properties that had seen a total rehab. So these online estimates can be just useful when you just want a fast detail about the home.
By now you would be wondering why should you overly depend on these online sites. These online sites may not take into account various aspects that will have a profound impact on the value of your property. Now let's look at some of these aspects.
The condition of your property is one important aspect of your home. In fact the condition of your property also plays a major role in determining the value of it.
Generally, a real estate agent will allot enough time to compare your property with those of the similar size and also life in the vicinity. This he does say for the last few years.
There are certain aspects of your house that your realtor will consider which the online estimate will not. You may have upgraded your facilities and these will be regarded only by the realtor.
The ongoing developments in your area will be known essentially by your realtor and an online estimate will not know this.
Many people who have invested in the real estate have turned affluent. So, DC Fawcett Suggestions will help for real estate investment might seem a viable option. But, you need to contemplate much before you make any move. Purchasing the first investment property is not an easy task. When you carry it out smoothly, investment in property could produce a steady income.
Some investors just make a speedy skimming through the property in the vicinity, and they dive head first into the deal. It is to be noted that these people are spending more than the actual value of the property.
You need to thoroughly go through many properties in the vicinity, and also in other areas before you choose a property. You need to come to terms with the worth of the property, and you need to make sure that it helps you attain your monetary ends. Skimming through hundred properties might seem like a lot. But, as the internet plays a major role, it is much easier to browse through a number of properties. There are a number of websites which enable easy search for properties. Do a fair study, and browse through a lot of properties before buying one.
Being emotional plays a major role in the purchase of the property, and it could hinder the process of selecting the right property. You will end up paying more than the actual value of the property. Usually, sane decisions are not taken when the emotion overtakes. The fact being that it is your residence, there will certainly be a role played by the emotions. But, take the investment as a financial transaction, and consider it like purchasing stocks.
You have to set a financial target before you go for acquiring a property. Some people cannot actualize on what property would yield them fruitful results.
It is not a sane decision to choose a property which has not been maintained well. This is particularly the case when it comes to earning a passive income. Ending up buying a property in the rural area is not the desirable out come if you want speedy capital growth.
Setting a financial goal helps you self-actualize and understand what your needs are. You can buy properties that adhere to the goal.
Putting investment into property is a sound decision when you want to acquire profitable returns.
When purchasing the first investment property, some people tend to be impulsive and they get excited. Also, they desire to purchase property as soon as they can. But, understand that the market is there always, and properties for sales are always accessible. Do not go out and pay an exorbitant sum on a property which is not going to get you the profits. Take sufficient time for the research of the property when you are purchasing property in vicinity that you do not know.
You might be residing in the area for quite a long time. But, that does not imply that you have a full understanding regarding the property. And, you have to understand what the property is going to yield in your desired area.
Make a comparison with other properties in the area and understand what the rental returns are. Go for a property that is desired by everyone in the area.
Once you buy a vacation home, you cannot constantly change the place or sell it immediately so, make sure that you love it before you buy. So, do some outings there with your family or friends and explore. Ensure that you love the vacation spot and then proceed with buying.
Say, you come across a lovely vacation home. You may love the way the home is constructed and the vacation neighborhood may be beautiful as it borders the ocean. Say it is a very busy area and filled with events and people on vacations. Now, it turns out that you are going to get married soon and you are going to spend your honeymoon in that vacation spot.
Then, is it suitable for you? A quiet and peaceful lakefront property may suit you better in that case as you don't want to be disturbed by the crowds of people and the roar of the ocean waves. So, it is not enough to just like the home, instead you must think logically and consider whether it suits you.Also think about long-term effects of buying a property.
You can compare the total costs of buying the home versus renting a vacation home. Consider how many days you will spend at your vacation home in a year and then multiply a single day's rent for renting some vacation home with the number of days spent. See which is better and this is a very good way of analyzing affordability.
It will be beneficial if your vacation home provides strong income options out of rent. You can actually pay off your mortgage by renting out your home. So, talk to local real estate agents and browse online to find out about the rental market in that area. You should gain knowledge about how often homes are rented in that area and the rental rates also.
DC Fawcett will guide you in how to get started in real estate through his blogs. He also teaches entrepreneurs the way to develop their business and also the different ways to produce different income streams.
When you are looking out for a property, there are many factors like job market, tax values apart from location. To reside happily, there should be peace and it is attained when your neighborhood is a safe community and the residents can enjoy their life to the fullest. DC Fawcett Real Estate Reviews brings a list of cities that have been considered as the best places to live.
First-time home buyers can join the virtual real estate investing club to know more about quick home sale and real estate scams to be avoided.
New York City, Seattle and Houston metro areas are considered to be safest. Madison is attracting tech companies, thus providing solid job opportunities for all the people, followed by Austin, Dallas, Boston, California. Virginia, San Francisco, Seattle, Orlando and Columbia are emerging to be strong contenders in providing job opportunities. Boise, Idaho is a city that is growing in tech sector and proving solid business opportunities.
DC Fawcett complains that there are few cities that charges heavy rent and not suitable for first-time home buyers and low-income community.
For renters, some cities aren't suitable owing to high rent levied by the landlords for example; Miami which is known for its waterfront and luxury properties tops the list. On the other side, the income of an employee in that city is relatively low.
From seller's perspective, Miami is considered to be one of the best real estate investments as they can sell it off at a higher price as it has got potential growth. Landlords in California are quite lucky as the house rent is rapidly increasing every year.
Manhattan is considered to be the costliest place to dwell apart from Miami. San Diego, Los Angeles, Seattle, San Francisco, New Jersey are few cities where rent is quite high.
Indianapolis is considered to be most affordable city for rental as it costs just 800 dollars approximately followed by St.Louis, Omaha, Iowa, Houston are most affordable cities which are recommended for millennials as these cities have a rental-friendly lifestyle.
Minneapolis and North Carolina have ranked top in low cost living. Florida tops in the fastest growing cities list.
Taxes play an important role when you own a property; there are tax deductions, and benefits etc. Consult your tax advisor for more information. The effective property tax rate in Alabama is 0.38%, second lowest in the country.
Homeowners in San Francisco pay the highest median property tax. Hawaii County residents pay just $820 whereas in Madison it's $1,464. Homeowners in New Jersey pay the highest effective property tax rate in the country 2.13%.
The property tax rates are Colorado 0.5%, Arizona 0.66%, Virginia 0.83%, Georgia 0.89%, Florida and Washington 0.93%, Massachusetts 1.13%, New York 1.38%, Ohio's 1.57%, Texas 1.63%, Wisconsin 1.72%. Investors can prefer Dallas, Florida and Texas as housing market sounds profitable.
Retirement communities like Boise, Brevard, Colorado, Texas, and Iowa ranks top and retirees can prefer one of these cities preferably.
Safest neighborhoods are Connecticut, New Jersey, Indiana, and Massachusetts. These places are highly suitable to raise your child in a safe environment and crime rating is low.
Investors gear up and find the best real estate agents to purchase a property in any of these cities.
DC Fawcett Reviews – What are the strategies to prevent from market corrections?
Investors are taking steps to protect their portfolio as interest rates have dropped historically low. There is still hope that when there is a rise in the rate of interest, all the loss will be compensated. It's not the right time to invest in stocks and bonds as there is an overall drop in the stock market and analysts says there are constant fluctuations. DC Fawcett Reviews says that the investors' should expand his horizons by concentrating beyond the stocks as there are various forms of alternative investment like real estate, commercial, gold etc.
DC Fawcett advises them to use fund strategies which are volatile. In private equity, the hedge funds are not liquid. The loss can be minimized with proper planning and it's not wise to indulge yourself in panic selling. 5 to 10 percent of your funds should be allocated for future reserves as portfolio diversification is essential. Annuity is not considered to be an alternative form of investment; it helps in potential market growth. It can be used only as an indirect form of investment. There has been no stock market crash after 2008, so experts are predicting it may happen over a period of time. Identify your financial goals and how much return you need to make it in a fiscal year.
One of the best and safest forms of investment is purchasing a real estate property to protect from inflation. When there is inflation, the investors will witness and overall rise in national median rental income and median property price. As we all know about REIT, and for investors who doesn't have an idea can browse through DC Fawcett virtual real estate investing club. They are well-known for purchasing property holdings through private equity or members of REIT can claim direct ownership.
Commercial real estate investments are recommended for high return+s and you can expect a fixed income. The only drawback is the money is withheld for a prolonged time. Investing in Commercial real estate debts is a good option when you apply for short term loans where you preserve your collateral for 5 to 10 years. The professionals have come out with a report saying that private equity's performance is much better than public equity as it is less volatile. Public equity involves day to day investment whereas private equity investments are made as per investors' choice. Investors can choose restricted access in order to prevent themselves from panic-selling, at the same time it also reduces work for investment manager as he need not hold funds.
Other risk management strategies include hedging with futures contracts, buying low beta investments Corrections are viewed less problematic than actual recessions. Investments should be diversified enough so that no single commodity can sink the entire portfolio. Learn more about market corrections and fluctuations to prevent from scam.
The general concept is to reduce the risk of a security losing value by making a complementary investment. Counter-cyclical stocks could be considered a hedge. Purchasing real estate, gold or other alternative assets can be considered hedges. One common hedging strategy is to sell futures contracts on a stock.
DCA'ing is a method of making long-term investment purchases in a systematic way to prevent from market corrections.
Invest in securities that have a low beta coefficient.
To overcome the market fluctuations and to diversify the portfolio, investors can make use of these strategies.
Investors would have come across the word "market cycle" and wondered what does it mean and how much it influences your portfolio, assets and other investments. DC Fawcett Real Estate Reviews explains about the 4 stages of market cycle in this article.
The first step is "accumulating the assets". The market cycle terminates when the asset value declines. At this juncture, investors are quite unwilling to do some investment pertaining to the dip in the market. The experienced investors consider this as golden opportunity and purchase these properties at low price just like a foreclosed home. When this process repeats, it becomes like a cycle and steadily the market grows and negativity fades.
Having said that, we enter the stage two of the market cycle and the investors call it "Markup". This phase is usually characterized by frequent fluctuations. At this point, many sideline investors join the market to do some investment. This will probably instill some confidence in the investors' mind that have stopped involving themselves from stage 1 considering the current market situation is not healthy. This in turn makes the market competitive as retail investors join the race as they find the market to be potential at this point of time. At the end of this phase, we conclude that market has been recovered almost and new targets are set for the investors to accomplish.
The 3rd phase of the market cycle is called "disbursement". This is the period where all their investments start to liquidate which is done to optimize the profit. The new investors or first-time buyers make use of this opportunity to accumulate their assets which results in volatility owing to fluctuating prices. Experts step away as they know the in and out of real estate market cycle. The fluctuation results in lows and the disbursement cycle get terminated.
The final step is the opposite of step2, "mark down". The investors realize that they will face both ups and downs in the process and in order to cope up, the start selling their stocks, which leads to downward trend. Investors who hold assets further may face panic selling situation, resulting in decline in prices. A pool of investors joins to buy properties at discounted price and thus the cycle moves onto step 1.
Investors must understand this process as it is quite complicated, it can be either profit or loss. The risk quotient is totally unpredictable in the real estate which is determined by volatility index marked by bear and bull periods.
2017 is characterized by bull market so far, in other words the market is optimistic with 20 percent raise in the stocks. The nation is also witnessing low unemployment rate which is another positive sign of the optimistic market. The bull market ends when bear market commences with the fall in stock market prices.
A normal CD (certificate of deposit) will have a denomination of minimum 100,000 dollars whereas Jumbo CD's have large denominations and investors are getting benefitted by receiving an interest for the amount deposited.
These are some of the emerging trends in real estate for 2017 and beyond as reviewed by Dc Fawcett. Real estate professionals must upgrade their knowledge about real estate and face what is in store for them with ease.DC Fawcett virtual real estate investing club consists of blogs where investors can learn more about market cycles and sharpen the investment choices. Apart from market cycles, you can learn more on real estate scams and other marketing strategies.


Tourism has become a popular activity not only in Jammu and Kashmir but across the country. Jammu and Kashmir state offers vast tourism potential in its all regions viz. Jammu Province, valley of Kashmir and Ladakh region. It is because Jammu and Kashmir has been gifted with a number of religious tourist spots and picturesque places, wildlife, wetlands ecosystems, lush green meadows and thick coniferous and deciduous forests. Snow capped Pir Panjal Mountains, valleys and rivers, Siwalik Hills coupled with springs and lakes have immense potential to entice tourists.
The Jammu region endowed with natural beauty, is dotted with a number of historical monuments like Mubarak Mandi complex, Bagh-e-Bahu, Bahu Fort and Mohamaya Rakh, Gurudwaras, Darghas and a number of temples. Raghunath temple, Pirkho temple, Ranbireshwar temple, Panchvaklar and Panjtirthi temple, Mohamaya temple, Gurudwaras at Jain bazar and Raghunath bazars, Darghas at Pir Mitha, Mastgarh, Ustad Mohala Talab Khatikan and Gumat are the main religious places in and around the Jammu city which have the potential for the development of pilgrimage tourism.
Jammu region is also characterised by having historic forts and other such places of Ramnagar, Reasi and Udhampur. There are couple of famous religious sites enroute to Katra and Reasi. First comes the famous Agar Jitto which is at a distance of 6 km from Katra. It is cool scenic spot located amidst beautiful hillock with a number of perennial springs lending a cool and refreshing ambience to the place. A huge statue of Babba Jitto besides that of his daughter Bua Gouri dominates.
Jammu region has bountiful places of Gods and Deities confined to hilly and mountainous region such as Mata Sukrala Devi of Billawar in district Kathua. Mata Sukrala Devi is also called a female Deity of foregiveness. Lakhs of people throng around this sacred shrine to pay obeisance and to obtain blessings. Apart from this, Jammu region has a vast variety of tourist attraction to offer and holds potential for developing various tourist spots and places for pilgrimage tourism offering substantial heritage, leisure and adventure tourism to tourists of wide ranging interest. Just in a well organised trip one can be exposed to grand edifices of Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, Sikhism and Christianity. At the same time he can see our stunning natural possessions. One such better site for making pilgrimage a big success, Vaishno Devi temple. This temple is situated at the Trikuta Hills which constitute an overwhelming majority of tourists who turn up in the state. The Mata Vaishno Deviji is now world famous pilgrimage.
A recent study was conducted with regard to the pilgrim tourism economics of Katra- gateway of Vaishnodevi pilgrimage in Kashmir. It was found that the pilgrims were injecting annually as much as 475 crores into its economy, with a total of nearly 28,000 employees in various sectors. Such sectors mainly consist of commercial establishments, hospitality, transport sector / priests and ponywallahs.
Other pilgrimage centres in the Jammu region are Shahdra-Sharief, Buddha Amarnath and Nangali Sahib in Rajouri and Poonch. The shrine of Shahdra-Sharief in Rajouri district, about 177 km from Jammu, is one of the most popular Muslim shrines of Jammu region, visited by thousands of devotees everyday irrespective of caste , colour and creed in deep faith.
Budha Amarnath temple is situated about 25 km north east of Poonch on the left bank of Pulsta stream.This place has a great religious importance as this temple is considered older than Swami Amarnath of Kashmir. Legend goes that Lord Shiva had visited this place. Thousands of pilgrims come to this place with great devotion from various parts of the country particularly during Sawan or Shravan Poornima.
Nangali Sahib Gurudwara is situated on the left bank of Drungli Nallah which is 4 km away from Poonch city. This Gurudwara was established by Sant Bhai Mela Singhji. Maharaja Ranjit Singh had paid a visit to this shrine during 1819 AD, when he was on his way to conquer Kashmir. This place is of great religious importance and thousands of pilgrims of all religions throughout the country pay a visit to this place every year.
There is a tremendous scope of religious tourism in Doda and Kishtwar districts of Jammu region. Kailash Kund in Bhadarwah at an altitude of 4320 m is one of the leading pilgrimages just like Sri Amarnath confined to the mountains of Pahalgam in Vale of Kashmir. Kailash Kund is infact a lake shrine of Bhadarwah. About 20 km south west of Bhadarwah is the mountain of Kailash. This mountain too is the abode of Lord Shiva but it is different from the world famous mountain of the same name which arises almost vertically from the holy lake of Mansarovar in Tibet. This is sacred lake on this mountain and is known as the lake of Kailashpati Shivji Maharaj. It is said that Lord Shiva along with his family also visited this spot. Seven stream flow out of this place. The river Tawi, the Basantar and Ugh are some of the examples in this respect. It is the biggest pilgrimage of northern India as has been stated by Lord Shiva to Mata Parvati in Vasuki Puran.
Jamia Masjid and Ziarat Shah- Farid-Ud-Din,are the other holy places in Kishtwar. The former, is the oldest mosque in the Kishtwar district which was constructed before 1650 AD. The Jamia Masjid, in fact, is the largest mosque in Jammu Province. The latter is situated in the heart of Kishtwar town during the region of Raja Jai Singh to propagate Islam.Shah-Farid ud-Din hailed from Bhagdad.
Paddar, in district of Kishtwar has much of its own to offer pilgrimage. A well known sacred and holy shrine of Mata Chandi located at an altitude of 2850 m is present at village Machail. The holy journey of Machail shrine is about 320 km from Jammu city. The foot journey of 31 km from Atholi to Machail is a treasure of nature's glimpses, attractions, enroute temples, caves, bubbling streams, springs, greenery and at some places sharp bare mountain peaks.
The most famous amongst the religious and historical places and monuments in Udhampur city- the second largest city of Jammu region are the Babore temples, Krimchi temple complex, Devtaa Mandir in Pancheri, shines of Chountra Devi and Pingla Devi as well as the river Devika. Owing to the presence of Devika river Udhampur city is known as Devika Nagri. In the Nilmata Puran which was written during 7th century by Nela Muniji, mentioned that Devika river is a manifestation of the mother Goddess Parvati herself to remove the sins of the people of Mader Desh that covers areas between the river Ravi and the Chenab.
Sudh Maha Dev- Mantalai is a holy spot in Chenani near Patnitop which stands erected at an altitude of 1225 m. This shrine has not only been visited by a large number of pilgrims on the full moon night during May – June but is also attracted by many tourists.Thial a very small village situated about 50 km from Udhampur on the Dhar road, where an old temple of Lord Jagannath Puri is the main centre of pilgrimage. This village is well connected with Mansar lake temples.
Shiv Khori cave is a majestic shrine of Lord Shiva and is a place of pilgrims attraction which enjoys high order of esteem among all sections of people. In view, the everlasting religious significance and sanctity the majestic and ancient Shiv Khori shrine cave in district Reasi is now witnessing great rush of pilgrims. To reach Shiv Khori shrine, all type of vehicles are available either from Jammu or Katra.
While visiting the religious wealth in the form of numerous shrines and places of worship at Mahabilvakashawar temple in Billawar, Mahadev temple at Basohli, Shiva temple at Airwan, Ziarat of Pir Fazalshah at Kathua, Pir Chhatarshah near Parole, a temple of Mata at Bala Sundrikot, the pilgrims after performing worship, they can visit water tourism in Ranjeet Sagar Lake. This lake is amidst Siwalik hills in Basholi. It is one of the largest fresh water lakes of the country which was formed as a result of ponding of the Thein Dam at the river Ravi. It begins from the village Thein and culminates near Khajura village of Basholi. It is point to mention that being located at central place touching Jammu region at Basholi, Pathankot of Punjab and Dalhousi of Himachal Pradesh, the Ranjeet Sagar Lake can add one more feather in the cap of water tourism vis-a-vis religious tourism.


Pink Pearl Canada is a community-oriented charitable organization that provides support, facilitates connections and empowers young women who are courageously overcoming the social and emotional challenges of being diagnosed with cancer.
Our programs offer a connected community of peer support for young women between 18 and 40 years facing cancer of any type through our suite of programming and online discussions. Our program development process takes into account the needs, feelings and concerns of its young female program participants.
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"I chose to volunteer for Pink Pearl after participating in a retreat. We were encouraged to discuss anything in a judgement free environment. I jumped at the chance to help more young women living with cancer to feel a sense of community and empowerment about their journey in the same way I did."


Ukraine's Defense Intelligence published new evidence that the Russian Federation is directly involved in the military conflict in Donbas. One hundred and sixty eight service members of the anti-aircraft unit of the 60th Motorized Brigade have been transported to Novocherkask, Rostov region, for further deployment to eastern Ukraine.
According to the intelligence data, Russian troops are equipped with 30 military vehicles and 21 pieces of military hardware, including Tor-M2U surface-to-air missile system. The weapon has similar characteristics to the BUK missile system that downed Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 on July 17, 2014, claiming 298 lives.
Ukraine's Defense Intelligence provided detailed information with names, ranks and military posts of the anti-aircraft unit designated to reinforce Russian proxy units in Donbas in the presentation enclosed.
On August 19, Col. Oleksandr Motuzyanyk reported that two Russian regulars, Junior Sergeant Artem Dudarev and Private Alexander Mamayev, attempted to desert and escape back to Russia. "The Russian command called families of these two servicemen, claiming they were lost during a technical stay in Novocherkassk." Col. Motuzyanyk added that the Kremlin resumed its narrative about Russian soldiers who are losing way near Russian-Ukrainian border under mysterious circumstances.


In this article we discuss the organization of the CLL Topics website and the tools available to you to navigate the site and locate information that may be important to you. We will also address a number of technical problems you may face and describe a number of available solutions.
Content is King: The CLL Topics website is arranged heirarchically – by major subject heading accessible from our Contents page and within each of these pages by individual article titles. If you click on a subject heading on the Contents page, say Therapy Choices, you will be taken to an index page or mini-directory of all the articles within that subject heading. The most recent articles are listed first, followed by older articles. Each of the articles will have a short blurb describing its content, topped off with a couple of descriptive headlines. You can navigate to the article of your choice by clicking on the link within the blurb or by clicking on the accompanying thumbnail graphic that is a part of the blurb.
You will also find a number of major subject headings on the Content page that lead to functioning web pages without subsidiary pages: A CLL Primer, Your Charts, Reference and Feedback are examples of such pages. These major subject headings are also accessible from the main navigation menu which appears on every page in the website.
Search and You Will Find: A second method of identifying articles that you may want to read is to conduct a keyword search of the website.
Google: A customized Google search form is available on top of the home page, on the right. The same search tool is available at the bottom of every page on this site and is featured, as you might expect, the Search Tools page. This tool is available to help you in case you have an idea for further research. The search database is based on an index created for CLLTopics.org by Google. The crawler lag in keeping the index current is usually a few days. Surprising, since the Googlebot is usually at the site indexing it every day but it appears that the index is updated at Google's server farm only periodically. Most people are familiar with the format of Google's search results. Google has agreed to eliminate sponsored ads from the search results because of our non-profit status. Try the search — and use it often.
Atomz: If you are looking for something that was published recently, it is possible that the Googlebot has not visited and indexed the most recent materials on our website. However, a custom search form powered by Atomz gives us the options of re-indexing whenever we choose — and we do try to keep this index current with frequent spidering instructions. Unfortunately, with this engine, we have to live with (sometimes inappropriate) sponsored ads: just ignore them and look at the site search results in the colored central region. A copy of this search form appears below, on the Search Tools page, the home page and a few other locations on the Topics site. There is also an advanced search form for more complex searches.
Blurbs and Thumbnails: Perhaps the most frequently used tool to access our articles is the series of short introductions presented on the home page which link directly to the articles without going through the Contents page or the topic sub-directories (such as Therapy Choices or Case Studies). These blurbs are brief but can be very helpful in pointing the way.
Index Pages: Each Topic (general subject area) has its own "index page" or directory. If you click on one of these in the Contents page you will be taken to a page listing all the articles on that subject, arranged chronologically, most recent first. The directory listing usually consists of the blurbs and thumbnails as on the home page, but may include several short articles collected together on the index page itself. An example of an index page would be the one on fludarabine.
Currency May Appeal: Finally, the Current Articles page lists by date the titles of the articles which have been published over the last year or so.
Relationships Tie Things Together: Most of our newer articles have a small series of links on the right, just below the title of the articles, identifying articles on the same, similar or related subjects.
All these methods of getting around are accessible from the main navigation bar as explained below. We recommend that you become familiar with all four navigation methods (direct links from the Home, Contents and Current Articles pages and site search using our customized Google search engine) since different situations will require different approaches.
The Feedback page, like the Home page, has no sub-menu.
On the right of the navigation bar is a button ( ) that triggers a drop-down list of all the submenu items on the navigation bar.
The various navigation links are fairly obvious but we will point out a number of less evident and more useful items here.
The Home page is very long and has lots of text and a number of graphic elements. The numerous blurbs on the middle column of this page provide short introductions to the articles published more recently — they are in reverse chronological order, most recent first. You will find other important articles introduced by blurbs in the right column. The left column is headed by an index of articles published in the last 12 months. Most of the other material in the left column relates to website and company information.
The Navigation menu can provide access to every part of our website through the central site map contained on the Contents page. . In many important respects, the Contents page is the real hub of the website. As discussed above, It has a listing of the major topic titles — clicking on most of these links leads to a summary page for that topic with a series of blurbs describing each article on that topic.
The Topics Alert menu link leads to the Alert Home page from which you can learn about Topics Alerts, access the Alert Archive and register as a subscriber to Topics Alerts.
The Learning Tools menu leads to a number of important links. The CLL Primer is the logical place for a newly diagnosed CLL patient to start learning about the disease and gain a quick understanding of the lay of the land. In the Primer you will also find a suggested reading list that will quickly bring you up the curve on the important issues related to CLL — at least as currently understood, and links to other useful tools to help you on your way. The Reference section has a large number of useful links to outside resources. If you find that a resource is no longer where our link points, please let us know so that we can update this sectioin. For the serious student, the Textbooks page lists online texts that can provide a thorough background on the science of CLL, cancer, immunology, genetics, biology, biochemistry and other fascinating fields. The Search Tools page will give you access to a number of very important tools to search databases and literature on the science of and clinical research on CLL.
The About Us page provides useful information on who we are and how Topics is organized. It serves as a disclosure document for us and as a background check for you. Amost all our corporate information is open to inspection (except the details of our donors list and our confidential correspondence) — in fact most of it is already posted on the website with a list of links displayed on both the Home page and the About Us page. If you cannot find something regarding our corporation that you think is relevant, please write to us and we will point out where it is posted on our site, how you can get the information or at least explain why the item is not for public disclosure. Transparency is important to us and we take our disclosure responsibilities seriously.
I hope the above provides some guidance to those who are confused about getting around the various portions of our website, finding things in it or understanding its organization. The rest of this article will deal with other essential functions that you may want to perform, like downloading files and printing articles and Alerts. If this document does not have the answers you are seeking, you can certainly send us your questions or requests by email using the Feedback form. Don't forget to include all the information we list under What's Needed below — our detective work will go a little faster with a few clues — and we might be able to give you more relevant answers — or have a more intelligent reason for pleading ignorance. Seriously, we might already have an answer to your problem as a result of helping another visitor. We do not promise to cure the ills of the tech world but we will listen sympathetically and help where we can.
First things first. Your entire experience of this website (and, for that matter, the Internet) is determined by the web browser you are using, the bandwidth of your connection and to a lesser extent by the operating system (the many flavors of Windows, Linux, Mac OS, Unix, or whatever) and hardware (principally screen size and resolution). If you try to print anything, your experience is further complicated by the printer connected to your computer and the size of the paper loaded into it. We will address many of these issues.
This website has been tested for display consistency on the latest versions of Internet Explorer (7.0.5730.13), Mozilla Firefox (2.0.0.11) and Opera (9.25) — but there are many browsers we have not attempted to check out, including a gaggle of Unix, Linux and Mac based browsers. If you are using a browser in this latter group and have noticed something odd, we welcome your input. We try to be brand-agnostic about browsers but there is a limit on how many of these user agents we can test (or even want to): so you will find the popular browsers will probably exhibit fewer quirks.
We do recommend the latest versions of these browsers, since they tend to be more standards-compliant. With the current releases of their latest browsers, the Microsoft/Firefox/Opera triumvirate have reasonably standards compliant browsers available for the Wintel platform and Safari for Apple does the job well for the Mac aficionados amongst us. The older browsers sometimes do not display all the elements in modern websites and worse, some of the elements they do display are not as intended. Truth to tell, the earlier versions of most browsers are pretty miserable in navigating today's websites. Whatever your choice of browsers, you will find that most pages on Topics display best on the latest version of that browser. If you haven't updated your browser in a while, this may be a good time to do it. Among the side-benefits of updating: the latest browsers are less buggy, print better, have fewer security flaws, provide better safeguards against phishing and other attacks and automatically update themselves for security and functionality.
If you are using Safari, Konqueror, Pterodactyl, Rasputin, Mudpuppy or an even more exotic browser, more power to you. Please do send us your observations, even if just to say the site displays fine.
Most people will find this is not a problem. You can safely ignore this note if functioning drop-down navigation menus are displayed by your browser.
You are, of course, usually stuck with whatever computer and display screen you happen to have. For those few who have a choice, we recommend a minimum display size of 800 pixels by 640 pixels for viewing the pages in the website. Larger displays will be much easier to work with and avoid some of the need for vertical and sideways scrolling. This is an content-rich site with plenty of text and graphics, so the quantity and resolution of your screen real estate will determine how much scrolling you have to do.
Most people will find that their browser's default text size will display the material on Topics quite legibly. However, some visitors may find the type used on the website too small for their eyesight or too large for their computer screens or for their taste. The site is designed to let visitors adjust their display font size to suit their preferences or eyesight by using the text size controls on their browser menu. To increase the size of text displayed in I. E. you would click View/Text Size/Larger; in Firefox, it would be View/Text Size/Increase++, in Netscape, it would be View/Text Zoom/% and in Opera it would be View/Zoom/%. I. E. 7.0 goes to extremes and gives you both a text-size adjustment as well as a zoom control. The choice of both browser and text size setting is yours. Of course, you can go crazy and choose extremely large type settings - in which case you may have to live with awkward formatting.
If you have other accessibility problems in using the site, please write to us so that we can take your experience into consideration.
We used to receive more questions and requests about printing than about anything else. The unfortunate truth is that a past-generation browser's screen display of a typical web page on the Internet was generally not a good format for printing. Printing that average web page by simply using the browser's "print" button or the "print" option from the "file" menu generally led to unsatisfactory results: lines were frequently truncated at the right edge of the page, the font sizes were too large or too small and plenty of useless navigation and decorative images are included in the print job, resulting in an unnecessarily large and unreadable hard-copy product. I am sure you are familiar with this phenomenon.
The volume of email asking about getting our content into print told us two things: people wanted the content in hard copy in addition to viewing it on screen, and second, we needed a better way to talk to our visitors' printers than old fashioned HTML.
In the end we decided to adopt a technical solution that produces compact and well-formatted print pages using CSS, a technology implemented in the current versions of most popular web browsers — hence our recommendations to upgrade to the most recent stable release of your favorite browser. With CSS we are able to have two versions of our web pages - one suitable for viewing on screen and another suitable for printing as hard copy. You can check if you will get a decent print product for any given page by simply clicking on print preview from the file menu. If the result looks readable, with no truncated lines and no disproportionate margins, you can proceed to print the page(s).
This solution depends upon the fact that a web page can be programmed to print differently on a standard sheet of paper (8½" by 11") as opposed to the way it displays on the computer screen, where real estate is measured in pixels and the form factor is totally different.
But what if you are working with a browser that does not support CSS? Upgrading your browser to the most current public version would be a terrific idea — for many reasons. Modern browsers are simply more reliable, secure and capable, leading to an overall better browsing experience.
You will find our discussion of spreadsheet software and tips on obtaining low-cost alternatives to Microsoft Excel (and the entire Microsoft Office suite) in the section titled Your Charts. If you are one of those people who is completely at home in Excel and automatically get MS Office installed when you get a new computer, this discussion is not for you. However, you may still find the record-keeping templates in the Your Charts page helpful. Your browser settings do matter in determining what happens when you click on a spreadsheet link. Please save the spreadsheet on your own computer using a different name, say "JohnDoe.xls", before entering your own information into it. Otherwise you may not be able to save the document since you do not have permission to modify anything on the web server on which the spreadsheet is hosted. Just remember, if you click on a link to an Excel spreadsheet in Internet Explorer, it will probably load into an Excel plug-in for Internet Explorer and you might get a security message or a demand for a password. There is no password for these files, since they are not protected but the server might think you are trying to work with the online version of the file. If you are asked to enter a password when you click on the link, it is because the system thinks you are trying to make an entry into the spreadsheet on the host machine. In Windows, the soundest procedure is to right-click on the .xls link, select "save target as" from the drop-down menu, and save the file in a folder on your local hard-drive, giving it a name that is of your own invention - definitely not records.xls or sample.xls.
Many documents on the Internet are in the pdf format — "portable document format" standardized by Adobe Systems, Inc. This format is also commonly used for documents that are sent as attachments to emails. Documents in this format can be viewed in and printed from a piece of free software called Adobe Reader. (If you have Adobe Acrobat, you can, in addition, create documents in pdf format). If you don't already have the Reader software installed on your computer, you can easily download it from Adobe (it is a free download). The program can be launched as a standalone application or as a plug-in for your browser. If you click on a link to a pdf document while browsing the Web, it will be loaded into the plug-in in your web browser. If you click on a pdf file saved on your computer, the stand-alone reader will launch. Here is a link to the download site: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readermain.html.
Most people seem to have some version of the Adobe Reader software currently installed on their systems. If you have an older version of Adobe Reader or Acrobat, the document creation software, on your machine, you should probably get the current version installed. Adobe does tweak the format definition periodically and the newer versions of the software have more capabilities. (These things evolve. The current version of the Reader/Acrobat is 8.0 and many people have earlier versions on their machine.) Having the current version of the software installed will make you web browsing experience go more smoothly.
Topics Alert emails may include links or urls and sometimes may include graphics – but will not have any documents attached. If we need to bring a document to you attention or make it available for general access, we will simply have the item hosted on the Topics website and include a link to it in the Alert or related article on the website. Many visitors have attachments disabled or blocked in their email client software, for good reason.
Personal Email from us in response to your specific request may contain documents and links attached. We run antivirus software on everything we receive and send out but you are nevertheless strongly advised to screen all messages with up-to-date antivirus and anti-spyware software. Having the software installed is simply not enough — you also have to update the virus and spyware signatures as often as possible. You will pardon me for observing we have enough problems with biological pathogens without passing around computer viruses and spyware.
Roadblocks: If you are not receiving the Alerts or find that your emails to us are going unanswered, you could be the victim of another technical phenomenon — the widespread use of whitelists and blacklists. Please ensure that the clltopics.org domain is a permitted originator of email to you and that it is not black-listed on your system or ISP. If you or your ISP are using a whitelist, just make sure we are on it.
Software Idiosyncracies: This piece of technical advice comes from one of our readers who found a way to solve the problem of Microsoft Outlook Express jumping to the conclusion that a legitimate attachment to an email is unsafe.
"Outlook Express initially 'removed access' to what it regarded as an unsafe attachment to your e-mail so that it could not be opened or downloaded. This was overcome by opening Outlook Express, going to 'TOOLS' then 'OPTIONS' then 'SECURITY' and un-checking the box for the option - 'Do not allow attachments to be saved or opened that could potentially be a virus'. The attachment was then accessible. After checking that the attachment has been saved I would advise anyone doing this to re-check the box."
The Email Address Camouflage Subterfuge: The email addresses on this website are non-clickable. There was a time when we had them as live links so that you could just click on them to launch your email client software with the destination address already filled in. However, that left the site open to any number of web crawlers that harvest email addresses for use by spammers. When the torrent of ugly spam got to be so big that it interfered with our ability to operate the site, we took steps to make it harder for the spam-mongers to target us. The email addresses to CLL Topics are now not live links: they are simply bitmap graphics. Of course, everybody now pays the price — if you want to send us mail you have to launch your email client manually and type in the To: address yourself. It is also not friendly to handicapped visitors who use readers to do their browsing, a circumstance we regret. We will keep looking for better ways to handle this going forward. But for now, we ask you to bear with us.
Below is a complete list of (non-clickable) email addresses for the CLL Topics online publication; if you are not sure of which one you should use, the address for General Mail will do fine. The Feedback form on this website will generate an email to the General Mail destination.
We have received a number of reports of bouncing Alerts. What generally tips you off is a warning message from "alert-help@clltopics.org" that messages to you from the mailing list seem to be bouncing, followed by a snippet of server chatter. This glitch is typically due to an AOL problem, although MSN, ATT and smaller ISPs like Telus have been known to do similar things. If you read the warning message carefully it will be clear what you have is a routine warning that is generated by our newsletter mailing program as a follow-up to a message that was bounced by your ISP, AOL. The error message will typically include something like "421 service not available", for reasons not given but probably because the AOL server was temporarily overloaded. The actual error reported varies, but usually indicates the receiving mail server is having trouble coping with the traffic. A large mailing list can deliver several hundred messages to aol.com addresses all at once.
The good news is that the warning message actually got through, which means the glitch was temporary. If you also received a subsequent Topics Alert, you can conclude the aol.com mail server has started accepting messages again and things are working fine now.
Fact: our mail program tries several times to send messages to people on the list before it sends out a warning and then a probe - and then gives up.
If you feel you may have missed an Alert, please go to the Alert Archive, where you will find information on the most recent Alert (number and date) as well as the Alerts themselves, archived neatly in reverse chronological order. Actually the alerts are considerably easier to read this way in your web browser, edited, spell-checked and formatted in the style of the rest of the Topics website rather than served up in an email program which frequently delivers plain-text and eliminates links, graphics and other functionality. You can browse the archived Alerts one by one (click on an Alert title or enter the alert number in the space provided and click "Display") to see what you have missed or simply re-acquaint yourself with the material. There is some delay in getting the Alerts posted to the website but the archive page will tell you what the most recent Alert number happens to be even if it is not archived yet — and we do get caught up as time permits.
If you suspect that your name has been eliminated from the list due to your ISP's bouncing of messages – or for any other reason – you can always go to the Alert registration page and re-register.
If you have a more exotic problem, please do write to us with the details.
When writing to us about your website issues, please be as detailed as possible about the phenomenon or procedure you wish to discuss and provide us with details of your computer set-up: the name and version number of your operating system, your display size and resolution, the name and version number of the browser you are using, the kind of printer (if it's a printing problem you wish to discuss), and even your location (standards vary in different countries - in Europe you may use A4 paper, in the U. S. we use 8½"X11", in the UK it may be something different - what's a demy quarto anyway?).
Of course, the problem that is the hardest to solve is the one we do not know about yet. We have made accessibility a high priority goal. To deliver effectively on this goal, we need visitor participation. That means you.
If we don't hear from you, we will naturally assume that everything about the website is perfect.


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Home Planxty split in 1975
Planxty split in 1975
Moore left the band to concentrate on his solo career in 1974.
Planxty
Christy Moore and Planxty
Planxty videos
Bands main page
He was replaced by Paul Brady and the band continued to tour until the end of 1975 when after three years of nonstop working and touring, they played the last concert of the tour in Brussels.
They split after the gig in Brussels but the members all stayed in touch and often shared a stage or a studio while they were pursuing their own projects.
They got back together three years later when music promoter, Kevin Flynn persuaded them to record more material as Planxty. Flynn became their manager and the band welcomed a new recruit, Matt Molloy, who had been a member of The Bothy Band.
The guys picked up where they left off, rehearsing, touring and recording.They met at Molloy's house to rehearse before going into the studio.
After the Break – farewell to Molloy
Planxty's fourth album was aptly titled After the Break and came out in 1979. Molloy left the band to join The Chieftains shortly after the album was recorded. He did however rejoin Planxty in the studio to help record their follow up album.
That album, The Woman I Loved So Well, was released a year later. It featured three new musicians; concertina player, Noel Hill, keyboardist, Bill Whelan, and fiddle player, Tony Linnane. They were joined by fiddle player, Nollaig Casey, for their concerts in the latter half of their 1980 tour.
Break here Read more tease Planxty's music leads to Riverdance
How Planxty music would lead to Riverdance
In 1981, Ireland played host to the Eurovision Song Contest – a huge event featuring more than 20 countries across Europe and watched by hundreds of millions of people.
The producers of the show wanted to feature some Irish music and dancing to fill the time needed for countries to collate their votes.
Planxty were asked to help and came up with a piece of music called Timedance, which was used to accompany a performance of traditional Irish dancing. The interlude filler turned out to be the big hit of the night all across Europe.
Planxty's keyboard player Bill Whelan then turned the music into the much bigger piece that was later to be known as Riverdance.
Moving Hearts
Planxty continued to tour throughout 1981 but were starting to get restless again. Various members still wanted to explore other musical directions. Moore and Lunny wanted to write more political songs and formed a new band, Moving Hearts.
Their final studio album, Words and Music, was released in 1983. The band split for the second time shortly after the release of their sixth album. Moore and Lunny left to concentrate on Moving Hearts which had become a high priority for them.
The remaining members were keen to keep the band going and brought in new members, John Kelly, Arty McGlynn and Dolores Keane. They toured Ireland in early 1983 but it didn't feel quite right. The band had changed too much both musically and in personnel and had lost their identity. Irvine later referred to the final line up as a 'Planxty-too-far'.
Comeback gig in 2003
They got back together again in 2003, initially for a one off show at The Royal Spa Hotel in Lisdoonvarna. The owner of the hotel, Paddy Dougherty, had encouraged them to get back together and even arranged for them to rehearse in the dining hall.
It was a big success and the band continued to perform more concerts around Ireland for the next couple of years. This led to the band's first new release for over 20 years, a live album, Planxty Live 2004.
Sadly there has not been any talk of another comeback but as it is Planxty, you just never know.
Split in 1975


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In 2013, Vatel Mauritius inaugurated its new school. An elegant building nestled in the middle of a wide garden that combines aesthetics and functionality. All practical courses are done in the 4* and 5* prestigious partner hotels of Mauritius. Once enrolled, the students are divided and allocated to the different hotels in the 4 main regions.
Mauritius is a dynamic country attached to the Africa continent. One of the major and world known tourist destination, the island offers first class hotels. Most of these hotels are international groups and are partner hotels where our students do their practical sessions.