Punch Brothers are back with their fifth LP, All Ashore, and once again these guys are putting to shame every other man on earth who dares to hold an instrument in hand, but they might need to tone down it down a bit.
This shouldn't be surprising to anyone familiar with the unique quintet. They continuously toe the line between "instrumental break" and "unnecessary musical talent showoff moment that doesn't quite match up to the lukewarm lyrics attached." Okay, okay, so is the album a successful one? In some ways, very much so. In other ways, not so much.
This album is definitely different than Punch Brothers we've seen over the years with a lot more music, a lot less story. Chris Thile, the mandolin player and unspoken leader of the group, called the album a "meditation on committed relationships in the present political climate." Instead of the high-energy, high-volume Punch Brothers that brought us, "Who's Feeling Young Now?" and "My Oh My," we only catch glimpses of that energy in songs like "Three Dots and a Dash," the fun upbeat track named after a World War II cocktail.
"Jumbo" calls out Trump plainly saying, "He ain't dumb, no / You elitist bums, go / Get yourselves off of Capitol Hill / Cause we've just about had our fill." The album seems to long for something better, perhaps even long for a hero to come in and make things alright again. Somehow though, in the midst of this collection of songs, there is a resounding feeling that the hero will never arrive… a resounding feeling of vague confusion.
Perhaps this feeling comes from the fact that the words in this album have no chance to catch up to the music. Between the lengthy instrumental breaks, the quick fiddle and picked banjo, no vocals will ever outshine the sheer mastery these musicians are bringing to the table. So at least Punch Brothers have a good problem to tackle– they're just too damn talented! Unfortunately though, if these musicians can never find that perfect balance, they will also never be able to pack the punch they so clearly need to throw at society.


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Journal of the American Mathematical Society
Published by the American Mathematical Society, the Journal of the American Mathematical Society (JAMS) is devoted to research articles of the highest quality in all areas of pure and applied mathematics.
The 2020 MCQ for Journal of the American Mathematical Society is 4.79.
Journals Home eContent Search About JAMS Editorial Board Author and Submission Information Journal Policies Subscription Information
Non-axial self-similar hole filling for the porous medium equation
by S. B. Angenent and D. G. Aronson PDF
J. Amer. Math. Soc. 14 (2001), 737-782 Request permission
We construct non-axially symmetric self-similar solutions to the porous medium equation by showing that the family of radial self-similar solutions found by Aronson and Graveleau (1993) undergoes a sequence of symmetry breaking bifurcations as the parameter $m$ decreases from $m=\infty$ to $m=1$.
S. B. Angenent and D. G. Aronson, The focusing problem for the radially symmetric porous medium equation, Comm. Partial Differential Equations 20 (1995), no. 7-8, 1217–1240. MR 1335749, DOI 10.1080/03605309508821130
S. B. Angenent and D. G. Aronson, Intermediate asymptotics for convergent viscous gravity currents, Phys. Fluids 7 (1995), no. 1, 223–225. MR 1307118, DOI 10.1063/1.868722
Donald G. Aronson and Philippe Bénilan, Régularité des solutions de l'équation des milieux poreux dans $\textbf {R}^{N}$, C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris Sér. A-B 288 (1979), no. 2, A103–A105 (French, with English summary). MR 524760
D. G. Aronson, The porous medium equation, Nonlinear diffusion problems (Montecatini Terme, 1985) Lecture Notes in Math., vol. 1224, Springer, Berlin, 1986, pp. 1–46. MR 877986, DOI 10.1007/BFb0072687
D. G. Aronson, O. Gil, and J. L. Vázquez, Limit behaviour of focusing solutions to nonlinear diffusions, Comm. Partial Differential Equations 23 (1998), no. 1-2, 307–332. MR 1608532, DOI 10.1080/03605309808821347
D. G. Aronson and J. Graveleau, A self-similar solution to the focusing problem for the porous medium equation, European J. Appl. Math. 4 (1993), no. 1, 65–81. MR 1208420, DOI 10.1017/S095679250000098X
Grigory Isaakovich Barenblatt, Scaling, self-similarity, and intermediate asymptotics, Cambridge Texts in Applied Mathematics, vol. 14, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1996. With a foreword by Ya. B. Zeldovich. MR 1426127, DOI 10.1017/CBO9781107050242
Carl M. Bender and Steven A. Orszag, Advanced mathematical methods for scientists and engineers, International Series in Pure and Applied Mathematics, McGraw-Hill Book Co., New York, 1978. MR 538168
Jöran Bergh and Jörgen Löfström, Interpolation spaces. An introduction, Grundlehren der Mathematischen Wissenschaften, No. 223, Springer-Verlag, Berlin-New York, 1976. MR 0482275, DOI 10.1007/978-3-642-66451-9
S. I. Betelú, D. G. Aronson, and S. B. Angenent, Renormalization study of two-dimensional convergent solutions of the porous medium equation, Phys. D 138 (2000), no. 3-4, 344–359. MR 1744636, DOI 10.1016/S0167-2789(99)00209-2
BA2 S.I.Betelú, J.Lowengrub, and D.G.Aronson, Focusing of an elongated hole in porous medium flow, preprint.
Shui Nee Chow and Jack K. Hale, Methods of bifurcation theory, Grundlehren der Mathematischen Wissenschaften [Fundamental Principles of Mathematical Sciences], vol. 251, Springer-Verlag, New York-Berlin, 1982. MR 660633, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4613-8159-4
DTBGMGAA J.A.Diez, L.P.Thomas, S.Betelú, R.Gratton, B.Marino, J.Gratton, D.G.Aronson, and S.B.Angenent, Noncircular converging flows in viscous gravity currents, Phys. Rev. E 58(1998), 6182–6187.
Gerald B. Folland, Introduction to partial differential equations, Mathematical Notes, Princeton University Press, Princeton, N.J., 1976. Preliminary informal notes of university courses and seminars in mathematics. MR 0599578, DOI 10.1515/9780691213033
David Gilbarg and Neil S. Trudinger, Elliptic partial differential equations of second order, 2nd ed., Grundlehren der mathematischen Wissenschaften [Fundamental Principles of Mathematical Sciences], vol. 224, Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 1983. MR 737190, DOI 10.1007/978-3-642-61798-0
Martin Golubitsky, Ian Stewart, and David G. Schaeffer, Singularities and groups in bifurcation theory. Vol. II, Applied Mathematical Sciences, vol. 69, Springer-Verlag, New York, 1988. MR 950168, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4612-4574-2
grav J.Graveleau, Quelques solutions auto-semblables pour l'équation dela chaleur non- linéair, Rapport Interne C.E.A. (1972).
Harry Hochstadt, The functions of mathematical physics, 2nd ed., Dover Publications, Inc., New York, 1986. With a foreword by Wilhelm Magnus. MR 883962
Lars Hörmander, The analysis of linear partial differential operators. I, Grundlehren der mathematischen Wissenschaften [Fundamental Principles of Mathematical Sciences], vol. 256, Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 1983. Distribution theory and Fourier analysis. MR 717035, DOI 10.1007/978-3-642-96750-4
Tosio Kato, Perturbation theory for linear operators, 2nd ed., Grundlehren der Mathematischen Wissenschaften, Band 132, Springer-Verlag, Berlin-New York, 1976. MR 0407617
G. Da Prato and P. Grisvard, Sommes d'opérateurs linéaires et équations différentielles opérationnelles, J. Math. Pures Appl. (9) 54 (1975), no. 3, 305–387 (French). MR 442749
Elias M. Stein, Harmonic analysis: real-variable methods, orthogonality, and oscillatory integrals, Princeton Mathematical Series, vol. 43, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ, 1993. With the assistance of Timothy S. Murphy; Monographs in Harmonic Analysis, III. MR 1232192
E. T. Whittaker and G. N. Watson, A course of modern analysis, Cambridge Mathematical Library, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1996. An introduction to the general theory of infinite processes and of analytic functions; with an account of the principal transcendental functions; Reprint of the fourth (1927) edition. MR 1424469, DOI 10.1017/CBO9780511608759
Retrieve articles in Journal of the American Mathematical Society with MSC (2000): 35K65, 37G99, 35K55, 76S05
Retrieve articles in all journals with MSC (2000): 35K65, 37G99, 35K55, 76S05
S. B. Angenent
Affiliation: Department of Mathematics, University of Wisconsin–Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53706
MR Author ID: 26245
Email: angenent@math.wisc.edu
D. G. Aronson
Affiliation: School of Mathematics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455
Email: don@math.umn.edu
Received by editor(s): November 1, 1999
Published electronically: May 30, 2001
Additional Notes: The first author was supported by the National Science Foundation
Journal: J. Amer. Math. Soc. 14 (2001), 737-782
MSC (2000): Primary 35K65, 37G99; Secondary 35K55, 76S05
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1090/S0894-0347-01-00372-1

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Home » Using Baldrige Criteria as a Tool for Hospitals' Performance Improvement
Center Voices
Using Baldrige Criteria as a Tool for Hospitals' Performance Improvement
Hospitals are embracing the performance excellence framework in their efforts to become highly reliable
Deborah J. Bowen
Since the 1999 release of the Institute of Medicine's landmark study, "To Err is Human," hospitals and health systems around the country have been working hard to reduce costs and improve patient care.
Improving patient outcomes has proven to be a tall order, with recent research from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement showing that 1.5 million medical errors occur annually, and the National Patient Safety Foundation showing that one out of 20 hospitalized patients contracts a health care-associated infection. In addition, the United States has seen total health care expenditures per capita nearly double to $8,915 in 2012, from about $4,900 in 2000, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Yet, there is hope because many organizations are achieving success in improving patient safety outcomes and controlling costs. A common trait among many of these organizations is their commitment to performance excellence, systematic process improvement and learning from evidence-based practices. Further, there is growing evidence that leadership can impact improvement efforts by not only providing direction and focus, but also by shaping the behaviors and actions required to achieve high-quality care. When leaders deliberately engage all employees, strong results can be achieved.
To reduce variation, developing more highly reliable organizations must be the top priority. Although there is no panacea, one approach is gaining ground for good reason.
How Baldrige Can Help
Thousands of organizations have turned to the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence, with its established framework for improvement and innovation that builds on core values and concepts, including: patient-focused excellence; organizational and personal learning; agility; and focus on results and creating value. The program has been around since the late 1980s and, in 1999, the award was expanded to include health care organizations. Since then, there have been 17 winners in the health care category. Baldrige hospitals (those that have won an award or have been an award finalist) are six times more likely to receive 100 Top Hospitals national recognition, according to a 2011 study from Truven Health Analytics (then known as Thomson Reuters). What's more, Baldrige hospitals are also more likely to be cited for marked performance improvement over a five-year span.
Rulon F. Stacey, president of Fairview Health Services in Minneapolis, spoke before the U.S. House Committee on Veterans' Affairs in July about the value of the Baldrige approach to performance improvement. Stacey highlighted data on improvements in health care outcomes and other measures achieved by U.S. hospitals that have used the Baldrige Health Care Criteria for Performance Excellence.
"The program initially revolutionized manufacturing in the United States, and it is now having the same effect on health care," he said. He cited research from Truven Health: In 38 hospitals that were Baldrige Award finalists, the overall risk-adjusted mortality rate was 7.5 percent lower, the patient safety index was more than 8 percent better and the risk-adjusted complications index was 1.4 percent better than in 3,000 peer hospitals. Stacey formerly served as president and CEO of Baldrige Award recipient Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins, Colo., and is chair of the board of overseers of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.
"Using the program as an improvement road map at Poudre Valley, we improved patient satisfaction for 10 straight years," he added. "Our risk-adjusted mortality rate improved to rank among the top 10 percent nationally. … While driving these improvements, we also created efficiencies, freeing up resources to further reinvest in our clinical care and services."
It is clear the Baldrige framework can be useful in enhancing systemic performance and achieving better results. It is used in many industries, and its impact on health care will continue to grow, with more than 68 percent of the applicants to the Baldrige Award from the health care sector in 2013. A key component is the importance of sharing best practices and learning from those who have achieved systematic results. All Baldrige Award applications are posted to www.nist.gov/baldrige and contain detailed descriptions of hundreds of best practices and successful solutions.
Through their efforts, organizations may find best practices from these winning organizations, adapt them to their environment and then share their cycles of learning and measurable results with other organizations.
Leadership Must Change
ACHE is on its own Baldrige journey of systematic improvement. In 2011, we received the Bronze Award for Commitment to Excellence from Illinois Performance Excellence, or ILPEx, the state-based Baldrige program. Since then, we have been using the ILPEx feedback report to more clearly define and articulate systems, and to embed cycles of continuous learning, improvement and innovation into our organization. ACHE also is studying successes of other organizations.
The increase in attention to performance excellence and creating highly reliable organizations is changing the culture of health care and the way executives lead. The old leadership hierarchy is being replaced with collaborative, team-based thinking and implementing best practices. Doing something the way we've always done it is no longer acceptable.
Moving forward, the focus on improvement must be ongoing. Boards can play an important role in these efforts by ensuring that a culture of continuous improvement exists in their organizations and by holding themselves accountable to the same standard for governance. Boards also can encourage their organizations to learn from others and adopt performance improvement processes using such resources as the Baldrige Health Care Criteria for Performance Excellence, because there is still much work to be done to improve the outcomes of health care for patients, families and our communities.
Deborah J. Bowen, FACHE, CAE (dbowen@ache.org), is president and CEO of the American College of Healthcare Executives, Chicago.
Using a Scorecard for Strategic Results
Scorecards that measure health system performance against established metrics have become an increasingly common and useful tool in the trustee's governance toolbox.
A Tool for Better Diversity
Many health care organizations want to overcome disparities by improving their diversity management, but they face considerable challenges.
Insurers, Hospitals Embrace Pay-For-Performance Plans
Payers around the country are employing new contracting methods with the dual hope of achieving lower costs and improving outcomes for their members.
Driving Loyalty and Increasing Engagement: How Tampa General Hospital is Becoming a Trusted Consumer Brand


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Stefan Aust (; born 1 July 1946) is a German journalist. He was the editor-in-chief of the weekly news magazine Der Spiegel from 1994 to February 2008 and has been the publisher of the conservative leading Die Welt newspaper since 2014 and the paper's editor until December 2016.

Early life and education
Aust was born in Stade, Lower Saxony as son of the farmer Reinhard Aust and his wife Ilse, born Hartig. Together with four siblings he grew up on a small dairy farm which his family ran until the early 1960s. His father emigrated to America at the age of 18 and returned to Germany in the summer of 1939. His grandfather was a merchant and shipowner.

Aust graduated from high school at the Athenaeum in Stade and gained his first journalistic experience working for the local school newspaper "Wir", through which he also got to know the journalist Henryk M. Broder. Aust  dropped out of business studies after a few weeks.

Career

Early career
Via Wolfgang Röhl, Klaus Rainer Röhl's younger brother, whom he met at the school newspaper, Aust came to the magazine konkret after graduating from high school, where he was initially in charge of the magazines layout. From 1966 to 1969 Aust then worked as an editor for the magazine concrete and later for the St. Pauli-Nachrichten. In 1969, Aust traveled to the United States for half a year.

From 1970 he worked for the Norddeutscher Rundfunk.

Since 2014, he is the publisher of the conservative leading Die Welt newspaper. Until December 2016, he was also the paper's editor.  He was the editor-in-chief of the weekly news magazine Der Spiegel from 1994 to February 2008.

Two of Aust's books have been made into films: Der Pirat 1997 by  and Der Baader Meinhof Komplex 2008 by Uli Edel.

Books
Kennwort 100 Blumen – Verwicklung des Verfassungsschutzes in den Mordfall Ulrich Schmücker. Konkret Literatur Verlag, Hamburg 1980.
Hausbesetzer: Wofür sie kämpfen, wie sie leben und wie sie leben wollen. Hoffmann und Campe, Hamburg 1981.  (with Sabine Rosenbladt)
Brokdorf: Symbol einer politischen Wende. Hoffmann und Campe, Hamburg 1981.
Der Baader Meinhof Komplex. Hoffmann und Campe, Hamburg 1985.  (expanded: 1997, ; paperback 1998, ; revised edition 2008, )
Werner Mauss – ein deutscher Agent. Hoffmann und Campe, Hamburg 1988.  (revised 1999, )
Der Pirat: Die Drogenkarriere des Jan C.. Hoffmann und Campe, Hamburg 1990.  (papareback 2000, )
Die Flucht: Über die Vertreibung der Deutschen aus dem Osten. Spiegel-Buchverlag, Hamburg 2002.
Der Lockvogel: Die tödliche Geschichte eines V-Mannes zwischen Verfassungsschutz und Terrorismus. Rowohlt, Reinbek 2002.  (paperback 2003, )
11. September. Geschichte eines Terrorangriffs. DVA, Stuttgart 2002.  (with Cordt Schnibben)
Irak: Geschichte eines modernen Krieges. Spiegel-Buchverlag, Hamburg 2003.  (edited with Cordt Schnibben)
Die Gegenwart der Vergangenheit: Der lange Schatten des Dritten Reichs. DVA, München 2004.  (edited with Gerhard Spörl)
Der Fall Deutschland: Abstieg eines Superstars. Piper, München 2005.  (with Claus Richter, Gabor Steingart, Matthias Ziemann)
Wettlauf um die Welt: Die Globalisierung und wir. Piper, München 2007.  (with Claus Richter, Matthias Ziemann)
Hitler's erster Feind: Der Kampf des Konrad Heiden. Rowohlt, Berlin 2016.
Xi Jinping. Der mächtigste Mann der Welt. Piper, München-Berlin, 2021 (ISBN 978-3-492-07006-5).

Awards and recognitions
In 2010 Aust was awarded the Mercator Visiting Professorship for Political Management at the University of Duisburg-Essen's NRW School of Governance. He gave seminars and lectures at the university.

References

External links

Washington Post interview
Interview: Stefan Aust on The Baader-Meinhof Complex
"Interview with Stefan Aust: Author of Baader-Meinhof: The Inside Story of the R.A.F.", Foreign Policy Digest

1946 births
Living people
People from Stade
German male journalists
German journalists
German newspaper journalists
German editors
German male writers
Der Spiegel editors
Die Welt editors
Sat.1 people
Welt am Sonntag editors

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Q: Android Studio doesn't recognize JAVA 11 I have added JAVA 11 to android studio to Build Tools -> Gradle like below:

app/build.gradle:

SDK:

Still when checking source it still shows JAVA 8:

and also when app runs, the features on Java 11 which don't exist on Java 8 cause the app to fail with missing exception.
java -version shows:
openjdk version "11.0.11" 2021-04-20
OpenJDK Runtime Environment (build 11.0.11+0-b60-7772763)
OpenJDK 64-Bit Server VM (build 11.0.11+0-b60-7772763, mixed mode)

A: Try first to invalidate cache and watch carefully with XMLs Android studio need a proper cross checking but strangely its configuration process is not properly align.
If unable to do this restore /Reset Android Studio then Add/Enable JAVA.

A: Don't forget to add java version in app level build.gradle file.
   compileOptions {
    sourceCompatibility JavaVersion.VERSION_11
    targetCompatibility JavaVersion.VERSION_11
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


The ACDC-project, led by eco – Association of the German Internet Industry, is one step closer to its aim of creating a European-wide network of national support centres to fight botnets. In cooperation with the Croatian Academic and Research Network, CARNet, the latest in a series of National Support Centres was launched in Zagreb, Croatia, this week.
protect users' computers, contributing to the reduction of the number of bots on infected computers.
CARNet's mission is the "development of advanced information and communication infrastructure" for the Croatian academic community. This includes supporting a fast and safe network, and establishing and maintaining central national services for the Internet.
ACDC (www.acdc-project.eu) is a pilot project co-funded by the European Commission, with 28 partners in 14 countries, and is open to stakeholders from industry, public authorities and academia across Member States. It aims to provide tools and sensors to detect botnet-related cyberthreats and mitigate cyberattacks on networks, web sites, end user computers and mobile devices. ACDC reaches out to users across Europe through now four National Support Centres.
Four additional support centres will be launched in Bulgaria, Italy, France & Portugal this year.
Trojan Killer – die Lösung gegen Ransomware?
Microsoft kills Citadel Botnet – for real?
Deutsche Anbeiter platzieren «E-Mail made in Germany»-Angebote!


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The New Most Overrated Game Ever
The most overrated video game was once The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for a simple reason: so many called it the greatest achievement in gaming without acknowledging its obvious flaws. The character of Navi, for instance, makes it almost impossible to take the game's dramatic intentions seriously. Navi peppers the proceedings with unnecessary tutorial-like remarks, and her name, a condescending abbreviation of "Navigator," symbolizes how many pop games since Ocarina of Time (released in 1998) have treated players like infants — a trend still going strong as we approach 2018.
For close to two decades, it seemed nothing could dethrone Ocarina of Time as the most overrated game of all time. Then the exaggerated hoopla over The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild happened this year. Within weeks of its release, many said Breath of the Wild had surpassed Ocarina of Time as the No. 1 game in history, and a segment of gamers expressed outrage when Breath of the Wild's Metacritic score dropped one point, from 99 to 98, after all reviews were completed and tallied. During the summer, Edge revised its 100 greatest games list just so it could put Breath of the Wild at the top. I even saw more than one adult praise Breath of the Wild for having a jump button (did they really miss Zelda II: The Adventure of Link or any of the countless platformers out there?).
Why is The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild considered so outstanding, especially when its flaws undercut the potential of its open world? I have identified four areas where the game either falters to a significant degree or is clearly outmatched by other titles.
Breath of the Wild has a huge map and flexible mechanics so that fans do the heavy lifting when it comes to storytelling and so that Nintendo can get away with endless banalities. When people exchange tales about what they have done as players in a game, academics call it "emergent narrative." Under this (snooze-inducing) framework, the variety of puzzle solutions and environmental factors in Breath of the Wild, for example, suggests the game allows the most potential for fun stories between audience members.
I'm not sure this is true. There are other games, such as Minecraft and Scribblenauts, that can lead to a wider variety of stories than Breath of the Wild. And is emergent narrative automatically compelling anyway? It might be neat that this guy uses Item A to alter Environmental Factor C to overcome Obstacle Z, but I doubt many of these anecdotes will stand the test of time, even as self-absorbed curiosities.
In any case, the greatest game of all time should not have a story as generic and monotonous as Breath of the Wild's (see the seventh paragraph of my review here); its cast should not amount to little more than peddlers of Nintendo tradition and whimsy if the goal is indeed to depict an ostensibly living world. Just two years ago, critics and fans recognized The Witcher 3 for imbuing its many minor characters with unmistakable, striking humanity, yet Breath of the Wild gets a pass despite being filled with tired contrivances like superfluous side quests and throwaway caricatures of human beings.
The one-dimensional heroism of Breath of the Wild's plot limits the philosophical possibilities of its world. Why does the press imply this game has the best open world when it completely lacks the morality variable that made Fallout, Planescape: Torment, and The Witcher 3 so vibrant and provocative? Is chopping down trees to create bridges and crush enemies that trailblazing in comparison to what these games did for storytelling?
At first glance, it does seem significant that you can climb, without equipment, mountains and towers in Breath of the Wild. You might even say this feature gives Breath of the Wild a distinct identity as an open-world game. But compared to Assassin's Creed Origins (also released in 2017), which allows you to scale myriad awe-inspiring structures in ancient Egypt with no need to worry about a stamina bar, Breath of the Wild appears quaint, unimaginative, and plodding. What's more, Twilight Princess still has the most exciting climbing sequences of any Zelda game with its double-clawshot mechanic, which requires you to use the camera while hanging to reach greater heights.
Weapon Breaking
Because weapons break in Breath of the Wild about as often as an American politician says something stupid, out-of-reach treasure chests aren't as tempting to pursue if you already have multiple arms in stock. If you know everything you find will soon disintegrate, why get excited about the prospect of new items? The weapon system, like the stamina system, doesn't serve the exploratory focus of the game and points to a superficial kind of realism. Further, Muramasa: The Demon Blade's weapon-breaking dynamic exposes Nintendo's approach as amateurish. In Muramasa, swords temporarily break if you use them too much, forcing you to switch weaponry until the broken ones "heal." This rule not only spices up the combo-heavy fights but also gives weight to the game's conceit that swords are living beings. In contrast, Breath of the Wild seems to take place in a world where no one can make anything worth a damn, suggesting its weapon system is a parody at best.
Breath of the Wild has the most pointless stamina system in recent memory. The most appealing part of the game is its invitation to explore a world, yet the invitation holds contempt for those who just want to run at a decent clip without having to worry about an indicator. Perhaps this contradiction could be overlooked if the stamina system made sense. You lose stamina for running, climbing, and gliding but not for standard melee attacks or jumping. Say what you will about the frustration of your protagonist becoming exhausted in Dark Souls, but at least that game applies the concept in a consistent, fair, and understandable fashion. Breath of the Wild's pretense of realism is merely half-assed.
This flaw is even more egregious in light of Nioh, which was released a month before Breath of the Wild. Nioh reinvents stamina management, wherein a timed button press can save endurance and open up a variety of strategic options, from dodging to jabbing. Whereas Breath of the Wild's stamina system doesn't improve anything about the game, Nioh's unique take on energy conservation sets its combat apart from every release before it. That the gaming world didn't explicitly acknowledge Nioh's superiority in this regard speaks to an ignorance surrounding the accolades for Breath of the Wild.
Posted in Uncategorized and tagged breath of the wild, breath of the wild overrated, climbing, emergent narrative, most overrated game ever, ocarina of time, stamina, weapon breaking on December 19, 2017 by Jed Pressgrove. 9 Comments
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Ryan Lynch says:
I couldn't agree more. When seeing Ocarina of time on the top of every "best ever" list a decade ago, I was wondering why it was always everyone's "best ever". I understand many people like it, but is it really at the top of everyone's list? Not to mention Breath of the Wild got its success from straying away from being like Ocarina.
An honorable mention of "most overrated" would be Nintendo World Championships 1990. Not worth the price for a grey or gold cartridge. Hardly worth even the steep price of a reproduction cart. It's as if three demos of games were put together and had a rudimentary scoring system tacked onto it.
Let's not forget that Skyward Sword was getting the royal treatment in reviews prior to the honeymoon being over and the backlash beginning. I figured it would start happening for Breath of the Wild, it was only a question of to what extent.
While I think that this very often happens with The Legend of Zelda games, I will say that I think Breath of the Wild was more fun for me than Skyward Sword.
I do think that feelings towards Breath of the Wild will cool down but I predict the reputation will remain largely more positive than Skyward Sword. It is after all sort of an anti-thesis to Skyward Sword.
That being said, I think that people are feeling before thinking in terms of considering it the best game of all time. Not that we don't see this happen every other year. The Witcher 3, Uncharted 4, The Last of Us; This happens all the time in this medium. 😛 People get really emotional about the games they like – including major publications.
Haha, I know that Nintendo World Championships cartridge is in high demand, but yeah, footage of the games looks largely unappealing (I haven't played it).
I agree that the praise the game has gotten is very emotionally driven. There isn't much care put into the discussion of its flaws.
However, I'd like to challenge some of your suggestions here as it only really approaches the game from a single psyche which leaves plenty room for discussion.
Story-Telling:
The engagement of emergent story-telling shouldn't come from a place of comparison. If the game facilitates this emergent style of gameplay, then the stories are going to come naturally to any player who explores the full extent of the mechanics; better if the games in question like Minecraft, Scribblenauts and Breath of the Wild do encourage them. A game that succeeds at this better is likely to have more emergent stories for players to tell, however emergent storytelling being immediately satisfying should really be a given I think. Players like when their actions are recognized by the game in fun, even slight ways. Agency should be encouraged and in Breath of the Wild (like many games have emergent gameplay) it can be fun to see an action have unfolding consequences that lead to unexpected results. It's fun to react with a game and have those actions acknowledged.
As for the more linear story-telling. The game is weak in this regard, however it does avoid some of the separated and jarring dissonances that typically occur in video games that treat the minute-to-minute storytelling as a separate entity from the interactivity, like The Witcher 3 and even one of the best stories this year in games Nier: Automata are playgued with.
Breath of the Wild's story is flat but it's canonical with its gameplay. Mostly everything you do in the game is work toward the linear narrative. Even when things gets contextually daft, Link is prized with something that is to help him in the fight at the end, and because this fight is forever impending without being enforced, the narrative and gameplay are never at war with one another.
However, Nier Automata's storytelling is still very much in the space of "games being sort of bad at telling linear narratives because they have to forget they are video games". When Pascal says he needs to see you urgently but eh… that urgency is completely fictitious and you can spend all the time in the world engaging in side quests, fishing activities or any other number of distractions; we need to start addressing this as bad story-telling in this medium, because it is. It's a falsehood of urgency in the story that isn't at all believable or real. For all Breath of the Wild's weak story, it still acknowledges that a game story needs to be told through the game and not as separate pieces stuck together.
Climbing:
I took this as a means to instill some form of choice progression in the game. The player can theoretically stock up on stamina potions and ignore this entirely, but even that requires some amount of exploration through the world to gather the resources necessary to climb a structure that the player may not be ready to strictly take on. It's not all too effective though and it can make climbing a tedious task. However, it also reinforces the idea that environments aren't meant to be passive here. Environments and traversal is part of the gameplay loop, not space between the gameplay loop. Whether that means BoTW's loop is engaging or not is entirely subjective but I certainly got some kick out of figuring out the best way to climb a structure and manage my stamina resource. Also that last ditch effort to leap to a new safe space to replenish my meter can be quite a fun risk-reward system.
Weapon Breaking:
Annoying for most because it's such a diversion from what we have learned from so many open world games who's gameplay loops revolve around collecting loot such as Bethesda games and The Witcher 3; but Breath of the Wild's weapons are less like exciting treasures and more like ammunition. At the very least, it gets you to use your inventory, though not in a way that Muramasa which is very clever. All the while, the game isn't about filling your inventory, more filling your inventory with the best possible items. Opening a chest might not give you a shining, glistening and endearing reward (though, BoTW and Odyssey are quite similar in this regard. The 'how' is more engaging than the 'why') but it's still useful to open a chest, junk your weakest weapon and replace for something better that you find.
I would be interested to see how the value of item drops of The Witcher 3 compare in terms of stats to Breath of the Wild when you consider that you only ever really need to weapons in TW3. How often do you find something that is actually useful in The Witcher 3?
Stamina:
I don't get why they connected stamina to running. It seems to only serve to slow down the game without providing anything in the way of challenge like climbing and swimming. The only use case I can think of escaping combat.It would have made way more sense if you actually lost stamina for fighting in combat though. At least then the resource would have some sort of cohesion.
Nioh's ki (stamina) and the use of ki pulse is something that all action games should look at and take notes from. It's a genius idea. Also Nioh is such an excellent action game. That needs to be said.
That aside, the stamina wheel is something that I quite like when it comes to exploration (outside of running). Climbing and swimming reassert BoTW as a game not about point 'A' and point 'B' but how one gets to these points. Whether or not this is enjoyable depends of course. Do I actually like exploration in The Witcher 3 or Nier: Automata? God No. While the latter has a far better kinetic tempo it also has bad level design but worst of all no purpose other than narrative beats in having space between its sidequests. You go from A to B in a fast footed flight but you just go through this static, unusable world.
I don't know if BoTW would be more enjoyable without its stamina progression. Certainly, you'd get around much faster but I like this idea that an open world game can be about the open world, not the tasks within it; For that, the environments may need to be more than set dressing.
Do I think the praise BoTW is overblow? For sure but I do think there is plenty of discussion to be had about the game. I thought it was very fun. I get why people love it so much, or would consider it their favorite game this year. Personally, that answer isn't so clear cut with how many fun games released this year. Certainly BoTW has one of the most engaging open worlds in a game I have played in quite some time. If TW3 and Nier are engaging for their stories (and maybe Nier for its combat tools), BoTW was fun because of its open world and exploration.
Sorry for the typos and spelling errors. I wrote this in a bit of a rush. 😛
Thanks for the detailed response! I appreciate an argument that confronts what's being said. I'm about to start my family holiday break, so I can't respond in full now, but I will consider your words. Have a great Christmas!
Have a wonderful Christmas Jed. To you and your loved ones. 🙂
Bob o Mastoras says:
There is only one explanation for the Metacritic score of Breath of the Wild: Nintendo, seeing that their console (and possibly their entire business as a console-maker) success depended on this game, they opened their money vaults and bribed as many journalists as they could.
There is no other explanation as to why 109 "professional" critics gave it an average of 97/100. I mean, looking at it OBJECTIVELY, it is just an Ubisoft open world of the previous generation (due to poor hardware specs) with a Zelda skin. You want me to believe that most of those 109 critics never played a generic openworld game in the last decade? I am sorry, i don't believe it.
At least Ocarina of time was freaking innovative for its time. Again, it was not the OMG OMG OMG masterpiece everyone was making it to be, but it was a great game on its own right back in the day. Something that cannot be said about Breath of the Wild, which is a very generic and boring game and introduces nothing innovative or new in the genre.
At least i can now use Breath of the Wild reviews as a litmus test to identify which publications are corporate shills and which have integrity. For example Slant which gave it a 60/100 earned a lot of respect from me. As did Jim Sterling who gave it a pretty much accurate 7/10.


text:
package org.apache.geode.internal.cache;

import static org.apache.geode.distributed.ConfigurationProperties.LOCATORS;
import static org.apache.geode.distributed.ConfigurationProperties.LOG_LEVEL;
import static org.apache.geode.distributed.ConfigurationProperties.MCAST_PORT;
import static org.junit.Assert.assertEquals;
import static org.junit.Assert.assertNotNull;
import static org.junit.Assert.assertNull;
import static org.junit.Assert.assertTrue;
import static org.junit.Assert.fail;

import java.io.File;
import java.util.Properties;

import org.junit.After;
import org.junit.Before;
import org.junit.Ignore;
import org.junit.Test;

import org.apache.geode.cache.AttributesFactory;
import org.apache.geode.cache.Cache;
import org.apache.geode.cache.CacheFactory;
import org.apache.geode.cache.DataPolicy;
import org.apache.geode.cache.DiskStore;
import org.apache.geode.cache.DiskStoreFactory;
import org.apache.geode.cache.EvictionAction;
import org.apache.geode.cache.Region;
import org.apache.geode.cache.RegionAttributes;
import org.apache.geode.cache.Scope;
import org.apache.geode.distributed.DistributedSystem;
import org.apache.geode.internal.cache.eviction.EvictionCounters;
import org.apache.geode.internal.cache.eviction.EvictionList;

/**
 * This is a test verifies region is LIFO enabled by ENTRY COUNT verifies correct stats updating and
 * faultin is not evicting another entry - not strict LIFO
 *
 * @since GemFire 5.7
 */
public class LIFOEvictionAlgoEnabledRegionJUnitTest {

  /** The cache instance */
  private static Cache cache = null;

  /** Stores LIFO Related Statistics */
  private static EvictionCounters lifoStats = null;

  /** The distributedSystem instance */
  private static DistributedSystem distributedSystem = null;

  private static String regionName = "LIFOEntryCountEvictionEnabledRegion";

  private static int capacity = 5;

  private static EvictionList lifoClockHand = null;

  @Before
  public void setUp() throws Exception {
    initializeVM();
  }

  @After
  public void tearDown() throws Exception {
    assertNotNull(cache);
    Region rgn = cache.getRegion(Region.SEPARATOR + regionName);
    assertNotNull(rgn);
    rgn.localDestroyRegion();
    cache.close();

  }

  /**
   * Method for intializing the VM and create region with LIFO attached
   *
   */
  private static void initializeVM() throws Exception {
    Properties props = new Properties();
    props.setProperty(MCAST_PORT, "0");
    props.setProperty(LOCATORS, "");
    props.setProperty(LOG_LEVEL, "info"); // to keep diskPerf logs smaller
    distributedSystem = DistributedSystem.connect(props);
    cache = CacheFactory.create(distributedSystem);
    assertNotNull(cache);
    DiskStoreFactory dsf = cache.createDiskStoreFactory();
    AttributesFactory factory = new AttributesFactory();
    factory.setScope(Scope.LOCAL);

    File dir = new File("testingDirectoryDefault");
    dir.mkdir();
    dir.deleteOnExit();
    File[] dirs = {dir};
    dsf.setDiskDirsAndSizes(dirs, new int[] {Integer.MAX_VALUE});

    dsf.setAutoCompact(false);
    DiskStore ds = dsf.create(regionName);
    factory.setDiskStoreName(ds.getName());
    factory.setDiskSynchronous(true);
    factory.setDataPolicy(DataPolicy.NORMAL);

    /* setting LIFO related eviction attributes */

    factory.setEvictionAttributes(EvictionAttributesImpl.createLIFOEntryAttributes(capacity,
        EvictionAction.OVERFLOW_TO_DISK));
    RegionAttributes attr = factory.create();

    ((GemFireCacheImpl) cache).createRegion(regionName, attr);
    lifoClockHand =
        ((VMLRURegionMap) ((LocalRegion) cache.getRegion(Region.SEPARATOR + regionName)).entries)
            .getEvictionList();

    /* storing stats reference */
    lifoStats = lifoClockHand.getStatistics();

  }

  /**
   * This test does the following :

   * 1)Verify region is LIFO Enabled

   * 2)Perform put operation

   * 3)perform get operation

   * 4)Verify value retrieved

   * 5)Verify count (entries present in memory) after put operations

   * 6)Verify count (entries present in memory) after get (performs faultin) operation

   * 7)Verify count (entries present in memory) after remove operation

   */
  @Test
  public void testLIFOStatsUpdation() {
    try {
      assertNotNull(cache);
      LocalRegion rgn = (LocalRegion) cache.getRegion(Region.SEPARATOR + regionName);
      assertNotNull(rgn);

      // check for is LIFO Enable
      assertTrue("Eviction Algorithm is not LIFO",
          (((EvictionAttributesImpl) rgn.getAttributes().getEvictionAttributes()).isLIFO()));

      // put four entries into the region
      for (int i = 0; i < 8; i++) {
        rgn.put(new Long(i), new Long(i));
      }

      assertTrue("In Memory entry count not 5 ",
          new Long(5).equals(new Long(lifoStats.getCounter())));

      // varifies evicted entry values are null in memory
      assertTrue("In memory ", rgn.entries.getEntry(new Long(5)).isValueNull());
      assertTrue("In memory ", rgn.entries.getEntry(new Long(6)).isValueNull());
      assertTrue("In memory ", rgn.entries.getEntry(new Long(7)).isValueNull());

      // get an entry back
      Long value = (Long) rgn.get(new Long(4));
      value = (Long) rgn.get(new Long(5));
      value = (Long) rgn.get(new Long(6));

      // check for entry value
      assertTrue("Value not matched ", value.equals(new Long(6)));
      assertNull("Entry value in VM is not null", rgn.getValueInVM(new Long(7)));

      assertTrue("Entry count not 7 ", new Long(7).equals(new Long(lifoStats.getCounter())));
      // check for destory
      rgn.destroy(new Long(3));
      assertTrue("Entry count not 6 ", new Long(6).equals(new Long(lifoStats.getCounter())));
      // check for invalidate
      rgn.invalidate(new Long(1));
      assertTrue("Entry count not 5 ", new Long(5).equals(new Long(lifoStats.getCounter())));
      // check for remove
      rgn.put(new Long(8), new Long(8));
      rgn.remove(new Long(2));
      assertTrue("Entry count not 4 ", new Long(4).equals(new Long(lifoStats.getCounter())));
    } catch (Exception ex) {
      ex.printStackTrace();
      fail("Test failed");
    }

  }

  /**
   * This test does the following :

   * 1)Perform put operation

   * 2)Verify entry evicted is LIFO Entry and is not present in vm

   */
  @Test
  public void testLIFOEntryEviction() {
    try {
      assertNotNull(cache);
      LocalRegion rgn = (LocalRegion) cache.getRegion(Region.SEPARATOR + regionName);
      assertNotNull(rgn);

      assertEquals("Region is not properly cleared ", 0, rgn.size());
      assertTrue("Entry count not 0 ", new Long(0).equals(new Long(lifoStats.getCounter())));
      // put eight entries into the region
      for (int i = 0; i < 8; i++) {
        rgn.put(new Long(i), new Long(i));
        if (i < capacity) {
          // entries are in memory
          assertNotNull("Entry is not in VM ", rgn.getValueInVM(new Long(i)));
        } else {
          /*
           * assertTrue("LIFO Entry is not evicted", lifoClockHand.getLRUEntry() .testEvicted());
           */
          assertTrue("Entry is not null ", rgn.entries.getEntry(new Long(i)).isValueNull());
        }
      }

    } catch (Exception ex) {
      ex.printStackTrace();
      fail("Test failed");
    }
  }

  /**
   * This test does the following :

   * 1)Perform put operation

   * 2)Verify count of evicted entries

   */
  @Test
  public void testEntryEvictionCount() {
    try {
      assertNotNull(cache);
      Region rgn = cache.getRegion(Region.SEPARATOR + regionName);
      assertNotNull(rgn);

      assertTrue("Entry count not 0 ", new Long(0).equals(new Long(lifoStats.getCounter())));
      // put four entries into the region
      for (int i = 0; i < 8; i++) {
        rgn.put(new Long(i), new Long(i));
      }

      assertTrue("1)Total eviction count is not correct ",
          new Long(3).equals(new Long(lifoStats.getEvictions())));
      rgn.put(new Long(8), new Long(8));
      rgn.get(new Long(5));
      assertTrue("2)Total eviction count is not correct ",
          new Long(4).equals(new Long(lifoStats.getEvictions())));
    } catch (Exception ex) {
      ex.printStackTrace();
      fail("Test failed");
    }
  }

  /**
   * This test does the following :

   * 1)Perform put operation

   * 2)Verify count of faultin entries

   */
  @Test
  public void testEntryFaultinCount() {
    try {
      assertNotNull(cache);
      LocalRegion rgn = (LocalRegion) cache.getRegion(Region.SEPARATOR + regionName);
      assertNotNull(rgn);

      DiskRegionStats diskRegionStats = rgn.getDiskRegion().getStats();
      assertTrue("Entry count not 0 ", new Long(0).equals(new Long(lifoStats.getCounter())));

      // put five entries into the region
      for (int i = 0; i < 8; i++) {
        rgn.put("key" + i, "value" + i);
      }

      assertEquals(
          "LRU eviction entry count and entries overflown to disk count from diskstats is not equal ",
          lifoStats.getEvictions(), diskRegionStats.getNumOverflowOnDisk());
      assertNull("Entry value in VM is not null", rgn.getValueInVM("key6"));
      rgn.get("key6");
      assertEquals("Not equal to number of entries present in VM : ", 6L,
          diskRegionStats.getNumEntriesInVM());
      assertEquals("Not equal to number of entries present on disk : ", 2L,
          diskRegionStats.getNumOverflowOnDisk());

    } catch (Exception ex) {
      ex.printStackTrace();
      fail("Test failed");
    }
  }

  /**
   * This test does the following :

   * 1)Verify Entry value after faultin should be byte []

   */
  // not using it. added as may needed if functionality gets added
  @Ignore
  @Test
  public void testFaultInEntryValueShouldbeSerialized() {
    try {
      assertNotNull(cache);
      LocalRegion rgn = (LocalRegion) cache.getRegion(Region.SEPARATOR + regionName);
      assertNotNull(rgn);

      assertEquals("Region is not properly cleared ", 0, rgn.size());
      assertTrue("Entry count not 0 ", new Long(0).equals(new Long(lifoStats.getCounter())));
      // put eight entries into the region
      for (int i = 0; i < 8; i++) {
        rgn.put(new Long(i), new Long(i));
      }

      // assert for value should be Byte Array
      // here value is not delivered to client and should be get deserialized
      // value in region should be serialized form
      assertTrue("FaultIn Value in not a byte Array ", rgn.get(new Long(6)) instanceof byte[]);

    } catch (Exception ex) {
      ex.printStackTrace();
      fail("Test failed");
    }
  }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


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Barbers Gift Baskets hand delivers to the following locations in Palm Beach County: West Palm Beach, Lantana, Wellington, Lake Worth, Palm Beach Gardens, Jupiter, Jupiter Farms, Delray Beach, Boca Raton, Ocean Ridge, Golf, Manalapan, Briny Breezes, Greenacres, Mangonia Park, Hypoluxo, Highland Beach, Lake Clarke Shores, Belle Glade, Glen Ridge, Tequesta, Atlantis, Loxahatchee Groves, Palm Beach Shores, Haverhill, Gulf Stream, South Palm Beach, Cloud Lake, Juno Beach, Palm Springs, North Palm Beach, Lake Park, Riviera Beach, Boynton Beach, Jupiter Inlet Colony, Palm Beach, Royal Palm Beach.
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It's getting chilly outside, and while warm comforting food is high on the crave-list, it's more important than ever to keep eating salads, brimming with healthy nutrient-rich vegetables and grains. The good news is that the cooler weather gives us an excuse to fortify our salad bowls, transforming the light and wispy summer salad into a healthy hearty autumn bowl.
A key ingredient in this cold-weather salad is nutrient-rich kale. Raw kale can be bitter and difficult to digest in large quantities, so it's important to tame the tough and sturdy leaves to deter picky eating. This can be easily accomplished by massaging them. Yep, that's right: Drizzle the kale leaves with a little lemon juice, olive oil, and a pinch of salt, and then rub them for a minute or so to coat the leaves. You will be rewarded with a slightly softened version of the hearty leaf, that's not only easier to munch on, its earthy flavor will be softened by the lemon and salt.
Treat this salad just like your fall wardrobe, and pile on the layers – it can handle it. I've added finely chopped cauliflower and dried cranberries, along with a shower of quinoa and seeds. Because these salads are so sturdy, they hold up well and don't mind a little standing once they are fully dressed – which is great for do-ahead assembly.
1. In a large bowl, rub the kale leaves with the lemon juice, olive oil, and salt until thoroughly coated, about 1 minute. Let stand for 15 minutes.
2. Add the scallions, carrot, cauliflower, quinoa, parsley, and cranberries and toss to combine.
3. Make the dressing: Whisk the oil, vinegar, lemon juice, garlic, mustard, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Drizzle over the salad and toss well to thoroughly combine. Garnish with the pepitas. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to 2 hours.
Have you been tasked with bringing a spring-y platter of food to feed a crowd for Easter brunch this weekend? I made this sunny salad for an Easter brunch last year. It's a lovely way to serve asparagus; and prosciutto; and egg. There is not much else you need to add to this trio except a few squirts of fresh lemon and a splash of olive oil to coat and glisten. If you can get your hands on a bunch of baby greens, then use them as a bed for the asparagus to absorb the oil and lemony goodness. And if you have a few baby herbs unfurling their leaves in your garden, by all means, add them to the plate.
Heat the oven to 375°F. Spread the asparagus on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle a little olive oil over the asparagus and turn to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven until the asparagus are bright green and crisp tender, 10 to 12 minutes, depending on the thickness of the stalks. They should be crisp tender and not too floppy (unless you like them that way; then cook a bit longer). Remove from the oven and transfer to a plate to cool. Keep the oven on.
Arrange the prosciutto on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Bake in the oven until shriveled and firm to the touch, about 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool to the touch. The prosciutto will continue to harden as it cools. When cool enough to handle, break into shards.
Spread the greens on a serving platter. Arrange the asparagus over the greens. Squeeze the juice of the lemon over the asparagus and greens and drizzle with a little oil. Grate the eggs over the asparagus, then sprinkle the prosciutto shards over the salad. Garnish with fresh black pepper. If you have any fresh herbs in the garden, such as parsley, chervil or mint, feel free to tear a few leaves and scatter over the salad as well.


text:
Gatwick Airport cheers long-haul growth as annual earnings rise
By Holly Williams, Press Association Deputy City Editor
PA Ready News UK 18 June 2019
Britain's second biggest airport posted a 7.3% rise in underlying earnings to £441.4 million for the year to March 31.
London's Gatwick Airport has reported a 7.3% hike in annual earnings as it saw rising long-haul demand boost passenger numbers.
Britain's second biggest airport – in which French construction and transport concession group Vinci recently bought a majority stake – posted underlying earnings of £441.4 million for the year to March 31.
It added 1.1 million long-haul passengers, up 14.3% on the previous year, helping overall passenger numbers swell to 46.4 million.
London Gatwick said the long-haul growth was driven by increased Far East connections, which jumped 45% higher year-on-year.
One in five airport passengers now travel long-haul to and from Gatwick, it said.
Gatwick also saw average income from each passenger increase 4.5% to £17.47, with total revenues lifting 6.1% to £810.8 million for the year.
A successful year for Gatwick with 46.4m passengers, including an extra 1.1m long-haul travellers and a 6.1% increase in revenue. Growth has been balanced by a 7% reduction in the airport's noise footprint. https://t.co/SipvogZsgi pic.twitter.com/xJkk7mYE9Y
— GatwickVoice (@GatwickVoice) June 18, 2019
It also stressed its so-called noise footprint was cut by 7% over the year thanks to better operational procedures and quieter aircraft.
And £249.3 million of capital investment was made on improving passenger facilities and operational performance, which comes as part of a £1.1 billion five-year spending programme to 2023.
Stewart Wingate, chief executive of Gatwick Airport, said: "Over the last year, we have achieved strong passenger growth matched by a reduction in our local noise footprint; robust financial results matched by record levels of investment back into the airport; and growing global connections fuelling increased trade and tourism opportunities."
He added the group will unveil its "master plan" later this year, setting out long-term growth and developments for the airport.
The figures come after Vinci last month completed its deal to buy a 50.01% stake in Gatwick for £2.9 billion.
Vinci is now the second largest airport operator in the world, already running 45 airports in 12 countries.


ARE, SWEDEN (Agencies): Slovenia's Ilka Stuhec swept to gold in the women's downhill at the Alpine Ski World Championships on Sunday, but her victory was eclipsed by a bronze medal for American Lindsey Vonn in the final race of her glittering career.
Vonn announced earlier in the week that Sunday's downhill would be her final race after several years spent battling a succession of injuries. Having crashed out spectacularly in the Super-G competition on Tuesday, Vonn was third out on the shortened course and turned back the clock to give the crowd a final glimpse of her superb skill, balance and concentration.


i took my temp. 101.6F. (normal is 97.4F) i about had a heart attack. yeah, i got my shift covered. i'm going to bed. don't look for me tonight guys. or likely tomorrow. i feel worse than crap.
Sorry you're feeling bad. Hope you get better soon!
*sends chicken soup and blankets* Feel better soon sweetie.
yeah. i'm still not sure which one it is. but at least my back isn't screaming at me as badly as it was yesterday.


text:
Australia, India virtually sign trade deal
ArticleAustraliaNewsWorld
Australia and India formally inked a trade agreement, signalling their determination to pursue closer trade ties.
Trade Minister Dan Tehan and India's Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal signed the Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement in a virtual ceremony.
The virtual event was witnessed by Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Morrison, who has been in talks with India for a decade, is set to announce a general election in the coming days. He has been eager to complete the trade pact before campaigning begins.
Morrison told reporters in Tasmania that the deal with the world's second most populous country represented "one of the biggest economic gateways that the world has to open today."
"As far as we're concerned, these are never all or nothing deals; we see all of these as the next step, the next step, and the next step," he said, stressing both countries' desire to strengthen trade ties.
After diplomatic spats led to Beijing boycotting specific Australian products, Morrison's government is attempting to diversify export markets and reduce Australia's reliance on its largest trading partner, China.
The agreement with India eliminates tariffs on more than 85% of Australia's goods exports to India, valued A$12.6 billion, with the percentage rising to nearly 91 percent over ten years.
Tariffs on sheep meat, wool, copper, coal, alumina, fresh Australian rock lobster, and a few key minerals and nonferrous metals would be eliminated for export to India.
96 percent of Indian items imported into Australia will be duty-free.
The federal government announced on Friday that both countries will continue to negotiate toward a full free trade deal.
Minister of Commerce and Industry Goyal said after the agreement was signed that India wanted to go on with a complete free trade agreement with Australia "as quickly as possible."
"As soon as this agreement takes effect, we'll go to work on the next level to turn this into a comprehensive economic cooperation," he said.
Even if the Morrison government is replaced in the 2019 national election, Trade Minister Tehan expressed confidence that negotiations will move further.
In the run-up to the general election in May, Scott Morrison is trailing in the polls.
"I have a strong belief that, regardless of who fills our seats in the future, we will be able to… build on this ground-breaking agreement," he said.
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With dynamically changing market scenarios dominating the outsourcing markets, it has become imperative to remain conversant with emergent technologies and use them for developing projects. New platforms and technologies have a lot to offer in terms of reduced development time and targeting a wider range of client-centric requirements, however, while reaping the benefits they offer, they also impose a few constraints regarding their applicability. Offshoring businesses can increase the productivity levels and generate higher profits but often face problems in finding technical teams familiar with the usage and implementation of new technologies. For most organisations, it is more profitable to find technical talent in other countries and outsource their projects depending upon the nature and scope of the project on hand.
Each method proposes to make project management easy and more accurate. Often, it is difficult to choose which method one ought to adopt for developing a project since every management technique has its own pros and cons. While a particular organisation may offer a positive feedback regarding a method it is following, consultants might consider it a bad choice and speak against it. There are no postulates or rules which define a "successful" project. Also, there are no rules which can help in deciding whether a particular methodology is more effective as compared to the other. It is based more upon personal experience, understanding how a methodology works and what it has to offer, and how well it can be implemented. Perhaps, the most important aspect to understand is whatever methodology you choose, what is more important is how well you use it to your benefit to make your project successful.
Projects may vary in terms of their scope, size, complexity, and nature. However, regardless of that, offshore or distributed teams have to be properly coordinated and managed. Agile project management framework offers several options for managing remotely developed projects.
Recommended for developing small to medium sized projects using a team of 7 to 12 cross-functional and multi-skilled individuals. The Scrum framework is characterized by its clearly defined events, artefacts, roles, and process which have to be followed by the entire team. The error correction and retrospection activities take precedence over documentation and delegation of authority. The client is actively involved in verifying the development carried out by the team. The Scrum team delivers the business value in the project through successful product increments developed through periodic cycles known as sprints.
Extreme Programming (XP) offers a practical approach to program development and focuses primarily upon the delivery of business results. It follows an incremental, start-with-something approach towards product development, and makes use of continued testing and revision processes. XP is generally recommended for short-term projects, and development teams typically follow code-test-analyse-design-integrate process. XP is known for "paired" programming i.e. two developers engaged with code development and testing simultaneously. One programmer creates the code while other tests it on the spot.
Based upon the concept of Toyota production model, Kanban offers a pragmatic approach to development by matching the actual amount of work in progress to the development teams capacity in delivering it. The framework provides more flexibility in terms of planning options, quicker output, a clear focus pertaining what needs to be developed, and maintaining total transparency throughout the product development cycle.
Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) is a structured and prescriptive method to help large organisations and enterprises to get started with adopting Agile. It is a popular and efficient Agile framework successfully used by many companies covering various industry verticals. It is specially recommended for large sized software based projects where teams can function interdependently.
Nexus is an Agile framework focusing upon cross-team dependencies and team integration issues. It facilitates Agile implementation in complex and large scale projects. It functions as an exoskeleton and helps multiple Scrum teams to integrate and pursue a common goal of delivering valuable product increments through sprints. Each team delivers a certain business value to the client through each product increment cycle, and the teams achieve this by following Agile principles and process. Nexus is recommended for development teams consisting of over 100 individuals.
While executing your very first remote project, the most logical thing to do is to document the project vision and figure out how the team will deliver the project goals. Proper and effective communication is of paramount importance while explaining the goals and objectives to team members. It is a simple and straightforward process most of the times, but while working with distributed teams, the cultural differences and varying language proficiency levels may often create constraints and lead to miscommunication as well as confusion. This can be a common scenario in case of teams located in countries across different time zones and possess limited ability to communicate using a particular language. Individuals may find it difficult to understand and capture the exact project requirements and deliver code or functionality that does not fulfil end user requirements. Projects often fail because of these and other such technical and non-technical reasons.
Using Agile it may be possible to simplify these types of problems. Agile is not a silver bullet that can rectify all issues and problems faced during project execution.Agile is a framework, therefore It depends upon how well the team understands its principles and how effectively it implements them in the project. However, the framework is designed such that issues can be dealt with in a more proactive and effectual manner.
The project vision explains the goals and project deliverables. The primary aim of the team should be to deliver work supporting the vision so meaningful business value can be delivered to the client. Often, development teams put in efforts and deliver work, but when reviewed by the client, it is discovered that the features developed don't exactly support what the client actually wants. This can be a very common scenario when teams are unclear about what the project aims to achieve and why it exists in the first place. Common reason why teams may fail to understand the vision could be language barriers (In case of distributed teams located in different countries and speaking different languages) or a lack of proper communication from the client's or management's side explaining the objectives.
Agile does not emphasize upon extensive documentation. In real life scenarios elaborate or extensive documentation often remains locked away in filing cabinets or resides on shelves for future references - teams rarely bother to read them thoroughly since they can be large in size and a lot of time is spent in reading and understanding them. The attitude of most development teams (Don't mean to disrespect them in any way) is to get started with work so deadlines can be met. Teams are generally pressed for time so they don't bother, or can't afford to spend hours reading comprehensive documentation. Paperwork is greatly reduced in Agile, and if you choose to follow Agile, you need to create just enough documentation to get started with work. More importance is given to understanding client-centric requirements and delivering business value, rather than creating elaborate reports and documents. Moreover, one of the responsibilities of the product owner in Agile is to ensure that the team understands the deliverables and project vision properly before it starts to work. The PO also makes sure that the business value delivered from the sprints is useful and matches the project vision.
Quality and deadlines are two most important factors associated with, and affecting, the success levels of a project. Quality features fulfilling end user requirements have to be developed within the decided time so it can be properly marketed and business returns availed from it. In the IT market segment it is not just important to build quality software, but to release it in the correct manner at the correct time and at the correct place (targeted market audience i.e. the geographical boundaries within which end users are likely to buy your product. With online marketing these boundaries remain virtual but nevertheless play an important part in deciding the "target audience" when the project is planned and incepted). When outsourcing work to remote teams, the quality aspects could get compromised upon if a QA or testing process in set up as a part of development process. Fewer development teams actually bother to test the code for regression after it is developed unless it is a pre-decided activity and integrated with the development process.
The Agile manifesto states "Our highest priority is to satisfy the customer through early and continuous delivery of valuable software." It emphasis upon "early and continuous delivery of valuable software" i.e. useful and valuable product features should be developed and delivered to the client on regular basis. Agile focuses upon the delivery of "shippable" features. Each feature should be properly tested for errors and made bug free before its development can be considered as complete and deployable. Developers and programmers often double as testers to carry out the QA part during sprint cycles. Agile fails if "workable" features are not developed. Remote teams trained in Agile have to fulfil the test conditions stated in the acceptance criteria defined for each development task created in the product backlog (ideally).
Every project needs a manager to oversee its execution and completion. It is important for the supervisor or the project manager to remain available to the team and resolve problems and issues as and when they occur. When teams are located on-premises it becomes easy to resolve technical problems since face-to-face interactions are possible and the manager is always available when you need him or her. That is not always the case with remote or distributed teams. Owing to time differences, the manager could be ending the day while the remote team would be just about to start with work. Teams may be required to wait for some time before problems are resolved, and this could delay work further. Deadlines and commitments may therefore not be met.
The Scrum Master's role is very clearly defined in Agile framework. The SM often plays a servant-leader role, and mentors and facilitates the Agile process. The SM ensures that he or she is always available to the team and resolves glitches whenever the team gets stuck. In Agile, the Scrum Master is a specific role played by a person, rather than a designation or responsibilities given to a single individual. The role can be played by anyone in the team. In case of distributed teams, a responsible team member can be taught to play the Proxy Scrum Master's role and provided with quick-access channels to communicate with the actual SM or PO in case of urgent issues. The person also functions as a team representative and creates daily feedback reports which can be studied by the client, PO, and the SM as per their convenience.
Traditional project management methods differentiate between senior and junior level individuals, and have a clear hierarchical structure defining authority levels and who reports to whom. Even today, most organisations still follow this traditional hierarchical model, and individuals belonging to different levels of authority remain concerned about their responsibilities and reporting status. Even though the model is organised, it takes a lot of time for issues to get resolved as the escalation process involves several individuals starting from the junior level to senior levels. Moreover, people have a tendency to "pass on" issues to senior levels personnel and let them decide what to do next. Technical staff and junior level employees may prefer not to get involved with decision making since they often become scapegoats to bureaucratic procedures. In case of distributed teams the scenario can become even worse because you don't have to deal with just bureaucratic attitudes but the language and distance factor may further make the team even less accountable for the success or failure of the project.
Agile does not believe in shifting responsibilities or escalating issues. As per the model, teams are cross-functional and self-managing. Each team member often takes up additional tasks other than his or her particular skillset thereby reducing the total numbers of skilled members required in the team. There are no senior-subordinate levels – just three primary roles of product owner, scrum master, and the development team. Rather than assigning tasks, each team member voluntarily takes up work based upon his or experience and skills. One of the most important aspect about Agile is that the team has to "own" the project on behalf of the client. It means each person is responsible not just for the work done by him or her, but the overall contribution of all members at the team level is even more important. The entire team is accountable for the success or failure of the project – not just the product owner but each and every member of the team.
Moreover, the three roles of PO, SM, and the team are empowered in Agile to decide on their own what course of action to take to best fulfil their objectives. The development team is not required to follow orders or take permissions in deciding how a particular feature should be developed, and in what manner. It has to deliver work as decided in an event – the sprint planning meeting – held before each product incremental cycle known as a sprint starts.


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The Life Without School Community Blog: Learning to Read: Did Your Child Learn to Read Differently?
Learning to Read: Did Your Child Learn to Read Differently?
Help create our Learning to Read in Our Own Way page!
Did your child learn to read without a reading program, and/or did he learn to read at a later age than is traditionally accepted? How do children learn to read? What happens to a child who learns to read "late?" How can a child learn if they can't read? Are there any benefits to delaying reading instruction? Do all children need to be instructed in reading?
We would love to hear your stories! We are especially interested in stories, personal insights and perspectives on learning to read in non-traditional ways and/or in non-traditional time frames.
A collection of personal stories, commentary and vignettes will be used to create this page called Learning to Read in Our Own Way.
When addressing the editor, specify "Learning to Read" and give your name as you would like it published.


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Baseball opens 0–2
Alex Okinaka
Baseball (0–2) dropped the first two games of their season to Springfield College (3–0) but remained competitive throughout Saturday's double-header. While this is the first game for the Ephs, the Spirits had already defeated Colby, Sawyer and Western New England University.
As the visiting team, Ephs batted first. Eric Pappas '21 started the game for the Ephs and got on base with a single. Catcher David Driscoll '22 walked two batters later to put two men on. Jakob Cohn '23 stepped up to bat soon after, with Pappas and Driscoll still on base and two outs recorded. He knocked a double to right field which brought both teammates across home plate and put the Ephs up 2-0.
In the bottom of the second, Springfield's Nick Fazio hit a single to left field and his teammate Adam Willametz followed suit with a single of his own to push Fazio to second. A sacrifice ground out on the following bat allowed both runners to advance a base. Springfield's Jack Cooney delivered with a single to center field, bringing runners home and tying the score 2-2.
The Ephs returned in the following inning to regain the lead. Pappas led off with a single, and Mike Stamas '20 delivered a double out to right field to bring Pappas home. Driscoll connected on his second at bat of the day to send Stamas to third. Despite a pitcher change on the Springfield side, Erik Mini '21 knocked a single to left field, which brought Stamas in and pushed Driscoll to second. Driscoll then stole third and was batted in by a sacrifice fly out from Cohn to put the Ephs up 5-2.
In the bottom of the sixth, Chad Shade hit a single to right field that brought Ryan Smith home and set the score at 5-3. Springfield's Jake Gleason hit a deep shot out to left field which brought home another two runs to tie the game at 5-5. Neither team scored in the remaining regular innings, which sent the game to extras. The Ephs connected on two pitches in their at bat but were unable to translate either into an on-base position. Three batters and three outs gave Springfield the opportunity to win game one in the bottom of the tenth inning.
After a brief break between games, game two of the double header kicked off around 3:30 p.m. With the travel logistics and prior playing time taken into consideration, the second game ran only seven innings.
In the top second, Billy Shea '22 recorded his first significant contact of the day with a single deep into right field. Ryan Young '22 pushed Shea to second the play with a single of his own to center field. Both batters advanced a base on a ground out in the following play.
Philip Barnett '21 reached base on a fielder's choice as the next batter which gave Springfield two of their outs, resetting the position with two runners on. Pappas' shot to left field gave Barnett and Young time to cross home and put the Ephs up 2-0.
In the bottom of the third, Springfield cut the deficit to 2-1. By the bottom of the fifth, the Spirits took their first lead of the game at 3-2.
In the sixth, Mini was walked as the first batter and then advanced to second on a teammate's groundout. Shea managed to bring him home with a single into center field to tie the score 3-3.
The next two at bats featured three batters on for each team, but no run was scored. In the bottom of the seventh, Cooney delivered a double to left field. Barrett followed suit with a deep single to the same spot which allowed Cooney to cross third and home plate. Game two went to the Spirits with a final score of 4-3.
With the first two games of a long 2020 season under their belt, the Ephs look to put the losses behind them. They will travel to Waltham, Mass. to take on Brandeis for another double header on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Alex Okinaka,


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Co Kildare based author of 'Johnny Magory' series collaborating with TV artist Don Conroy
Competition open for naming a character after your child
Irish artist, writer, naturalist and presenter Don Conroy is teaming up with Emma-Jane Leeson for the next book in the popular "Adventures of Johnny Magory" series in an effort to get children outside exploring and promoting Irish wildlife and heritage.
And they are giving you the chance to have your child's name immortalised as an animal character within the book!
In what seems like the perfect pairing of values between Don and Emma-Jane; the book "Johnny Magory and the Forest Fleadh Cheoil" will revolve around Irish woodland creatures and native Irish trees.
The purpose of the Johnny Magory Business is to get children outside exploring and connecting with nature whilst educating on Irish wildlife and heritage through their books and events. They were inspired by the old Irish rhyme "Will I tell you a story about Johnny McGory? Will I begin it, that's all that's in it!"
Don says "I'm delighted to be associated with such a talented writer as Emma-Jane, who shares the same love of nature as I do. Her enthusiasm and energy are sure to awaken in young people an enduring interest in the outdoors. It's a great pleasure for me to be working with her on her latest Johnny Magory book, bringing her characters to life in a fun and entertaining way."
EJ says "Having the opportunity to work with my childhood hero (Don) is just a dream come true. He was such an inspiration in my life growing up and played a huge role in embedding my passion for animals and the outdoors. It really is just a dream come true, I'm so excited!"
The names of the animal characters in the books have been left blank to allow children the opportunity to have their very own name featured.
To enter the competition, parents/ adults need to download a nature hunt from www.JohnnyMagory.com/Fun-Stuff/
The child or "Little Explorer" needs to get outside and collect the 5 items listed on the hunt.
Parents/ Adults then need to take a photograph of the items collected and post it on the Johnny Magory Facebook or Instagram page using the hashtag #DonAndJohnnyMagory
There are seven animal names up for grabs and winners will be drawn every third day on the Johnny Magory Facebook and Instagram channels, starting Sunday 9 June. Competition closes Thursday 27 June at 12:00 noon.
There are three books to date in the Adventures of Johnny Magory series which were all inspired by the author's home-place of rural County Kildare.
Emma-Jane (EJ) is an advocate for creating a cultural change and directing children away from screens and back outside.
"I had the best childhood ever!" she says, "always outside exploring and imagining I was on wild adventures! I wanted to ensure my children had the same upbringing and knew all about the wonder of nature all around them. That's why I wrote the stories; to encourage children everywhere to get outside using their imaginations".
Don Conroy secured his place in the hearts of Irish children and their parents throughout his time on "The Den". His regular and much loved "Draw with Don" slot had children the length and breath of Ireland drawing animals of all shapes and sizes. Don earned the title of longest serving member of "The Den" team on the cult RTÉ show having appeared since it's beginning in 1986.
The idea for animals having a Fleadh Cheoil was inspired by EJ's love of music, especially traditional Irish music having played tin-whistle and fiddle for many years. The Fleadh is a key piece of Irish heritage that EJ want's to document and raise awareness about it through her books.
The book "Johnny Magory and the Forest Fleadh Cheoil" will be launched in August 2019.


The groundwork for meaning, purpose, and motivation in life and work.
The Meaning, Set, Go! (Meaningful Purpose) Workshop is a two-day learning experience where participants learn how to spend their waking lives doing things they love to do, at places and with people they enjoy being with. During the workshop you will explore meaning from several perspectives including individual meaning, relational meaning, meaning at work, and shared meaning; and why meanings matter. Throughout the workshop learners will be encouraged to individually reflect on the various roles meaning plays throughout daily life, and how they can make significant improvements in personal and professional settings..
find the right kind of motivation to be successful in what they set out to do.
These questions are just some that many of us have and can address through understanding more about meaning, purpose, and motivation. These are the three tenants of this workshop, which will teach participants to better understand the relationship that meaning, purpose, and motivation have with each other, and on the various elements of their work and lives.
How does "meaning" give a competitive edge in a business setting?
The Meaningful Purpose Workshop is based on the work of Luis A. Marrero, author of the book The Path to a Meaningful Purpose: Psychological Foundations of Logoteleology. Through this work Luis brings his extensive experience working in corporate environments and executive coaching to help individuals, teams, and organizations be more meaning-centered in their work; and to realize the potential that a meaning-aware employee, employer, and the organization overall brings to a corporate culture. The impact of this approach is something that extends not only to engagement and motivation of individuals, but can lead to a more favorable market view and competitive edge.
What is meaning? What is meaningful? What is meaningless?
Planned for September 8 and 9 in Mexico City: Club Campestre de la Ciudad de Mexico, Calzada de Tlapan 1978, Col. Country Club, CP. 04220, Delegacion Coyoacan, Mexico D.F. (Tel:  5484-2400).
Facilitated in Spanish by Daniela Soto, and Luis A. Marrero, M.A., RODP, LLP, CEO Boston Institute for Meaningful Purpose, Deputy Chairman of the Board and Editor of the International Network for Personal Meaning (INPM) Newsletter, and co-founder of the INPM Meaningful Work Division. Luis is also a member of the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA), co-founder of the Work & Organization Division (WOD), and IPPA/WOD Lead Chair of the Membership and Relations Committee.


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of Kostanay region
Sing Up Login
Information about the region
Legeslation
Business Development Institutes
About land plots
Information for a comfortable stay in the region
Industrial zone
info@investinkostanay.kz
Kostanay and Minsk discussed prospects for cooperation
The delegation of the Kostanay region, headed by the deputy akim of the region М.Myrzaliev with a working visit is in the city of Minsk (Republic of Belarus).
Deputy Director of the HTP - Martinkevich Alexander Mikhailovich and the Director of the Office of International Cooperation of the HTP - Kirill Zalessky.
According to the Park management, more than 1 billion people in 193 countries around the world use mobile applications developed by resident HTP companies. Five of the ten largest global corporations (according to Forbes ratings) are HTP customers.
It is also noteworthy that the Park has developed a computer game that entered Top-5 of the most profitable multiplayer games in the world - World of Tanks and the world-famous Viber messenger. Moreover, almost every year the company has an "success story" to implement the project.
In general, 91% of the software produced in the Park is exported (43.2% is supplied to the USA, 49.1% to the countries of Western Europe, 5.3% to Russia and the CIS). In monetary terms, in 2017, the export of manufactured products amounted to more than 1 billion US dollars. On the success of activities in the implementation of IT projects, such companies as Gartner, Wall Street Journal and others call it the Belarusian silicon valley.
During the meeting, the sides discussed cooperation in specific areas of the implementation of the state program "Digital Kazakhstan", including increasing computer literacy of the population, introducing SmartCity technologies, including digitalization of the security, education and health sectors, as well as digitization of agriculture.
Following the meeting, the parties reached an agreement on the implementation of joint activities in the above areas.
In the afternoon, a meeting was held with the Deputy Chairman of the Minsk City Executive Committee (Minsk City Executive Committee) Krekov Alexander Petrovich and heads of structural divisions. The parties presented information on the socio-economic development of their regions, and discussed possible areas of mutually beneficial cooperation.
There were discussed such areas as the implementation of joint investment projects, in particular the creation of an assembly production of MTZ tractors on the territory of the Kostanay region, holding joint events and the exchange of experience in the fields of education and tourism. Also, the Belarusian side is interested in the possibility of organizing the supply of durum wheat from Kostanay region.
All the issues discussed in the near future will be recorded in the road map for the implementation of cooperation of the Kostanay region and the city of Minsk. The Belarusian side was invited to visit Kostanay region with a return visit.
Что ждет костанайское машиностроение в новом году? Об этом аким области говорил с представителями местных компаний
Депутаты областного маслихата утвердили два важных проекта, которые будут определять развитие региона на ближайшие годы
В преддверии Дня работников сельского хозяйства аким Костанайской области провел совещание, на котором подвели итоги текущего сезона
Investment portal of Kostanay region
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Leather make up kit offer secure storage for an array of jewelry, perfumes and body oil. Their uses may be perceived to be not as major as other items around the office, however if they are missed out, insufficiency will certainly be felt. They feature removable compartments, making it simple to customize the interior to accommodate your jewelry storage needs. Our custom leather make up kit bring a refined look to your vanity while offering loads of storage and organization for your necklaces, rings, watches, and more. Removable compartments offer added advantage and give you room for storing a variety of items. Make a statement while organizing your jewelry with leather jewelry boxes. If you're looking for Jewelry Boxes for sale online, Petcarl-Décor has what you are looking for. We sell quality leather make up kit at prices that all clients can pay for without struggling. Petcarl-Decor is ranked amongst the most trusted shops that sell quality and durable Makeup Kits. This product is made of leather. It helps to keep all the jewelries, accessories, bangles, Rings, in one organized kit.


Tax benefits change year to year but there are always some deductions for students and their parents. We are not income tax experts, please check with your tax professional before filing. This article is intended as a guideline only.
Hope Scholarship This is actually a tax credit, not a scholarship. The credit is subtracted from the amount of tax you actually owe, not your income. You cannot get a refund of this credit, it can only be deducted from the amount you owe. The amount of the credit depends on several factors such as income, cost of tuition and fees, and the amount of certain scholarships received. To receive this credit you need a form 1098-T from the school which is used to fill out IRS form 8863. Your 1098-T form should include contact information for someone at your school who can help you with questions or filling out the form. You can only claim this credit for two years of schooling.
Lifetime Learning Tax Credit This is also a credit, deducted from the amount of taxes you owe as opposed to a refund. The credit is run pretty much the same as the Hope Scholarship, it uses the same 1098-T and IRS form 8863. The only difference is it is not limited to 2 years.
The Tuition and Fees Tax Deduction This is an income deduction that you can use even if you do not itemize. You may deduct up to $4000.00 of tuition and fees, no other expenses are eligible. These must be fees you actually paid, no tuition or fees paid by tax-free scholarships, grants or any other assistance are eligible. There was a last minute extension by congress to allow this deduction this year so it is not properly printed on the tax forms. People claiming this deduction are encouraged to e-file because it has been added to the IRS software, otherwise you must follow special instructions to make sure the form is filled out properly. You will need a form 1098-T from your school and a 1040 tax form.
Interest deduction You can deduct up to $2500.00 of interest paid on student loans, provided it is not deducted somewhere else on your return.
Remember these benefits and amounts change year to year so make sure you have current information when filing your taxes!
Federal Education Services is a company that specializes in federal student loan consolidation, Stafford loan origination, PLUS and Graduate PLUS loan origination and as a resource for students with questions regarding educational financing. For any questions regarding this article please contact Federal Education Services. A friendly loan specialist can be reached at (877) 222-4727 or you can find us on the web at www.feded.net.


One News Page > Entertainment News > Kristen Stewart, Noah Centineo & Co-Stars Begin Filming 'Charlie's Angels' - First Set Photos!
In Sony's new "Charlie's Angels," Kristen Steward, Naomi Scott, and Ella Balinska team up to fight crime.
Kristen Stewart, Naomi Scott and Ella Balinska have taken up the roles of "Charlie's Angels." Some of the first photos of the upcoming film were released and show a fierce trio of women. One..
Elizabeth Banks always wanted Kristen Stewart for Charlie's Angels The 45-year-old star has directed and co-written the reboot of the famous franchise and she always knew that she wanted the 'Twilight'..
HAPPY BIRTHDAY Kristen Jaymes Stewart was born on April 9, 1990, and turns 29. She was born in Los Angeles, California. The actress made herself known after starring in the 2002 thriller, 'Panic..
On the 9th April Kristen Stewart celebrates her birthday!
Uproxx reports a 'Masters of the Universe' film, based on the 1980s cartoon, is in the works! And the film may star Noah Centineo as He-Man! The young actor debuted in Netflix's 'To All the..


Our ideas for rattan furniture for the garden and terrace provide an aesthetic any outdoor space. Create a beautiful oasis and enjoy the warm summer days in an environment of natural and fresh!
The material of rattan furniture for the garden and terrace and is of high quality and perfect finish rattan leads to great pieces of artwork that you can use as an unusual accent in the garden. The natural look is obvious. Different forms are easy to create and shades selection diversified. Unfortunately, this furniture is not waterproof, rain and sun acting on the state of the substance, so you should do this in the winter rather keep inside. Proper maintenance is important here, if you want to look to the future this furniture in the long term. Discover our original ideas for you!
Rattan furniture for garden and terrace are comfortable and offer real comfort. We invite everyone to sit down and rest. They give the impression of timelessness and helps you to relax and reduce the stress of everyday life. The exotic appearance makes you feel like in the jungle or in a tropical paradise. With good company and a few cocktails there will be a short stay can enjoy right in front of your home. Now a fantastic outdoor equipment is yours. Chairs, tables, sofas, coffee tables or chairs - it is possible to produce every piece of rattan furniture. Remember that comfort also depends on the thought of the pillow. Choose a reason padding in high-quality materials.


In BUKEYE Commune, the Association for the Development of Horticulturists has paid visit farmers in their field and farmers have a problem about disease of Japanese plums. The pictures show the symptoms of disease. The president of an Association for the Development gives some advises to farmers of Japanese plums how to avoid the disease propagation. A picking of the fruits from the attacked plant is a major way to facilitate a disease to be developed. When the horticulturists prepare a plantation nursery with the attacked seed, it's probably to observe those kinds of symptoms. In Burundi, horticulturists have other major problem to find improved seed of Japanese plums.