text:
WTHR - Special prom for Riley Hospital kids - 13 WTHR Indianapolis - WTHR
Special prom for Riley Hospital kids
Special prom for Riley Hospital kids | 13 WTHR Indianapolis
Jennie Runevitch
Published: May 4th, 2012 - 10:51pm (EDT)
Updated: Apr 14th, 2016 - 11:22pm (EDT)
It was a special evening for hundreds of young cancer patients at Riley Hospital for Children at IU Health, for the third annual Riley Cancer Center Prom.
For one night, they have music and dancing and fun, all the excitement of prom.
At Riley Hospital for Children, it's a chance for families used to hospital rooms to forget about chemo and cancer and celebrate life.
Four-year-old Bella Clevenger has ALL, a form of leukemia.
But at the prom, she's just a little girl having the time of her life.
Bella spent most of the night on the dance floor with her younger brother.
"She's gone through so much that this is really what she needed," Bella's mom Kady Clevenger said. "To see them that happy and have them laughing and those two playing together, it hasn't been that way since she was diagnosed."
All of the children got dressed up and decked out with pampering from head to toe even before the big dance.
"The hospital has 'Promingdales', which you get to pick your dress and they treat you like princesses," explained Riley patient Maddy Justice. "This was the first one I picked and I liked it because it was colorful and sparkly."
13-year-old Maddy, who is battling acute myloid leukemia, will receive a bone marrow transplant from her sister this summer.
Friday night, they were a perfect match on the dance floor too.
"It means so much," said Maddy's mom Marizel Justice, "to get away and to do something that's exciting and fun. She and her sister have been looking forward to this all day."
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"I love this because after being stuck in the hospital for so long, it's good to get away from it and feel like normal again, and not like a hospital patient," Maddy added.
Because at the prom, at least for a little while, cancer doesn't exist.
Donations and money raised through the Riley Children's Foundation pay for the annual prom, making for a night the patients say they never forget.


text:
Marks ou Marx (en  / ) est une ville de l'oblast de Saratov, en Russie, et le centre administratif du raïon de Marks. Sa population s'élevait à  habitants en 2013.

Géographie
Marx est située sur la rive gauche de la Volga, à  au nord-est de Saratov et à  au sud-est de Moscou. Marx et Engels, située plus en aval sur la rive gauche du fleuve, sont éloignées d'environ  à vol d'oiseau.

Histoire
L'origine de la ville est une colonie allemande, nommée Baronsk, fondée en 1767 par des Allemands du Brabant (aujourd'hui en Belgique). Elle fut rebaptisée Iekaterinenstadt, en l'honneur de Catherine II. En 1918, le statut de ville lui fut accordé et en 1920 elle fut renommée Marxstadt, en hommage à Karl Marx. En 1941, lors de la russification des noms allemands ordonnée par Staline, Marxstadt devient Marks ou Marx. Un grand nombre de ses habitants sont déportés au début de la Grande Guerre patriotique (1941-1945) par Staline au Kazakhstan ou au Kirghizstan et sont remplacés par des Russes ou des représentants d'autres ethnies. Certains Allemands reviennent ici après la déstalinisation. Un nombre important des Allemands de la Volga ont émigré en Allemagne au cours des années 1990.

Population
Recensements (*) ou estimations de la population

Économie
Dans la ville existent deux grandes entreprises : les usines Volgadizelapparat (en ), qui fabrique des pièces pour moteurs diesel, et Agat (). Il y a également des usines de fabrication de beurre et de fromages et une brasserie.

Patrimoine
 Église du Christ-Roi de Marx (catholique)
 Église luthérienne
 Ancien lycée de jeunes filles

Personnalités
 Küf Kaufmann (°1947) : metteur en scène et auteur allemand
 Hugo Wormsbecher (°1938) : auteur russe germanophone d'origine allemande, porte-parole des Allemands de la Volga

Notes et références

Liens externes

   Informations sur Marks
  Cartes topographiques

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
<?php

namespace app\models;

use Yii;
use yii\base\Model;
use yii\base\Exception;
use yii\helpers\Json;
use app\helpers\ErrorHelper;
use app\models\CttArticles;
use app\models\CttStaticdataLanguages;
use app\models\CttStaticdataReferences;
use app\models\CttStaticdataDocumenttypes;
use app\models\CttStaticdataDocsources;
use app\models\CttStaticdataOrganizations;
use app\models\CttStaticdataAffiliations;
use app\models\CttAuthors;
use app\models\CttJournals;
use app\models\CttIssues;
use app\models\CttArticleAuthors;
use app\models\CttArticleDocsources;

/**
 * ArticleImporter is the model behind the login form.
 */
class ArticleImporter extends Model
{
    public $id;
    public $lang_id;
    public $documenttype_id;
    public $docsource_id;
    public $title_en;
    // public $abbrev_title_en;
    public $title_local;
    // public $abbrev_title_local;
    public $author_keyword_en;
    public $author_keyword_local;
    public $abstract_en;
    public $abstract_local;
    public $authors;
    public $authors_string;
    public $doi;
    public $link;
    public $funding;
    // public $correspondence;
    public $sponsors;
    public $codenid;
    public $pubmedid;
    public $subjectarea_class;
    public $journal_id;
    public $issue_id;
    public $year;
    public $volume;
    public $year_no;
    public $artnumber;
    public $page_start;
    public $page_end;
    public $page_count;
    public $created_by;

    /**
     * @return array the validation rules.
     */
    public function rules()
    {
        return [
                [['id',
                    'lang_id',
                    'documenttype_id',
                    'docsource_id',
                    'title_en',
                    // 'abbrev_title_en',
                    'author_keyword_en',
                    'abstract_en',
                    'title_local',
                    'journal_id',
                    'issue_id'], 'required'],
                [['id',
                    'lang_id',
                    'documenttype_id',
                    'docsource_id',
                    'journal_id',
                    'issue_id',
                    'year',
                    'volume',
                    'year_no',
                    'artnumber',
                    'page_start',
                    'page_end',
                    'page_count',
                    'codenid',
                    'pubmedid'], 'integer'],
                [['title_en',
                    'title_local',
                    // 'abbrev_title_en',
                    // 'abbrev_title_local',
                    'author_keyword_en',
                    'author_keyword_local',
                    'abstract_en',
                    'abstract_local',
                    'abstract_fulltext',
                    'author_keyword',
                    'auto_keyword',
                    'doi',
                    'link',
                    'funding',
                    // 'correspondence',
                    'sponsors',
                    'authors',
                    'subjectarea_class',
                    'created_by'], 'string'],
            ];
    }

    public function attributeLabels()
    {
        return [
            'id' => Yii::t('app/backend', 'ID'),
            'lang_id' => Yii::t('app/article_importer', 'Local Language'),
            'documenttype_id' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Documenttype'),
            'docsource_id' => Yii::t('app/article_importer', 'Docsource'),
            'title_en' => Yii::t('app/article_importer', 'Title En'),
            // 'abbrev_title_en' => Yii::t('app/article_importer', 'Abbrev Title En'),
            'title_local' => Yii::t('app/article_importer', 'Title Local'),
            // 'abbrev_title_local' => Yii::t('app/article_importer', 'Abbrev Title Local'),
            'author_keyword_en' => Yii::t('app/article_importer', 'Author Keyword En'),
            'author_keyword_local' => Yii::t('app/article_importer', 'Author Keyword Local'),
            'abstract_en' => Yii::t('app/article_importer', 'Abstract En'),
            'abstract_local' => Yii::t('app/article_importer', 'Abstract Local'),
            'authors' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Authors'),
            'doi' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Doi'),
            'link' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Link'),
            'funding' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Funding'),
            // 'correspondence' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Correspondence'),
            'sponsors' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Sponsors'),
            'codenid' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Codenid'),
            'pubmedid' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Pubmedid'),
            'subjectarea_class' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Subjectarea Class'),
            'journal_id' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Journal'),
            'issue_id' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Issue ID'),
            'year' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Year'),
            'volume' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Volume'),
            'year_no' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'No'),
            'artnumber' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Artnumber'),
            'page_start' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Page Start'),
            'page_end' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Page End'),
            'page_count' => Yii::t('app/ctt_article', 'Page Count'),
            'created_by' => Yii::t('app/backend', 'Created By'),
        ];
    }

    public function saveData()
    {
        try {
            if ($this->title_en &&
                // $this->abbrev_title_en &&
                $this->author_keyword_en &&
                $this->abstract_en) {
                $this->saveDataByLange('en');
            } else {
                // TODO: Need to validate from frontend
                throw new Exception('\"Title EN\", \"Author Keyword En\", \"Abstract En\": can\'t be blank.');
            }
            if ($this->title_local &&
                // $this->abbrev_title_local &&
                $this->author_keyword_local &&
                $this->abstract_local) {
                $this->saveDataByLange('local');
            }

            return true;
        } catch (Exception $e) {
            throw new Exception($e->getMessage());
            return false;
        }
    }

    /**
    * The workflow for this function will add the data into these tables
    *   - ctt_articles
    *   - ctt_authors
    *       -- ctt_staticdata_affiliations
    *       -- ctt_staticdata_organizations
    *   - ctt_issues
    *   - CttArticleDocsources
    * By the first this function will search the old data by the data that user inpu
    * If these data doesn't match with old data. this function will insert the new record and use it.
    */
    public function saveDataByLange($lang)
    {
        $cttArticle = new CttArticles();
        if (empty($this->id)) {
           $this->id = $cttArticle->getId();
        }
        $cttArticle->id = $this->id;
        if ($lang == 'en') {
            // TODO: Getting this data from database directly
            $lang_id = 1;
        } else if ($lang == 'local') {
            $lang_id = $this->lang_id;
        }
        $cttArticle->lang_id = $lang_id;
        $cttArticle->lang = CttStaticdataLanguages::findOne($this->lang_id)->name;
        $cttArticle->documenttype_id = $this->documenttype_id;
        $cttArticle->documenttype =CttStaticdataDocumenttypes::findOne($this->documenttype_id)->name;
        if ($lang == 'en') {
            $cttArticle->title = $this->title_en;
            // $cttArticle->abbrev_title = $this->abbrev_title_en;
            $cttArticle->author_keyword = $this->author_keyword_en;
            $cttArticle->abstract = $this->abstract_en;
        } else if ($lang == 'local') {
            $cttArticle->title = $this->title_local;
            // $cttArticle->abbrev_title = $this->abbrev_title_local;
            $cttArticle->author_keyword = $this->author_keyword_local;
            $cttArticle->abstract = $this->abstract_local;
        }
        $cttArticle->doi = $this->doi;
        $cttArticle->link = $this->link;
        $cttArticle->funding = $this->funding;
        // $cttArticle->correspondence = $this->correspondence;
        $cttArticle->sponsors = $this->sponsors;
        $cttArticle->codenid = $this->codenid;
        $cttArticle->pubmedid = $this->pubmedid;
        $cttArticle->subjectarea_class = $this->subjectarea_class;
        $cttArticle->journal_id = $this->journal_id;
        $cttArticle->journal = CttJournals::findOne($this->journal_id)->name;
        // Insert to CttIssue
        if (empty($this->issue_id)) {
            $checkCttIssues = $this->checkCttIssues();
            $this->issue_id = $checkCttIssues->id;
            $this->year = $checkCttIssues->year;
            // $this->year_no = $checkCttIssues->year_no;
            $this->volume = $checkCttIssues->volume;
        }
        $cttArticle->issue_id = $this->issue_id;
        $cttArticle->year = $this->year;
        $cttArticle->volume = $this->volume;
        //$cttArticle->year_no = $this->year_no;
        // Insert to CttIssue
        $cttArticle->artnumber = $this->artnumber;
        $cttArticle->page_start = $this->page_start;
        $cttArticle->page_end = $this->page_end;
        $cttArticle->page_count = $this->page_count;
        $cttArticle->created_by = $this->created_by;
        $cttArticle->modified_by = $this->created_by;
        if (!$cttArticle->save()) {
            ErrorHelper::throwActiveRecordError($cttArticle->errors);
        }

        // CttAuthors
        // Need to produce after save ctt_articles
        // because error CONSTRAINT `fk_ctt_article_authors_ctt_articles1`.
        if (empty($this->authors_string)) {
            $tmpAuthors = [];
            foreach ($this->authors['name'] as $key => $value) {
                $tmpData = [
                            'main_author' => $this->authors['main_author'][$key],
                            'name' => $this->authors['name'][$key],
                            'organization' => isset($this->authors['organization'][$key])? $this->authors['organization'][$key]: ''
                            ];
                $checkCttAuthors = $this->checkCttAuthors($tmpData, $lang_id);

                // ctt_article_authors
                $cttArticleAuthors = new CttArticleAuthors();
                $cttArticleAuthors->article_id = $this->id;
                $cttArticleAuthors->author_id = $checkCttAuthors->id;
                $cttArticleAuthors->authortype_id = $tmpData['main_author'];
                $cttArticleAuthors->created_by = $this->created_by;
                $cttArticleAuthors->modified_by = $this->created_by;
                if (!$cttArticleAuthors->save()) {
                    ErrorHelper::throwActiveRecordError($cttArticleAuthors->errors);
                }
                /* ************************** */

                // format of the author field
                // [
                //     {"382":{"name":"Harnbunchong, A.", "authortype_id":"20"}},
                //     {"383":{"name":"Jaroensri, S.", "authortype_id":"20"}},
                //     {"384":{"name":"Sinchermsiri, D.", "authortype_id":"20"}}
                // ]
                array_push($tmpAuthors, [
                            $checkCttAuthors->id => [
                                'name' => $checkCttAuthors->fname,
                                'authortype_id' => $cttArticleAuthors->authortype_id
                            ]
                        ]);
            }
            $this->authors_string = Json::encode($tmpAuthors);
        }
        $cttArticle = CttArticles::findOne($this->id);
        $cttArticle->authors = $this->authors_string;
        if (!$cttArticle->save()) {
            ErrorHelper::throwActiveRecordError($cttArticle->errors);
        }
        /* ********************* */

        // CttArticleDocsources
        // field docsource_id, docsource ใน table artcle ก็ไม่ต้องเอาอะไรลงไป ให้มา insert ที่ table ctt_article_docsources แทน
        foreach ($this->docsource_id as $key => $value) {
            $cttArticleDocsources = new CttArticleDocsources();
            $cttArticleDocsources->article_id = $cttArticle->id;
            $cttArticleDocsources->docsource_id = $value;
            $cttArticleDocsources->created_by = $this->created_by;
            if (!$cttArticleDocsources->save()) {
                ErrorHelper::throwActiveRecordError($cttArticleDocsources->errors);
            }
        }
        /* ********************* */

        //**** Insert to CttStaticdataReferences
    }

    private function checkCttIssues()
    {
        $cttIssues = CttIssues::find()->where(['year' => $this->year, 'volume' => $this->volume])->all();
        if (empty($cttIssues)) {
            $cttIssues = new CttIssues();
            $cttIssues->id = $cttIssues->getId();
            $cttIssues->journal_id = $this->journal_id;
            $cttIssues->year = $this->year;
            $cttIssues->year_no = $this->year_no;
            $cttIssues->volume = $this->volume;
            // TODO:: Need to re-factor to pull properly the status data
            $cttIssues->status = 'A';
            $cttIssues->created_by = $this->created_by;
            $cttIssues->modified_by = $this->created_by;

            if (!$cttIssues->save()) {
                ErrorHelper::throwActiveRecordError($cttIssues->errors);
            }
        }

        return $cttIssues;
    }

    private function checkCttAuthors($data, $lang_id)
    {
        $cttAuthors = CttAuthors::find()->where(['fname' => $data['name']])->all();
        if (empty($cttIssues)) {
            $cttAuthors = new CttAuthors();
            $cttAuthors->id = $cttAuthors->getId();
            $cttAuthors->lang_id = $lang_id;
            $cttAuthors->fname = $data['name'];
            // checkCttStaticdataOrganizations
            $cttStaticdataOrganizations = CttStaticdataOrganizations::findOne($data['organization']);
            $organization_id = '';
            $affiliation_id = '';
            if (!empty($cttStaticdataOrganizations)) {
                $organization_id = $cttStaticdataOrganizations->id;
                $affiliation_id = $cttStaticdataOrganizations->affiliation_id;
            }
            $cttAuthors->organization_id = $organization_id;
            // checkCttStaticdataOrganizations
            // CttStaticdataAffiliations
            $cttAuthors->affiliation_id = $affiliation_id;
            // CttStaticdataAffiliations
            // TODO:: Need to re-factor to pull properly the status data
            $cttAuthors->status = 'A';
            $cttAuthors->created_by = $this->created_by;
            $cttAuthors->modified_by = $this->created_by;

            if (!$cttAuthors->save()) {
                ErrorHelper::throwActiveRecordError($cttAuthors->errors);
            }
        }

        return $cttAuthors;
    }

    private function checkCttStaticdataAffiliations($name, $lang_id)
    {
        $cttStaticdataAffiliations = CttStaticdataAffiliations::find()->where(['name' => $name])->all();
        if (empty($cttStaticdataAffiliations)) {
            $cttStaticdataAffiliations = new CttStaticdataAffiliations();
            $cttStaticdataAffiliations->lang_id = $lang_id;
            $cttStaticdataAffiliations->name = $name;
            // TODO:: Need to re-factor to pull properly the status data
            $cttStaticdataAffiliations->status = 'A';
            $cttStaticdataAffiliations->created_by = $this->created_by;
            $cttStaticdataAffiliations->modified_by = $this->created_by;
            $cttStaticdataAffiliations->id = $cttStaticdataAffiliations->getId();

            if (!$cttStaticdataAffiliations->save()) {
                ErrorHelper::throwActiveRecordError($cttStaticdataAffiliations->errors);
            }
        }

        return $cttStaticdataAffiliations;
    }

    private function checkCttStaticdataOrganizations($affiliation_id, $name, $lang_id)
    {
        $cttStaticdataOrganizations = CttStaticdataOrganizations::find()->where(['name' => $name])->all();
        if (empty($cttStaticdataOrganizations)) {
            $cttStaticdataOrganizations = new CttStaticdataOrganizations();
            $cttStaticdataOrganizations->lang_id = $lang_id;
            $cttStaticdataOrganizations->name = $name;
            $cttStaticdataOrganizations->affiliation_id = $affiliation_id;
            // TODO:: Need to re-factor to pull properly the status data
            $cttStaticdataOrganizations->status = 'A';
            $cttStaticdataOrganizations->created_by = $this->created_by;
            $cttStaticdataOrganizations->modified_by = $this->created_by;
            $cttStaticdataOrganizations->id = $cttStaticdataOrganizations->getId();

            if (!$cttStaticdataOrganizations->save()) {
                ErrorHelper::throwActiveRecordError($cttStaticdataOrganizations->errors);
            }
        }

        return $cttStaticdataOrganizations;
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Home Rugby Russia Qualify For Rugby World Cup As Spain, Romania And Belgium Disqualified
Russia Qualify For Rugby World Cup As Spain, Romania And Belgium Disqualified
Chris Kelleher May 15, 2018
Russia have been awarded a place at the 2019 World Cup in Japan after World Rugby sensationally disqualified Spain, Romania and Belgium, the rugby union international governing body said on Tuesday.
Russia had finished third in European qualifying for the World Cup but head to the tournament after Romania, who originally won the section, second-placed Spain and fourth-placed Belgium were all docked points for fielding ineligible players.
"World Rugby notes the outcome of the independent disputes committee review into matters relating to the 2017 and 2018 Rugby Europe Championship, competitions that doubled as a Rugby World Cup 2019 qualification event," said a statement issued on Tuesday.
"In line with the decision, Russia will qualify for Rugby World Cup 2019 as Europe 1, joining Ireland, Scotland, Japan and the play-off winner in Pool A, while Germany will progress to the European play-off with Portugal, subject to the appeals process."
The controversy kicked off when Spain's rugby federation (FER) demanded a rematch of their loss to Belgium, which ultimately allowed Romania to qualify at their expense for next year's showpiece in Japan.
World Rugby set up a disputes committee to examine Spain's complaints.
But instead of vilifying the Spaniards, the committee revealed that Spain, Belgium and Romania had all fielded ineligible players during qualifying matches for the World Cup.
Subsequently, Spain were docked 40 points with Romania and Belgium penalised 30 each — five points for every match in which an ineligible player appeared.
It meant that Russia won the group despite winning only half of their eight qualification matches, while Germany who lost six of theirs, were second and head into the play-offs.
All three sanctioned teams were fined from £50,000 to £125,000.
World Rugby said it is "extremely disappointed with the unfortunate and avoidable events" and added: "Regulation 8 covering eligibility is essential to maintaining the unique characteristics and culture of elite competitions between unions, and the integrity of international matches depends on strict adherence to eligibility criteria set out in the regulation.
"The committee's decision and findings clearly demonstrate issues with the processes adopted by some of the participating unions relating to the eligibility of players as well as the delivery and organisation of the Rugby Europe Championship."
jd/bc
© Agence France-Presse (additional edits from Chris Kelleher)
Rugby rugby news rugby world cup	2018-05-15
Chris Kelleher
About Chris Kelleher
Student whose interests lie in sports ranging from Darts to MMA, with the likes of Golf, Boxing and Soccer in between. Closet wrestling fan and a lover of sports psychology and stiff jabs.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Young people memorizing poetry from the cannon, rehearsing the presentation of the poem with just the right amount of emotion to capture the poem's intent, perfect dramatic pauses to draw the listener in but finding a well-tuned balance, not too much emoting to distract from the words and images the poem evokes.
These students are the conduits of the heart of poetry, keeping the beauty of the oral tradition of the craft vibrantly alive.
Last year it was an honor to be invited to be a judge for this event and my response was an eager yes when invited back again this year.
The Barbara and Art Culver Center for the Arts in Riverside should have been packed because the students' presentations were impeccable. As a matter of fact, Jackson Dean, the young man in the center of the photo (to the right) won the competition. According to Patrick Brien's January 31st article in the Press Enterprise, Jackson Dean will be in Sacramento March 18-19 for the state competi-tion. It is my hope that he will garner first place there as well.


text:
"Call me Galib": Navigating Gender as a Local Humanitarian Aid Worker
Jan 10, 2019 Posted in	CAORC, Fellows, Profile	Tagged with	fellowship, gender studies, refugee studies, Syrian refugees
Rawan Arar was a pre-doctoral ACOR-CAORC Fellow for the spring of 2018. She earned a Ph.D. in sociology at the University of California San Diego soon after the fellowship, and she is currently a postdoctoral fellow at the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs at Brown University. Rawan's research contributes to scholarly debates about states, rights, and theories of international immigration. She critiques global inequality and studies the interrelated politics between states.
Informal tented settlement (2016). All photos courtesy of the author.
Jordanian aid workers were indispensable to the humanitarian response as hundreds of thousands of refugees entered Jordan after the start of the Syrian conflict. Unlike many members of the international humanitarian staff, Jordanian aid workers could communicate directly with refugees. They shared cultural and religious norms with Syrians and, most importantly, spoke the same language. Interactions between Jordanian aid workers and Syrian refugees reflect the daily experiences of displacement and refuge. Still, predominant narratives about the Syrian refugee crisis neglect quotidian life, and instead, focus on the scale and scope of displacement. The study of Jordanian aid workers has fallen outside the scope of scholarly or journalistic analyses (for an exception, see former ACOR-CAORC fellow Patricia Ward's forthcoming dissertation).
In this essay, I describe the experiences of one Jordanian aid worker named Galya. Galya was drawn to humanitarian work because she saw an opportunity to do something good in the world. Humanitarian work seemed exciting and important to her, even patriotic and Islamic. But with an unemployment rate around 40% among Jordanian youth, any job with the opportunity for advancement would have been appealing. Like many Jordanian women who have entered the humanitarian workforce, Galya has experienced new physical and emotional demands. Aid work has become a space in which she negotiates gender norms and confronts gendered expectations.
Dressing the Part
I met Galya in 2014 at a Starbucks on the affluent side of Amman. We didn't order anything, but instead, sat in the dimly lit coffee shop talking about refugee aid. Galya has long dark hair that she often swept off her shoulders into a high messy bun. She wears little makeup, save for her signature black eyeliner, which is thick and winged at the edges. At the time, Galya had just started a new job in Za'atari refugee camp. She worked to connect Syrian refugees with social workers, health care providers, and protection officers. Her gregarious demeanor and ability to trouble-shoot made her a natural for the job.
Galya and I spent a lot of time together over the past four years. When I began to visit refugee camps with her, she gave me advice on how to dress. "See how my shirt covers my butt?" she asked me. Galya always wore jeans and long, baggy shirts with sleeves to her elbows despite the oppressive summer heat. Clothing served a dual purpose for Galya: it protected her from unwelcomed stares in the camps and was her way of showing respect to a conservative community.
Despite the cultural and religious similarities among Syrians and Jordanians – those that were especially stark compared to members of the international staff – there were also some notable differences. When I asked Galya why she always wore her hair up, she explained that one day a little boy in Za'atari followed her around the camp with a pair of scissors. Someone instructed him to cut off Galya's long hair, claiming it was awra, an intimate part of a woman's body that should be covered to avoid sexual attention. Galya is a Muslim woman. She fasts during Ramadan and turns to prayer when times are tough. Still, it was clear that Galya's practice of Islam differed from some of the refugees she served.
The story about the little boy with scissors was an outlier. Galya often built upon shared Islamic beliefs and values to establish rapport with refugees and provide counsel. I watched Galya invoke Quranic verses to comfort grieving refugees and, in an extreme case, make a promise to reunite a refugee man with his child with God as her witness.
Navigating Gendered Expectations
Galya was promoted within her international aid organization, and with this responsibility came increased travel throughout Jordan. She began to serve refugees in informal tented settlements (ITS), which are informal refugee camps comprised of small Bedouin-like communities living in tents. Families and their extended relatives usually live together in these camps, which are often established next to Jordanian farmlands. ITS residents are nomadic. People follow seasonal farm work, often traveling from the south of Jordan to the north. But, a nomadic life in exile has several challenges. Syrian families often forego access to resources, including education, that may otherwise be readily available to urban-dwelling refugees and those who live in formalized camps. Farmlands are far from schools, and the necessity to follow seasonal crops means that families do not stay in one place long enough for children to attend formal schooling. Galya's responsibility was to reach Syrian children that were out of school.
While her official job description required that Galya provide children with education, she did much more. Galya worked long hours helping to pitch the school tent, create the curriculum, and train the teachers. She facilitated doctor's visits, advocated for refugees with legal issues, arbitrated disagreements between refugees and farmers, and represented her NGO to international visitors in an effort to solicit donor funds. She was the main contact for Syrians in the ITS camps that she visited. She carried two cell phones and both rang often, sometimes simultaneously. Galya always answered.
Occasionally, Galya benefited from conservative gender norms. On one of our visits to an ITS, Galya and I were offered water to drink. This can be an awkward position for an aid worker. Galya did not want to refuse the offer for fear of being rude to the Syrian family that had invited us into their tent. So much of Galya's work depended on the close relationships she developed with Syrian refugees. She also sincerely cared about the people that we were meeting, many of whom she had known for years.
But, drinking unfiltered water can be a health risk – one that Galya has taken and regretted in the past. To navigate this social situation, Galya politely declined the water and said to our host: "I have to tell you something, but it's a little awkward, so please forgive me for saying this. You see, I am traveling with these boys all day in the car. (There were two male aid workers with us on this day.) We leave at nine in the morning and sometimes we don't get back to Amman until six at night. And you know, as a girl, I am too embarrassed to tell them I have to use the bathroom. So please forgive me, but I have to avoid drinking anything." She continued jokingly, "Could you imagine if I had to tell the boys to stop for me to use the restroom?" Everyone laughed as if this were an absurd suggestion. Whether or not our host knew that Galya was deflecting her kind gesture, these gendered expectations allowed both Galya and our host to accept an alternative to drinking unfiltered water.
Za'atari refugee camp (2016).
Reimagining Gender Roles at Work
Galya was very comfortable in the car with the male aid workers and never hesitated to ask for a bathroom break. Galya relied on Waleed, whose formal job description was "the driver." The day I met Waleed, Galya, who was sitting in the passenger's seat, made the introductions. "This is Waleed, but we call him Leedo," she said to me, but looking at him mischievously to watch his reaction as she divulged his nickname. Galya then turned her entire body around to face me, "He knows every narrow road in Jordan. Every alley. Even every rock." The "rock" comment made her laugh, which made Leedo laugh too. We left the humanitarian organizations' headquarters early each morning. We'd stop to fill up gas and stock up on snacks for the long drive from Amman to the outskirts of Mafraq and Irbid. This became a ritual. Leedo always ordered a cup of Turkish coffee, heavy on the sugar, and Galya bought two bags of Lays Max Chili potato chips. They fought over who would pay, and every time, Leedo refused to let Galya pay for our snacks. This too was gendered. The male aid workers we traveled with would never let us pay for snacks if they were in the convenience store.
Galya often said she felt like "one of the boys." "Don't call me Galya," she joked, "Call me Galib." Galib is a man's name and a play off of her name. The name change was not only in reference to hanging out with men all day, but was also a remark that aid work was labor-intensive and dirty. We often spoke about how the dust collected in our hair and how sand gelled to our skin. "When I shower, you can see the dirt collect on the floor," Galya said.
After work one day, we decided to have dinner with another female aid worker, Nisreen. We parked in front a restaurant specializing in hotdogs that served every conceivable topping one could ever want. We ate in the car with music blasting and talked about new developments at the Jordanian-Syrian border. Nisreen confessed that she would never want to work on the border – it was too dusty and too many days away from home. "We are losing our femininity out here," Galya said and Nisreen agreed. Nisreen explained that, a few years ago, her family would never have imagined her, as a woman, doing this kind of work.
These short vignettes are important for several reasons. First, they depict everyday life in Jordan. The mundane aspects of refugee reception are often neglected for eye-catching headlines that enumerate the traumas of displacement. Despite the unfathomable losses that refugees have faced, many of the mundane joys and pains of an unsettled life happen in moments like those described above. For example, when Galya answers her phone, she takes responsibility for the needs of the person on the other end of the line. Something as simple as listening to a refugees' concerns and searching for solutions can make a big difference for those who are dependent upon aid.
Second, Galya's experiences draw attention to the contributions of Jordanian aid workers whose stories routinely fall outside the scope of analysis. Jordanian aid workers are central to the humanitarian response in Jordan. So often, the discussion of the "Syrian refugee crisis" neglects the particularities of each host country, especially when referring to states in the Middle East as opposed to the West. Syrian displacement in Jordan should not be conflated with Syrian displacement in other parts of the world because the politics of each place matters.
Third, these short stories highlight the complexities of aid work when humanitarians and refugees share cultural, linguistic, and religious similarities. Jordanians and Syrians also sometimes share familial and business ties (for more on labor migration ties between Syrians and Jordanians, keep an eye out for Ann-Christin Wagner's research in progress). Galya's grandmother, for example, is a Syrian woman who spent most of her childhood in Syria. However, these shared attributes do not negate important distinctions between Jordanian aid workers and Syrian refugees that can also fall along cultural and religious lines.
Finally, gendered expectations are renegotiated when Jordanian women take on new roles in their society as humanitarian aid workers. Galya invokes familiar gendered expectations to navigate social situations while at the same time recognizes that ascribed gendered expectations have been changing. Ten-hour shifts and hard, dirty work have given her a sense of accomplishment and self-reliance. In her role as a refugee advocate, Galya has entered masculine spaces (including government ministries) and spoken up to her male superiors with confidence. Still, Galya also reminisces about a more "feminine" version of herself, who she once envisioned she may become. These stories provide some insight into the emotional work that humanitarian aid requires of Jordanian women.
*All quotations have been translated by the author from Arabic to English. All names were changed to protect the identity of the participants. This research and data analysis were conducted with generous support from the National Science Foundation, P.E.O., Marye Anne Fox Endowed Fellowship, and the American Center for Oriental Research.
By Rawan Arar, Ph.D.
Learn more about Dr. Arar's research at https://watson.brown.edu/people/postdocs/arar
Michael Morris, ACOR-CAORC Post-Doctoral Fellow Fall 2018
Amy Karoll, ACOR-CAORC Pre-Doctoral Fellow Spring 2019


How many bowls of SpaghettiOs do you think you ate as a kid? I'm guessing I downed about seven million, but that may be a little low.
Ten. Only about ten bowls of spaghetti O's. My mother didn't buy stuff like that because she was a hippie and was sure it was bad for you. If I had it I ate it at someone elses house.
When I moved out I made up for it. That stuff was a real treat when you rarely ever had it before.
I am pretty sure this was the only food I ate till I was 10. Possibly older.
I ate that stuff all the time as a kid. I'd only eat the kind with meatballs or franks in them, though. The sauce was different on the plain one, and I hated it.
I tried them recently, since I have kids now, and I think it is gross. But, when I was a kid, that was haute cuisine. Then again, my favorite meal was probably hot dogs, so that isn't saying much.
I wish we had the character versions when I was a kid. That would have been the only way to make them better back then.
LOVED the ones with hotdogs or meatballs in them. Eventually I graduated to RavioliOs, and left those little round pieces of heaven behind. But Mike, I'm with you -- I tried the regular SpaghettiOs again a few months ago, and wasn't nearly as impressed as I was when my taste buds were still fairly new.
I never ate Spaghettios as a kid. I had one bite at the neighbor's house and thought there was some mistake-- they tasted like vomit! I mean literally. There's a strange acidy nastiness that tastes like vomit. Oddly, as an adult that doesn't bother me at all, and now I am quite fond of the neat new spaghetti I can eat with a spoon. Uh,oh is right.
Too many to count. I still eat the O's(with meatballs) from time to time.
Classic Clip Monday: Hey there, Suzy Homemaker!
Baby Sitters Club comes back!


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If you are concerned about your children's hearing, you should in the first instance talk to your GP. They will then refer them to a specialist paediatric hearing centre to be tested.
The Audiologists are very experienced in dealing with young children and will use different tests to those you would normally have as an adult.
The most common hearing tests for young children are called Play Audiometry and Visual Reinforcement Audiometry (VRA).
The Audiologists will explain exactly how the tests work - they are great fun for the child.


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Home / News / Management News / Sandmann Pleased With Win
Sandmann Pleased With Win
Joint Manager Mike Sandmann admitted his side were not at their best on Saturday afternoon but were pleased with a positive second half display which earnt a 3-2 victory against Horndean.
Speaking after the match, Sandmann said:
"The result makes it look a little closer than it was, but I think bar the last five minutes, we were very dominant and deserved our win."
"The most important thing was to get into the next round of the FA Cup. We talk about leagues and form but they're irrelevant in these one-off type games."
Sandmann revealed an honest half-time team-talk took place and he was pleased with how the hosts responded.
"We were not happy with the first half at all, we didn't compete or perform how we have been in recent weeks. We didn't have the same energy or intensity, so we spoke about that at half time and pleasingly there was a reaction."
The Margate management team handed two debuts to George Brown and Stephen Okoh, both made a positive first impression on Sandmann.
"I was really pleased with how the two boys got on, they give us some more attacking options."
"I'm delighted George got Man of the Match and I think he is only going to get better as the games go on."
"Okoh has played his first game in months today due to various injuries and knocks he has had, and I think he was excellent. They both gave us another dimension and are dangerous in a 1v1 situation."
Whilst the debutants made a good impression, Sandmann was also pleased to see defender Ben Swift and Lee Prescott slot into the side too.
"Swifty and Press haven't had as many minutes as they would have liked, so it was an opportunity for them to both get 90 minutes. Wynter and Rogo have played every game for us so far, so it was a chance to give them some rest."
Before kick-off, The Gate announced the signing of former Premier League striker Leroy Lita. An exciting signing for the club, Sandmann is confident Lita can make a positive impact upon the team.
"Leroy trained with us on Monday and Thursday and looked really sharp. Having a player of his quality and experience will be fantastic for the dressing room and good for the team."
"Leroy started here as a young player and wanted to come back having played in Thailand. We couldn't get his international clearance to get him involved today but he will be available for selection soon and be valuable to us."
By Charlotte Richardson
CLUB NEWS | Margate FC Shirt Update
PLAYER NEWS | Leroy Lita joins the Gate


The Babolat Pure Aero Team Tennis Racket is the latest range from Babolat and boats new technology integrated into the racket. With Aeromodular and FSI Spin technologies the racket will allow you to hit the ball harder and with more spin around the court. The woofer system built inside will help the racket be more aerodynamic and offers greater racket speed, whilst the FSP spin technology provides a more open string pattern and more string movement to generate more spin.


Submitted by Calcutta Music on Thu, 09/22/2011 - 16:43.
San Francisco, CA, Sept 22. 2011 (Washington Bangla Radio) Yoga Philharmonic, a set of music albums in five volumes are latest most uplifting musical compositions from composer Sandeep Khurana, with sounds that are relaxing, and meditative with a subtle ethereal touch to the whole creation.
The music creates an out-of-body experience, transporting the listeners to realms beyond the physical, helping them achieve that inner peace and harmonious state of mind. The sounds are a fascinating blend of New Age synthesized and organic guitars sounds, voices, and nature sounds, creating that magical ambience in the minds of the listeners, taking them away to an entirely different part of the universe.
With Yoga Philharmonic Volume 1 – Enlightenment, the listeners journey through "White Light Meditation", "Osho Cadence", "No Mind Rhythm", "Spirit Reflections", "Higher Consonance", "Healing the Self", "Love Enharmonic", "Universe Ensemble", "Surrender to Self", and "Rebirth The Awakened Being".
The music of the album is about healing the mind, uplifting the spirits of the listeners, and helping them achieve a relaxed state of being. Be it flutes, piano notes, strings or guitars, the idea is to keep the instrumentation pleasant, the mood relaxed, and the sounds gentle yet mysterious.
Yoga Philharmonic Volume 2 – Ethereal, as the name very well says, has sounds with feel more ethereal. They are reflective of the mood characterized by lightness and insubstantiality, as if one is experiencing an existence more intangible.
"Aum Vibration", is about resonating with the universal sound "Aum" or "Om" as we feel it. Brahma, according to Hinduism, is the name given to Creator, and hence Brahma Yoga is connecting with the creative energy within the universe, and the energy that created the universe. Shiva, as God is associated both with creating the Good and destroying the Evil. "Shiva Dance Meditation", is an opportunity to dance with, to get in rhythm with the divine, and align one's inner rhythm with Shiva. "Krishna Universal Form" helps visualize God Krishna's universal form, as eternal cycles of Karma, Good and Evil, Good and Bad, Life and Death, Joy and Grief, Cause and Effect.
"Inner Child" plays with the inner child in the listeners, the innocence, and the truth that lives in every being. "Kundalini Yoga" is about aspiring for enlightenment, to be able to raise one's vibrations, to make the Kundalini rise to the Divine Chakra. "Chakra Yoga", is an exercise for healing the 7 major Chakras, Balancing them, and tuning them to heal the mind and the body. "Om Mantra Yoga" is another opportunity to resonate with the universal sound, "OM". "Pranayama Breath Yoga", helps the listener to practice Pranayama, a very old technique that employs varying breathing patterns, and pauses between inhalation and exhalation to heal the body and the mind and bring oneself in harmony.
Yoga Philharmonic Volume 4 - Ethereal Chakra Sounds - Resonant sounds composed to help balance the seven major Chakras or the energy centers within the body.
Yoga Philharmonic Volume 5 - Zen Meditation - Healing music for relaxation and meditation.
"Yoga Philharmonic" is an ideal collection of New Age music albums for every being who wishes to achieve a relaxed state of mind, and peace through music.
Sandeep Khurana's signature sounds are New Age, Ethereal, Meditative, Melodious and yet Mysterious. He has composed and produced more than 50 music albums on New Age, and World Music. The resonant and lilting sounds he paints, the musical landscapes he creates, owe their existence, to his endless years of experience in healing and spirituality, combined with his distinctive skill in music. Something that is unparalleled in beauty and depth.


Holly Doremus, J.D., Ph.D., visited Davis on 4/20/2012 as part of a seminar series on interfaces between ecology, economics and policy. Dr. Doremus is at the UC Berkeley School of Law, but has Ph.D. in Plant Physiology from Cornell. She is former former UCD Faculty.
These are my notes from Dr. Doremus's lecture. Any errors or misrepresentations are my own.
The science problem - What do we know and what can we learn about managed systems and the consequences of our actions?
The policy problem - Given what we know and we don't know, what should we do?
Resource demands and extended controversy - It requires more time and effort by the agency. More constant monitoring, modification of decisions. This can have political and morale/psychological costs.
Accountability versus flexibility - Agencies do not necessarily respond to the public interests, but respond to political and other pressures. Accountability mechanisms are needed to get agencies to use adaptive management in ways that are in the public interest.
The last of these is a principal agent problem. The objectives of an agency will differ from those of the principal (legislatures, the public), and there need to be ways to force alignment. For instance, lawsuits to enforce the Endangered Species Act are such mechanisms.
Much of this arises when agencies are given multiple goals that have trade-offs among them. For instance, the public lands agencies are told to manage lands for multiple uses so as to best meet the public interest, and all accountability is through the political process.
Adaptive management is becoming the de facto standard for natural resource management, but when it's legislated or prescribed, there is little conversation as to what it actually means, whether it is the best strategy, and whether the value of learning outweighs the costs.
Courts rarely interfere with scientific decisions and agencies. This is, in part, because lawyers and judges are culturally averse to scientific topics. It is also because of the belief that legislatures have created these agencies so as to outsource technical decisions.
Is adaptive management the right choice?
Is action inevitable or essential, and why?
Is it feasible to delay action? Adapive management should not be used to justify ill-considered action. For instance, agencies can grant a take permit under the ESA, which normally requires proof that there would not be harm. Adaptive management can be used as an excuse to provide such a permit without proof.
This may not apply if some action is inevitable but several options may be available. For instance, salvage logging may be better or worse that the risk of large fires for old-growth forests. Adaptive management might be a good tool here.
Of course "inevitability" may be political.
What are the information gaps, and what difference will filling them make to management?
Articulate a model of the system, including uncertainties, goals, and metrics. Distinguish genuine unknowns from information that just isn't shared. Often there is information that is in the hands of landowners, etc., which might be demanded, but adaptive management is used as an excuse to avoid doing so.
How likely is significant learning, on what time frame, and at what cost?
Need to be honest about what experimentation is feasible and likely to be politically palatable. What information will it provide? What information can be gained from other approaches (modeling, observational science)?
Can management be adjusted as new information becomes available?
Will impacts be irreversible? How "sticky" are policy decisions, legally or politically? Can decisions be made incrementally?
Adaptive management has part of its premise that policy choices are iterative. However, some decisions are irreversible. Because of pressure to make policy decisions as final, many decisions are effectively irreversible, and no action is a better choice.
NEPA and other legislation requiring explicit analysis of impacts have been useful; adaptive management should not be allowed to erode such approaches.
Where goals are multiple and potentially conflicting, adaptive management is likely to be abused (e.g., the "co-equal goals" of the Delta Stewardship Council). Priorities and approaches to making trade-offs must be defined first.
Allow citizen enforcement - e.g., lawsuits. This can can actually give agencies cover for politically difficult decisions.
Recognize that data is not knowledge - Monitoring alone just generates data that sits on a shelf. Monitoring plans must include a plan to analyze, disseminate, and act on findings.


Who has the most points?
How do you get points?
I am a youth crew manager in the Kitty Andersen Youth Science Center and do creative technology projects for the Learning Technology Center @ the Science Museum of MN. I like making animations and videos, and finding other ways to mix art and technology in life.
Just today I had to buy lumber for a class, and had to use algebra. The 10' boards were cheaper per foot than the 6' boards, but each student needed a 3' length so the 6' board ended up being cheaper per student, and less waste. I also did more measurements and algebra than probably necessary to construct my Halloween costume this year.


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Home - Unrest blamed on 'enemies'
Unrest blamed on 'enemies'
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A building on fire in Dorud, Iran, in a still image taken from video on December 31. IRINN/ReutersTV
TEHRAN (Agencies) – Iran's supreme leader blamed the country's "enemies" yesterday for days of unrest that have seen 21 killed and hundreds arrested in the biggest test for the Islamic regime in years.
"The enemies have united and are using all their means, money, weapons, policies and security services to create problems for the Islamic regime," Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a speech carried on state television.
Iranian officials have said online accounts in the United States, Britain and Saudi Arabia are fomenting protests.
A fifth night of unrest saw six protesters killed during an attack on a police station in Qahderijan in the central province of Isfahan, state TV said yesterday.
At least three other towns near the cultural hub of Isfahan also saw violence overnight, causing the deaths of a young member of the Revolutionary Guards, a policeman and a bystander.
The estimated death toll is now 21 since protests began in second city Mashhad and quickly spread to become the biggest challenge to the Islamic regime since mass demonstrations in 2009.
"The enemy is always looking for an opportunity and any crevice to infiltrate and strike the Iranian nation," Mr Khamenei said.
The unrest appears leaderless and focused on provincial towns and cities, with only small and sporadic protests in Tehran on Monday evening where a heavy police presence was reported.
As violence has spread, authorities have stepped up arrests, with at least 450 people detained in the capital since Saturday and 100 more around Isfahan on Monday, officials told local media.
A Revolutionary Guards spokesman said they had not been requested to intervene directly, but they requested the public to report "seditionist elements".
"We will not permit insecurity to continue in any way in Tehran. If it continues, officials will take decisions to finish it," said Esmail Kowsari, a deputy commander for a local branch of the Guards, on state television.
Ali Shamkhani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, described the unrest as a "proxy war against the Iranian people".
"Hashtags and messages about the situation in Iran come from the United States, Britain and Saudi Arabia," he told local media.
President Hassan Rouhani has tried to play down the unrest, which began over economic grievances on Thursday but quickly turned against the regime as a whole with chants of "Death to the dictator".
"This is nothing," he said in a statement on the presidency website on Monday, vowing the nation would deal with "this minority who… insult the sanctities and values of the revolution".
Pro-regime rallies were held across several towns and cities – reflecting continued support among a large conservative section of society.
"With every day that passes, the crimes of those arrested become more serious and their punishment will become heavier. We no longer consider them as protesters demanding rights, but as people targeting the regime," the head of Tehran's revolutionary court, Moussa Ghazanfarabadi, told the conservative Tasnim news agency.
Mr Rouhani came to power in 2013 promising to mend the economy and ease social tensions, but high living costs and a 12 percent unemployment rate have left many feeling that progress is too slow.
The young are most affected, with as many as 40 percent out of work according to analysts, and rural areas particularly hard-hit.
"People have had enough, especially the young people. They have nothing to be happy about," Sarita Mohammadi, a 35-year-old teacher in Tehran, said.
"The situation is far worse in provinces. Agriculture has been destroyed. I know many who have left the north of the country to come to Tehran to work," she added.
Mr Rouhani acknowledged there was "no problem bigger than unemployment" in a speech on Sunday, and also vowed a more balanced media and more transparency.
US President Donald Trump praised Iranian protesters yesterday.
"The people of Iran are finally acting against the brutal and corrupt Iranian regime," Mr Trump tweeted, a day after calling for regime change in the Islamic republic.
"All of the money that President Obama so foolishly gave them went into terrorism and into their 'pockets.' The people have little food, big inflation and no human rights. The US is watching!"
The European Union on Monday pushed Iran to guarantee the right to protest and separately British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said "the UK is watching events in Iran closely".
"We believe that there should be meaningful debate about the legitimate and important issues the protesters are raising and we look to the Iranian authorities to permit this," he said in a statement.
Turkey yesterday expressed concerned about the protests in a statement that called for "common sense" to "prevail to prevent any escalation".
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MUNICH. Telefónica Deutschland extends its ad-funded mobile phone tariff netzclub by a local element. From now on, netzclub customers also benefit from offers within their immediate surroundings. Users get information on their mobile phone about an offer near their current location via text or multimedia message and can redeem the offer right on the spot. The netzclub local service is free for the customers.
netzclub is the ad-financed mobile phone tariff from Telefónica in Germany. In addition to free mobile Internet, netzclub also offers affordable voice and text message rates. Customers also receive special offers from various brands and products directly to their mobile phones, which allow them to benefit from vouchers or offers for things such as games, music or lifestyle products. Telefónica Deutschland Holding AG, listed at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in the Prime Standard, and its wholly-owned, operationally active subsidiary Telefónica Germany GmbH & Co. OHG belong to Telefónica Europe and are part of the Spanish telecommunication group Telefónica S.A. The company offers its German private and business customers post-paid and prepaid mobile telecom products as well as innovative mobile data services based on the GPRS, UMTS and LTE technologies with its product brand O2. In addition, the integrated communications provider also offers DSL fixed network telephony and high-speed Internet. Telefónica Europe has 102 million mobile and fixed network customers in Spain, Great Britain, Ireland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Germany.


Imagine a wristwatch that measures blood sugar without finger sticks or a t-shirt with special sensors to predict heart attacks before they happen. These and many other products recently debuted at the Consumer Electronics Show, where the likes of Blu-Ray DVDs, HDTVs and 3-D printers have captured the public's imagination over the years. While many futuristic smartphones and devices take center stage at the meeting, there are also many innovative health-care technologies that draw attention. Contributing editor Paul Wynn profiles five products that stood out at the meeting that offer convenience and less invasive methods for managing diabetes and its complications. Click "Next" below to learn more.


Honey is a nice large blocky female built like a male and hits like a freight train. No equipment needed to get this girl to bark or bite! She will protect her handler and family with all she has and then some! Shes a man stopper with a great on off switch. When time to play with the kids and be a dog shes ready to go to work as soons you say. No more locking your doors with this girl! Shes truely a one of a kind Malinois as far as her temperament and attitude to protect! She is crate trained and has been in the house and around kids! Please feel free to call or text for videos and or more pictures!
Obedience is much beter now than in videos and is great in the house.


The training to check the coagulation value INR on oneself helps all patients who continiously take oral anticoagulants.
Your attending physician will of course continue to be your contact person once you start checking your INR on yourself and adapting the dose of your anticoagulant on your own. Your physician will periodically check the measured values together with you, evaluate them and stay at your disposal for further advice.
Please contact us for further requests or if you would like to attend said training.


I have some WAV files that I created with MD player and then copied to a computer. I'm wondering what people do for an editor? I can't even see what the bitrate is or anything, so I'd need something that allowed me to do more than "make a wav"
Thanks, I never looked at bitrates or anything before I just made recordings and listened to them. Now I need to see what it's doing. I probably have some old editor somewhere but I just wanted to start in the right direction.
MD is essentially the same as CD quality except it's rewrite digital. MiniDisc was another one of those advanced technologies that got run over by direct to SD and other digital recording. That was fast? Sony doesn't make the little internal gumstick battery for my nice pocket recorder and hasn't for years, which means as a portable it's unsupported and dead. Kind of upsetting.
I don't have an MD but I guess it's the same as CD quality in terms of bit depth (16 bit) and sampling rate (44.1 KHz) but older models can only save as a compressed (lossy) format, while some newer models can save as PCM (lossless).
Regarding battery, if not genuine Sony, have you looked for replacement? this one?
Or you can always re-wire it yourself with an external battery... not very elegant but may work.
Yes there's a plug for external power, intended for transformer to put in 3v DC and there's an external battery clip. In their wisdom (usual Sony blackmail to use only their battery, memory Etc.) The internal battery must be charged and working for the Aux. battery to work. On mine even full, fresh charge, the Aux. battery doesn't work. So I can wire an external through the Power Plug. Point is, it's pocket size and I have a little lavalier stereo Mic. for live recording live music.
Time to upgrade to a digital pocket recorder that saves to SD and be done with this.
What started this all is a girl singer from one of the bands said she moved and, lost her cassette tape of the band. (we're talking tapes I made in about 1986) I was going to record to CD and dump to the computer. Then I found some MDs of "sound effects" so I thought, hey IS audio? Meanwhile, got the tape player working last night, MD routed into the mixed, CD recorder working... This morning I was going to dump the cassettes to CD and have something to work with. Well, guess what? The cassette player from the old studio, is now deciding to be ornery and only play 5 seconds only rewind 5 seconds, some sensor or belt, broke overnight.
Plan "B" about to go into effect. Not as Hi-Fi but boom box with line out, into the MD recorder, and make masters from that. Same limits as CD, 74 minutes, while the original tapes are SA-90s.
Also no problem, because I have plenty of blank MDs and I don't use that recorder anymore. So making use of old technology, recent obsolete and some modern digital, I can make a cleaner mess of things.
Thanks for the help. I found Audacity on cnet free download.
Also something called Expstudio, which I may get just in case. I have some audio thing that I bought years ago, not installed on any recent computers. Magicx which I may be able to find. For now, Audacity and Thank You.
I bought a digital pocket recorder indeed (Olympus LS-5) to record live music, and found out - unexpectedly - that it also has a mini-jack line-in, at usual RCA level. Now I'm using it to convert my old tapes and vinyls and results are pretty good. Before, I was looking into RCA to USB devices as well, but I'm a bit worried about the quality of the A/D converter which could be just a cheap soundcard.
Might be I have one already since the sound cards on my old computers all have Line In. I don't need a USB converter.
Got Audacity installed, now I need to see what I have. Hmm, already 32 already 44mhz. I guess it's fine. That's what I wanted to see if I was at the right standards. Of course getting rejected after that will be easy, but at least it's not for the wrong format!
IPTC editor Mac for video?
Bad Behavior has blocked 65030 access attempts in the last 7 days.


text:
TV ShowsDoctor Who
By: sunflowerb
The man smiled. "Just delivering a message," he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a simple, dark blue envelope, "from an old friend of yours." He dropped it on the table in front of Jack, who picked it up gingerly. Jack's eyes were wide as he ran a finger over the Tardis-blue paper. There was only one person this could have come from. oneshot
Rated: Fiction K - English - Family - Jack H., Amelia P./Amy, 11th Doctor, Melody P. II/Mels - Words: 2,392 - Reviews: 21 - Favs: 154 - Follows: 18 - Published: 7/10/2013 - Status: Complete - id: 9479318
A/N: I wrote this forever ago, not long after 'The Angels Take Manhattan' aired, and it's been gathering dust on my hardrive ever since. So here it is and I'm not even sure what it is? Headcanon, I guess.
Post-TATM
Jack liked attention, that was no secret, and he wasn't too picky about who the attention came from. Men, women, humans, aliens…However, he wasn't sitting easy about the attention he was getting currently. There was a young man leaning against the wall on the other side of the bar who had been watching him all night long. The young man hadn't spoken to anyone or ordered any drink. He just stood there, casually watching Jack through the throngs of people dancing and stumbling about the vicinity as they celebrated the recent moon landing. He was dressed a bit oddly for the location with a long green overcoat and a bow tie. Not really what people wore to go drinking at this time of night.
It seemed clear the man wanted to talk to him, but didn't want to do it in public. Jack was wary of the potential danger, and yet somehow he had the feeling that the man wasn't there to do him harm. Finally his curiosity got the better of him and he decided to find out what the man wanted. After all, it wasn't like he could get murdered. (Not permanently, anyway.)
Jack made his way to a somewhat secluded corner of the bar and slid into a small booth. Sure enough, the young man threaded his way through the crowd to Jack's table, but he didn't sit down. Jack gave him his most dazzling grin. "Oh, no need to be shy. You've been waiting all night to talk or whatever. And I'm perfectly willing to talk. Or whatever." He winked.
The man appeared to be trying to avoid rolling his eyes. He pursed his lips, and exhaled in a curt sigh through his nose before facing Jack, his expression serious. "I'm not here to chat. Far too dangerous that way and this is risky enough as it is."
Jack raised an eyebrow. "Dangerous?"
The man waved a hand in dismissal. "Oh, no, no; it's not something you need to worry about."
Jack took another sip of his drink and regarded the man with curiosity. "So what are you here for?"
The man smiled. "Just delivering a message," he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a simple, dark blue envelope, "from an old friend of yours." He dropped it on the table in front of Jack, who picked it up gingerly. Jack's eyes were wide as he ran a finger over the Tardis-blue paper. There was only one person this could have come from.
"He couldn't have delivered it himself?" Jack asked, somewhat breathlessly as he looked back at the mysterious messenger, who smiled.
"Well, you know him; always has his reasons." And with a last smile and a nod, the man turned around and strode out of the bar. Jack didn't bother to chase after him. He was right after all; if the Doctor was sending him a message rather than telling him in person, he must have a reason. After a moment to compose himself and stop his hands shaking, Jack carefully opened the blank envelope and pulled out a folded piece of letter-sized paper.
I'm sorry I can't tell you all this in person, but if I did our timelines would get more tangled than fresh-from-the-attic fairy lights. I know you must be disappointed. Sorry, but I promise you will meet me again, and when you do, it'll be a much younger version of me than the one writing this letter. So make sure you never, ever, mention anything about this letter, or what it contains, or even that I contacted you, to him, EVER. He won't know anything about any of this yet. Our story isn't over Jack, and I know you have things you need to say and questions you need answered, and I promise that will happen, but it has to happen later (for you), because for me, this me, it's already happened, and it has to happen that way. You work for Torchwood, I know you'll understand.
The thing is, I need a favor. A really, really, really, big important favor. Lives and timelines depend on this, so even if you're still angry with me for leaving you on Satellite 5, I need you to do this. You're the only person I trust who would actually have the connections to do it. This must be done and I can't do it because it'd mess up a lot of crucial timelines. This is less a favor than an order dressed up nicely. I cannot impress upon you how important this is. Luckily for you, I'm not actually asking much.
My favor is this:
It's July 1969, yes? You got to live through the Moon Landing, at least there's that! Anyway, in six months, at 8.14pm Eastern Standard Time on 29th January, 1970, there's going to be a very, very young girl alone in an alley a few blocks from the Empire State building in New York City, New York.
I need you to find her.
She'll be very young, and very scared, but tell her you've come to take her home, and she will understand, young as she is. Don't mention me.
She'll need fresh clothes and a warm coat, size to fit a two-year-old. The address where you'll find her and the address where you need to take her are on the card. Just take her where she needs to go and they'll handle the rest.
Look after her, Jack. She's no ordinary little girl.
With my eternal (in the fullest meaning of the word) gratitude,
p.s. Her name is Melody Pond.
Collecting the girl had been easy enough. She'd been scared, but once he'd assured her he wasn't taking her back to Greystark (wherever that was) she'd come with him willingly enough. She was surprisingly articulate for such a small child, and Jack couldn't imagine what she was doing in an alleyway in clothes ten sizes too big, but if this was an errand the Doctor had sent him on, then unusual was to be expected.
The little girl was sleeping when the taxi arrived at their destination, a townhouse in Chelsea Village. Jack checked the address on the card one last time before ringing the doorbell. Little Melody squirmed in his arms, waking up. "Down," she demanded, and he set her down. She wobbled a bit on unsteady toddler legs, then reached up to hold his hand. Jack waited for a few minutes before ringing the bell again.
After a moment he heard angry muttering from the other side of the door, followed by a woman's voice asking, "Who are you, and what the hell do you want at this hour of the night?"
Jack frowned, and Melody hid behind his legs. "Captain Jack Harkness…Are you Scottish?"
"Yeah. So what if I am?" replied the voice behind the door.
"Uh, nothing. Uh, I was told to come here. Is this the home of," he looked at the card, "Rory and Amy Williams?" There was silence for a moment and he thought perhaps the woman had gone back to bed.
"Not many people know me by Amy. I go by Amelia professionally. Who sent you?"
"Not sure if I should say. An old mutual friend, I guess?"
The door opened slowly on a woman in her late fifties with bright red hair pulled into a loose bun on the back of her neck. She glared at him suspiciously, and then Melody peeked her head around Jack's legs and the suspicion melted into disbelief. Jack glanced between the two as the woman looked at the little girl as if she couldn't believe she was real.
"I was told to bring her to you. Her name is-"
"Melody," the woman breathed, saying the name softly, reverently, as if it were sacred. She knelt down, sitting on her knees, eye to eye with the little girl. "Do you know who I am?" she asked, her voice shaking and her eyes watering. Melody nodded and backed closer to Jack. The woman released a shuddering breath. "I'm sorry," she choked, "For what happened the last time we met…I didn't know. I didn't know who you were, and if I did I never would have-" she broke off, sobbing, and Jack watched, bewildered and helpless, not quite sure what to do. Then the little girl toddled forwards.
"Were you scarwed?"
The ginger woman sniffled and looked at the child. "Yes I was."
Melody nodded sagely. "Me too." She looked around then, like she'd been caught doing something she wasn't supposed to, then leaned in toward the woman. "Are they gonna come get me?" she asked with a frown, "Is the spaceman gonna come get me?"
"No," the woman said, reaching out a hand to cup the child's cheek. "No, darling, no I won't let them. I won't ever let them hurt you again." For a moment she seemed unable to do anything but stare at Melody. "Rory," she finally said weakly, then swallowed and tried again, "RORY!" she screamed, her head turned slightly back towards the interior of the house, though she never took her eyes off the little girl. "Do you know who I am?" she asked the child, who nodded and grinned. The woman's face lit up and grinned as well. "Then come here, love, and give your mum a hug." The little girl reached out and the woman swept her up into her arms, standing and cradling her close while the child buried her face in her mother's neck.
Just then a man came stumbling into the foyer in his dressing gown.
"Amy, what's going on, what's happening," he asked in a British accent. He looked from the man on his doorstep, to Amy, to the smiling child in her arms. "Amy…is that…?" The redhaired woman had tears in her eyes as she nodded in reply. The man continued to gape. "But, timelines, won't this-"
The woman shook her head, tears streaming down her cheeks and grin still splitting her face. "She never would tell us how she got to Leadworth," she said, and they both laughed and pulled each other close, the little girl giggling happily between them. Jack was beginning to feel like an intruder, so he turned to leave.
"Wait!" He looked back to see the woman, Amy, give the child over to her husband, telling him, "Go get a fire started and warm her up, and call Anthony, tell him to get over here first thing in the morning, and to bring Linda and the kids when he comes." The man nodded and carried the little girl into an adjoining sitting room, and Amy looked back at Jack.
"Did he send you?"
"Who?"
She smiled knowingly. "You know who."
Jack returned her smile. "Yeah, he did."
In a flash the woman was hugging him. "Thank you," she murmured, her voice breaking. She was crying even harder when she released him. "You have no idea what you've done."
"I brought you your kid back, I've got some idea."
Amy shook her head. "She's not adopted. I know you must think she is but she's not. It's complicated, but that is our baby, our flesh and blood and I never thought I'd see her again. I've always known she would be okay, but I never thought I'd get to raise her properly, and—and now I will." She laughed. "I can't thank you enough. And him. Tell him we said thanks."
Jack glanced up at the sky and the few stars visible. "I don't know that I can. Apparently the him who sent me is further along in his timestream than the next version of him I get to meet. Whenever that is." He looked back at Amy and sighed. "I waited so long to hear from him again, and when I do he just sends me a message telling me he needs a favor and a little more time. Not that I mind—the favor, I mean. I can see how important it is. But I wish I didn't have to keep waiting."
Amy gave him a reassuring smile. "If there's one thing I've learned about the Doctor it's that you may have to wait a long, long," she looked back into her house, into the living room where her husband and daughter were cuddling on the sofa, "long time…but he always comes through for you."
Jack nodded. "You sound like you've had quite a wait. And I've got quite a wait ahead of me, from the sound of things."
"Welcome to life with the Doctor." They shared a chuckled.
"Amy?"
"Mommy!"
Amy looked back into her home. "I better go. We've got a lot of catching up to do."
"One last thing," Jack asked, watching the woman carefully. He wished he knew more of her story, knew how she came to be separated from her child, how the Doctor had made her wait, how she survived what the Doctor did to her life. If anyone could help him come to terms with the way the Doctor could wreck your life it looked like it might be her. But there wasn't time for questions, so he settled for asking her just one. "Is it worth it? Worth the wait?"
She sighed, and closed her eyes, and for a moment she was back in a garden, a long time ago…She smiled and looked at him, and Jack couldn't doubt the sincerity when she answered, "Yes. Yes he is."
xxend


TELYKast is made up of Trevor, Linus, and Kyle who each bring their own unique background and experiences to shape their sound. The trio eat, sleep, and breathe music, literally turning their bedrooms into professional studios. They make their music exclusively with instruments, which is reflected in the band's organic sound.


The grains that are selected for Laila Basmati rice have been grown in the same paddy fields in the Punjab region of Pakistan for the past 7,000 years. It is the combination of rich soil, pure water from mountain rivers and the unique climate that together create the perfect environment for Basmati rice, famous for its delicate aroma and delicious flavour. The five rivers of the Punjab have their sources in the Himalayan mountain range which carry minerals and silt down to the rich plains, creating rich fertile land for rice production.
As the weather warms in June, through to the start of autumn in November, the famers lovingly cultivate their crop of Basmati rice. From the initial seed to the transplanting of the saplings in to the paddy fields, the love and care that goes in to our rice is second to none.
Before the weather turns cold, the rice sheaves need to be manually harvested and taken to the Laila mills.
After the rice has been harvested, it undergoes a process called threshing, to loosen the hulls.
The 'rough rice' or 'paddy' as it is now known is then cleaned to remove stones, loose stalks and chaff. The rice is then slowly dried by passing through warm air to remove any moisture.
The next stage of processing is the removal of the outer husk and separating white and brown rice. Brown Rice is where the bran layer is kept intact, whilst white rice goes through to the next stage of the milling process. Here the rice is 'polished' to remove the bran layer and expose the white grain of basmati rice.
Once the rice has been graded and any broken rice removed it is packaged into the familiar green bags that have become synonymous with Laila Basmati, and shipped across the UK.


My love, to your twenty-ninth year.
Hopefully my absence on your birthday wasn't completely devastating. Sorry I forgot to mention it on the phone today, I guess I lose a few wife points for that.
The nine days I've been 28 have been pretty good, here's hoping your first few days of twenty-eight year-old-hood are equally pleasant.


text:
PCMag Australia Computers & Electronics Audio Speakers
How to Set Up Your Speakers
Whether it's a single wireless speaker or a multi-channel home theater setup, the way you position your speakers can have a big impact on how they sound. Follow these tips for the best audio quality possible.
byTim Gideon Mar 24, 2018
Have you ever walked into someone else's living room and marveled, perhaps with a twinge of jealousy, at their awe-inspiring sound system? Yes, part of that has to do with the speakers themselves. But how those speakers are set up in the room and configured can make all the difference between sound that blows you away, and sound that's simply average. No matter your budget, there are a number of ways to get the most out of your speakers—even if your home audio system consists of a single small Bluetooth speaker or a bookshelf stereo pair. Follow these tips for a difference you'll be able to hear.
Finding the Sweet Spot
Whether you're dealing with a stereo pair of speakers, a 2.1 setup (two speakers and a subwoofer), or even a 5.1 surround sound system (five speakers and a sub), the concept of left and right channel placement is important—and easy—to understand.
Imagine an equilateral triangle: Your head is one point, the left speaker is another, and the right speaker is the third. The distance between you and the left speaker should be equal to the distance between you and the right speaker; the left and right speaker should be this same distance apart, as well. This ensures an accurate stereo image, and gives the speakers enough distance between their drivers and your ears to properly disperse the soundwaves. Where your head is located in this simple scheme is often referred to as "the sweet spot."
Subwoofers can be placed in a variety of locations depending on their build and power. We perceive the deepest low frequencies, which consist of longer sound waves, as less directional than high frequencies, which consist of shorter waves. Our ears have no trouble sensing the direction of most high frequencies, and are actually quite bad at locating the source of deep low frequencies. So the placement of a subwoofer will have more to do with how loud it is and, of course, convenience. Try putting it in a couple of different places around the room to find what works best.
The center (or "dialogue") channel in a surround mix should go, not surprisingly, dead center between the left and right speakers, and any rear surround speakers should ideally be equal distances from your head, though they might be greater or lesser distances from each other than they are from you. Again, furniture, cables running across the floor, and other factors will play a factor in many setups.
The most important piece of the puzzle is the left-right speaker placement, and coming as close to the sweet spot as possible. Obviously, if even two people are sitting next to each other, neither can be exactly in the theoretical sweet spot, but aim for a perfect setup and it'll sound better for everyone, no matter where they are.
And yes, rooms can really mess with the sound. A room with nothing but reflective surfaces will likely sound lively and bright (perhaps to a fault), while a room covered in carpet and clothbound furniture is often going to absorb those higher frequencies and dull the sound signature somewhat. Keep this in mind when deciding where to place your speakers.
All About Angles
As mentioned, our ears really pick up on higher frequencies in a far more directional way than they do the lows. So when you see a speaker with a tweeter placed above a woofer, the manufacturer is trying to make it easier for you to line that tweeter up with the level of your ears. Obviously, couch or chair height plays a role here, and helps determine the height needed for speaker stands, or whether a table or shelf will be appropriate.
Turning a speaker on its side can also help to better match the tweeters with your ears in certain scenarios. Ideally, you can draw a line parallel with the floor from the tweeter's center to your ears. To that end, you'll see plenty of all-in-one speakers, often portable, that have tweeters that project upward, but at an angle. The intention is that you'll find a surface to place them on that works with the angle to more or less aim the drivers right at your ears.
As long as your basic goal is to line up the tweeters, if possible, with your ears, your only other major concerns for mono speaker setup is all about placement. For starters, find an appropriate surface: Does it vibrate too much—or perhaps not enough—with the bass frequencies? Also make sure that it's not so close to a wall or other reflective surface that it alters the sound. Both bass and treble can be affected by proximity to walls, and this will vary from speaker to speaker, so experimenting with placement is key.
Since stereo all-in-ones, in general, are going to sound pretty close to mono speakers (unless they happen to be large enough for significant channel separation), similar rules apply. The larger a speaker is, typically, the more space you want to have between it and the wall. Particularly if the speaker has a bass port for air moved by drivers to escape out of, as a port for a woofer is going to be more effective and the speaker will sound less boomy if it's not backed up against the wall.
It's also worth noting that many new all-in-one portable wireless speakers can be paired with another identical speaker to create a stereo pair. Several manufacturers allow for this option now—and many have their own apps that make it a relatively easy speaker-to-speaker pairing process. The important thing to understand is whether the speakers are being paired as a stereo group, with one acting as the left channel and the other as the right, or whether they're both in mono.
Of course, you already know about finding the sweet spot in stereo mode, and those same rules apply here. But believe it or not, mono might be preferable for when you have parties and the speakers are far apart. In instances like this, when the sweet spot is pretty much thrown out the window, you're better off letting each speaker act as its own mono sound source, which will spread the audio more effectively and evenly throughout the party.
How About Audio Apps?
Many wireless speakers come with their own apps, and some are going to have special effects that purportedly enhance the stereo image, or even turn a stereo signal into an immersive surround sound experience. By and large these effects are weak, and for listening to music, we strongly advise leaving them off.
However, if your setup involves a soundbar, they sometimes do have far more effective surround effects. A soundbar isn't going to trick you into thinking an actual speaker is behind you, but they can widen a stereo image or even throw some sound off of walls, allowing the reflections in the room to help create a more immersive feel. So with soundbars (and pretty much soundbars only), we support at least trying out these effects.
EQ, on the other hand, is another common inclusion in apps that we fully support. As long as you're not going hog wild, in-app EQ can be an effective way to tone down (or boost) the bass response, get a crisper sound signature, or counteract negative effects your room may be having on the sound.
If your speaker doesn't come with an app, or its app doesn't feature EQ adjustments, there are several affordable options for phones and tablets that allow you to adjust the sound coming from your device through an EQ app before it hits your speaker. We like both EQ 10 and Equalizer+ HD.
Buy the Best Speakers
Of course, the best way to ensure good sound quality is to start with a high-quality speaker. For buying advice, check out our guides to the best computer speakers, wireless speakers, and smart speakers we've tested. If you're shopping on a budget, check out our favorite Bluetooth speakers under $100.
What Is Digital Signal Processing (DSP) and How Does It Affect Audio?
First Listen: Ears On with Apple's Retuned HomePod Smart Speaker
Sounds Good, Looks Good: The Most Stylish Speakers We've Seen
New Apple HomePod Speaker Features Upgraded Audio, Smart Home Sensors
The Best Bluetooth and Wireless Speakers for 2023
About Tim Gideon
I've been a contributing editor for PCMag since 2011. Before that, I was PCMag's lead audio analyst from 2006 to 2011. Even though I'm a freelancer now, PCMag has been my home for well over a decade, and audio gear reviews are still my primary focus. Prior to my career in reviewing tech, I worked as an audio engineer—my love of recording audio eventually led me to writing about audio gear.
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You invite guests to a dinner party wearing embellished dress, everything is just ready to be served; but if you don't present food in a 'fit to be seen' manner, all efforts will be ruined and shattered. The same rule applies in every other prospect. Take the example of a designer who wants to showcase his project. If he does not present it emphatically or head turning; no better outcome will be supporting his side.
A presentation is all what counts in a project. You need to be precise just to add an impactful expression to your design. Today I am giving away a free poster mock up Vector PSD template. You can make your posters appear charismatic and phenomenal this way.