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Economic Sanctions European Union Geopolitics & Energy Security Germany Russia
Russia gas pipeline sanctions legislation (PEES Act): A way ahead
By Daniel Fried
Congress is poised to impose sanctions on the Nord Stream II gas pipeline project, a project long opposed by Ukraine, Poland, the Trump (and before that Obama) administration, the previous European Parliament, many inside the former European Commission (albeit quietly), and even many Germans. Congress's opposition to Nord Stream II is well founded. Yet enacting the sanctions mandated by the Protecting Europe's Energy Security Act (PEES Act), for all its careful crafting, may not actually block Nord Stream II but may instead burden the US-German relationship. Rather than impose sanctions, the administration should waive them for now but prepare even stronger contingency sanctions to be implemented should the Kremlin once again use gas exports as political leverage against Ukraine, Central Europe, or the Baltics.
The Nord Stream II challenge
Nord Stream II, the Russo-German Baltic Sea gas pipeline project designed to deliver Russian gas to Germany directly is bad policy: it increases Europe's dependence on Russian gas in contravention of the EU's own stated energy objective of diversification of energy sources and increases Russian leverage over Central European consumers and governments whose countries rely on Russian gas supplies and transit fees, by allowing Russia to bypass them while continuing to supply German and other Western European energy markets. Nord Stream II thus divides the European Union energy market and EU cohesion generally. Aware of Moscow's habit of seeking to dominate its neighbors, Central Europeans, especially the Poles, have been developing alternatives to Russian gas (including liquefied natural gas from the United States), with some success. But such a major reorientation will take years.
Similarly, since Ukrainians overthrew Putin-controlled President Viktor Yanukovych in 2014, Ukraine's government has wisely developed alternative means of purchasing gas, including Russian gas, through pipelines from its western neighbors that bring Russian gas to Ukraine from the West (so-called "reverse flow"). These arrangements mean that Ukraine no longer purchases any Russian gas directly from Russia for domestic consumption, a major national security achievement that mitigates much of the Kremlin's energy leverage over them. Still, while Ukrainians no longer face the prospect of gas shortages due to Kremlin cut-offs, Nord Stream II gives Russia the option of curtailing gas flows through the existing pipelines transiting Ukraine, thus depriving Ukraine of $3 billion dollars in annual revenues—right around 2.5% of Ukraine's gross domestic product (GDP), from transit fees.
Many Europeans outside those countries most vulnerable to Russian pressure know these issues well, and opposition to Nord Stream II has been strong, even within the European Union's own institutions. In December 2018, the European Parliament voted overwhelmingly against Nord Stream II. The EU has for years supported secondary gas pipelines to facilitate "reverse flow" to Ukraine and vulnerable EU member states in Europe. At the same time, the EU has sought to apply to Nord Stream II its own energy regulations, e.g., the EU's 2009 Gas Directive, to chip away at Russian coercive energy leverage; in 2019, the EU amended (and strengthened) its related Third Energy Package policy to apply to offshore pipelines, such as Nord Stream II.
These steps together are slowly weakening Russian gas leverage over Europe. But it still exists and will for years to come. Nord Stream II will prolong it. Notwithstanding the concerns of its neighbors and allies, the European Parliament (at least, the previous one), and many within the European Commission, Germany has pressed ahead with the project, partly because it unwisely decided to phase out nuclear power just as it was also phasing out coal for sound environmental/climate change reasons.
While Germany has laudably supported reverse pipeline projects and other means of mitigating the potential strategic risks of its own project, it has not done so with effort commensurate with the challenge. Instead, it has pressed ahead with Nord Stream II, which now appears to be at a late stage of the deep-water phase of construction.
Congress's sanctions solution
The US Congress has stepped in and put the "Protecting Europe's Energy Security Act" (PEES), originally introduced by Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), into the National Defense Authorization Act, a massive piece of legislation likely to pass in Congress and be signed soon by US President Donald J. Trump.
Unlike some Russia sanctions legislation that is more retrospective, punitive, and unfocused, PEES concentrates on the policy objective of blocking Nord Stream II; and the final version seems more carefully crafted than earlier versions. Its focused sanctions include mandating visa bans and full blocking sanctions against vessels and their companies engaged in gas pipe-laying at sea depths of 100 feet or more. That targets an area of pipeline construction in which Russia appears to be dependent on Western technology. (PEES also covers TurkStream, another problematic Russian pipeline project with many of the strategic downsides as Nord Stream but is now essentially complete and reportedly near operational.)
PEES provides for a wind-down period of thirty days after enactment for companies to pull out of Nord Stream II and includes a number of carve-outs, including an exception for repair and maintenance of the pipeline, specifically including environmental remediation.
In a nod to ongoing EU efforts to reduce Russian energy leverage over Europe, PEES also includes a sunset clause that would lift sanctions against Nord Stream II should the president certify that two conditions have been met. The idea of a sunset clause is laudable, but the details make it an impractical tool. The first condition for sanctions sunset certification is that Russia has lost the ability to use Nord Stream II as a tool of coercion. That's an intriguing approach, but PEES makes a criterion of that condition the determination that the Russian government no longer owns or controls Nord Stream II's transmission network, which seems a near-impossible standard to meet as long as state-controlled (or Putin-crony controlled) companies dominate Russia's energy sector. The second criterion for sunset certification—that Nord Stream not result in a decrease of gas transit through existing pipelines of more than 25 percent—reflects a reasonable standard to determine whether the Kremlin is again resorting to use of gas flows for political leverage.
While the sunset provision is probably not usable, however, PEES provides a broad national security waiver authority, allowing the president to waive all sanctions on the basis of US national security interests—a low bar compared to other sanctions waiver authority the Congress has given the Trump administration for Russia-related sanctions—and a report to Congress.
PEES assumes that even at this late stage of Nord Stream II construction, the pressure of US sanctions will frighten away Western companies and the project will halt. This is possible.
But it is also possible that because Nord Stream II is sufficiently close to completion, the Russians will find a way to complete the last pipe-laying portions of the project. (A cut-rate approach to undersea pipe-laying would raise the odds of engineering failure and/or environmental disaster, but in that case the Russians could use PEES's carveout for pipeline repair, maintenance, or environmental remediation to hire a Western firm willing to make the needed fixes.) In any case, PEES's sanctions are solely focused on blocking Nord Steam II's completion; it does not offer options should the project be completed.
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Public Event Thu, December 19, 2019 • 2:00 pm ET
The future of Nord Stream 2 and TurkStream: The impact of sanctions legislation
Throughout 2019, Congress has launched multiple legislative efforts to halt Kremlin aggression through stronger sanctions against the Kremlin and its proxies. The 2020 National Defense Authorization Act includes sanctions against companies involved in building the nearly-finished Russian natural gas pipelines to Europe—Nord Stream 2 and TurkStream.
Economic Sanctions Europe & Eurasia Geopolitics & Energy Security Oil and Gas
Regardless of their impact (or lack thereof) on the Nord Stream II project, imposition of the sanctions will trigger a major political problem with Germany which, despite its policy misstep with respect to Nord Stream II (and Nord Stream I, its no-better predecessor), remains critical to the transatlantic effort to limit and hopefully roll back Russian aggression against Ukraine and thwart Russia's broad panoply of other bad behavior. Even Germans who oppose Nord Stream II oppose sanctions against it. For sake of historical context, the Reagan administration tried to impose sanctions against Western companies for their role in supporting Soviet gas pipelines to Europe but had to back down in the face of intense allied opposition.
In short, PEES attempts to deal with a real problem in a serious way. But applying its sanctions would trigger a distracting fight with Germany, with which US relations are already strained. And sanctions might not work.
Another course: contingency sanctions
The administration could choose to use PEES's broad national security waiver authority and not implement the sanctions. But doing that and little else with respect to Nord Stream II would trigger objections that the administration was rejecting the will of Congress; siding with aggressive, authoritarian Russia against democratic Ukraine; and ignoring the energy security concerns of Poland, one of most pro-US countries in Europe whose government is among a small number in Europe on good terms with President Trump, and of other vulnerable Central Europeans.
The administration could, however, couple a waiver of PEES's sanctions with a commitment to use existing sanctions authorities (either CAATSA Section 232, existing Obama-era executive orders from the Russia sanctions program, or both) to impose new sanctions on Russian targets should the Russian government use Nord Stream II or any other gas pipeline system as a means to coerce or exercise political leverage over Ukraine or any other European country (possibly mentioning Poland, the Baltics, and perhaps other Central European countries in this context). That trigger for such sanctions could draw from PEES by also pegging the contingency sanctions should Russia reduce gas flows through existing pipelines by more than 25 percent relative to the monthly volume in 2019.
The administration would have to make clear that it would not launch such sanctions for trivial reasons but only in response to Russian coercion using gas. The administration should also note CAATSA Section 232's provision that requires consultation with allies before imposing sanctions (a substantively sound move that has the added advantage of addressing Congressional complaints that the administration does not use CAATSA enough). The Trump administration would face an issue of credibility should it exercise the waiver provision, as some would regard its commitment of contingency sanctions as unreliable; a sufficiently strong announcement and coordinated rollout of the contingency sanctions could mitigate that problem.
The details of such contingency sanctions need not be noted explicitly in the formal administration announcement of the waiver but would have to be planned in advance of any waiver announcement and consulted with key European stakeholders. In addition, examples of such contingency sanctions should be put out into the public domain simultaneous with the waiver announcement—possibly through background briefings—with enough specificity that the waiver and contingency sanctions announcement would be credible.
Such sanctions would have to be broader than the PEES provision that target only Nord Stream II construction. They should focus on the energy sector (along lines of making the punishment fit the crime) but need not be tied to Nord Steam II, narrowly defied. Options include:
Imposing financial restrictions on Gazprom (subjecting them to the US government's financial sector sanctions already imposed on major Russian state banks). So far, Gazprom (the state-owned Russian company that is Nord Stream's ultimate corporate backer) has not been directly subjected to sanctions, partly due to European concerns over gas supplies. But should the Russians resort to another round of gas coercion against European countries, Gazprom should no longer be considered off limits.
Escalating technological restrictions for gas and oil exploration equipment. US sanctions have so far targeted oil rather than gas exploration technology and had limited oil extraction technology restrictions to so-called special oil projects (arctic off-shore, deep-sea, and shale/fracking). If the Russians were to engage in a new round of gas coercion, gas extraction should not be off limits. The US government could develop sanctions options on a national (i.e., unilateral) basis, but to avoid commercial disadvantage to US companies, it should make clear to European and other Group of Seven governments that the United States will not tolerate so-called backfilling (European or other companies filling orders should US suppliers withdraw), and could invoke in this context the provisions in CAATSA that provide for secondary sanctions with respect to sanctioned Russian persons.
Intensified financial restrictions on all energy development projects. The United States would also seek European consensus to join us in these contingency sanctions, while making clear that should Russian malign behavior make such sanctions necessary, it would enforce these restrictions broadly, including through imposition of secondary sanctions.
The German government has objected to Nord Stream sanctions and appears to regard PEES's imminent passage with apprehension. The prospect of a waiver of sanctions ought to relieve Berlin and ease a point of major friction. That is a good thing. But in return the US government should make clear that it expects German cooperation in developing contingency sanctions, including those suggested above and possibly others.
Through PEES, Congress is putting pressure on the administration to address the challenge of Nord Stream II (and TurkStream) and, more importantly, the accumulation of Russian energy leverage. Legislation is seldom the best vehicle to develop good sanctions policy, but Congress has acted given understandable doubts about the administration's (and president's) approach to Russia.
The administration will have to respond when PEES becomes law, which is likely, either by imposing sanctions to seek to block Nord Stream II, by waiving the sanctions, or by finding a third option. Among these choices, the third option seems the best choice, assuming that the Trump administration is able to implement a nuanced approach.
Daniel Fried is the Weiser Family distinguished fellow at the Atlantic Council. He was the coordinator for sanctions policy during the Obama administration, assistant secretary of State for Europe and Eurasia during the Bush administration, and senior director at the National Security Council for the Clinton and Bush administrations. He also served as ambassador to Poland during the Clinton administration.
EnergySource Dec 6, 2019
The Neue Ostpolitik approach to Nord Stream 2: A legal fiction carried a little too far
By Dr. Benjamin L. Schmitt
Some Nord Stream 2 proponents invoke the Ostpolitik of the late Cold War, which involved West German cooperation with Moscow on Russian energy exports to Western Europe. But this time around, Europe does not need additional Russian gas volumes and its position is in opposition to the views of most of Eastern Europe. From this perspective, Nord Stream 2 is flawed Ostpolitik.
Energy Markets & Governance European Union
UkraineAlert Nov 20, 2019
Three months left to kill Nord Stream 2
By Diane Francis
Putin's Nord Stream 2 is not an ordinary natural gas pipeline. It's an underwater pipeline that will give Putin the power to plunge the Soviet Union's former satellites and republics in Europe into darkness.
Energy Markets & Governance Geopolitics & Energy Security
UkraineAlert Nov 5, 2019
What Nord Stream 2 means for Europe
By Maik Günther
The EU has enough pipelines and LNG terminals to import all the gas it needs without Nord Stream 2.
Image: Workers are seen at the construction site of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, near the town of Kingisepp, Leningrad region, Russia, June 5, 2019. REUTERS/Anton Vaganov


In a nutshell, what do you do?
I am a staff auditor, so that means I work with a team to analyze the financial aspects of a business. A large part of that involves analyzing a company's financial statements and controls through different methods of testing -- like control walkthroughs, analytics, or substantive testing. Part of that includes interactions with the client asking for more support, clarification or more information on their controls or what they do. In the end, the team must issue an opinion that states whether we believe the company is in accordance with GAAP. I work with multiple different engagement teams throughout the year on different parts of the audits.
I love what I do because every day is different. I am faced with new challenges daily and have to problem solve to figure out the best way to perform certain testing or what happened that made something misstated or recorded incorrectly. I love working with a team where collaboration is important.
How did Albion help you get there?
First off, Albion gave me the hard skills that are needed within this field. All of my accounting classes helped to provide the background that helps me to excel and understand the workings of a company and the audit. All of my professors at Albion advocated throughout my career for things from finding internship opportunities to the CPA exam. The economics and management department has great staff that helped me to be able to develop the foundation of accounting skills needed for my job. Second, Albion helped me to develop the soft skills necessary within public accounting. Throughout the different things I was involved with at Albion&em;the lacrosse team, Cru, studying abroad, the tour guide program&em;I was able to develop skills like leadership, communication skills, problem-solving, work ethic, among many others. These other skills that I developed at Albion are just as important as the other skills&em;I use them on a daily basis.
What did you like most about Albion?
My favorite part of Albion was the personal attention from the professors. A few of my professors took an interest in my success and how I was going to proceed with my future. They were able to help not only in class but also outside of class which is the benefit of going to a smaller school. Albion made it possible for me to get to know my professors and to know most if not all of the people in my classes and majors.
… gave me the opportunity to create relationships, network, and grow both intellectually and personally. I was pushed outside of my comfort zone often, and that allowed me to learn and grow in immense ways. Albion provided an excellent foundation for the start of the next chapter of my life. I know I will always have connections here, but Albion also prepared me to create connections moving forward.


Our plan to study this course is to deal with several facets at the same time. That is why you are dealing with several subjects in different ways. Your discussion question deals with one of three issues you are reading about; your response paper deals with another; an additional note will deal with the background of Apologetics, and this lecture covers the other issue in your reading. With this in mind, what we are doing is allowing your study to blend all of this information at the same time.
While reading the text one must have a strong impression that they are reading a text on Liberalism. In fact, the author does indeed describe this system of thought that we face everyday.
Chapter Four in your text is titled, "Man is Good by Nature but Corrupted by Society." Several of your assignments will allow you to pit these theories against the Bible. It is obvious that this particular view flies in the face of the book of Romans. Man is not good by nature and it is true he is corrupted by society, but that is not the root problem.
The system of thought that has produced such concepts is flawed because of its view of man and God. In fact, their conclusion in the matter makes man god. If it appears to the reader that these intellectuals are constantly apologizing for man, given his failure, you are right. This is blame-shifting and is exactly like what happened in the garden of Eden at the fall of man.
Adam was created in a state of untested innocence. He had not sinned but was capable of it. In the fall however he became totally depraved. He was affected by the fall socially, mentally, morally, spiritually and physically. He died spiritually and then possessed a sin nature and, therefore, therefore, became a sinner by act. Like our father Adam, we all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. All of us in this class were born in sin, possess a sinful nature, and have sinned. It is true that we are open to sin through the world, the flesh, and the devil, but that is not the root of our sin.
This certainly does not sound like what you read in chapter four of the text. While it is also true that man has worth, it does not mean he is worthy of what he needs as to forgiveness, holiness and salvation. One does not have to look far in our society to see the philosophies described in the text. They are everywhere in the media, entertainment, business, government and courts. What is stunning is the presence of these concepts in the churches. Our first response would be to describe the existence of these man-centered views in the liberal church. The sad truth is that these ideas have taken root in most of the evangelical and fundamental churches in America. All this is far too obvious in the current "marketing the church" movement. Here we have selling the Gospel, feel good theology; with all that rises from man-centered philosophies.
The marvelous thing about all of this is the power of truth. The truth that resides in the Word of God. That is the challenge of this course: learning to retrieve that information, learning to understand it, and finally communicating it. Later on in this course we will practice using this apologetic. Answering challenges from Scripture provides a deep confidence for the believer and that is the goal of this course.
There is a debate about recognizing counterfeits. Some argue that one only needs to know the real and then counterfeits will stand out. Testing this in a military situation explains why knowing the enemy is so important. The believer needs to know the condition of the real world. This is a lost art in Evangelicalism. Students need to know the thought-process of those who err. It is only then that they can test their grasp of the truth that rises from Holy Writ. This is not to say our goal is to create those who can argue well. We really seek those who can communicate, explain, and answer with biblical truth sufficiently to silence the folly of men.


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Q: Fundamental binding issue I just ran into a strange binding problem. In the mini app below, the Flex Label component is updated when 'someText' changes, but my boundSetter won't be called after the first, initial call.
In short: Why is the boundSetterForSomeText() function not called, while the label does update?
Could anybody please shed some light onto this fundamental issue? Thanks a million!
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<mx:Application xmlns:mx="http://www.adobe.com/2006/mxml" layout="vertical" minWidth="1024" minHeight="768"
    initialize="onInitialize()"
>
    <mx:Panel>
        <mx:Label text="{this.someText}" />
        <mx:Button label="Set random text" click="generateRandom()" />
    </mx:Panel>

    <mx:Script>
        <![CDATA[
            import mx.binding.utils.ChangeWatcher;
            import mx.binding.utils.BindingUtils;

            [Bindable(event="xxx")]
            public var someText : String;

            public function onInitialize() : void
            {
                var cw:ChangeWatcher = BindingUtils.bindSetter(boundSetterForSomeText, this, ['someText']);
            }

            public function generateRandom() : void
            {
                this.someText = String( Math.round(Math.random() * 10000) );
                this.dispatchEvent(new Event("xxx"));
            }

            public function boundSetterForSomeText(obj:Object) : void
            {
                trace( obj );
            }
        ]]>
    </mx:Script>
</mx:Application>

A: It does work when event is default. (Default event is propertyChange)
[Bindable]
public var someText : String;

I did some debugging and I have no clue why it doesn't work with custom event. I think it should.

A: You can use this code to create a get/set pair or "property":
private var _someText:String;

[Bindable(event="xxx")]
public function get someText():String
{
    return _someText;
}

public function set someText(value:String):void
{
    if (_someText != value)
    {
        _someText = value;
        this.dispatchEvent(new Event("xxx"));
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
Community>Noticeboard>Creatives/Music Lovers/Presenters wanted!
Creatives/Music Lovers/Presenters wanted!
Mad About Music is an upcoming music platform that will be promoting timeless, nostalgic, and meaningful music. We cover Hip Hop/Rap, R&B/Soul, Alternative R&B, Spoken Word & other international genres such as Reggae/Dancehall & Afro-Soul/Beats.
The whole purpose of Mad About Music is to bring a feel good feeling to the scene, promote new musicians as well as DJs/Producers, songwriters etc, whilst informing the people about new releases, educating them on the history of cultural music, and teaching them about the legends and pioneers in the game. The type of artists we want to promote are artists that make music with that timeless, nostalgic feel as well as purposeful music as well and artists who are highly skilled at their craft.
The way we plan to promote timeless, meaningful, nostalgic music is through Online Content such as, podcasts, documentaries, blogs, social media & more.
We are still in the early stages with the platform and are constantly looking for creative people and music heads that share a similar vision to come and be apart of something from the ground up.
At the rear end of 2020 we started a Podcast called 'Who Loves R&B?' (@wholovesrnb)
where everything R&B is discussed between a collective of R&B heads. The podcast also is trying to shed more light on UK R&B with our UK Spotlight segment at the end of the podcast where a member plays a song from an UK R&B artist.
We feel as if there are a lack of podcasts or shows that discuss R&B specifically especially here in the UK. Our aim is to be the hub for UK R&B artists to come to when promoting a new single album or simply to come on and just talk music.
We currently have a few episodes out on YouTube & Soundcloud. https://youtu.be/S5UGzM6VTSk if you want to check it out and get more of an idea of how the pod is run. Episode 3 is probably our most in depth episode. We are always trying to take things to a new level. In terms of how it looks visually, with the topics & guests.
I am also proud to say we managed to gain three interviews with upcoming artists KayFarway, Vanessa Jamie & Kevin Ross.
We've got plans for a performance type online show showcasing upcoming talents as well this year.
We are currently looking for the following:
- Videographers/Editors
- Photographers
- Bloggers
- Video Editors
- Social Media Specialists
- Presenters
- Hosts
- DJs
- Background Vocalists
- Drummers
- Pianists
- Content Creatives
- Audio Engineers
- Lighting Technicians
- Voice Over Artists
- Production Teams
Email: madaboutmusic20@gmail.com
Instagram & Twitter : @madaboutmusic20
madaboutmusic20@gmail.com
https://www.instagram.com/madaboutmusic20/
Report this notice
Notice #7235

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Scalp psoriasis is a common inflammatory skin condition that results in bumpy, scaly, reddish patches. Although it can affect any area of skin on the body, it most often develops on the scalp, face, back, knees, elbows, feet, and palms. Scalp psoriasis is not contagious, but can spread from one part of the body to another. It affects an estimated 2 – 3% of adults worldwide, which translates to around 125 million people. Fortunately, there are plenty of natural solutions that can help with scalp psoriasis treatment at home.
As is the case with other types of psoriasis, scalp psoriasis is believed to be caused by a malfunction of the immune system, which is related to heredity factors. While it is most likely inherited, the causes are still not clearly understood. As per the teachings of Ayurveda, the condition results from Vata and Kapha dosha imbalance and can be managed with dosha pacifying herbs that also possess anti-inflammatory properties. Stress, skin injuries, frequent infections, vitamin D deficiency, smoking, and alcoholism are also regarded as psoriasis triggers that can cause a flare up of symptoms, even exacerbating them.
Although mild cases may barely cause any visible symptoms, the condition can deteriorate with more severe scalp psoriasis, leading to a lower quality of life.
Ayurveda and other traditional medical systems offer a wealth of information on herbs and natural products that can help to treat psoriasis naturally, but it can be hard to tell which scalp psoriasis remedies actually work. Fortunately, researchers have made several breakthroughs in recent decades, providing us with evidence to support the use of certain herbs and ingredients in a natural scalp psoriasis treatment plan, while others have been shown to be ineffective. We've looked at the data and have highlighted a few of the best remedies based on traditional Ayurveda and modern science.
This yellow-colored root belongs to the same botanical family as ginger and like its relative, turmeric has long been used in Ayurveda to treat a variety of medical conditions. Due to its potent anti-inflammatory properties, turmeric makes an excellent remedy for psoriasis.
Besides orally consuming turmeric, you can also harvest additional benefits by topically applying curcumin gel or a homemade turmeric hair mask onto your scalp.
Also known as ghrita kumara in Sanskrit, aloe vera is an important ancient folk medicine used for treating wounds and relieving inflammation. In Ayurveda, this plant is often applied for soothing redness and itchiness associated with psoriasis, while it also works as a natural moisture to reduce dryness of the scalp.
According to the National Psoriasis Foundation, topical application of aloe vera may help reduce redness and scaling, but it is important that the cream used contains at least 0.5% aloe vera.
Homemade aloe gel is a great option, but if you haven't extracted or used the herb before, you should exercise caution as parts of the leaf can produce an allergic skin reaction. Keep in mind that while aloe vera will provide relief and reduces the severity of symptoms it is not a cure for psoriasis.
Colloidal oatmeal is a solution of oats and water that has long been used for treating various skin conditions. Due to its high beta glucans content, colloidal oatmeal can reduce inflammation and soothe the skin, making it a useful scalp psoriasis remedy for symptom relief.
You can apply colloidal oatmeal topically to treat any type of psoriasis. If you want to make your own solution, grind a cup of oats into a fine powder. Pass this powder through a sieve a couple of times to get rid of bigger pieces. Mix 1 – 2 tablespoons of the powder in a cup of water to create colloidal oatmeal.
Although we don't have a clear understanding of the causes of scalp psoriasis, we do know that there are certain behaviors and lifestyle choices that can trigger the condition. Minor changes to your diet and lifestyle can therefore go a long way to helping you cope with the condition. Here are some recommendations that you should follow.
There are some foods that are best restricted or avoided altogether as they may encourage psoriasis flares. Some foods that are commonly associated with psoriasis flares include nightshades, sour foods like lemons and pickles, fermented foods, whey and refined flour, salty and spicy foods, fried foods, sugar-rich or sweet foods, meat products, tobacco, and alcohol.
Meditation and exercise may also help counter the effects of psoriasis by reducing your stress levels. Additionally, Ayurveda recommends the practice of Pranayama, a technique involving controlled breathing that calms the body. Yoga would be the best physical activity or form of exercise to take up as it combines physical poses with pranayama and meditation, making it one of the most effective activities at promoting relaxation.
Scalp psoriasis treatment with natural methods will help to treat the condition, but only to the extent that they can provide relief from symptoms and reduce the frequency and severity of psoriasis flares. There is, however, no permanent cure for the condition, whether you use conventional or natural medicine. To many, natural remedies are the best option as they can be used consistently without risk of side effects, thereby helping to prevent psoriasis flares, not just to treat them when they do occur. If your symptoms worsen or do not abate with these home treatments make sure to consult a dermatologist as soon as possible.
Kang D., Li B., Luo L., Jiang W., Lu Q., Rong M., Lai R. (2016). Curcumin shows excellent therapeutic effect on psoriasis in mouse model. Biochimie. Apr;123:73-80. doi: 10.1016/j.biochi.2016.01.013.
Cerio R., Dohil M., Jeanine D., Magina S., Mahé E., Stratigos A.J. (2010). Mechanism of action and clinical benefits of colloidal oatmeal for dermatologic practice. Journal of drugs in dermatology : JDD. Sep;9(9):1116-20.


Why Do Racing Drivers Pay So Much Attention To Data?
Ever notice the myriad gizmos and gadgets that drivers attach to their cars before heading out on track? In addition to the ever-present GoPro, tools like the AiM Solo and RaceKeeper can capture a ton of data. What is it used for, and why should you care?
Here's a good overview of in-car, on-track data from Porsche Club of America high performance driver's education instructor Michael Gerowitz. Capturing data on braking, acceleration, lap times and more can help point out things to improve that you'd otherwise miss when relying on memory or video alone. G-meters and other data overlays don't just look cool when exported to YouTube—they can actually help you become a faster, more consistent driver.
Read all about the ways that adding a data system in your track or race car can help you get faster on MultiBriefs via PCA E-Brake News.


New paper accepted: S Vincenzi. Extinction risk and eco-evolutionary dynamics in a variable environment with increasing frequency of extreme events. Journal of the Royal Society Interface.
It should be published online on the 11th of June.
One of the most dramatic consequences of climate change will be the intensification and increased frequency of extreme events. I used numerical simulations to understand and predict the consequences of directional trend (i.e. mean state) and increased variability of a climate variable (e.g. temperature), increased probability of occurrence of point extreme events (e.g. floods), selection pressure, and effect size of mutations on a quantitative trait determining individual fitness, as well as the their effects on the population and genetic dynamics of a population of moderate size. The interaction among climate trend, variability, and probability of point extremes had a minor effect on risk of extinction, time to extinction and distribution of the trait after accounting for their independent effects. The survival chances of a population strongly and linearly decreased with increasing strength of selection, as well as with increasing climate trend and variability. Mutation amplitude had no effects on extinction risk, time to extinction or genetic adaptation to the new climate. Climate trend and strength of selection largely determined the shift of the mean phenotype in the population. The extinction or persistence of the populations in a "extinction window" of 10 years was well predicted by a simple model including mean population size and mean genetic variance over a 10-year time frame preceding the "extinction window", although genetic variance had a smaller role than population size in predicting contemporary risk of extinction.


text:
Rapid Adoption of Telemedicine for Adolescents & Young Adults
Clinical systems are adapting to a rapid increase in use of telemedicine, necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
A new article, published in August 2020, provides a detailed look at the challenges and opportunities of this adaptation at the Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine Clinic at the University of California, San Francisco. The article is available open access from the Journal of Adolescent Health.
To download the infographic, click here.
To view the open-access journal article, click here here.
The article acknowledges the following funding sources for the authors and contributors: A.B., M.R.-F., and Charles E. Irwin, Jr. were partially supported by Maternal and Child Health Bureau, Health Services and Resources Administration, USDHHS LEAH Grant T71MC0003. M.R.-F. was partially supported by the National Institute of Child Health and Development (K23-HD093839-01) and the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Watson Scholars Program. Dr. Charles E. Irwin Jr. was also partially supported by the Maternal and Child Health Bureau, Health Services and Resources Administration, USDHHS(cooperative agreements U45MC27709 and UA6MC27378). S.B. was partially supported by NIH/NCI Grant R01CA247705 The UCSF Youth Outpatient Substance Use Program and V.M. were partially supported by a federal grant under the State Opioid Response program, with funding provided by the California Department of Health Care Services.


Malaysia's wealth of national parks provides many challenges for the adventurous traveler. Top of the list is Taman Negara, the country's showcase national park; there are excellent trails and waterways to explore and good facilities. From the inside of the park, you can climb Gunung Tahan, Peninsular Malaysia's highest peak; this would be a nine-day trip. Also on the peninsular are the Kenong Rimba, and Endau-Rompin national parks. Endau-Rompin has Malaysia's largest surviving population of Sumatran rhinos, although don't count on spotting these elusive beasts.
Malaysian Borneo has 16 national parks to choose from, including the marine reserves and the rarefied heights of Mt Kinabalu; you will need to set aside three days to reach this summit. In Gunung Mulu National Park allow four days to tramp the Headhunters Trail and climb to the jagged Pinnacles. A day is sufficient for Niah National Park with its interesting giant caves. Give yourself two days in Boko National Park to hunt out exotic flora and fauna, including rare proboscis monkeys, and to enjoy walks along the rugged sand- and mangrove-fringed coastline.


The Mothers' Union takes on various projects: most recently blankets and teddies have been knitted by members. Once a year we organise a Cream Tea to raise money for the disadvantaged. In the spring and summer months, we organise Sunday afternoon teas to help raising funds for the maintenance and reordering of our historic church.


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Life with Derek
Life with Derek is a Canadian television sitcom that aired on Family and VRAK.TV in Canada and on Disney Channel in the United States. The series premiered on Family on September 18, 2005, and ran for four seasons, ending its run on March 25, 2009. The series starred Michael Seater and Ashley Leggat as the two oldest children in a stepfamily. It ended with 70 episodes and one spin-off television film, entitled Vacation with Derek. ... more on Wikipedia
Life with Derek is ranked on...
#284 of 1,330 The Best Guilty Pleasure TV Shows 18.4k VOTES List of the best guilty pleasure TV shows, past and present, including sitcoms, dramas, reality shows, and game shows. These...
#9 of 26 The Best TV Shows About Blended Families 1.7k VOTES List of the best television shows that feature blended families. The theme of many of the top television shows through the g...
#11 of 107 People who voted for Life with Derek... also upvote The Even Stevens Movie on The Best Disney Channel Original Movies of All Time also upvote The Thirteenth Year on The Best Disney Channel Original Movies of All Time The Best Disney Channel TV Shows 166.5k VOTES This list of the top current and cancelled Disney Channel TV series includes the date when each show first aired, as well as...
#8 of 51 The Best Family Channel TV Shows 3.1k VOTES List of popular Family Channel shows, ranked from best to worst. This list of the top current and cancelled Family Channel T...
#69 of 75 The Best Sitcoms That Aired Between 2000-2009, Ranked 80.8k VOTES List of the best sitcoms that aired in 2000-2009, as ranked by sitcom fans. Sitcoms have been a staple of television since t...
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Finance Malaysia Blogspot: Budget 2019: Economic Highlights and Un-Budgeted Items?
Budget 2019: Economic Highlights and Un-Budgeted Items?
From the recently announced Budget 2019 themed as 'Malaysia Wibawa, Ekonomi Dinamik, Rakyat Sejahtera', it will have 3 focus areas, and 12 main strategies to put the country back as an "Asian Tiger" again (hopefully), as what we enjoyed during 1990s until the Asian financial crisis.
The very first budget announcement from the new government after 60 years of independence caught the eyes of the world, especially economists, to gauge the thinking of the new ruling coalition's future policies. Well, it was considered as an expansionary budget, although facing fiscal constraint, partly due to 1MDB scandal.
Huh? What is the so called "un-budgeted items" by previous goverment?
paying back some GST refunds of RM3.9bn.
Well, well, well... It's good that the new government is transparent about our financial health. However, this would not be good in the eyes of rating agencies, which may potentially downgrading our credit rating later. What do you think?
Next we will blog about the possible winners and losers for share investors. Stay tuned !!!


The Sunset Ocean Suites at Ayada Maldives, located in the south of the largest Maldives Atoll of Huvadhoo, named Gaafu Dhaalu, very close to the Equator.
Ayada Maldives officially opened in October 30th 2011.
The beautiful environment of the resort is a Dream, but as any new Resort opening, it has to establish a name and good reputation in the exigent World of Luxury Hotels.
If you've stayed at Ayada Maldives, feel free to share your holiday experience here…We would be happy to read you.
Previous : Name your very own Coral at Huvafen Fushi!
Great attractive pic but may'be you've missed something and should care about the dreams you publish.
Ayada is a 3…maybe 4 star resort, in my opinion…… at best!
What can I say, Service …..unhappy and unprofessional stuff .
Ayada maldives is not what it promises on its website. The Resort fails to achieve highly due to the cheap facilities, lack of 5 star services and training, unprofessional, unfriendly and unhappy staff from the reception, butlers and dive staff, and food with the exception of the Spa which is just all right.


At Doodle Academy, we prime our kids for a brighter future in school by featuring technology and computers in their lessons.
Although kids and technology are not always the best combination, integrating technology into children's lives has more benefits than you might imagine.
The uses of computers and internet are growing day by day at high speed. In almost all business, companies, schools using computers for various official operations. New tech tools are coming that helping students to learn better.Computers help students to draw the creativity on the computer such as by using windows paint program.


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By ProgBlog, Aug 28 2017 09:13PM
The sharp-eyed amongst you may have noticed that on Wednesday last week (August 23rd), Gentle Giant were inducted into Portsmouth Guildhall's 'Wall of Fame'. The Guildhall, originally the Town Hall, was renamed after Portsmouth gained city status in 1926. The neoclassical building was severely damaged during the Second World War but restored, with much of the original detail missing, and reopened in 1959 with standing space for an audience of 2500 in the largest performance space. The Wall of Fame is a recent feature, introduced in 2014 to honour (mainly) local artists who have achieved great success. Gentle Giant join artists like Mark King of Level 42 (originally from the Isle of Wight); local boy Mick Jones, who formed Foreigner with Ian McDonald; another local boy Spike Edney, probably most famous for his live work with Queen; and Steve Hackett, voted on by fans in recognition of his amazing musical career who was inducted in May this year.
The Shulman family originally hailed from Glasgow but set up home in Portsmouth in 1948 after the father of the yet-to-be Gentle Giants had been posted there during the war. The three Shulman brothers Phil, Derek and Ray first formed Simon Dupree and the Big Sound along with Eric Hine (keyboards), Pete O'Flaherty (bass) and Tony Ransley (drums) in 1966 and had a hit in 1967 with Kites, originally a ballad written by Lee Pockriss and Hal Hackady which the band were quite unhappy with, insisting it wasn't in their chosen musical idiom. They eventually recorded a version at the insistence of their manager John King, in psychedelic style featuring a variety of odd studio instruments in Abbey Road, including Mellotron and a wind machine; they even got an actress friend to recite some Chinese during a spoken interlude and, to their surprise, the single did very well, ultimately peaking at no. 8 in the charts. Simon Dupree and the Big Sound had no further success but evolved into Gentle Giant in 1970 when the Shulmans recruited Kerry Minnear (keyboards), Gary Green (guitar) and Martin Smith (drums.)
The first Gentle Giant album I heard was In a Glass House (1973) and the first I bought, in an effort to hear as much of their material as possible, was Playing the Fool – The Official Live (1977) on cassette. It was obvious from a very early stage that GG were highly accomplished musicians playing incredibly complex material and it wasn't until I heard Free Hand (1975), premiered on Alan Freeman's Saturday radio show, that I realised they could also really rock without compromising their identity. At that stage, GG being a band that I looked out for, I had no idea of their relative lack of commercial success. What I heard of The Missing Piece (1977) indicated a major change, and not a good one. The Sight & Sound in Concert performance, filmed at London's Golders Green Hippodrome on January 5th 1978 and shown on BBC TV a couple of weeks later was a must watch occasion, but Two Weeks in Spain and Betcha Thought we Couldn't Do It were major disappointments. I started to build up a full collection of GG in the 80s and in the mid 90s, when progressive rock was slightly less vilified than it had been for almost 20 years and when the nascent internet was mostly accessed for academic purposes, I signed up to a couple of web-based forums: Elephant Talk for all things Crimson and On Reflection, the internet discussion list for GG fans; it was a revelation to read fans' thoughts and anecdotes. There's no doubt that the band deserve their place in the Portsmouth Guildhall Wall of Fame.
Gentle Giant inducted in The Wall of Fame
photo from http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/leisure/news/15494134.Gentle_Giant_inducted_into_Wall_of_Fame/#gallery0
London obviously exerts a pull on musicians and in the late 60s and early 70s the sheer mass of opportunity, the music papers, the range of clubs, the presence of record labels, recording studios and publishing firms was enough to make most artists gravitate towards the capital. Perhaps more important than any of those things was the presence of sufficient numbers of punters willing to listen to something which offered more than ephemeral pop; Pink Floyd may have had roots in Cambridge but it was London which formed the base for their success. In the very early days, their reception outside of the capital was frequently hostile and it's 'Pink Floyd London' stamped on their banks of WEM speakers, clearly visible during the Echoes part 1 footage from Live at Pompeii, not 'Pink Floyd Cambridge'. Similarly, Floyd contemporaries Soft Machine may have formed in Canterbury and been responsible for an entire prog sub-genre, but they also migrated 100km along the route of Watling Street in search of fame and fortune. That doesn't mean that the south coast of England was unimportant for progressive rock; an hour's drive west of Portsmouth is Bournemouth, half an hour's drive inland from Bournemouth is Wimborne and 10km due west of Bournemouth is Poole. This relatively small area is where Michael and Peter Giles, Robert Fripp, Greg Lake, Gordon Haskell, John Wetton, Richard Palmer-James and Andy Summers all began playing.
Pink Floyd of London - Live at Pompeii
Over the last few weeks I've been to a number of towns on the south coast, lured by a combination of a bracing sea breeze and the prospect of browsing through second-hand records in both favourite and new haunts. One of the reasons for progressive rock musicians having a connection to the south coast can be detected in the architecture of the seaside towns which is another reason for getting on a train south from East Croydon station; the inter-war suggestion that swimming provided universal health benefits resulted in something of a seaside boom, coinciding with a penchant for streamlined art deco apartment blocks, hotels and public buildings, and the upturn in visitor numbers meant that there had to be provision of suitable entertainment; dance halls and dance bands. Likewise, when armed forces were barracked in the dockyards at Portsmouth or at one of the RAF radar stations, they needed an outlet for R&R. Both Robert Fripp in Bournemouth and Keith Emerson in Worthing played in hotel- and dance bands where the predominant genre was jazz; the young Emerson even played piano for a local dance class, covering a variety of styles and playing a range of tempos, all excellent experience for the future combination of rock, jazz and classical music exemplified by prog.
Seaside art deco: De la Warr Pavilion, Bexhill
Our trip to Worthing wasn't entirely successful. This was the most westerly of the towns visited recently and was intended to be a reconnaissance mission. I'd identified a couple of independent record stores, along with an HMV in the Montague shopping centre but the condition of the interesting records in the flea market on Montague Parade wasn't brilliant and after thinking about replacing my sold off copy of Barclay James Harvest Live (1974) for £4, I decided against it. Next stop was Music Mania in West Buildings but this was closed until the end of August for holidays. I did manage to find a copy of Electronic Realizations for Rock Orchestra (1975) by Synergy, aka Larry Fast, for £2.99 in Oxfam. It was very breezy on the beach but at least the architecture was good: the brutalist Grafton car park, given a colourful makeover by street artist Ricky Also, and the 1930s art deco flats of Stoke Abbott Court, even though their restoration wasn't in keeping with their original, aerodynamic form.
Grafton car park, Worthing
Brighton is just brilliant. On our most recent trip I picked up an original copy of Tubular Bells for £5.50, David Bedford's The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1975), Pink Floyd's Obscured by Clouds (1972) and the rather obscure US electronic album Zygoat (1974) by Burt Alcantara under the name of Zygoat. These were all from Snoopers Paradise in North Laine; I then popped into Across the Tracks and bought a new copy of Stranded (1970) by Edwards Hands.
A short way east along the A27 is Lewes, and though it's not costal, the river Ouse is tidal. Octave Music has now closed down but Union Music Store and Si's Sounds are both worth looking around. Si's was closed on the day of our visit and I was tempted by some unsold record store day bargains in Union, but not tempted enough. Lewes has a number of antique shops and I managed to locate David Sylvian's double LP Gone to Earth (1986) which to some degree presages the Sylvian-Fripp collaboration in 1993, plus Phallus Dei (1969) by Amon Düül II, Moraz-Bruford Flags (1985), Barclay James Harvest Time Honoured Ghosts (1975), and the surprisingly good Point of Know Return (1977) by Kansas. The architecture in Lewes is very interesting and one of the most recent additions, a concrete and glass 5 bedroom house clad in Cor-Ten steel set on the banks of the Ouse on the site of an old workshop, is really special.
Union Music Store, Lewes
Most recent on the list of coastal visits was Hastings. Again, I'd identified suitable record shops to visit but the duration of the train journey, a little over 100 minutes each way, restricted our time for wandering around. It's been some considerable time since I was last there and in the intervening years the town has been used as an overspill for London boroughs facing a housing crisis, shifting the pressure from the capital to local services in East Sussex. However, that's not what we witnessed. The relative ease of the commute to central London and the laid-back vibe appears to have encouraged a degree of regeneration. The beach was empty and very clean; the pier has been redeveloped and shortlisted for the 2017 Sterling prize; George Street is like a short stretch of Brighton's Laines with some unique gift shops, independent coffee bars, antique shops and best of all, Atlas Sound Records, which hadn't been on my list. The cash-only shop acted as an outlet for at least three sellers who travelled the world to find suitable vinyl. I came away with Rakes Progress by Scafell Pike (1974) – folk rather than prog, but for £5 its Lake District name and the fact I'd only ever seen it twice before, once around the time of its release in Kelly's Records, Barrow, and much more recently in a market stall in Vicenza, Italy, meant I had to buy it. I also picked up Midnight Mushrumps (1974) by Gryphon and Mass in F Minor (1968) by The Electric Prunes, a piece of gothic psychedelia that I'd only got in mp3 format, converted from a home taping of my brother's copy of the LP back in the late 70s. I was encouraged to return because I was told that the stock had a good turnover.
Bob's Records was on my list, in the basement of an antique shop in High Street; disorganised but reasonably well-priced and mostly in very good condition, there were bits of memorabilia for display like the framed cover of In the Land of Grey and Pink for £7 and three laminated back-stage passes for Pink Floyd concerts presented in a frame at £40. I bought a copy of the last Colosseum II album War Dance (1977). In another of Hastings' antique shops I saw a framed Pink Floyd at Hastings Pier poster on sale for £20 and as far as I can make out, they only ever played in Hastings on one occasion, Saturday 20th January 1968, just before Dave Gilmour was invited to join the band, and I'm not sure if the article was genuine.
Atlas Sound Records, Hastings
I think the atmosphere of some of the towns on the south coast is accurately captured by the melancholy of Exiles (from Larks' Tongues in Aspic, 1973); those responsible for the track's writing credits, Cross, Fripp and Palmer-James all had a history linking them to the south coast, as did vocalist/bassist Wetton (Cross was from the Plymouth area.) The contrast of a parochial existence with the glamour, real or superficial, found in cities around the world resonates today: Worthing town centre has certainly seen better days and the empty public spaces in Eastbourne are equally sad; Bexhill would be nowhere without the De La Warr pavilion and the towns seem to cling on to the remnants of a faded glory. Fortunately there are places like Brighton and Lewes, and now Hastings, where there's a positive vibe... ...and good record shops.
Filed under: progressive rock, Brighton, Richard Palmer-James, Steve Hackett, Barclay James Harvest, Exiles, Elephant Talk, Michael Giles, Greg Lake, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, The Missing Piece, prog rock, Andy Summers, Time Honoured Ghosts, David Cross, Playing the Fool, John Wetton, Kerry Minnear, David Bedford, Tubular Bells, king crimson, Colosseum II, The Electric Prunes, Obscured by Clouds, folk, Robert Fripp, David Sylvian, Pink Floyd, Live at Pompeii, Lewes, si's sounds, John Weathers, Soft Machine, Mass in F minor, Amon Düül II, On Reflection, Gryphon, Gentle Giant, Free Hand, Edwards Hands, Stranded, Zygoat, Burt Alcantara, Octave Music, Union Music Store, Gone to Earth, Kansas, Poinf of Know Return, Moraz-Bruford, Flags, Phallus Dei, Hastings, Atlas Sound Records, War Dance, Scafell Pike, Lords Rake, Bob's Records, prog, Portsmouth Guildhall Wall of Fame, Simon Dupree and the Big Sound, Kites, Mark King, Level 42, Mick Jones, Foreigner, Ian McDonald, Spike Edney, Ray Shulman, Phil Shulman, Derek Shulman, Gary Green, Martin Smith, Sight & Sound in Concert, Live at Golders Green Hippodrome, art deco, WEM, Bournemouth, Wimborne, Poole, Peter Giles, Gordon Haskell, Worthing, Grafton car park, Bexhill, De la Warr pavilion, Music Mania record shop, Larry Fast, Synergy, Electronic Realizations for Rock Orchestra, Stoke Abbott Court, In a Glass House, Midnight Mushrumps, architecture, Brutalism
By ProgBlog, May 29 2016 09:00PM
In the mid-70s I was aware that progressive rock could be found elsewhere in the world other than the UK. I was very much into Focus and Trace (Netherlands); PFM (Italy); Gong (France); and even had an inkling that Wigwam were predominantly Finnish. I'd also come across the work of Swedish multi-instrumentalist Bo Hansson.
Hansson had a track on Charisma Keyboards, the Charisma sampler from 1974 that also included America by The Nice, The Fountain of Salmacis by Genesis and White Hammer by Van der Graaf Generator; Hansson's Flight to the Ford was the shortest track on the album by some margin but the brevity of the piece didn't deter Guy Wimble, a friend from across the road, buying Music Inspired by Lord of the Rings Hansson's most successful assault on the UK album charts, from which the track was taken. The LP had been very successful in Sweden when it was originally released on Silence Records in 1970, partly because of the adoption of The Lord of the Rings by the counter-culture but equally because the music fitted the nascent progressive rock movement. The acquisition of Hansson by Charisma exposed Hansson to a far wider market and though his subsequent albums Magician's Hat (Silence, 1972, Charisma 1973), Attic Thoughts (1975) and Music Inspired by Watership Down (1977) were not as successful it's unlikely that many of us would have heard of him had it not been for Tony Stratton-Smith.
Bo Hansson's Music Inspired by Lord of the Rings
The music itself is pleasant and melodic but you could never call it over-adventurous; listening to it recently I found I liked it more than I remember doing so. There's a space rock vibe pervading the compositions (the original Silence release cover art was quite psychedelic) and Hansson layers the instruments in a way that I think may have influenced Mike Oldfield's modus operandi; he adds some nice distorted jazzy guitar that strays into Santana territory and, though he may have jammed with Jimi Hendrix, his playing is clearly more informed by jazz than the blues. Flight to the Ford is one of two up-tempo tracks (the other is The Horns of Rohan/The Battle of the Pelennor Fields where the cymbal work suggests clashing swords) but there's only a relatively narrow dynamic range on the entire album; the swelling organ work conjures images of rolling countryside and though not truly pastoral, it certainly comes across as very reflective. Perhaps I was swayed more by the literary influences and references than the music itself, as Hansson employs titles from books I was reading as a teenager: The Lord of the Rings (obviously); Elidor by Alan Garner and Watership Down by Richard Adams. I suppose that it's hardly surprising that the Swedes should have taken to modern myths from contemporary authors given their own story-telling legacy and Tolkien's desire to create a myth to match the Norse sagas.
I travelled around Sweden as part of an InterRail adventure in 1983, making a brief stop in Gothenburg to wait for a train to Oslo,spent two hours in Boden before moving on to Finland, two full days in Stockholm, about half an hour waiting for a hydrofoil in Malmo plus hours of travel on the Swedish rail network, many kilometres of which were spent inside the arctic circle where, even in August, the landscape was stark; the trees denuded as though by acid rainfall, which was just reaching our collective environmental consciousness at the time. I really enjoyed Stockholm and wished I could have spent more time there, staying overnight on a full-rigged three mast iron sailing ship built in Whitehaven, Cumbria in 1888 (SS Dunboyne) which had become permanently moored off Skeppsholmen and converted to a Youth Hostel, the af Chapman. Travelling with college friend Nick Hodgetts, now a renowned bryophytologist, we island-hopped and explored some of the less popular areas of the city, the narrow streets behind the main thoroughfares. I don't buy 'tourist' things but rather I bought a Franz Kafka T-shirt from the Akademibokhandeln bookshop, 1983 being Kafka's centenary. The legend, in Swedish, read "Kafka hade inte heller så roligt" something along the lines of "Kafka was not so funny".
The author in 1984 sporting the Kafka T-shirt
The third wave of progressive rock didn't arise in the UK but in Sweden and the USA. Around the time that King Crimson resurfaced with the double trio conformation in 1994 I started to subscribe to Elephant Talk, the King Crimson internet resource run by Toby Howard and this is when I realised that there was some form of prog revival, frequently sounding like metal with some prog flourishes but also material that was reported to sound like Red-era Crimson; heavy prog but not prog metal. It probably didn't sink in that there was a strong Swedish connection to the prog revival until I bought my first Jerry Lucky book and with two highly regarded bands mentioned very early on in the listings, Anekdoten and Änglagård, I added Änglagård's Hybris (1992) to my wish list (copies were selling for in excess of £50 when they were available, which was infrequent) and invested in my first ever download, Anekdoten's Vemod (1993) because I'd read a description that suggested the music sounded like King Crimson would have done if they hadn't disbanded in 1974, a remarkably accurate assessment. Vemod is heavy, Mellotron-drenched and although it's predominantly instrumental, the lyrics are intelligent and call to mind Richard Palmer-James, rather than Peter Sinfield. The melancholy feel of the music is enhanced by the addition of cello; at times the guitar is like the angular playing of Steve Howe on Fragile and the bass style owes a heavy debt to John Wetton. I finally got my hands on a copy of Hybris from a stall at the Prog Résiste festival in 2014, a brilliant, less heavy affair than Vemod or the Anekdoten follow-up Nucleus (1995) but still deeply rooted in the 70s progressive rock sensibility. The darkness and sadness in this trio of albums may be in part due to the Scandinavian physical geography and latitude (nicely parodied by Steven Wilson in live performances of The Raven That Refused to Sing by asking Guthrie Govan to play guitar in the style of a number of stereotypical Swedish situations) but it's to the benefit of every prog fan that they have such an attitude. I was fortunate to get to see Änglagård play their first UK gig at the Resonance Festival in 2014 and despite a lengthy delay due to the obstinacy of a Mellotron, it was a fantastic routine.
One name that links Änglagård and Anekdoten is Markus Resch who serviced and repaired their Mellotrons and who now owns the rights to the Mellotron name. I think I'm correct in believing that I first came across his name at the Night Watch playback in 1997 where there were two Mellotrons on display.
Another leading light of the third wave is Flower Kings, led by guitarist Roine Stolt who had joined Swedish symphonic prog band Kaipa aged 17 in the mid 70s. I managed to catch them headlining at Prog Résiste but was a little disappointed because they didn't match expectations. I subsequently read that their later material deliberately moved away from classic analogue keyboard sounds and this fits with my memory of their set, which didn't come anywhere close to recreating 70s prog but sounded more mainstream and, if you'll excuse the pun, more transatlantic.
Flower Kings at Soignies 26th April 2014
Sometime before I managed to acquire any of the 90s Swedish prog I'd been given Seven Days of Falling (2003) by E.S.T, the Esbjorn Svensson Trio as a present and later bought their final album Leucocyte (2008), released posthumously three months after the death of pianist Svensson. This jazz trio deliberately blurred genres and if such a thing existed, they'd be labelled as prog-jazz, incorporating electronics and noise into their recordings. It was after an E.S.T gig in Brighton in 2005 that I was caught accidentally speeding (34 mph in a 30 mph zone) searching for directions how to get out of the city centre and return to Croydon. It was still a good concert.
If you thought that the only musical export from Sweden was the over-produced Abba singing meaningless nonsense, you need to reappraise. Not only was Bo Hansson riding the first wave of progressive rock, it was the Swedes who resurrected the genre, not just as prog but as genuine progressive rock in the 90s. Bring on the Bo Hansson T-shirts!
Filed under: Hybris, Resonance Festival, Brighton, Jerry Lucky, Guthrie Govan, Steve Howe, mellotron, Croydon, progressive rock, Richard Palmer-James, Santana, Elidor, Gothenburg, Stockholm, Boden, Oslo, Malmo, Whitehaven, Dunboyne, af Chapman, Skeppsholmen, bryophyte, Anekdoten, Vemod, Nucleus, Scandinavia, Markus Resch, Flower Kings, Kaipa, Roine Stolt, Esbjorn Svensson Trio, Seven Days of Falling, Leucocyte, E.S.T, prog-jazz, Abba, Sweden, Italy, France, Wigwam, Finland, Flight to the Ford, Silence records, Music Inspired by Lord of the Rings, Magician's Hat, Attic Thoughts, Music Inspired by Watership Down, Bo Hansson, Alan Garner, Richard Adams, Jimi Hendrix, Elephant Talk, America, Peter Sinfield, Mike Oldfield, Van der Graaf Generator, prog rock, Trace, Genesis, Steven Wilson, The Raven that Refused to Sing, White Hammer, John Wetton, king crimson, InterRail, The Nice, Franz Kafka, Red, Focus, Gong, The Fountain of Salmacis, Watership Down, jazz, JRR Tolkien, Prog Resiste, Netherlands, Charisma Records, Tony Stratton-Smith, prog, PFM, Anglagard, Fragile
Observing King Crimson
By ProgBlog, Sep 6 2015 10:44AM
My introduction to King Crimson came towards the end of their 70s prime, between the releases of Starless and Bible Black and Red (both 1974.) At that time I could only delve into their past, their stunning debut In the Court of the Crimson King (1969) being next to entrance me, though their self-inflicted demise also yielded personal favourite USA (1975) and the retrospective compilation A Young Person's Guide to King Crimson (1976.) I can't remember why I never bought a copy of Young Person's but I assume it's because brother Tony and I had already embarked upon getting hold of the original albums; I do remember being impressed with its brilliant cover (by Fergus Hall) though I wouldn't get to see the booklet included with the double LP for another couple of years when Jim Knipe acquired a copy.
As far as getting to see them play live, I couldn't imagine it ever happening. I managed to witness Fripp's presence, as Dusty Rhodes, when I went to see Peter Gabriel during the tour for his first solo album at the Liverpool Empire, April 1977. Fripp's continuing emergence from 'retirement' for David Bowie's Heroes (1977) sparked some interest despite my disdain for Bowie material up to that point but as far as I was concerned his return to form was as producer and guitarist on Peter Gabriel II (Scratch, 1978) which included the excellent Exposure, subsequently re-recorded for his own solo album Exposure (1979.) This release wasn't in the same league as Crimson but Breathless (which we christened 'Green') hinted at '74 Crimson. Fripp's residency in New York and his work with a number of the local artists seemed to influence his next move, the almost-punk League of Gentlemen that Jim and I saw at the LSE in November 1980.
Meanwhile, I'd been following the fortunes of Bill Bruford and though I didn't start collecting albums that he'd graced as a guest drummer until a few years later, releases from his own band Bruford and the first UK album were must haves. The reunion of the 72-74 Crimson rhythm section was a cause for celebration and if the original line-up of UK had managed to stay together they might have prolonged the golden era of prog; the material on UK (1978) reflected progressive rock from three or four years earlier but sounded new and different, hinting at jazz rock rather than symphonic prog. Sadly, there was no hint that the Bruford- and Holdsworth-less incarnation would change direction so drastically for Danger Money (1979) where despite some excellent music the song structure included far too much uninspiring verse-chorus-verse chorus form. I went to see UK at Imperial College, London in March 1979 and saw Bruford, in a double-headliner along with Brand X at London's Venue in May 1980.
It was an incredibly pleasant surprise to hear about the formation of Discipline, though I regarded the inclusion of two Americans with a degree of trepidation. I was well aware of the talents of Tony Levin but not at all acquainted with the pedigree of Adrian Belew. I needn't have worried because Belew's on stage antics fitted the feel of the music; joyful, fun, infectious and somewhat difficult to categorise. I found it difficult to figure out which guitar was doing what and some of the noises I'd have associated with Fripp's guitar playing seemed to come from Belew. The fast circular picked style that featured in some of the League of Gentlemen material had been refined so that when the two guitarists played together it was like tying and then unravelling some highly complex knot – the logo that was to appear on the cover of Discipline (1981) by Steve Ball was very apt. The inclusion of some of the later 70s King Crimson music should have been a clear signal that this group was about to become the next Crimson. Theoretically, I didn't get to see King Crimson until September 1982 when they performed at the Hammersmith Palais on the tour to promote Beat (1982.) Now used to the sound of this version of Crimson, the music seemed more accessible than on its predecessor but the final release from this Crimson, Three of a Perfect Pair (1984) contained more challenging and experimental pieces. Unfortunately, this material was not toured in the UK and the next time I got to see them was after their break-up and reformation at the Royal Albert Hall in May 1995.
I was fortunate to have an academic email account in the early 90s and was an avid reader of Elephant Talk, the King Crimson e-letter lovingly put together by Toby Howard. I'd pretty much given up on musical journals apart from the odd Q which had sufficient interesting content to make it worthwhile buying, so it was through ET that I picked up on Fripp's work with David Sylvian, going to see them at the RAH in December 1993 where I found the music to have a very dreamlike quality, largely due to the very hi-fi nature of the soundscapes. Vrooom (1994), the EP love-letter from a new-look Crimson, signalled that progressive rock, or at least acts that were classed as prog, were no longer anathema. The Discipline-era band was augmented by Pat Mastelotto (drums) and Trey Gunn (stick), both of whom played with Sylvian and Fripp. This taster release from the so-called 'double trio' incorporated the best of the previous incarnations of the band; there were very strong hints of Red-era Crimson and the adult pop-funk that I apportion to the pen of Adrian Belew had matured very nicely. The full release, Thrak (1995), though making Vrooom almost redundant, did not disappoint and that live show, on Bill Bruford's birthday, was one of the best gigs I've ever attended and my feelings were transmitted to the ET readership when I submitted a short review.
At this time I really couldn't get enough Crimson and went off to see them when they took in London on their next tour at the Shepherd's Bush Empire in July 1996, the only UK date on the THRAKaTTaK tour. This was another great show in a not-so-good venue and where I picked up my copy of the just-released THRAKaTTaK live CD.
It seemed that tensions within the band may have been a little strained and perhaps members shouldn't have read too many ET entries. In search of possible direction and allowing time for individuals to pursue other avenues the group divided up into different ProjeKcts. This was a fertile period for the band and for the Crimson imprint DGM, including the tight-knit Crimson community Epitaph and The Nightwatch playbacks that I attended in London in March and September 1997 respectively; I even provided a home-made date and walnut cake for the former. When the band reconvened for The ConstuKction of Light (2000) it was minus Bruford and had become somewhat heavier. This was quite evident during their performance at the Shepherd's Bush Empire on July 3rd 2000, a gig that I didn't particularly enjoy, standing downstairs in a crush between the stage and the bar.
I think I'm right in saying that the current tour, with a line-up of Fripp, Levin, Mastelotto, Mel Collins, Jakko Jakszyk, Gavin Harrison and Bill Rieflin, will include the first UK dates since 2000 and will amount to the first UK tour since 1982. I've continued to collect bits and pieces from Crimson-related musicians since I last saw them, including Live at the Orpheum (2015) which serves as a brief introduction to this formation with its three drummers.
I'm really looking forward to Monday!
Filed under: adrian belew, tony levin, Three of a Perfect Pair, progressive rock, Bill Rieflin, Heroes, Elephant Talk, ET, Peter Gabriel, THRaKaTTaK, Allan Holdsworth, David Bowie, League of Gentlemen, UK, king crimson, Discipline, Robert Fripp, David Sylvian, Bruford, Brand X, Mel Collins, Red, USA, Beat, Vrooom, Thrak, The ConstruKction of Light, Live at the Orpheum, Pat Mastelotto, Trey Gunn, Jakko Jakszyk, Gavin Harrison, Danger Money, In the Court of the Crimson King, prog, Bill Bruford


text:
No more maintained. See [ruhax](https://github.com/Peekmo/ruhax) project instead, which parse real ruby code.

Fork from [raxe](https://github.com/nondev/raxe) because I'm a bit frustrated by the choices
of the maintainer

# Installation

To install Lexah you can use haxelib

```haxelib git lexah https://github.com/peekmo/lexah.git```

# Build the project

You'll need [mcli](https://github.com/waneck/mcli) libraries installed:

```
haxelib install mcli
```

Tell haxelib to look into your directory for lexah
```
haxelib dev lexah ./
```

Now, compile the project with ```haxe build.hxml```
A binary ```run.n``` will be available

# Command line tool

Base
--
If you installed the library with haxelib:

```haxelib run lexah```

On development :

```neko run```

Transpile
--

```haxelib run lexah -s <lexah filename or directory> [-d <filename or directory>]```

Arguments:
- ```-s or --src``` the source filename (lexah) or directory
- ```-d or --dest``` destination for the haxe file(s) generated. If omitted and src is a file, the dest will be the same filename in .hx. If omitted and src is a directory, the hx files will be generated in the same directory as lexah files.

Example : ```haxelib run lexah -s examples/ -d dist/```

Will transpile all lexah files from examples to dist directory. Non lexah files will be just copy/paste to the new directory

Watch
--
If you want to automatically transpile modified lexah files, you can add argument ```-w or --watch```. It will create an endless loop that will watch your files.

Example : ```haxelib run lexah -s examples/ -d dist/ -w```

Lexah only
--
If also want to only copy other files other than lexah files, you can add the option ```--lexah-only```. So, if you have an image inside your lexah directories, it will be not be copied by the transpiler (by default, it's copied).

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Day of Infamy, Lord, Walter, WW2 1st edition paperback fine condition - We have traded for over 20 yearsIn stock shipped from our UK warehouse Each Book is in a protective clear bag well packaged and normally sent out next day.
Death Is Our Playmate, Turnbull, Patrick, (ISBN 0330026631), 1971 Pan 1st edition paperback. vg+ condition. In stock shipped from our UK warehouse.


text:
Here are three ways you can get a Covid-19 vaccine appointment
Wisconsin National Guard called to Kenosha after police shoot Jacob Blake
Wisconsin's governor has summoned the National Guard to head off another round of unrest following Sunday's shooting.
Burned out vehicles are seen Monday, Aug. 24, 2020, in Kenosha, Wis. Many of the cars were set on fire during protests Sunday night after a police shooting in the city. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)
Published: 3:39 PM EDT August 24, 2020
Updated: 5:04 PM EDT August 24, 2020
KENOSHA, Wis. — Wisconsin's governor summoned the National Guard to head off another round of violent protests Monday after the police shooting of a Black man under murky circumstances turned Kenosha into the nation's latest flashpoint city in a summer of racial unrest.
Democratic Gov. Tony Evers said 125 members of the National Guard would be in Kenosha by night with responsibility for "guarding infrastructure and making sure our firefighters and others involved are protected." County authorities also announced an 8 p.m. curfew.
The move came after protesters set cars on fire, smashed windows and clashed with officers in riot gear Sunday night over the wounding of 29-year-old Jacob Blake, who was hospitalized in serious condition. He was shot, apparently in the back, as he leaned into his SUV while his three children sat in the vehicle.
Police in the former auto manufacturing center of 100,000 people midway between Milwaukee and Chicago said Blake was gunned down while they were responding to a call about a domestic dispute.
They did not immediately disclose the race of the three officers at the scene or say whether Blake was armed or why police opened fire, and they released no details on the domestic dispute.
A young man who said he made a widely seen cellphone video of the shooting, 22-year-old Raysean White, said that he saw Blake scuffling with three officers and heard them yell, "Drop the knife! Drop the knife!" before the gunfire erupted. He said he didn't see a knife in Barnes' hands.
The governor said he has seen no information to suggest that Blake had a knife or other weapon, "but this is undergoing a thorough investigation" by the state Justice Department.
The officers were placed on administrative leave, standard practice in a shooting by police, in the meantime.
Evers was quick to condemn the shooting, saying that while not all details were known, "what we know for certain is that he is not the first Black man or person to have been shot or injured or mercilessly killed at the hands of individuals in law enforcement in our state or our country."
Tonight, Jacob Blake was shot in the back multiple times, in broad daylight, in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Kathy and I join his family, friends, and neighbors in hoping earnestly that he will not succumb to his injuries.
— Governor Tony Evers (@GovEvers) August 24, 2020
Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden called for "an immediate, full and transparent investigation" and said the officers "must be held accountable."
"This morning, the nation wakes up yet again with grief and outrage that yet another Black American is a victim of excessive force," he said, just over two months before Election Day in a country already roiled by the recent deaths of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Rayshard Brooks in Atlanta and Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Kentucky. "Those shots pierce the soul of our nation."
Republicans and the police union accused the politicians of rushing to judgment, reflecting the deep partisan divide in Wisconsin, a key presidential battleground state. Wisconsin GOP members also decried the violent protests, echoing the law-and-order theme that President Donald Trump has been using in his reelection campaign.
"As always, the video currently circulating does not capture all the intricacies of a highly dynamic incident," Pete Deates president of the Kenosha police union, said in a statement. He called the governor's statement "wholly irresponsible."
The shooting happened around 5 p.m. Sunday and was captured from across the street on video that was posted online. Kenosha police do not have body cameras but do have body microphones.
In the footage, Blake walks from the sidewalk around the front of his SUV to his driver-side door as officers follow him with their guns pointed and shout at him. As Blake opens the door and leans into the SUV, an officer grabs his shirt from behind and opens fire while Blake has his back turned.
Seven shots can be heard, though it isn't clear how many struck Blake or how many officers fired. During the shooting, a Black woman can be seen screaming in the street and jumping up and down.
White, who claimed to have made the video, said that before the gunfire, he looked out his window and saw six or seven women shouting at each other on the sidewalk. A few moments later Blake drove up in his SUV and told his son, who was standing nearby, to get in the vehicle, White said. White said Blake did not say anything to the women.
White said he left the window to use the bathroom for a few minutes and when he came back, saw three officers wrestling with Blake. One punched Blake in the ribs, and another used a stun gun on him, White said. He said Blake got free and started walking away as officers yelled about a knife.
Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, representing Blake's family, said Blake was "simply trying to do the right thing by intervening in a domestic incident."
There was no immediate confirmation from the police that that's what happened.
Online court records indicate Kenosha County prosecutors charged Blake on July 6 with sexual assault, trespassing and disorderly conduct in connection with domestic abuse. An arrest warrant was issued the following day. The records contain no further details and do not list an attorney for Blake.
It was unclear whether that case had anything to do with the shooting.
Laquisha Booker, who is Blake's partner, told NBC's Milwaukee affiliate, WTMJ-TV, that the couple's three children were in the back seat of the SUV when police shot him.
"That man just literally grabbed him by his shirt and looked the other way and was just shooting him. With the kids in the back screaming. Screaming," Booker said.
Crump, who has also represented the Floyd and Taylor families, called the police officers' actions "irresponsible, reckless and inhumane" and added: "It's a miracle he's still alive."
In the unrest that followed Sunday night, social media posts showed neighbors gathering in the surrounding streets and shouting at police. Some chanted, "No justice, no peace!" Others appeared to throw objects at officers and damage police vehicles. Officers fired tear gas to disperse the crowds.
In a scene that mirrored the widespread protests in recent months over police brutality and racial inequality, marchers headed to the Kenosha County Public Safety Building, which houses the police and sheriff's departments. Authorities mostly blocked off the building, which officials said was closed on Monday because of damage.
For more than 100 years, Kenosha was an auto manufacturing center, but it has now largely been transformed into a bedroom community for Milwaukee and Chicago. The city is about 67% white, 11.5% Black and 17.6% Hispanic, according to 2019 Census data. Both the mayor and police chief are white. About 17% of the population lives in poverty.
Like other cities across the U.S., Kenosha has been grappling with unemployment in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak. Its unemployment rate was 10.8% in June, among the highest in the state.
Kenosha protesters, police clash again Monday after Black man shot
Wisconsin governor calls special session following police shooting


text:
Poor Water, Sanitation Harm Workers: UN Secretary General
22 Mar 2016 by OOSKAnews Correspondent
Lack of access to clean water and adequate sanitation harms workers around the world, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said in a message to mark World Water Day on March 22nd.
This year's World Water Day was held under the theme "Water and Jobs."
"All workers can be harmed by poor water and sanitation," Ban said. "Of 2 million work-related deaths every year, nearly one in five are caused by poor quality drinking water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene."
"The basic provision of adequate water, sanitation and hygiene services at home, at school and in the workplace enables a robust economy by contributing to a healthy and productive population and workforce," he said.
He noted that "people with the least access to water and sanitation often also lack access to health care and stable jobs. This perpetuates the cycle of poverty."
In her own World Water Day statement, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Director General Irina Bokova added that "water is vital for agriculture, industry, transport and the production of energy and is an engine for economic growth. It generates and sustains jobs worldwide … Water quality and sanitation remains essential in providing a decent livelihood."
"… Safe drinking water and sanitation at the workplace must become priorities everywhere," she said.
"Meeting the challenge of creating and preserving decent jobs in the face of climate change and water scarcity will require far greater investments in science, technology and innovation," Bokova continued. "The evidence shows that investing in water infrastructure and services can have high returns for both economic development and job creation."
"The challenges we face from climate change, water scarcity and the displacement of low-skilled workers are enormous," she said. "But promoting high-quality jobs, while preserving the environment and ensuring sustainable water management, will help to eradicate poverty, promote growth and craft a future of decent work for all. This is UNESCO's message today."
Meanwhile, international human rights group Human Rights Watch emphasized the need for good governance to bridge the gap between water "haves" and "have nots."
"In many parts of the world, negligence, corruption, or a lack of accountability undermine the right to water. Governments are often slow to act, unaccountable, and deny or minimize manifest harm," and "as usual, it is the poor and the marginalized who are most affected," Human Rights Watch Senior Researcher for Health and Human Rights Richard Pearshouse and Senior Researcher in the Women's Rights Division Amanda Klasing said.
"This World Water Day, governments should act to regulate and enforce laws around water so that all people -- particularly the most marginalized -- can quench their thirst without risking their health," they said.
"For the water 'have nots,' rights matter."


Imagine someone just told you to buy a smart fragrance diffuser for $100. Now, imagine you have no idea what that is, what it does or why it's worth $100. There's not much chance you're rushing out your door to buy a smart fragrance diffuser right now.
You might think that if you had a new, revolutionary idea, it would be easy to find customers to buy in. But the truth is, sometimes new and innovative products can be some of the hardest to sell. What if consumers don't understand the product? What if they aren't aware of the problem your product can solve? How do you sell something your customers don't understand?
Well the good news is, that's exactly the question we're gonna answer here today. Let's talk about how to create demand for new and unique products.
You're selling a product or brand that is known abroad but not in your country.
You're selling a brand-new product, e.g. your own invention.
Let's continue with our example, and imagine you're now selling smart fragrance diffusers. We'll say 10 people per month search for this specific item. This means that very few people are aware of — or currently see a need for — your particular diffuser product. We would say product awareness is low, therefore demand is also low. So what do you do?
Why is your product better than other alternative products already on the market?
If we're using a smart fragrance diffuser as our example, what do we know about it? We can say it's a device that can be turned on and controlled with a smartphone, a tablet, or a PC. It fills the room with pleasant scents, and it helps remove the not-so-pleasant scents.
businesses like restaurants or office spaces with a lot of foot traffic to remotely control the atmosphere and prevent unfriendly odors.
Once you define your target audience, it will be much easier to choose the appropriate marketing channels to promote your new gadget.
Your product might be unique, but chances are, your customers will still have some alternatives. For our example, we might identify ordinary fragrance diffusers or even scented candles as competition. Watch how those alternative products are marketed. Highlight their pros and cons. This will help you understand the strengths and weaknesses of your own product.
After that, you need to come up with unique selling proposition — a USP.
For example, some regular fragrance diffusers spray the substance every 9, 18 and 36 minutes. Some consumers might think that's too frequent. With a smart fragrance diffuser, you can set the time yourself with your smartphone. So that's your key advantage.
When it comes to new and unique products, position them relative to known competitors. Don't present the innovation out of context — give consumers a reference point to understand the benefits of your new product.
People often use search engines like Google to find products they know they need. But can they use search engines to find products they DON'T know they need? That's a little more difficult. Let's figure out how to make it happen.
Search ads can work if you use related search queries. For example, "best oil diffuser".
To find related search queries for your product, think about goods and services that solve the same or a similar problem to yours. Then use special tools like Keywords Everywhere to see which keywords correspond with these goods and services. In the case of a smart fragrance diffuser, you can work with keywords for air fresheners, air purifiers, or odor removal services.
Additionally, you can use other related search queries, like "fragrance diffusers for a cafe," "fragrance diffusers for offices," and so on. You will need a separate list of keywords for each case. Think about your customers' related interests and use them to narrow your focus.
related interests — for example, technology for a smart home.
With Google Shopping, it's not that delayed, they're purchasing immediately because they're already looking for what we have. The keywords that we put into our shopping campaign are "cake transportation," "how to deliver a cake." All the versions of that. So if someone is googling those words, they're looking for a solution right now and they're going to purchase at the moment. Whereas social media, it's still wonderful to build that following, but they might not be immediate purchasers.
If your product is complex, expensive, or completely unknown, your customers need time to think before they make a purchase decision. So, be sure to set up retargeting — display ads on Google or Facebook to shoppers who visited your website but left without a purchase. Discounts or special offers will attract more visitors to return.
For example, we can target our ads to people who were looking for automatic diffusers or people who are interested in the Internet of Things. After they enter those items in the search bar, other websites will show them your ads.
Since most people aren't familiar with your product, it's important to raise awareness. Companies with a large budget can promote with the help of influencers. Instagram and YouTube are especially effective: you can show the product in detail in videos or photos.
In addition to social media, you can post articles on third-party websites your audience reads, or make posts on forums.
Your website should provide information that teaches a potential customer about the product, how it works, and why it's better than traditional alternatives.
Use videos and quality (how about 360º?) photos to help your customers understand how the product works.
The first video we made for our website was a demonstration video just to show customers how the product works. It was about 50 seconds long. And then we realize it looks great, however, people didn't know what it was. So basically, we realized: "Oh, we don't have a problem that shows the problem and then the solution, now it's just the solution". So we made another video with an actual professional model to show a problem and the solution. And a shorter version, because then we found out that for social media like Facebook or Instagram it can't be longer than 15 seconds before people's attention span disappears.
Videos can be placed on the homepage and on product pages too.
Add schemes or infographics to a video, they will help to make a decision for those people who can't watch the video at the moment.
If you sell complex products, you can make a series of training videos and upload them on your website or a Youtube channel. The video should show the product in use and explain its advantages.
You can make a tab for those videos on the website to upload videos about the product.
Describe advantages and ways of use on the page. For example, tell how and why smart fragrance diffusers are useful at home, in an office, in a cafe.
As opposed to ordinary products, template descriptions won't work here, as you need specific information about the product or a comparison with a well-known alternative.
In your store's blog, you can tell how the product works and answer the most common questions.
Write not only about the product itself, but also about related topics that your target audience is interested in. This will help to attract search traffic. For example, you can write how to choose fragrances for different purposes or about danger/safety of aromatic compounds.
If you sell technical solutions or custom-made products, make case studies that demonstrate your work. They can be placed both on a blog and on a separate page on your website. Examples will help customers understand how your product works.
Now you know how to successfully sell a product even if no one's heard about it. Maybe you already sell such goods? Are you planning to strike the market with something innovative like CakeSafe or FlipZees did? Don't hesitate to share your thoughts and ideas in comments!


Are you and your kids getting cabin fever? Consider celebrating the New Year's holiday with a balloon drop on Wednesday afternoon. There are two places that ring in 2009 as it arrives around the globe, and you'll have to decide which place fits the bill.
Your balloon drop choices are Oakland's Chabot Space & Science Center and Berkeley's Lawrence Hall of Science – so ask your kids whether they prefer an all-space visit or more earthly discoveries. With tikes under seven years old, head straight to Berkeley since the Chabot drops (for them) are sold out.
Chabot has scheduled balloons at 1 pm and 4 pm, so plan on arriving at least 15 minutes before the festivities begin. There's room for kids 7-12, when the balloons fall in the Rotunda. While there, you can tour all the space age exhibits and visit the planetarium too. Or screen a movie later at the dome theater.
More info: Chabot is open from 10 am – 5 pm, and located at 10000 Skyline Dr, Oakland (map). Tickets cost $3/kid for the balloon event. Admissions run another $13/adult, $10/student or senior, $9/ages 3-12 and include the planetarium. Dome movies cost $7/adult or $6/kid. Questions, call 510-336-7373.
Along with the balloons, Lawrence Hall will let kids make noise makers (and noise) and other crafty things between noon and 2 pm. Through their Science On a Sphere, it's easy to pinpoint who's celebrating the new year. There's a planetarium here, plus more earthly exhibits like a walk-in wind tunnel.
More info: Lawrence Hall is open from 10 am – 5 pm, and located on Centennial Dr, Berkeley (map, directions). Admissions include the balloon event, and run $11/adult, $9/student or senior, $6/ages 3-6. Planetarium shows cost another $3/adult or $2.50/others. Questions, call 510-642-5132.
NextTake Survey: How Healthy Are Montclarions?