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Post-Modern Studio System? What Overturning the Paramount Decision Means for Film Business
Posted on October 16, 2020 by R.L. Terry
While the official announcement was unaccompanied with fanfare, the overturning of the landmark ruling in "U.S. v Paramount Pictures, Inc., et al" (1948) on Friday, August 7, 2020 marks a turning point in the business of modern cinema. Also known as The Paramount Decision and The Hollywood Antitrust Case, this ruling marked the end of Hollywood's Golden Age and the decline of the Studio System that upheld it. What exactly does this mean for the business moving forward? Short answer: nobody knows, and anyone claiming to know what IS going to happen is incredibly presumptuous. However, by looking at the history of the 1948 ruling and the current events surrounding the August 7th ruling, we can explore this watershed moment in the film business, both past and present. Furthermore, we can extrapolate from past precedent what may happen or even could happen today. One thing is certain, we are in rapidly ranging and even uncertain times due to the direct and indirect impacts of the response to COVID-19. Although the federal court began reevaluating this case in late 2019, it is undeniable that the impact of the response to the effects of the virus may have played a latent role in the final decision. From a massive increase in streaming content options to premium paid video-on-demand (PVOD) to continued (at the time of this writing) delays in returning "big ticket" first-run movies to theatrical exhibition, there are many factors at play here. Not to mention questions such as "if I am an indie filmmaker, will I be able to get my movies in theatrical chains," "does this mean that Amazon or Apple will buy up struggling chains like AMC," or "if I am a screenwriter, will I still be able to submit my screenplays to studios if they are completely vertically integrated?" Perhaps this exploration of the past, present, and future of the film business in light of the overturn of the Paramount Decision won't be able to provide definitive answers, but it will provide historical, empirical, and observational evidences to suggest what may or could happen moving forward.
In short, the Paramount Decision (1948) was a landmark case in which the US Government forced the eight major/minor studio players to end the practice of block booking, divest themselves of their respective theatre chains (sell them off), and modify the practice of long-term employee contracts (although, this practice would continue until the 1960s). This marked the beginning of the end of the Studio System, AKA Hollywood's decentralization. But before we can even begin to understand the significance of the August 7, 2020 decision that overturned the landmark ruling, we have to jump in the wayback machine and head to Hollywood's Golden Age (recently seen on Ryan Murphy's Hollywood, a 2020 limited-run series on Netflix).
What was the studio system anyway? It was the arrangement of film production and distribution dominated by a small number of studios in Hollywood. Historically, the term refers to the practice of large motion picture studios, between the 1920s-60s, of producing movies primarily on their own backlots with creative personnel often under long-term contracts, and which dominated exhibition through the vertical integration of company-owned movie theatres. Block booking was also a common practice at this time. This process forced theatres to accept a block of movies from a studio. If an independent theatre wanted to show Movie A, then the studio would require the theatre to also accept and show Movies B, C, D, and E too.
Years before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the once powerful Paramount Pictures, the biggest studio in Hollywood at the time, there were constant legal and ethical issues plaguing the storied studio system that produced some of the most foundational films in cinema history. Back during the height of the studio system, there were eight principle players: the Big Five and the Little Three. The Big Five was comprised of: Paramount, MGM, Warner Bros., 20th Century Fox, and RKO; the Little Three included Universal, Columbia, and United Artists. You may (1) recognize some of those names today and (2) notice that there is a famous studio conspicuously missing. The latter is due to Walt Disney Studios being in its infancy during this time. Ironically, it would become nearly completely vertically integrated in the 20th and 21st centuries, minus owning a chain of movie theatres. In a manner of speaking the Walt Disney Company operates in a very similar fashion to that of its older brothers and sisters.
When I took a tour of Paramount Pictures back in 2015, I asked how many full-time staff worked on the lot. And the tour guide responded with 30-40 people. That's right, only 30-40 people at the time. While that number may have fluctuated in the last five years, it leads me into one of the practices that came to a close when the Studio System fell. Prior to the Paramount Decision and the development of professional unions, studios held movie stars, directors, writers, and others to longterm contracts (with few, if any, options). Contracts were so tightly managed, that studios would loan stars to other studios, for example Paramount may choose to loan out Mae West to M-G-M in exchange for Judy Garland. The on screen talent wasn't the only area treated as a commodity, virtually every role in front or or behind the camera was under contract to a studio, including directors and writers.
While this looks like an infringement upon civil liberties through our 2020 eyes, and there are many reasons it should, there was something positive regarding employment during the Studio System: job security. When you worked for the studio, you worked for the studio and made all its pictures. Meaning, you knew you had regular employment until your contract was satisfied, you quit, or were fired. Employees didn't have to worry about when and where the next gig was; employees went to work, Monday through Friday if you will, just like other working professionals. Furthermore, this centralized human resources system also made it possible to apply for vacant positions as a director, writer, craftsman, or any other position. There were also a great number of formal apprenticeships for those who were trying to break into the system. Sounds great, right? Well, yes and no. Yes, for reasons of streamlining the hiring process and providing stable employment in the field; and no, because the studio (that also likely controlled movie theatres) would not produce or distribute your picture unless you worked for the studio. It was a closed corporate system, so independents were largely kept out of it. From submitting screenplays to theatrical distribution, aspiring filmmakers either had to join the corporate ranks of the studio system or exhibit their pictures in small independent movie houses, IF they could even get the film developed and edited.
Even before the 1948 decision, the studio system and studio-theatre relationships were under attack, but the studios were able to find loop-holes and political alliances in order to avoid the breakup of the vertical integration that was expensive to maintain but highly lucrative. As the movie studios regrouped for continued legal battles in the court system and Justice Department, media mogul Howard Hughes of storied RKO Pictures made the decision to sell off his movie theatres. When The Justice Department made it clear that there were to be no more deals between the government and the movie studios, Paramount sold its movies theaters in an attempt to buy into television. However, after the legacy studio's continued involvement in all the antitrust cases leading to the final decision in 1948, the government did not permit Paramount to maintain any semblance of a monopoly in the frontier of television.The battle to keep the studio system was finally over. In the end, the Paramount case influenced the growth of television because, among other reasons, RKO and other studios sold their film libraries to television stations to offset the losses from the Paramount Decision. The studios also released actors from those longterm contracts, and many became television stars.
Although there are many side-effects and tangential reasons why the studio system (1) was lucrative and (2) hard to dismantle, there is one root reason from which everything else radiated: control. Everything gets back to control. Control of movie stars, control of writers and directors, control of the distribution and exhibition process. With all this control, the Studio System was able to craft its own narrative and success story. While the system was lucrative, it also racked up a lot of debt. Debt that came from borrowing from banks, exorbitant movie star salaries, and fighting legal battles. Even though the system had a lot of problems, it still gave us some of the best movies of all time, motion pictures that are larger than life, and those that typified the Golden Age of Hollywood. However, this system also protected its own when scrutiny or accusations arose, which is reprehensible. The Hollywood Studio System was truly its own self-contained world that outsiders were only let into through the movies and publicity.
The film business landscape looks much different than it was during and just after the Golden Age of Hollywood. But over time, we have seen a migration back towards the ol' system of doing things. The most recent examples of borderline antitrust infringement are Disney's acquisition of 20th Century Fox, AT&T's acquisition of Warner Bros. Pictures, and Comcast's acquisition of NBC-Universal. What makes the latter two particularly interesting cases is the simple fact that both AT&T and Comcast own and operate the literal hardware in the ground and air that brings you your connection to the internet. One could read this as a form of distribution. The Disney example is more or less one of reducing the ability to equitably compete for audience dollars and the ability to create jobs. You can read more on the Disney-Fox deal in my article Out-Foxed. While block booking and price-fixing are still illegal, the overturn of the Paramount Decision does create a greater pathway to acquiring movie theatres and the ability to be more greatly vertically integrated than was possible since 1948. Interestingly, movie studios have been legally able to buy movie theatres since 1948, but because of the scrutiny and bureaucratic red tape that would come with it, it was not a practice except in the case of Disney purchasing the historic El Capitan theatre and Netflix purchasing the iconic Grauman's Egyptian Theatre (sister theatre to the world-famous Grauman's Chinese Theatre). Disney uses the El Capitan for most of its own premieres, but the movie theatre also shows a variety of other programming. But with this overturning, Disney could choose to only show its movies in the El Capitan, likewise with Netflix and the Egyptian Theatre.
But, so what if Netflix and Disney want to exclusively exhibit their own films in their movie palaces? And you're right, those two locations do not significantly make a difference in the grand scheme of things; but, what this represents is a microcosm of what could happen more nationally. And that's why many of us are fascinated by this ruling; we are both anxious and eager to see what happens in this new frontier. Maybe nothing, maybe something. But film academics have a duty to analyze the situation to inform the public of the possible outcomes.
At the time of writing this article, Disney has made no claim regarding any real interest in purchasing the struggling AMC movie theatre chain nor Regal (owned by CineWorld). That said, there is more to explore that isn't quite as in the face of the public as purchasing theatre chains. While control is the root cause for the machine that was the studio system, the reason the government went after the big studios was in-part because the studios made it nearly impossible for independent filmmakers to get their films into theatres or land distribution deals. If the studio did not produce your film, then it would not distribute it. The inequitable competition field led the US Government to bring about the landmark antitrust case. Lack of competition or lack of an opportunity to compete is what many independent producers, directors, and other creative and technical personnel fear most moving forward. It is highly unlikely that anything major is going to happen overnight; however, the studios now have the latitude, or horizontal if you will, to test the boundaries of their vertical integration and ability to strong-arm the marketplace. Suffice it to say, the studios will be "testing the fences for weaknesses, systematically…they remember" (Robert Muldoon, Jurassic Park).
While Disney may not be presently interested in purchasing a movie theatre chain (according to the August earnings call), the three companies to watch out for are: AT&T, Amazon, and Apple. The AAA threat. Interestingly, AT&T is no stranger to monopolies or even oligopolies (like a monopoly, but when a market is controlled by a few big companies instead of one). Without going into too much detail on the U.S. v American Telephone and Telegraph (AT&T) case, the antitrust case was brought against the telecom giant, owner and operator of Bell Systems. Bell Systems held a monopoly over American and Canadian phone systems, a monopoly that was held since the dawn of the telephone. The end result of the 1982 ruling brought about the breakup of the Bell Systems company into seven regional "Bell" markets. From this breakup we got seven telecom companies, each operating a particular geographic region. Interestingly, four out of the seven companies are now back under the control of AT&T. The remaining three former Bell markets are owned by Verizon and CenturyLink.
If we use the AT&T case study as a parallel model for understanding studios and the film business, we can posit ideas of what may happen in light of the recent overturn. The AT&T model bares many similarities to the Studio System model. We have a monopoly (or oligopoly) that was broken up by the US Government. Then there was a time of division; but slowly those once divested companies were bought up by the big company again, and in AT&T's case, the original company. Full circle. What's funny is that this parallel case study involves one of the likely players in this post-Paramount Decision world. By using the AT&T model, reason stands that a big company or two (maybe three) can and will buy up smaller companies to have a larger footprint, thus reducing competition. It happened the telephone world, it can happen in the film world. After being broken up, AT&T made many smart, seemingly benign moves in order to essentially become a phoenix that is greater than it was before its empire was broken up.
What does this mean for studios and movie theatres? It simply means that it is very likely that a major company with deep pockets will purchase movie theatre chains. Simple as that. We have seen this before in the AT&T case study. But it won't be Disney, Universal, or even Netflix buying the theatres, it will be AT&T, Amazon, Apple, or and/or Sony. Inarguably, the first three are some of the largest, wealthiest, and most influential companies in the world, with the latter having an incredibly diversified portfolio that includes technology and more; what better way to showcase your audiovisual technology than in movie theatres??? Each of these companies has the assets necessary to acquire AMC, CineWorld (Regal), Cobb, and even Cinemark. Interestingly, AT&T, Amazon, Apple, and Sony all have investments in film and tv production. AT&T owns WarnerMedia et al., Amazon operates Amazon Studios, Apple creates original content for Apple TV+, and Sony operates Sony Entertainment et al. It is unlikely that the US Government would permit any of these companies to buy up more than one of the major movie theatre chains, but we could easily see each of the four major movie theatre players getting bought up by corporate conglomerates. While there isn't evidence to suggest that these four corporate giants would force audiences to go to one of their theatres to see one of their movies, it is entirely possible that those corporate giants would offer additional programming (maybe certain movies primarily released on streaming services) at their company owned movie theatres. Between original and licensed/distributed content, these movie theates, tied to media conglomerates that have major studio investments, may pack the theatres with so many movies that independent filmmakers will have to see alternate means of securing distribution, be that through streaming services, independent movie theatres, or or smaller specialized chains like Studio Movie Grill and Alamo Draft House, both of which are known for catering to cinephiles, including horror fans.
In a manner of speaking, what we are looking at here is a post-modern Studio System. You'd once again have the BIG FIVE (AT&T, Apple, Amazon, Disney, and Comcast) and the LITTLE THREE (Sony, Viacom/Paramount, and Netflix). These eight companies would control the media landscape. And there will be just enough competition that it avoids any antitrust lawsuits (until it doesn't; that's how this goes, if you haven't figured it out), until history repeats itself again. This new studio system will flourish for decades, but then something will happen and the government will step in and break up the companies again, most likely resulting in selling of movie theatre chains or even more sobering, movie theatres become a shadow of their former selves. It is unlikely that movie theatres will completely go away, but their purpose and role in show business may be relegated to little more than a novelty. These studios may reimagine the movie star star system, film/tv/production related unions could lose their power because of the increasing number of employees (not contractors) at movie studios, and/or there could even be more theme parks as a means to generate quick revenue to funnel back into the studio model, much like Disney and Universal Parks and Resorts do for their parent companies. Lots of job creation may happen, but these will lack in the creative latitude that many filmmakers crave.
For many independent filmmakers, the fear of the fallout from the overturn of the Paramount Decision is reduced opportunities to secure distribution deals. But it's not only the production talent that is concerned. Writers could be greatly impacted; because, in a more heavily vertically integrated system, writers will have far fewer outlets for purchasing or licensure of their screenplays. Disney is a good example of this. Disney rarely purchases screenplays from screenwriters; their common practice is to use in-house screenwriters or commission a writer to pen a screenplay. So, if you are not IN the Disney studio system, then your chances of selling or optioning your screenplay are minimal. Since Disney owns 20th Century Fox, then this same practice carries over into that branch as well. That said, Searchlight Pictures is still a production and distribution company to which independent filmmakers and screenwriters can submit work for purchase, licensing, etc. While Disney is the easy example here, this same practice could be said of any major studio.
More vertical integration means larger companies in a world that is shrinking. This shrinking world could mean trouble for the aspiring filmmaker or screenwriter because of the lack of opportunities to make the transition from page to set to distribution. While this new world may make it more difficult for a screenwriter to sell a screenplay to a studio that is vertically integrated, the director will also face new challenges. Independent filmmakers will have to get their films bought or licensed by a major company in order to get the exposure needed to be able to develop a substantive career. Netflix has a history of being friendly to independent filmmakers (although it has more and more original programming), so an advantage to getting Netflix to buy or option your movie is that you may just be able to screen it at the Egyptian Theatre, which would greatly aid in qualifying for the Oscars or Golden Globes.
While independent filmmakers may face increasing odds against them for theatrical distribution, this post-modern Studio System could create thousands of jobs in the industry. But you will create what the studio wants you to create, which may not necessarily be the stories that you want to tell. And amidst this possible creation of jobs may be a world with far less opportunity for equitable competition for that golden statue and audience eyes.
Ryan teaches film studies and screenwriting at the University of Tampa. If you like this article, check out the others and FOLLOW this blog! Interested in Ryan making a guest appearance on your podcast or contributing to your website? Send him a DM on Twitter or email him at RLTerry1@gmail.com! If you're ever in Tampa or Orlando, feel free to catch a movie with or meet him in the theme parks!
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Posted in General Entertainment	| Tagged Amazon, AMC, antitrust, Apple, AT&T, Bell Systems, Cinema, CInemark, Cobb, Comcast, Disney, Disney World, Film, Golden Age, History, Hollywood, monopoly, Movie Theater, movie theatre, multiplex, NBCUniversal, Netflix, Oligolopy, Regal, Sony, Studio System, Theme Park, Theme Parks, Universal Pictures, Universal Studios, Vertical Integration, Viacom, Warner Bros, WarnerMedia	| Leave a reply
"The Circle" movie review
Posted on April 28, 2017 by R.L. Terry
Tries for a perfect circle, but winds up more like an oval. Full of endless circular logic and irony, director James Ponsoldt's The Circle depicts the story of a not-so-distant future, or perhaps an alternative present, in which one company dominates digital media, data gathering, and surveillance services. Based upon the four-year-old novel by author Dave Eggers, you'll notice some stark similarities between this motion picture narrative and the smash hit TV series Black Mirror. The biggest difference between the two is that The Circle is fast-faced and poorly written whereas Black Mirror is a slow-burning but well-written anthology series. In addition to the similarities between the aforementioned, there are certainly elements of The Truman Show in this movie as well. With a powerhouse cast, brilliant composer (Danny Elfman), and excellent editing, The Circle appears to have what a blockbuster needs; however, the hollow characters, poor character development, fractured subplots, and overall diegesis hold the film back from reaching the impact that it could have had. Having taken a digital media and privacy class in graduate school, and published a few articles, this is a film that I was looking forward to in order to analyze how the social commentary or commentary on the human condition regarding reasonable expectations of privacy and big data were integrated into the plot. Sadly, the screenplay was not strong or developed significantly enough to provide big data and privacy discussions.
Mae Holland (Emma Watson) hates her job at the water company, so she is incredibly excited when her friend Annie (Karen Gillan) lands Mae an interview at The Circle, the world's most powerful technology and social media company. Mae's fear of unfulfilled potential impresses the recruiters at The Circle and she lands the opportunity of a lifetime. After Mae puts herself into harm's way but rescued, thanks to The Circle's newest surveillance and data gathering system, she is encouraged by the company founder Eamon Bailey (Tom Hanks) to take a more active role in technology development by participating in an experiment that puts Mae's life on display for the world (in the vein of The Truman Show) to see. Once Mae turns on that camera, she has more "friends" than she ever imagined and becomes an instant online celebrity. Unfortunately, this decision will affect those closest to Mae and the negative ramifications will reach far beyond her inner circle and begin to impact humanity at large. Sometimes, people just don't want to be found or be "social."
For all The Circle has going for it, the weak screenplay keeps it from being the blockbuster that it so desperately wants to be. A great movie typically begins with solid writing, and that is what's missing here. After five minutes (or so it seems) of opening title logos, perhaps that is indirect evidence that there were just too many hands in the pot, each trying to take the movie's narrative in a different direction. Much like Frozen plays off like two different movies crudely sewn together, The Circle appears to be one movie for the first two acts, but takes an unexpected and unfulfilling turn in the third. A couple of conspicuous unanswered questions come after Mae meets TrueYou designer and founder Ty (John Boyega). He designed the platform that launched The Circle. At one point he asks Mae to meet him in a secret tunnel (where all the servers are stored) and tells her that "it's worse than I thought." Great opportunity to introduce intrigue, suspense, and more. The problem is that the audience is never told what Ty finds or what happens with what he found. You can remove that whole subplot and the movie remains the same. There are other subplots that are nicely introduced, but never carried out as well. Any or all of them can be removed and the film proceeds the same. Not good. If you can remove several subplots or unfulfilled turning points and the film's diegesis remain largely untouched, then you have poor writing. The third act in and of itself leaves audiences with a hurried ending that does little to provide closure to the narrative; however, it does support the film's circular logic and irony. Hardly satisfying.
In terms of the allegory here, The Circle is a Google-like company with Apple's technology. Eamon Bailey is a Steve Jobs type innovator with characteristics of Mark Zuckerberg and Google's Eric Schmidt. Thankfully, The Circle does not represent any one company, but rather combines all the most notable innovations and technological achievements of Google, Apple, Facebook, Instagram, and more into one globally dominating company. Antitrust issues are introduced early on, but again, that's never fully developed. The movie highlights many issues faced by private citizens, governments, and digital data driven companies today; therefore, it sets the foundation for a movie that could have been thought-provoking, but the writing hinders that ability. The irony in the movie is for every digital answer to streamlining services or bolstering conveniences, a little privacy is eroded each time. Pretty soon, if one shares enough information, the idea of privacy is extinct. Privacy was central to the plot, but it just wasn't handled in the most effective way. Concepts such as "off the grid," self-proclaimed "celebrity," and "calls to action" are displayed and discussed in the film, connecting this augmented reality to real-world issues each of us encounter or think about. One particularly interesting theme in the movie is deep friendship. Unfortunately, this was not fully fleshed as is the case with most of the movie; but still, it does get touched upon.
Exploring digital media and privacy is something I have written on within the last couple years. More specifically, I explore how entertainment media companies collect big data, and the privacy issues faced therein. In 2016, I published a short series of articles on the Walt Disney World Magic Bands entitled "Magical Data Collection." You can read those articles by clicking HERE.
If you were hoping for another film like the brilliant Social Network, then you will undoubtedly be disappointed. Films such as The Circle should be memorable, but unfortunately this one is very much forgettable. Coincidentally, the movie itself is as hollow as the plot and characters.
Written by R.L. Terry
Edited by J.M. Wead
Posted in General Entertainment, Movie Review	| Tagged Apple, Big Data, Danny Elfman, data, data mining, Dave Eggers, Digital Media, Disney, Emma Watson, Facebook, Film, film critic, film review, Google, Instagram, James Ponsoldt, John Boyega, Magic Band, novel, Privacy, Social Media, surveillance, The Circle, The Truman Show, Tom Hanks	| Leave a reply
"Steve Jobs" movie review
A mesmerizing and controversial bio-pic. This seems to be the year for the biographical motion picture. Universal Pictures and Legendary's Steve Jobs takes you on a journey through the most signifiant product launches of the late co-founder of Apple's career. Despite the fact that Jobs is revered as a genius and one of the most influential men in American history, this movie does not shy away from painting an accurate portrait of his personal and professional life. Although he is loved and admired by so many people, his character is one that you will most likely dislike through most of the narrative. From open to close, you will be glued to your seat in awe and surprise. This is definitely one of the most intriguing and intense bio-pics I have seen in a long time. Throughout the narrative, there is a constant theme of control and design. Complete with a brilliant cast and impeccable writing, this is definitely one to watch out for at the next Academy Awards.
Steve Jobs is about the early career of the co-founder of Apple. You will go on a journey through the most important product launch successes and failures of Jobs' (Fassbender) career. From being fired from the very company that he co-founded to the love-hate relationship he has with his daughter and the hatred for her mother, you will learn what prompted Jobs to make the decisions he did and how each decision affected his relationships with friends and colleagues. Discover why "end to end control" was so important to the designs of the MacIntosh and Apple computers.
Michael Fassbender truly shines as the genius behind Apple's phoenix-like return from the ashes of its darkest days. Not only does he resemble Jobs in appearance, but he also captures the very essence of what made Jobs tick and why he became the success he was professionally. Fassbender also delivers powerful performances in his altercations with colleagues and his presumed family. The intenseness of his conflicts and triumphs transcends the screen and compels your attention through the entire film. Often in movies, you either want to love or love to hate the protagonist; and that element rings very true in this film. For nearly the entire movie, I hated Steve Jobs. Funny, because I use all Apple products. But, during the end of the third act, I made a radical shift and saw the glimmer of hope that has caused millions of Apple fans to adore him so much during the latter years of his career. More than anyone else, he believed in his designs and methods of product launches. Only his director of marketing Joanna Hoffman (Kate Winslet) seemed to be the one he confided in most or could control the man who was insistent on "end to end control" throughout his dynamic career. Winslet also delivers a commanding performance as Hoffman who stuck by Jobs from product to product, advising him when he wouldn't hear of anyone else's opinions. She is the single person who held helped the public not to despise him as much as most everyone else did behind the scenes.
So often I find that bio-pics can tend to romanticize the protagonist by glossing over the more negative events of his or her life. Not so with Steve Jobs. The remarkable element of the writing is the commitment to reality and just laying all the positive and negative events and encounters out there for the audience. Highlighting the more negative events is extremely important to this film because that is where the very dynamic character arc comes from. If you loved or hated Jobs the entire time, it would not be nearly as impactful. But because you will likely hate him for most of the movie until the end and then quickly turn a 180, that is where the magic of this movie lies. There are times that you think that he will budge from his stances on design teams and products, but then he is just as stubborn or relentless as he is throughout the story. Oddly enough, his penchant for complete control is what tanks and then resurrects the tech company. The story is gripping and whether you are an Apple product fan or not, this movie is an excellent example of how a completely candid bio-pic can still prompt the adoration of the public despite the dark elements and poor decisions in relationships with friends and lovers.
If you are an Apple product fan, this is definitely a film to catch because it takes you behind the sleek product displays and technology launches. Learning about Steve Jobs the man actually gives a new-found appreciation for the company he helped start, got fired from, and rehired again. The amazing cast and brilliant writing enables this film to be admired for its commitment to the art of biographical motion pictures.
Posted in Movie Review	| Tagged Apple, Bio Pic, iMac, Jeff Daniels, Joanna Hoffman, Kate Winslet, Legendary Pictures, MacIntosh, Michael Fassbender, Seth Rogen, Steve Jobs, Tech Company, Universal Pictures	| Leave a reply
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He knows how much I love Twilight, and games for that matter! :) And what perfect timing - we had a bit of fun with this. "Max Plank" won. Then we ran some of the games, and each took the quiz, "What Cullen Would You Be?" One got Rosalie (which she is the complete opposite), 2 got Alice, and I got EDWARD! haha. For kicks, we did hubs - he got Edward, too! Is that weird we both got Ed?
Anyways - a fun game that I will sure bring out for other girl gatherings to come!


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Q: rhcs fence_node error Вряд ли кто-то сталкивался с этим, но мало ли...
Есть у меня red hat cluster suite состоящий из 2-ух вируальных нод и их гипервизора KVM (Примерно это но "KVM host" один). Везде centos 6.9 . Кластер собран верно, cluster.conf везде идентичны, состояние кластера консистентное. Пытаюсь настроить fence_xvm. На гипервизоре установлен fence_virtd и настроен тоже верно. Команда, например, fence_xvm -a 225.0.0.12 -k /etc/cluster/fence_xvm.key -H node1 -o status выдаёт корректный результат Status: ON . Но команда fence_node node1 -vv выдаёт ошибку
fence node1 dev 0.0 agent fence_xvm result: error from agent
agent args: nodename=node1 agent=fence_xvm key_file=/etc/cluster/fence_xvm.key multicast_address=225.0.0.12
fence node1 failed

В логах:
Apr  7 20:16:17 node1 fence_node[8848]: fence node1 failed
Apr  7 21:04:25 node1 fence_xvm[24556]: No domain specified

При выполнении fence_node node1 -vv tcpdump'ом трафика я не вижу ни на node1 , ни на супервизоре, в отличии от fence_xvm .
Похожая проблема описана тут , там ребята рекомендовали вырубить selinux, я это сделал но ничего не помогло. В общем я в отчаянии: ничего не могу нагуглить и ничего не понимаю. Может у кого-то есть какие-нибудь идеи? :(

A: Оказалось, надо в fencedevice передавать port что есть замена устаревшего domain , либо в fence отдавать его через method .
<fencedevice agent="fence_xvm" name="virtfence1" key_file="/etc/cluster/fence_xvm_host1.key" multicast_address="225.0.1.12" port="node1"/>

Актуальную инфу удалось найти в дебаггинге, который просто выдаёт актуальный ман в xml-формате: ccs -d -h node_name --lsfenceinst

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Measurement of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) is used for routine management of diabetic patients. Glucose linkage to HbA1c reflects mean blood glucose levels during the last 3 months before examination. Various methods for HbA1c determination show abnormal values with hemoglobin variants. In some diabetic patients excessively high HbA1c values with high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) led to the detection of Hb Graz. In addition to Hb Graz, other silent hemoglobin variants have been found in Austria. Here we review Hb Graz, Hb Sherwood Forest, and Hb Okayama detected while using HPLC for the measurement of HbA1c in diabetic patients.


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Of Nazis in the North Woods, journalism and stories that reemerge
Cover of the novel Wolf's Mouth by John Smolens.
By Eric Freedman
As journalists, stories from our distant past sometimes reemerge in the context of a new story.
Most often it involves a person we'd covered who pops up again in the headlines.
That happened with me and Mario Cuomo, for example. The second story I wrote as a brand-new reporter for an Albany, N.Y., daily was about a 1976 Cuomo press conference on changes in lobbying regulations. At the time he was the appointed New York secretary of state — a low-profile, unglamorous position that oversaw elections, lobbying and campaign finance.
I continued to cover Cuomo as he moved up the political ladder to become lieutenant governor — another low-profile, unglamorous position, and a job with even fewer responsibilities than secretary of state. I stayed on the Cuomo beat for the first part of his governorship until I moved to the Detroit News Lansing Bureau and a different set of politicians.
When he died last year, almost four decades after my initial Cuomo assignment, I had the opportunity to write again about him. It was a column for Domemagazine.com called "Remembering Mario" and it included a couple of anecdotes that shed a little light on a man who might have been president.
Here's one of the anecdotes that didn't appear in the obituaries. It was about Cuomo and cars:
"Because he suffered from back pain, he drove a Checker – the model used by taxis – because it provided good back support. Cuomo liked driving, so a state trooper on his protection squad rode shotgun in the front passenger seat rather than taking the wheel. And when Cuomo talked to a rear-seat passenger like me, he turned his head away from the road and faced backward – to the trooper's dismay."
So how does that relate to Nazis in the North Woods?
Well, sometimes stories that reemerge from our distant past involve places rather than people.
That's what happened when I recently picked up a new novel by Marquette, Michigan, writer John Smolens. I planned to write about the book for Great Lakes Echo and Capital News Service.
Set in and after World War II, "Wolf's Mouth" (Michigan State University Press, $26.95) is about an Italian army captain, Francesco Verdi, who was captured by American troops while fighting in North Africa, shipped across the Atlantic and sent by train and ferry in 1944 to Camp AuTrain, one of five POW camps in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
Verdi incurred the wrath of the camp's highest-ranking Nazi officer and escaped to the Lower Peninsula to avoid being killed. The later parts of the book take place largely in postwar Detroit, Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, and Berlin, Germany.
But why were POWs sent to the remote Upper Peninsula? Verdi explained in the book, "Our purpose was to cut down trees. Some camps provided farm labor, while others, like ours, produced lumber. Toiling in Michigan's Upper Peninsula was healthy if tedious, but preferable to fighting in the African desert."
It was a matter of economics and wartime productivity: POWs filled the labor gap left when so many American farm workers and loggers left the fields and woods to serve in the military.
According to Smolens, more than 425,000 POWS from the European theater — most German, Italian or Austrian — were sent to camps in the United States.
When I interviewed Smolens for my articles, he told me that he got the idea more than 15 years earlier when he read a series of articles in the Marquette Mining Journal about the POW camps in the Upper Peninsula.
"Most people didn't even know they were there during the war," he said, adding that such information is the kind of thing "you tuck in the back of your mind as a novelist."
As part of his research for the book, Smolens made several visits to what remains of Camp AuTrain near Munising. It's within the borders of what is now the Hiawatha National Forest along the North Country National Scenic Trail.
At the site, "there's hardly any remaining evidence, just a few signs of stone foundations and fence lines," Smolens said.
I knew first-hand what he meant because I'd visited the sites of Camp AuTrain and nearby Camp Evelyn in 1995 on assignment for the Detroit News. At that time, I wrote how the trees, brush and wildflowers had reclaimed the camps.
With me on that trip was John Franzen, the Hiawatha National Forest archaeologist whose duties included trying to find remaining evidence of the camps, such as fence posts, weathered sheet metal and caved-in cellar walls.
At AuTrain, we observed graffiti carved into a concrete platform that read: "Const. by J.B. Brown, June 12th, 1945, Sgt. Shows, Cpl. Kornoelje." Also still visible were part of a stone-wall root cellar, a bathhouse trench and a below-ground stone building with rusty double-barred stoves.
As my article noted, "Time and the area's harsh weather pose the greatest threats to the identification and preservation of cultural resources in the northern forests, ranging from the remains of Paleo-Indian sites to 1800s logging settlements to POW camps.
"Deterioration is inevitable, laments Franzen," the article continued. "'It's a dynamic thing, you can't stop it. You can't save and restore everything.'"
Yes, deterioration is inevitable, and I can imagine how much more of Camp AuTrain the North Woods swallowed up in the 31 years since my visit.
This entry was posted in Uncategorized on March 3, 2016 by Freedman.
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Zuma spacecraft launched by SpaceX is lost after it was unable to reach orbit.
January 9th, 2018 Arsheel Raja Business, News, Tech, World 0 comments 256
A secret spacecraft, launched by a SpaceX rocket on Sunday failed to reach orbit and was lost. The spacecraft called Zuma was launched at 8 p.m. on Sunday from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
However, the spacecraft apparently didn't detach itself from the upper stage of the rocket as it was supposed to do and was therefore unable to reach a stable orbit, according to a U.S. administration official and two sources who were briefed on the matter. The sources did not confirmed what exactly the payload was, saying that it was classified information.
The mission itself took place in complete secrecy even before it failed to reach orbit.The government agency that ordered the spacecraft has not been disclosed. Northrop Grumman (NOC), the aerospace and defense company that built the Zuma spacecraft, only commented that "This is a classified program. We cannot comment on classified programs". SpaceX has also declined to give details about the spacecraft.
It was not immediately clear that if the failure of this mission was due to problems with SpaceX rocket or with the Zuma's spacecraft.SpaceX issued a statement on Tuesday stating that the rocket performed as designed.
Gwynne Shotwell, president and chief operating officer of SpaceX said in a statement that"After review of all data to date, Falcon 9 did everything correctly on Sunday night, If we or others find otherwise based on further review, we will report it immediately. Information published that is contrary to this statement is categorically false. Due to the classified nature of the payload, no further comment is possible."
Because of Zuma's secrecy, SpaceX didn't live stream the entire mission as it typically does.However, it did show both the launch and the landing of the first stage of the Falcon 9 rocket back at Cape Canaveral.
This is not the first time that a SpaceX rocket has lost a payload. On September 1, 2016, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket exploded while preparing to test its engines, which destroyed the Amos 6 communication satellite that was on the top of the rocket and was to be used by Facebook. Another SpaceX rocket exploded in 2015, which was carrying supply mission to the International Space Station for NASA.However, the company has completed more than ten successful supply missions to ISS.
The loss of a government payload comes at a bad time for SpaceX as It has been competing with other private companies to launch more military payloads and it plans to carry its first astronauts into space in its Dragon space capsule later this year. Since the last Space Shuttle flight in 2011, NASA has relied upon the Russian space agency to carry U.S. astronauts to the ISS.
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You want a great car to get around Fields Landing whether you're traveling for a business trip or a vacation. Explore the top sites around the region and park in front of the popular restaurants in Fields Landing. We've gathered your most popular questions about car rentals in Fields Landing. Read on to see how to get the best rates on your ideal vehicle.
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Generally, to rent a car in Fields Landing you must be at least 21—the same as it is across the rest of the USA. However, you might need to pay a surcharge if you're under 25. Be sure to read over the terms to discover what the total will be before you book your vehicle.
Do I need insurance to rent a car in Fields Landing?
Most countries require the driver to have insurance. You may be able to purchase additional insurance through rental car supplier, if you are concerned your insurance won't cover your rental. Otherwise, as a United States citizen, you can also add on Collision Damage Coverage with CarRentals.com at checkout. Although many major card issuers, like MasterCard or Visa, offer some coverage, there may be restrictions. For example, you may not be covered if you get a larger or luxury vehicle. Make sure to check car rental supplier's policy before you decide.
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Should I get unlimited miles when I rent a car in Fields Landing?
Unlimited miles is a good choice if you plan to do some sightseeing or visit a lot of business associates all over Fields Landing. You can cruise as much as you like without incurring additional charges. Review your rental agreement to see if there are mileage limitations.
Use CarRentals.com to get the best wheels Fields Landing has to offer. Before you know it, you'll be going between the well-known restaurants, famous landmarks, and all the must-see sites in Fields Landing.


text:
from __future__ import (absolute_import, division, generators, nested_scopes, print_function,
                        unicode_literals, with_statement)

import os
import unittest

from pants_test.android.android_integration_test import AndroidIntegrationTest

class SignApkIntegrationTest(AndroidIntegrationTest):
  """Integration test for SignApkTask.

  The Android SDK is modular, finding an SDK on the PATH is no guarantee that the tools you
  need are anywhere on disk. The TOOLS are the ones needed by the tasks SignApk depends on.
  If you add a target, you may need to expand the TOOLS list and perhaps define new
  BUILD_TOOLS or TARGET_SDK class variables.
  """

  TOOLS = [
    os.path.join('build-tools', AndroidIntegrationTest.BUILD_TOOLS, 'aapt'),
    os.path.join('build-tools', AndroidIntegrationTest.BUILD_TOOLS, 'lib', 'dx.jar'),
    os.path.join('platforms', 'android-' + AndroidIntegrationTest.TARGET_SDK, 'android.jar')
  ]

  tools = AndroidIntegrationTest.requirements(TOOLS)

  @unittest.skipUnless(tools, reason='Jarsigner integration test requires the JDK, Android '
                                     'tools {0!r} and ANDROID_HOME set in path.'.format(TOOLS))
  def test_sign_apk(self):
    self.sign_apk_test(AndroidIntegrationTest.TEST_TARGET)

  def sign_apk_test(self, target):
    pants_run = self.run_pants(['sign', target])
    self.assert_success(pants_run)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Q: Import a pre-made list from a web page in python Since I'm a beginner, I need advice from professionals.
I want to import the list from the url: http://45.77.228.203:3001/V2/battlesruleset?ruleset=Standard&mana=12&player=tyaaz&token=undefined&summoners=[5,16,27,38,49,167,178,189,145,156,145,189,224,259]
So i tried it with the code:
import requests

card_deck = list(requests.get("http://45.77.228.203:3001/V2/battlesruleset?ruleset=Standard&mana=12&player=tyaaz&token=undefined&summoners=[5,16,27,38,49,167,178,189,145,156,145,189,224,259]"))

print(card_deck[0])

Output:
b'[{"summoner_id":"16","monster_1_id":"169","monster_2_id":"131","monster_3_id":"98","monster_4_id":"172","monster_5_id":"","monst'
The list seems to have slipped a bit. My desired output would have been something like this:
{"summoner_id": "16", "monster_1_id": "169", "monster_2_id": "131", "monster_3_id": "98", "monster_4_id": "172" , "monster_5_id": "", "monster_6_id": "", "ruleset": "Standard", "mana_cap": "12", "tot": "31", "ratio": "96.77419354838709677400"}

A: Like Chris commented, the response is in JSON format.The code below handles json->python list conversion of the response:
import requests
from json import loads

card_deck_request = requests.get("http://45.77.228.203:3001/V2/battlesruleset?ruleset=Standard&mana=12&player=tyaaz&token=undefined&summoners=[5,16,27,38,49,167,178,189,145,156,145,189,224,259]")
card_deck_list = loads(card_deck_request.text)
card_deck_list[0]

outputs
{'summoner_id': '16', 'monster_1_id': '169', 'monster_2_id': '131', 'monster_3_id': '98', 'monster_4_id': '172', 'monster_5_id': '', 'monster_6_id': '', 'ruleset': 'Standard', 'mana_cap': '12', 'tot': '31', 'ratio': '96.77419354838709677400'}


text:
Breakout Track 1: How Israeli Water Innovation is Helping the United States
Israel is mostly desert. There is no rain in the summer and it rains only occasionally during the winter. Drought is common. With this in mind, it's easy to assume that Israel must be on the verge of a water crisis. In fact, the opposite is true: Israel has solved the problem of its water shortage. How did Israel do it? What technologies were involved? Who deserves credit for the achievement? How is the United States benefiting from Israeli innovation in water management? What role can Congress play in supporting further innovation?
How Israeli Water Innovation is Helping the United States. Watch now!
Behind every successful Israeli innovation is a story. Join one of the featured presenters from the Innovation Showcase as they...
Breakout Track 4: Start-Up Stories: Israeli Innovations in Action
Israel is located in the center of a Middle East that has changed dramatically since the start of the current decade. The revol...
Breakout Track 5: Regional Outlook: The Middle East in 2018
In 1897, at the time of the first Zionist Congress, it was widely believed that a key element to the creation of a modern state...
Breakout Track 5: Israel at 70: Reviving the Hebrew Language
Behind every successful Israeli innovation is a story. Join Dr. Oren Millstein, the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Scientifi...
Start-Up Stories: Israeli Innovations in Action
Jonathan Spyer's "Days of the Fall" delves into the heart of the ongoing wars in Syria and Iraq. Over five years, Spyer spent t...
Breakout Track 5: Meet the Author: Jonathan Spyer
There is only one country in the world with a Jewish majority, yet it is still common to hear these questions: Is Israel necess...
Breakout Track 3: Why a Jewish State?
Everyone has a story. Aryeh Halivni, the founder of Toldot Yisrael, has hundreds. Halivni has interviewed countless figures in ...
The Breakout Track 2: Backstage to History: Stories from the Founding of the State of Israel
Breakout Track 2: Israeli Innovations in Action
In 1964, when President Lyndon Johnson welcomed Israeli Prime Minister Levi Eshkol to the White House, he recognized that Israe...
Breakout Track 3: The Israeli Ethos: Contributing to the World, Responding to Crisis, & Saving Lives
Ambassador Brad Gordon interviews the Honorable Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) and the Honorable Jane Harman (Director, President, ...
Breakout Track 2: Global Engagement: America's Role in the World


text:
\section{Introduction}
\label{sec:intro}

Le but de ce texte est, à partir du choix de deux entiers
$N\geqslant2$ et $M\geqslant2$, d'obtenir une congruence modulo $m$
pour les caractères de Dirichlet modulo $N$.

Plus précisément, si $G$ est le groupe des caractères de Dirichlet
modulo $N$, alors on cherche des entiers algébriques explicites
$(\alpha_\chi)_{\chi\in G}$ tels que:
\[
\forall x\in\mathbbm Z,
\sum_{\chi\in G}\alpha_\chi\chi(x)
\equiv
0
\bmod M
\]

La motivation derrière ce travail est le théorème suivant, que l'on
trouve dans la thèse~\cite{Puydt2003a} de l'auteur:
\begin{thm}
  On suppose que l'on dispose d'une combinaison linéaire finie de
  caractères de conducteurs $M_S^{\underline\nu}$, qui vérifie une
  congruence:
  \[
  \sum_\chi\gamma_\chi\chi
  \equiv
  0
  \bmod
  M_S^{\underline\tau}\mathcal O
  \]
  alors:
  \[
  C^\alpha_S
  \sum_\chi\gamma_\chi
  H(f,\alpha,S,j,\chi)
  L_{f_{\alpha,S,0}}(j+1,\overline{\chi})
  \equiv
  0
  \bmod
  M_S^{(j-h)\underline\nu+\underline\tau}
  \mathcal O
  \]
où:
\begin{eqnarray*}
  H(f,\alpha,S,j,\chi)
  &=&
  \frac
  {a_{1,0}G_\chi
    \Gamma(k-1)(2i\pi)^{j+1}(-1)^k
    c_\chi^j\alpha_S^{-\underline{\nu}}}
  {\Gamma(j+1)\langle f^0_{\alpha, S}, f_{\alpha, S, 0}\rangle_{N_S}}
  \\
  & &
  \times
  \zeta_{j+1,0}(1_{\hat{\mathbb Z}}\times\mathcal F^{-1}\overline{\chi})(1_f)
  L_{f_{\alpha,S,0}}(k-1,\mathcal F1_{Y_S})
\end{eqnarray*}
\end{thm}

Ce théorème abstrait sur lequel on ne souhaite pas s'étendre (il y a
beaucoup de notations et de concepts qui sont loin du sujet du présent
article), affirme l'existence de certaines congruences pour des
valeurs spéciales de fonctions arithmétiques (des fonctions $L$ de
formes modulaires, tordues par des caractères), qui sont vérifiées si
l'on dispose de congruences pour les caractères. On souhaite donc
construire des exemples concrets de ces dernières, pour un jour
vérifier expérimentalement dans quelle mesure les congruences entre
les valeurs spéciales sont optimales.

Le plan de ce travail est le suivant:
\begin{itemize}
\item on commence par expliquer comment ramener le problème initial à
  un calcul de noyau matriciel ;
\item on explique ensuite comment déterminer le noyau, avec le
  logiciel SAGE\footnote{version 5.4, disponible sur
    \texttt{http//www.sagemath.org}}), d'une façon complètement
  automatique d'une part (mais très inefficace) et de façon plus
  guidée d'autre part (mais très manuelle) ;
\item on détermine des congruences dans des cas particuliers
  explicites ;
\item finalement, on donne le code source des fonctions utilisées.
\end{itemize}

Je souhaite remercier Alexei Pantchichkine pour son soutien
indéfectible, et William Stein pour m'avoir donné accès aux machines
du réseau math.washington.edu\footnote{Les calculs présentés dans cet
  article sont tous aisés et rapides sur une machine simple, mais les
  tâtonnements et expériences nécessaires à leur recherche ont parfois
  nécessité l'accès à une puissance de calcul plus conséquente ; les
  machines en question ont été financées par "National Science
  Foundation Grant No. DMS-0821725".}.

\section{Réduction à un calcul de noyau matriciel}
\label{sec:kernel_matrix}

On se donne comme dans l'introduction un premier entier $N\geqslant2$,
et on considère le groupe $G$ des caractères de Dirichlet modulo $N$,
que l'on liste sous la forme $\chi_1,\dots,\chi_n$ où $n=|G|$. Si on
définit $m=N-1$, on peut alors représenter les valeurs prises par tous
les caractères simultanément sous la forme d'une matrice de taille
$(m,n)$, avec:
\[
\forall(i,j),
A_{i,j}
=
\chi_j(i-1)
\]

De cette façon, si $(\alpha_1,\dots,\alpha_n)$ est une famille de
scalaires et $x\in\llbracket0,N-1\rrbracket$, la quantité
$\sum_{i=1}^n\alpha_i\chi_i(x)$ est le coefficient en ligne $x+1$ dans
le vecteur colonne $A(\alpha_1 \dots \alpha_n)^T$.

Notons que cette matrice initiale $A$ a un noyau trivial: c'est le
résultat bien connu d'indépendance des caractères.

Cependant, comme les caractères considérés sont à valeurs dans les
racines de l'unité, si on fixe $F$ un corps de nombre qui les
contient, la matrice $A$ est à coefficients dans l'anneau des entiers
$\mathcal O$ de ce corps. Pour des raisons pratiques, on choisira bien
sur le corps le plus petit possible, donc un corps cyclotomique de
plus petit degré possible (que l'on notera $d$).

Si on se donne maintenant un entier $M\geqslant2$, la recherche de
congruences modulo cet entier à coefficients dans $\mathcal O$ revient
à chercher un vecteur-colonne $V^T=(\alpha_1 \dots \alpha_n)$ tel que
$AV\in M\mathcal O^n$. Si on note $B$ l'image de $A$ dans l'anneau des
matrices à coefficients dans $\mathcal O/(M)$, on est ramené à
chercher les éléments du noyau de $B$, puis à les relever.

Le problème des congruences pour les caractères de Dirichlet est ainsi
ramené à un problème linéaire de calcul de noyau de matrice à
coefficients dans un quotient d'anneau d'entiers.

\section{Calcul automatique du noyau}
\label{sec:calcul_ker_auto}

D'après un résultat classique (voir par exemple le lemme 6 de
l'article de Birch~\cite{Birch1965a}), l'anneau $\mathcal O$ est le
$\mathbbm Z$-module engendré par les puissances d'une racine primitive de
l'unité. L'anneau $\mathcal O/(M)$ est donc un module de type fini sur
$\mathbbm Z/M\mathbbm Z$, donc un ensemble fini: il suffit de considérer tous les
vecteurs possibles pour obtenir le noyau.

C'est théoriquement très satisfaisant, mais en pratique: $\mathbbm Z/M\mathbbm Z$
est de cardinal $M$, donc $\mathcal O/(M)$ est de cardinal $M^d$, et
les vecteurs à considérer sont donc $M^{dn}$.

Pour le cas le plus simple que l'on présentera de façon détaillée
en~\ref{sec:N5M16}, $N=5$ et $M=16$, cela représente $4294967296$
vecteurs à considérer. Comme de plus les calculs vectoriels dans
l'anneau en question sont en plus relativement lents, il est clair que
cette approche est d'une utilité assez limitée.

Donnons malgré tout le code source effectuant le calcul ; il utilise
une fonction {\texttt matrix\_of\_Dirichlet\_group} discutée plus loin:
\begin{verbatim}
def integer_mod_iter(d,M,zeta):
    for coeffs in product(*tee(range(M),d)):
        result = 0
        for ii in range(d):
            result=result+coeffs[ii]*zeta**ii
        yield result

N = 5
M = 16
A = matrix_of_Dirichlet_group(N)
O = A.base_ring().ring_of_integers()
d = A.base_ring().degree()
Q = O.quotient_ring(O.ideal(M), 'a')
zeta = Q.gens()[1]
B = matrix(Q,A)
m,n = B.dimensions()

print(M**(d*n))
for X in product(*tee(integer_mod_iter(d,M,zeta), n)):
    img = B*vector(Q,X)
    if img.is_zero():
        print(X)
\end{verbatim}

\section{Calcul guidé du noyau}
\label{sec:calcul_ker_guide}

\subsection{Principe général}
\label{sec:principe}

Le problème du calcul du noyau d'une matrice à coefficients dans un
corps est simple ; on peut par exemple penser à un passage sous forme
de matrice échelonnée réduite (c'est, par exemple car on le trouve
partout, l'algorithme~7.3 dans le livre de
Stein~\cite{Stein2007a}). On peut aussi songer à la notion de diviseur
élémentaire, mais elle nécessite un anneau principal et le calcul
effectif un anneau euclidien.

La matrice qui nous intéresse est à coefficients dans un anneau
quotient, qui n'a pas de très bonnes propriétés: les fonctions
habituelles et les algorithmes implémentés dans SAGE ne fonctionnent
donc pas.

L'idée va être d'obtenir une relation de la forme $B*R=L*E$, où $L$ et
$R$ sont des matrices inversibles, et $E$ est aussi proche que
possible d'une matrice échelonnée réduite. Le calcul de vecteurs dans
le noyau de $E$ fournit alors des vecteurs dans le noyau de $B$, tout
simplement en considérant leur image par $R$.

Plus précisément, on va tenter d'obtenir $E$ sous forme de blocs:
\[
\left(\begin{array}{r|r|r}
I_r &
0 &
0 \\
\hline
0 &
Q &
0 \\
\hline
0 &
0 &
0
\end{array}\right)
\]

où le bloc $I_r$ est un bloc identité (donc carré), et $Q$ est un bloc
(a priori rectangulaire) dans lequel on garantit:
\begin{itemize}
\item aucun coefficient n'est inversible ;
\item aucune ligne n'est nulle ;
\item aucune colonne n'est nulle.
\end{itemize}

C'est le mieux que l'on puisse demander à SAGE de faire
automatiquement ; c'est la raison pour laquelle la suite de la
recherche nécessite une intervention manuelle (discutée plus loin).

Le calcul du noyau est alors ramené au calcul du noyau de cette
matrice réduite $E$ ; il fait intervenir:
\begin{itemize}
\item des éléments triviaux, qui correspondent aux colonnes nulles à
  droite (s'il y en a) ;
\item des éléments non triviaux, qui correspondent au noyau du bloc
  $Q$ (que l'on voudra donc réduire à la main après avoir obtenu une
  première version).
\end{itemize}

On appelera l'entier $r$ (taille de la matrice identité dans la
décomposition) le \emph{pseudo-rang}: il correspond à un nombre de
colonnes que l'on sait être indépendantes sur l'anneau considéré. Il
dépend évidemment de la décomposition obtenue, mais s'il est égal à
$n$, on est assuré qu'il n'existe pas de congruences modulo $M$. Le
nombre de colonnes nulles sera appelé le \emph{noyau garanti}.

\subsection{Algorithme de réduction automatique}
\label{sec:algo_reduction}

L'idée est d'aménager l'algorithme du pivot de Gauss, en l'analysant
en termes d'opérations élémentaires sur les lignes et les colonnes.

Si $(i,j)$ est un couple d'indices distincts, on peut définir
$P_{i,j}$ la matrice de permutation associé à la transposition de $i$
et $j$, et si $a$ est un scalaire, on peut considérer $T_{i,j}(a)$ la
matrice de transvection qui est une matrice carrée identité modifiée
avec le coefficient $a$ en ligne $i$ et colonne $j$, et si $a\neq0$,
la matrice de dilatation $D_i(a)$, matrice identité modifiée avec le
coefficient $a$ en ligne $i$ et colonne $i$. Les opérations
élémentaires sur les lignes se décrivent par multiplication à gauche
par ces matrices, et les opérations élémentaires sur les colonnes par
multiplication à droite. Attention, ces matrices sont carrées, mais on
ne fait pas apparaître leur taille dans la notation.

Le principe va être le suivant: si on a réussi à écrire $B*R=L*E$ avec
$E$ quelconque, alors on a aussi les égalités suivantes, pour les
opérations sur les lignes:
\begin{eqnarray*}
  B*R
  & = &
  LP_{i,j}*P_{i,j}E
  \\
  & = &
  LT_{i,j}(-a)*T_{i,j}(a)E
  \\
  & = &
  LD_i(1/a)*D_i(a)E
\end{eqnarray*}
et sur les colonnes:
\begin{eqnarray*}
  B*RP_{i,j}
  & = &
  L*EP_{i,j}
  \\
  B*RT_{i,j}(a)
  & = &
  L*ET_{i,j}(a)
  \\
  B*RD_i(a)
  & = &
  L*ED_i(a)
\end{eqnarray*}
qui montrent que si une opération élémentaire permet de \og simplifier
$E$\fg{}, on peut le faire quitte à modifier $L$ (pour les opérations
sur les lignes, et par une opération sur les colonnes) ou $R$ (pour
les opérations sur les colonnes, et par la même opération sur les
colonnes).

Expliquons comment on travaille:
\begin{enumerate}
\item On part tout d'abord avec le triplet $(L,E,R)=(I_m,B,I_n)$, qui
  vérifie par construction $B*I_n=I_m*E$ ; c'est l'invariant $B*R=L*E$
  de l'algorithme. On commence avec $k=1$ ;
\item Si on trouve un coefficient inversible dans $E$ en position
  $(l,c)$, alors:
  \begin{enumerate}
  \item on permute les lignes $l$ et $k$ de $E$, et les colonnes $l$
    et $k$ de $L$ (ce qui conserve l'invariant) ;
  \item on permute les colonnes $c$ et $k$ de $E$ de $R$ (pour
    l'invariance) ;
  \item le coefficient unité se retrouve en $(k,k)$ ; par dilatation,
    on divise la ligne $k$ de $E$ et on multiplie la colonne $k$ de
    $L$ par ce coefficient (même remarque) ;
  \item le coefficient est maintenant égal à $1$ ; on ajoute dans $E$,
    avec multiplication par un coefficient la $k$-ème ligne puis la
    $k$-ème colonne aux autres lignes et colonnes pour que la ligne
    $k$ et la colonne $k$ ne contiennent que ce $1$ (c'est un pivot) ;
    opérations sur $E$ que l'on compense sur $L$ et $R$ comme discuté
    ci-dessus, toujours pour conserver l'invariant ;
  \item on incrémente $k$ et on recommence (dans la mesure où
    $k\leqslant\min\{m,n\}$).
  \end{enumerate}
\item Si on ne trouve plus de coefficient inversible, on se contente
  de faire migrer par des permutations les lignes et les colonnes
  nulles de $B$ vers le bas et la droite (toujours en compensant sur
  $L$ et $R$).
\end{enumerate}

La première partie de pivot de l'algorithme garantit que l'on a une
allure:
\[
\left(\begin{array}{r|r}
I_r &
0 \\
\hline
0 &
*
\end{array}\right)
\]
sans élément inversible hors du premier bloc, et la migration finale
des lignes et colonnes nulles garantit que le bloc central n'a plus ni
ligne ni colonne nulle et fait apparaître les parties droites et
basses nulles.

\subsection{Discussion de l'implémentation}
\label{sec:implementation}

\subsubsection{\textrm matrix\_of\_Dirichlet\_group}

Cette fonction reçoit l'entier $N\geqslant2$ choisi, puis calcule et
renvoie la matrice associée au groupe des caractères de Dirichlet,
qu'il faudra ensuite réduire modulo un entier $M\geqslant2$. C'est la
seule qui ne soit pas contenue dans l'implémentation de la classe.

\subsubsection{\textrm dirty\_cached\_is\_unit}

La version du logiciel SAGE utilisée ne dispose pas d'un moyen de test
de l'inversibilité dans un anneau quotient de l'anneau des entiers
d'un corps de nombres ; mais propose une méthode d'inversion sous
réserve d'existence (avec levée d'exception si ce n'est pas le
cas). On a donc implémenté une fonction de test à l'aide de
l'inversion.

C'est très coûteux, mais aura le mérite d'être aisé à remplacer lors
d'évolutions futures du logiciel. Pour gagner un peu de temps, on
mémorise les résultats. Expéri\-mentalement, on gagne relativement peu
avec cette mise en cache (quelques pourcents).

Elle retourne un booléen.

\subsubsection{Classe {\textrm invariant\_triplet}}

On travaille comme on l'a vu avec des triplets de matrices
$(L,E,R)$. La présence de $L$ n'a aucun intérêt a priori vu l'objectif
de calcul d'un noyau, mais on la conserve tout de même, pour deux
raisons:
\begin{itemize}
\item la première est qu'elle coûte peu à maintenir donc ne constitue
  pas une réelle gêne,
\item et la seconde parce que le maintien de l'invariant donne un
  moyen de vérification intéressant. En particulier, durant le
  développement, de nombreuses coquilles ont été repérées par des
  tests de l'invariant sur des matrices tirées au hasard.
\end{itemize}

Ensuite, comme on le verra plus loin, l'algorithme automatique ne
donne pas de très bons résultats: une fois choisi le couple $(M,N)$,
il faut guider la machine. C'est la raison pour laquelle on a modélisé
la situation à l'aide d'une classe {\textrm invariant\_triplet}, dont
on initialise les instances avec la matrice $B$, et qui va se charger
de gérer le triplet.

Détaillons l'interface programmatique de cette classe:
\begin{description}

\item[Initialisation] La fonction d'initialisation reçoit une matrice
  de taille quelconque, et initialise l'objet avec le triplet
  $(L,E,R)=(I_m,B,I_n)$.

\item[Variables] On peut inspecter les variables $L$, $R$ et $E$. En
  particulier, l'inspection de $E$ permet de décider quelles
  opérations de réduction on va demander.

\item[Méthode {\textrm assert\_invariant}] Vérifie que l'objet
  respecte toujours l'invariant -- extrèmement utile durant le
  développement.

\item[Méthode {\textrm check\_kernel\_vector}] Reçoit une liste de
  coefficients, qu'elle utilise pour créer un vecteur-colonne. Si ce
  vecteur colonne est dans le noyau de $E$, alors la méthode retourne
  une paire constituée du booléen {\textrm True} et de l'image du
  vecteur-colonne par la matrice $R$ (donc le vecteur {\bf explicite}
  donnant la congruence cherchée!) ; sinon elle retourne une paire
  constituée du booléen {\textrm False} et de l'image du
  vecteur-colonne par la matrice $E$ (ce qui permet de voir à quel
  point on s'est trompé pour corriger).

\item[Méthodes {\textrm do\_row\_addition} et {\textrm
    do\_column\_addition}] reçoivent deux indices $i$ et $j$ et un
  coefficient $a$. Elles réalisent l'action de $T_{i,j}(a)$ sur le
  triplet.

\item[Méthodes {\textrm do\_swap\_rows} et {\textrm
    do\_swap\_columns}] recoivent deux indices $i$ et $j$, et
  réalisent l'action de $P_{i,j}$ sur le triplet.

\item[Méthode {\textrm do\_pivot}] réalise la partie pivot de l'algorithme de
  réduction présenté en~\ref{sec:algo_reduction},
  page~\pageref{sec:algo_reduction}.

\item[Méthode {\textrm do\_migrate\_zeros}] réalise la partie de déplacement des
  lignes et des colonnes nulles vers le bas et la droite dans
  l'algorithme présenté en~\ref{sec:algo_reduction}.

\item[Méthode {\textrm do\_normalize}] appelle successivement les fonctions
  {\textrm do\_pivot} et {\textrm do\_migrate\_zeros}.

\end{description}

\section{Résultats obtenus}
\label{sec:resultats}

\subsection{Statistiques}
\label{sec:stats}

La réduction automatique, passant en revue les cas où
$M\in\llbracket2,20\rrbracket$ et $N\in\llbracket2,20\rrbracket$ (soit
$361$ paires), a trouvé $64$ cas où le noyau est garanti comme réduit
à zéro (matrice $I_r$ occupant toute la largeur de la matrice), et où
donc aucune congruence n'est possible.

Les fréquences des rangs garantis parmi les $297$ cas restants est
listée dans la table~\ref{freq:rangs} et les fréquences des noyaux
garantis dans la table~\ref{freq:noyaux}. On constate donc que les
matrices rencontrées même avec de petits paramètres ne se réduisent
pas bien automatiquement: la recherche de congruences nécessite
beaucoup d'affinage manuel.

\begin{table}[h]
\caption{\label{freq:rangs} Fréquences des pseudo-rangs}
\centering
\begin{tabular}{|c|c|}
  \hline
  pseudo-rang & fréquence \\
  \hline
  1 & 180 \\
  2 & 54 \\
  3 & 27 \\
  6 & 27 \\
  7 & 9 \\
  \hline
\end{tabular}
\end{table}

\begin{table}[h]
\caption{\label{freq:noyaux} Fréquences de noyaux}
\centering
\begin{tabular}{|c|c|}
  \hline
  noyau garanti & fréquence \\
  \hline
  0 & 279 \\
  1 & 13 \\
  3 & 5 \\
  \hline
\end{tabular}
\end{table}

\subsection{Congruences pour $N=5$ et $M=16$}
\label{sec:N5M16}

On choisit de se concentrer sur le cas $N=5$ et $M=16$ car c'est un
cas de congruence de degré $4$ le long de $2$, et la dimension est
petite: cela semble donc un bon choix de premier exemple. Remarquons
que cet exemple minimaliste pour la méthode guidée est hors de portée
de la recherche exhaustive, comme on l'a vu
en~\ref{sec:calcul_ker_auto}.

Voici le début de la session de calcul:
\begin{verbatim}
N = 5
M = 16
A = matrix_of_Dirichlet_group(N)
O = A.base_ring().ring_of_integers()
m,n = A.dimensions()
Q = O.quotient_ring(O.ideal(M), 'a')
B = invariant_triplet(matrix(Q, A))
B.do_normalize()
\end{verbatim}

Que l'on poursuit ensuite à la main par:
\begin{verbatim}
zeta4=Q.gens()[1]
B.do_row_addition(3,2,1)
B.do_row_addition(3,1,-1)
B.do_column_addition(3,1,1)
B.do_row_addition(1,2,-2)
B.do_row_addition(1,3,1)
\end{verbatim}

À partir de là, la matrice $E$ est assez simplifiée pour que l'on
devine des vecteurs du noyau ; après avoir éliminé les doublons, il
reste les vecteurs:
\begin{verbatim}
B.check_kernel_vector([0,0,0,8])
B.check_kernel_vector([0,0,4,0])
B.check_kernel_vector([0,8,0,4*zeta4-4])
\end{verbatim}

On trouve donc des vecteurs de congruences explicites:
\[
\left(\begin{array}{c}
0 \\ 8 \\ 0 \\ 8
\end{array}\right)
,
\left(\begin{array}{c}
4 \\ -4 \\ 4 \\ -4
\end{array}\right)
,
\left(\begin{array}{c}
8\zeta_4 \\ 4\zeta_4+4 \\ 0 \\ 4\zeta_4-4
\end{array}\right)
\]

\subsection{Congruences pour $N=7$ et $M=15$}
\label{sec:N7M15}

Voici le début de la session de calcul:
\begin{verbatim}
N = 7
M = 15
A = matrix_of_Dirichlet_group(N)
O = A.base_ring().ring_of_integers()
m,n = A.dimensions()
Q = O.quotient_ring(O.ideal(M), 'a')
B = invariant_triplet(matrix(Q, A))
B.do_normalize()
\end{verbatim}

(a parte: $M^{dn}$ vaut ici $129746337890625$)

Que l'on poursuit ensuite à la main ; au bout de quelques étapes, on
est ramené à:
\[
E=
\begin{pmatrix}
  1 & 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 \\
  0 & 1 & 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 \\
  0 & 0 & 1-2\zeta6 & 0 & 2-\zeta_6 & 0 \\
  0 & 0 & 0 & 2(2\zeta_6-1) & 0 & -2(\zeta_6+1) \\
  0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & 3 & 0 \\
  0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & -6 \\
  0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & 0 \\
\end{pmatrix}
\]
et:
\[
R=
\begin{pmatrix}
  1 & -1 & 0 & 0 & 0 & -1 \\
  0 & 1 & -1 & 1 & -1 & -1 \\
  0 & 0 & 0 & 1 & 0 & 0 \\
  0 & 0 & 0 & 0 & 1 & 1 \\
  0 & 0 & 0 & -1 & 0 & 1 \\
  0 & 0 & 1 & -1 & 0 & 0
\end{pmatrix}
\]

On trouve donc des vecteurs de congruences explicites:
\[
\left(\begin{array}{c}
0 \\ 5(\zeta_6+1) \\ 5(\zeta_6+1) \\ 0 \\ -5(\zeta_6+1) \\ -5(\zeta_6+1)
\end{array}\right)
\left(\begin{array}{c}
0 \\ -5(\zeta_6+1) \\ 0 \\ 0 \\ 0 \\ 5(\zeta_6+1)
\end{array}\right)
,
\left(\begin{array}{c}
0 \\ 5 \\ 0 \\ 5 \\ 0 \\ 5
\end{array}\right)
,
\left(\begin{array}{c}
-5 \\ 5 \\ -5 \\ 5 \\ -5 \\ 5
\end{array}\right)
\]

\section{Code}
\label{sec:code}

\verbatiminput{code.sage}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaArXiv


Washington State Society for Clinical Social Work - ACT is Awesome!
I am always eager to learn new skills and modalities to use with clients. Earlier this year I was working with a client on gaining an increased sense of direction in their life, when a colleague recommended that I use some values clarification exercises from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). It wasn't long before I found myself using ACT values exercises with most of my clients - with great success. I started exploring more of what was available in the ACT model, and was impressed with the approach to cognitive distortions. Rather than disputing and trying to change thoughts, clients are taught to unhook from them in a process called defusion. I tried these techniques with my clients, who were very responsive. People started to feel better, faster. I have since read up extensively on ACT and taken several courses--it has been transformational, both personally and professionally.
Over one hundred randomized controlled studies have found ACT to be efficacious for a broad range of physical and mental health issues. Its application ranges from chronic pain to depression, anxiety to addiction, trauma to eating disorders - the list goes on and on. ACT's premise is that human suffering is not pathological. It is normal. The problems come when our mind tries to fix psychological pain with the same processes that we use to solve other problems in our environment. When this happens, people lose contact with the present moment and get lost in their minds. We become preoccupied with avoiding those painful feelings and fall into patterns of behavior (including rumination) that pull us off course or distract from engaging in activities or relationships that give life purpose and meaning. Too often people are disabled by the notion that pain must be avoided or neutralized if they are to move forward. ACT uses a number of processes to help people to recognize that they have no control over their thoughts or feelings, but they can interact with them in healthier ways, and move forward with what matters in their life.
The six core processes of ACT (Cognitive Defusion, Acceptance, Observer Self, Present Moment, Values, and Committed Action) are used in concert with the goal of developing greater psychological flexibility. We know that psychologically flexible people are more resilient and better able to handle the inevitable life challenges that come their way. Therapists are encouraged to call out what they notice happening emotionally in the room, including disclosing feelings that come up for them in session (if it serves the client). For example, if a client changes the subject when they touch on a painful emotion, the therapist might point that out and gently guide them back to experiencing and noticing that feeling. As part of this practice, metaphor is used frequently to highlight the way the mind works. One I often refer to is imagining your mind like a stage show: pain or distressing thoughts might show up on one part of the stage, but instead of focusing attention on battling the distress, you can instead learn to shift the spotlight to more valued activities on other parts of the stage, even while those uncomfortable thoughts and feelings are still present. I have found that ACT's close attention to context fits well with social work's person in environment perspective. Unlike more manualized evidence-based approaches, ACT invites therapists to bring other clinical wisdom, skills, and tools into the model. As long as you are consciously working in one of the processes and your intervention is ACT congruent (i.e. not disputing thoughts or trying to eliminate feelings) then you are doing evidence based ACT, even if the specific example or intervention is not described in a research study or textbook.
Finally, mindfulness is a key part of the ACT approach. Its application in ACT is different than other traditional religious and "new age" meditation approaches that I have encountered. Inner peace, higher consciousness, relaxation, and/or a quiet mind are not the goal - though these are welcome side-effects. The goal of mindfulness in ACT is to get present so that you can get going with doing the things that matter to you, even in the presence of pain. Dropping the inner peace agenda has been very freeing for me as I have reengaged with mindfulness practice through ACT. I sit with my eyes open, noticing what I see, hear and feel; I notice my thoughts and let them go, catch and release. I don't worry if they keep coming. I breathe into my belly and bring my attention into the room. It isn't about relaxation. It is about being present. I find that clients respond very well to this approach, especially those that have been unsuccessful with meditation in the past.
I am just at the beginning of an intense immersion in this approach. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking to develop their clinical skills with a concrete set of tools and strategies that can readily be tailored to your own unique approach - I believe that ACT has made me a better therapist and a better human.
YouTube has many lectures and clips of ACT in practice; check out the Praxis channel to start.


text:
Smuga – prawy dopływ Czarnego Potoku o długości 5 km. Źródło rzeki znajduje się we wsi Czołki w Gminie Sitno. Wypływa z ogromnego obszaru bagiennego na północ od Zamościa.  Jej dopływami są głównie rowy melioracyjne.  Zasila kompleks stawów rybnych we wsi Łapiguz. W tym obszarze koryto rozszerza się nawet do 4 metrów. Po kilkunastu metrach wpada do Czarnego Potoku. To dłuższy z dwóch dopływów tej rzeki. Jego źródła zasilają także południową część Działów Grabowieckich. Często mylony z drugim dopływem Czarnego Potoku czyli Rowem Krynicznym może nawet jest z nim tożsamy (Akta Hipotetyczne) lecz Rów Kryniczny ma swoje źródła na Majdanie w Zamościu.

Zobacz też
 rzeki w Polsce

Bibliografia

 http://www.zamosciopedia.pl/index.php/cn-cz/item/2532-CZARNY%20POTOK

Wody Roztocza
Rzeki w Polsce

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


*This is a post sponsored by the National Fire Protection Association and Sparky.org.
Fire Prevention Week is upon us and luckily our local fire department had an Open House this past weekend in addition to a school assembly during the week. Of course, my little man couldn't wait to go check it all out!
Are you looking for some new fire safety resources for October? What if your students can't get to a local fire department? Of course the activities need to be fun and interactive or your students won't really be interested. How about if they are FREE? Even better, right? I ADORE NFPA's Sparky resources for teachers! I also shared their website last year, but they have updated and added since then – to make it even better (which I didn't know was possible)! Little man gives it two thumbs up!
You can check out the super interactive site and all the games, videos, and printables HERE. While I know that teachers will love the Digital Backpack filled with videos, ebooks, printable parent letters, lessons, and activities, I know students will love the games and apps the best!
I may or may not have actually gotten sucked into playing the brand-new Sparky's Firehouse app for longer than I planned. Little man wanted his turn and was not having it. lol!
All the games vary from easy to challenging, so even your most mature fifth graders will like playing the games as much as the younger students.
I have to say that my personal favorite game was Sparky's Matching Game. It is set up like a traditional matching game, BUT Sparky also educates the children on leaving the staged house immediately upon hearing the fire alarm during the game – even if in the middle of a play. This message was super important in my opinion because some kids (including my own) can get caught up in game play and figure they have more time than thy really do. Time is super important in the case of a fire – so being aware of that fire alarm and moving immediately was a great skill to incorporate into a pretty basic game.
Here is a quick 90 second video to demo part of the game. In higher levels, he actually tries to "trick" the students by sounding different types of alarms, such as an alarm clock. I love how students can print achievement badges too!
Little man loved the Sparky's Firehouse Game Fix Up, Pick Up the best.
It starts with a sorting activity – and then it moves into a "frogger"-like game which little man really loved. The fire truck needed to pick up dalmatians and dog bones along a road. I found that it moved slow enough that even the younger students would have no problem manipulating the controls.
There is so much information to keep students engaged on this website! It even includes some amazing nonfiction videos to reinforce real-world learning! Make sure you check out Sparky's Resources!
What was your favorite part of the Sparky website? How about your students' favorite? I would love to hear in a comment below!
« Autumn Silly Stories Freebie!


text:
Eva Melicharová (Tsjecho-Slowakije, 2 februari 1970) is een voormalig tennisspeelster uit Tsjechië. Melicharová was actief in het proftennis van 1989 tot in 2001.

Loopbaan

Enkelspel
Melicharová debuteerde in 1989 op het ITF-toernooi van Dubrovnik (Joegoslavië). Zij stond in 1991 voor de enige keer in een finale, op het ITF-toernooi van Valencia (Spanje) – hier veroverde zij haar enige enkelspeltitel, door de Spaanse Cristina Torrens Valero te verslaan.

In 1995 kwalificeerde Melicharová zich voor het eerst voor een WTA-hoofdtoernooi, op het toernooi van Linz, maar zij kwam nooit voorbij de eerste ronde van de, weinige, WTA-hoofdtoernooien waaraan zij deelnam.

Dubbelspel
Melicharová behaalde in het dubbelspel betere resultaten dan in het enkelspel. Zij debuteerde in 1989 op het ITF-toernooi van Dubrovnik, samen met landgenote Ivana Jankovská. Tot en met 1993 zou Melicharová met niemand anders dan Jankovská samen spelen. Zij stonden een week later meteen al in een finale, weer in Dubrovnik – hier veroverden zij hun eerste titel, door het Australische duo Lily Nejasmic en Mary Nejasmic te verslaan. In de periode 1989–1993 wonnen Melicharová en Jankovská veertien ITF-titels. In het voorjaar van 1994 stopte Jankovská met actief beroepstennis. Melicharová won in het verdere verloop van haar carrière nog tien ITF-titels, de laatste in 1999 in Les Contamines (Frankrijk). Van deze tien won zij zes titels met landgenote Helena Vildová.

In 1990 speelde Melicharová voor het eerst op een WTA-hoofdtoernooi, op het toernooi van Kitzbühel, samen met Ivana Jankovská – zij bereikten er de tweede ronde. In 1991 had zij haar grandslamdebuut, op Roland Garros met Jankovská – zij bereikten er de derde ronde, haar beste resultaat op de grandslamtoernooien.

Melicharová stond in 1996 voor het eerst in een WTA-finale, op het toernooi van Boedapest, samen met landgenote Radka Bobková – zij verloren van het Amerikaanse koppel Katrina Adams en Debbie Graham. In 1997 veroverde Melicharová haar eerste WTA-titel, op het toernooi van Rosmalen, samen met Helena Vildová, door het koppel Karina Habšudová en Florencia Labat te verslaan. Een maand later won zij nog een tweede WTA-titel, in Maria Lankowitz, weer met Vildová.

Haar hoogste notering op de WTA-ranglijst is de 47e plaats, die zij bereikte in januari 1998.

Gemengd dubbelspel
Melicharová nam enkele malen aan deze discipline deel, in de periode 1997–1999. Haar beste resultaat is het bereiken van de kwartfinale, op het Australian Open 1998, samen met Aleksandar Kitinov uit Noord-Macedonië.

Palmares

WTA-finaleplaatsen enkelspel
geen

WTA-finaleplaatsen vrouwendubbelspel

Gewonnen ITF-toernooien enkelspel

Gewonnen ITF-toernooien dubbelspel

Resultaten grandslamtoernooien

Enkelspel
geen deelname

Vrouwendubbelspel

Gemengd dubbelspel

Externe links

 Origineel profiel van Eva Melicharová op de website van de ITF

Tsjecho-Slowaaks tennisser
Tsjechisch tennisser


Who says you can't be flashy and dark? This Lady Vamp wallet features tuck stitching detail on the outside and a skull hardware with rhinestone eyes. The inside has 14 card slots, 2 cash slots, and 1 zip closure coin pocket. It also features heart photo windows to keep pictures of your most loved. Last but not least it has a pen holder and it snaps closed to hold everything in.


Web widget - content module, embedded in a web page or browser. This type is based on web technologies, working with a browser: HTML, Flash and more. Such modules exist for some time, and widgets they became known relatively recently. First, the word "Widget" is meant a mini-applications for the desktop (GUI Widget).
The word «widget» first recorded in 1926 in the same sense as the gadget - «adaptation contraption." It is believed that its form influenced gadget, and it comes with which it - «it as his."
The word "widget" is also used as a name-class support widgets - display modules that are placed in the workspace of the parent program and used to decorate your space, entertainment, solving specific job or quickly obtain information from the Internet without a Web browser.
Nowadays web technologies have reached an enormous level of development. And widgets are not an exception. Every day there appear a big number of different useful gadgets that are aimed on making our life easier and more colorful. Moreover some of these devices may be inevitable in creating a descent web resource. Some of them are permanently used by the major website designers due to their efficiency. These small things, as they can seem from the first sight, can be divided into several types.
Desktop widgets are created to make our life a little bit easier. They are mostly used for decorating the interior of the inner world of your computer and make the desktop more interesting and eye-catching. With the help of these devices you get an opportunity to watch latest news, slide shows and images right at your desktop. However such widgets require a special widget engine. You can also make virtual stickers and create different reminders by means of these gadgets.
Another type of website widgets is informers. They give you precise information regarding time, weather and dates. A big variety of different designs and colors used in creating these gadgets give an opportunity to pick up the best variant which will suit your demands.
In case you are in process of creating your own web resource and need something to make it more attractive for the visitors another type of widgets such as website gadgets and widgets can also come in handy. Here you can find a wide range of necessary additions to your blog or social page.
The most important thing which unites all these gadgets is their simplicity in installing and managing. Create your own atmosphere and make operating on the computer more pleasant and effective with the help of website gadgets and widgets.


Unbox is a built-in pacel box that connects the inside and the outside of the entrance hall. Unbox will be a smart home system in the future one-person residential space. This product helps easy communication and secure receipt between recipients and courier articles.