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Сава Драгунчев е български актьор, режисьор, преподавател и преводач. От месец юли 2022 г. е Изпълнителен директор на Националния фонд "Култура".

Биография
Роден е на 19 март 1978 г. в София. Има бакалавърска степен по "Икономика" и магистърски степени по "Английска филология", "Международни политически отношения и сигурност" и "Макроикономика" в Софийския университет.

През 2004 г. е приет във НАТФИЗ "Кръстю Сарафов" със специалност "Актьорско майсторство за драматичен театър" в класа на професор Стефан Данаилов и завършва през 2008 г. През 2014 г. му е присъдена докторска степен по "Театрознание и театрално изкуство".

Актьорска кариера

Кариера в театъра
Драгунчев е актьор от трупата на Народния театър "Иван Вазов" от 2009 г.

Освен в Народния театър, играе в Театрална работилница "Сфумато". Участва в Международния театрален фестивал "Варненско лято" и на Есенния международен театрален фестивал "Сцена на кръстопът" в Пловдив, където е и селекционер на програмата. От 2013 до 2016 г. е Артистичен директор на Международния театрален фестивал на монодрамата "Към звездите" във Варна.

Режисьор е на множество спектакли в Театър НАТФИЗ и Театър "Азарян", между които "Мостът" от Лоран ван Ветер, "Зверското синьо" от Филип Ридли, "Лодкарят" от Джез Бътъруърт, "Изгубеното поколение" от Робърт Патрик, "Небесен отряд" от Дж. Лебович, "Троил и Кресида", "Криспиановден", "Както ви харесва" от Уилям Шекспир и др.

Консултант е по Шекспировото слово на редица представления – "Хамлет" (реж. Явор Гърдев), "Укротяване на опърничавата" (реж. Стайко Мурджев), "Ромео и Жулиета" (реж. Анастасия Събева), "Мяра според мяра" (реж. Крис Шарков), "Бурята" и "Сън в лятна нощ" (реж. Димитър Стефанов).

Участва като актьор във филми и сериали, измежду които са "Дзифт", "Недадените", "Пътят към Коста дел Маресме" и др.

Кариера в дублажа
През 2022 г. озвучава в дублажа на компютърната анимация "Пинокио: Истинска история", записан в "Андарта Студио", на режисьора на дублажа Кирил Бояджиев.

Участия в театъра
 Народен театър "Иван Вазов"
 Инспекторът от Скотланд Ярд в "Балът на крадците" от Жан Ануи с режисьор Тиери Аркур, където е и асистент режисьор
 Следователят в "Братя Карамазови" по Ф. Достоевски, реж. Деян Пройковски
 "Хъшове" на Иван Вазов – режисьор Александър Морфов
 Майор Морозов в "Нощна пеперуда" от Пьотр Гладилин
 Граф дьо Гиш в "Сирано дьо Бержерак" от Едмон Ростан – постановка Стефан Москов
 Асистент режисьор по "Козата или Коя е Силвия?" от Едуард Олби с реж. Явор Гърдев, асистент на Едуард Олби в България
 Асистент режисьор на "Вълните" по Вирджиния Улф с режисьор Арлет Ричи
 Филинт в "Мизантроп" от Жан-Батист Молиер – постановка Росица Обрешкова
 Християн Иванич Гибнер в "Ревизор" от Николай Гогол – режисьор Мариус Куркински
 Жак в "Както ви харесва" от Уилям Шекспир – постановка Стефан Данаилов
 Актьорът Бабтиста в "Хамлет" от Уилям Шекспир – режисьор Явор Гърдев
 Джон Мортън в "Крал Лир" от Уилям Шекспир – режисьор Явор Гърдев
 Слендър във "Веселите уиндзорки" от Уилям Шекспир – режисьор Ръсел Болъм
 "Херкулес и Авгиевите обори" от Фридрих Дюренмат – режисьор Ивайло Христов
 Силвио Маспери в "Каквато ти ме искаш" от Луиджи Пирандело – режисьор Теди Москов
 Ана Комнина в "Процесът против богомилите" от Стефан Цанев – режисьор Маргарита Младенова
 Граф дьо Нонжак в "Идеалният мъж" от Оскар Уайлд – режисьор Тиери Аркур, превод Красимира Тодорова
 2011 – Камило в "Зимна приказка" от Уилям Шекспир – постановка Маргарита Младенова
 2015 – Кочо Стоянов в "Гео" – режисьор Иван Добчев
 2016 – Д-р Пургон в "Мнимият болен" от Жан-Батист Молиер – режисьор Владлен Александров
 2017 – Варава в "Последното изкушение" от Никос Казандзакис – режисьор Веселка Кунчева
 2017 – Самоквасов в "Чаровно лято с неизбежните му там неприятности (Чудаци)" по Максим Горки – режисьор Красимир Спасов
 2018 – Д-р Релинг в "Дивата патица" от Хенрик Ибсен – режисьор Крис Шарков
 "Слуга на двама господари" от Карло Голдони – постановка Димитър Бозаков
 Килърът в "Досието на една ж." от Петър Маринков – режисьор Боил Банов
 AZ в "Мостът" от Лоран ван Ветер – постановка Стефан Данаилов

Филмография
 "Дзифт" (2008) – Сервитьорът, реж. Явор Гърдев
 "Пастирят" (2008) – Флако, реж. Исаак Флорентин
 "Недадените" (2013) – граф Маджистрати, БНТ
 "Пътят към Коста дел Маресме" (2014) – Теодор Данекер, реж. Иван Ничев
 "Сериз" – Художникът (2015)
 "Код Лондон" – Свещеникът на Уестминстърското абатство (2016)
 "Париж, вино и романтика" (2019)
 "Глад" – Дясната ръка (2020), реж. Петър Крумов
 "Младата жена и морето" – Репортерът Елзас (2022), реж. Хоаким Рьонинг

Дублаж
 "Пинокио: Истинска история" (2022) – Лисица

Академични и други дейности
Д-р Сава Драгунчев е дългогодишен асистент на проф. Стефан Данаилов, а след смъртта на Данаилов води самостоятелно последния му клас до завършване в НАТФИЗ.

Преподавател е в НАТФИЗ в екипа и на проф. Иван Добчев, води "Актьорско майсторство" на класа на проф. д-р Александър Илиев и "Програма Шекспир" на класа на проф. д-р Пенко Господинов.

Води "Публично говорене в чуждоезикова среда" (на английски език) в Магистърската програма на НАТФИЗ "Публична реч". Също така преподава и "Техника и култура на говора и поведение пред камера" във Факултета по Журналистика и масови комуникации в Софийския университет "Св. Климент Охридски" (ФЖМК).

От 1999 до 2002 г. работи като Старши експерт в Кабинета на Президента на Република България (Петър Стоянов).

Председател е на Съюза на говорещите английски език в България към Съюза на говорещите английски език в Британската общност, Лондон, Великобритания.

През 2021 г. е сред кандидатите за директор на Народния театър "Иван Вазов".

От месец юли 2022 г. с решение на Управителен съвет е избран за Изпълнителен директор на Националния фонд "Култура".

Награди и номинации
През 2006 г. Драгунчев печели международния конкурс за стипендия на Шекспировия театър "Глобус" в Лондон, Великобритания, а през 2010 г. – стипендия в Кралския Шекспиров театър в Стратфорд на Ейвън, Великобритания.

Два пъти е носител на наградата на ВГИК, Москва. Веднъж за драматургия на "И само туй: любов" по Уилям Шекспир (2015) и веднъж за режисура на "Изгубеното поколение" от Робърт Патрик (2018).

През 2018 г. получава номинация "Икар" в категорията "Поддържаща мъжка роля" за ролята си на Самоквасов в "Чаровно лято с неизбежните му там неприятности (Чудаци)" от Максим Горки и на режисьора Красимир Спасов.

Източници

Външни препратки

Български актьори и актриси
Български театрални актьори и актриси
Български озвучаващи актьори
Възпитаници на НАТФИЗ
Преподаватели в НАТФИЗ
Родени на 19 март
Преводачи от английски език
Родени през 1976 година


How much is Rosa DeLauro Worth?
in New Haven, Connecticut, she has held the post since 1991. Once she earned a BA degree from Marymount College in Tarrytown, New York, and then separate MA degrees from the London School of Economics and Columbia University, she started to work as an administrative assistant and chief of staff for Senator Chris Dodd executive director of EMILY's List. It was in 1990 that DeLauro entered the House as she run for the vacant seat of Connecticut's governor. That same year, she secured a tight win over her opponent Republican State Senator Thomas Scott, and she has since been reelected ten times, never dropping below 63% of the vote. This keen member of the Democratic Party, has successfully been representing the Connecticut's 3rd congressional district, based in New Haven. In addition to the above, Rosa L. DeLauro is married to political strategist Stan Greenberg.


text:
You are asked to develop a PowerPoint presentation of no more than eight (8) slides to the Board of your company to examine the current state of play on the issues raised in the following case. The case was published in 1993.
You are asked to develop a PowerPoint presentation of no more than eight (8) slides to the
Board of your company to examine the current state of play on the issues raised in the
following case. The case was published in 1993.
Imagine that you are a senior operations manager in a clothing manufacturing and retail
company based in a developed country, such as the United States. Your role includes
responsibility for international contracts for the manufacturer of the clothing that your
company sells into the USA and other developed countries. The Board is well aware of the
sensitivity of social sustainability in developing countries and the contribution that big
companies from developed countries make. It is less aware of the current situation in regard to
regulation and practice.
You have to prepare a presentation on the current situation in social sustainability
regulation and practice relating to companies from developed countries that outsource
manufacturing to factories in developing countries.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Andrew Carnegie Fellows
2015 Andrew Carnegie Fellows Recipient
Daniel J. Tichenor
Philip H. Knight Chair of Social Science, Director of the Program on Democratic Engagement and Governance, University of Oregon
Daniel J. Tichenor is the Philip H. Knight Chair of Political Science and director of the program on democratic engagement and governance of the Wayne Morse Center for Law and Politics at the University of Oregon. His book, Dividing Lines: The Politics of Immigration Control, won the American Political Science Association's Gladys Kammerer Award for the best book on U.S. public policy.
Project Title: Democracy's Shadow: Undocumented Immigrants and the Quest for Inclusion
The Overwhelming Barriers to Successful Immigration Reform (The Atlantic)
"The humanities and the social sciences are a way for this country to learn from the past, understand the present, and devise paths to progress and peace." – Vartan Gregorian, President, Carnegie Corporation of New York
Search the Fellows
Browse all fellows
2019 News Release
Meet the Jury
Social Press Kit


Since rise of Muhammad bin Salman, dramatic changes happened in economic and culture of Saudi Arabia. He wasted little time consolidating his power. From detention more than 200 princes, ministers and businessmen in one side to approval of women drive and public cinemas in another side. He and his allies control all branches of the security services. He presents himself as a youthful reformer. Saudi people might think Muhammad bin Salman is a superhero, powerful and modern crown prince with just 33. He has astonished people by breaking the rules of religious extremism and pushing for moderate Islam. Most young people feel more delighted and freer. The prince sees himself also as the champion of the young (under-30s form a majority of the population). However, The Saudi people´s true opinion about the kingdom is difficult to read, because they are afraid to speak out and criticize. The prince´s actions are transforming Saudi Arabia into a truly absolute monarchy. Critics of all stripes have been kidnaped or jailed. Several women's rights activists were arrested. These incidents have made the people either silent or forced them to speak only positive about their system. Saudi media, largely controlled by the state, have blamed "haters" and "ill-wishers" in Qatar and other countries.
The Saudi economy, meantime, is stagnating. Unemployment rose to 12.9% in the first quarter of 2018 and it is about twice as high for the young generation. Prince Muhammad, aware of this situation, hopes to create 450,000 new jobs by 2020. But that largely depends on increased foreign investment, which, in turn, depends on the crown prince showing better judgment. The kingdom is becoming less attractive to foreign workers and businessmen. Insurance and entry fees have increased and utility bills are rising. To avoid the monthly tax, which doubles to 200 riyals ($53) per family member in July, many foreign workers are leaving. Officials expect 700,000 will leave by 2020. Many big firms have already withdrawn from an investment conference in Riyadh scheduled for October 23rd. Some royals wonder if he will end up bringing down the whole regime.
Governments of other countries have more or less clear opinion of Saudi Arabia's system. Many countries in the Middle East see Prince Muhammad as a destabilizing force in the region. Iran is the first rank objector for Saudi Arabia since it opposes the kingdom strictly and competes for the oil. As Iranian exports have dropped since May, when Mr. Trump announced the sanctions, Saudi Arabian exports have raised remarkably. However, even if Saudi Arabia wants to fill the gap left by Iran, it is not clear if it can manage it because it´s output is so high. The kingdom is already producing more than 10.5m barrels of oil a day. Officials claim that the capacity to produce is around 12m. The more Saudis produce, the less there is in the tank for any additional supply outages. Besides Iran, president Erdogan disagrees with Saudi Arabia over its confrontation with Iran, its blockade of Qatar, its rejection of democratically elected Islamist governments and cold war in Yemen. But, on the other hand, Arab rulers, such as Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, King Abdullah of Jordan and Muhammad bin Rashid of Dubai, even Saad Hariri, the prime minister of Lebanon has supported Prince Muhammad in many current issues. America's actions and behavior has left more instability in the Middle East. The United States has a profound interest in helping Mohammed bin Salman. Recently, President Trump has claimed he wants to get out of the Middle East, however, his priority appears to be selling arms to the kingdom, and enlisting its help in squeezing Iran. He is counting on the Saudis to hold oil prices steady by maintaining global supply, as America hits Iran, their shared enemy, with new sanctions that aim to cut off its oil exports. Mr. Trump sees the kingdom also as an important market for American weapons manufacturers.
The conclusion is that by observing the countries in South and East Asia and their developments, it is indeed remarkable, that Asia has gotten really rich. Not because countries in those areas don't have political, ethnic and religious differences like other regions, but because in more places they learned to set those differences aside and focus on building the real foundations of sustainable wealth such as education, trade, infrastructure, human capital and, in the most successful places, the rule of law. Most of Asia became wealthy not by discovering natural resources but by using its human resources, both men and women, and giving them the tools to realize their potential. In contrast, the Middle East has never been a bigger mess. The region of the world that should be naturally rich has made itself poor by repeatedly fighting in different regions and missing its potentials vastly. While many of them are surviving with their oil without building their skills and know-how for the future, the others are facing instability and civil war. The question is how they will manage their economy after the oil ends and if they manage to sit and talk with each other to come forward or will they continue being obsessed with their old style.


text:
(Bechard)
Obituary for Charla Rose Moos (Bechard)
Charla Rose (Bechard) Moos passed away peacefully on August 5, 2022, at her home. She was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, sister, and friend. She was the first born to Adeline (Kepka) and Armond Bechard Sr. on October 11, 1952. After graduating high school, Charla married the love of her life, Dennis Moos at the Immaculate Conception Church in Grinnell, KS. Together they had three children: Kimberly, John, and Jennifer.
Charla loved spending time with her family along with cheering on her KSU Wildcats. Her five brothers and sister did eventually get her to cheer for the Jayhawks during KU Volleyball games, which she loved to watch.
During her battle with Polycystic Kidney Disease, she was able to receive two lifesaving kidney transplants which allowed her to make many more precious memories with her family.
Charla was a member of the Altar Society, VFW Auxiliary, and served many years as a 4-H Leader. Her hobbies included making crafts and the many rosaries she made for others over the years. Charla is especially remembered for her kolaches she would make for friends, neighbors and the Grinnell Warriors activity and athletic teams.
Those proceeding her in death are her parents, Adeline and Armond Bechard Sr., her brother Don Bechard and her six precious grandbabies.
Charla will be greatly missed by her husband, Dennis of Grinnell; daughters, Kimberly (Steve) Crooker, of Alexandria, VA and Jennifer (Jason) Burrows, of Hugoton, KS; son John, of Lawrence, KS; four grandchildren, Jayden, Joshua and Jaycee Burrows and Jude Crooker; her siblings, Harold (Susan) Bechard, of Salina, sister-in-law Jan Bechard, of Gardner, Richard (Pam) Bechard, of Overland Park, Raymond (Pam) Bechard, of Lawrence, Armond Jr. (Cindy) Bechard, of Leawood and Mary Beth (Jay) Nelson, of Tonganoxie, along with many nieces and nephews.
Visitation is from 5-7:00 p.m., with a Vigil at 7:00 p.m., Wednesday, August 10, 2022, at the Immaculate Conception Parish Hall, Grinnell, KS. The Funeral Mass is at 10:00 a.m. Thursday, August 11, 2022, at the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, Grinnell, with burial in the church cemetery. Memorials may be made to the Immaculate Conception Church or the Quinter Ambulance Service and sent in care of Baalmann Mortuary, PO Box 204, Oakley, KS 67748. For information or condolences visit www.baalmannmortuary.com
This obituary is protected by copyright by Baalmann Mortuary - Colby. Proudly Serving the Communities of Oakley, Colby, and Atwood. Baalmann Mortuary - Colby is located in the state of Kansas, United States.
All rights reserved. This obituary is also archived at obittree.com
Baalmann Mortuary - Colby


text:
recurrent-title: "Girls' group: have fun and build your self-esteem"
recurrent-day: Monday
recurrent-times: 1600-1800
recurrent-location: gainsborough-community-library
recurrent-location-display-name: Gainsborough Community Library
recurrent-location-display-url: /branches/gainsborough-community-library/
recurrent-category: ["children", "primary"]
---

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Listen to this live mastermind that I had with 7 figure earner Ray Higdon… This Is Powerful!
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The Truman Show – Would People Watch Your Life If It Was A Movie?
After watching the movie The Truman Show this weekend, I asked myself the question would people watch your life if it were a movie? This post tells all!
Want to get faster results in your business? For your leaders advice to the fullest and get much faster results.
If you want to connect with top earners? This podcast reveals how you can attract and repel industry leaders.
Have you ever wondered what makes a great entrepreneur? Listen to the podcast below for details.


Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Heat half the oil in a pan and gently soften the onions and garlic for 15-20 mins until really soft and sticky but not browned. Put the onions, tomatoes (halve the large ones), herbs, sugar and breadcrumbs in a baking dish, season well and toss together.
Drizzle with the remaining oil, scatter with a few more herb sprigs and bake for 1 hr until going golden on top and the tomatoes are juicy.
This was ok. Easy to make. I halved the amount for 2 of us, but I think I was too generous with the breadcrumbs as there wasn't much juice but quite a bit of soggy bread! I added panko and cheese half way through the cooking which was lovely. Served with homemade multi grain bread and some bacon. I would make again.
This is so delicious, I love onions, so add a few more than the recipe suggests. About 30 minutes from the end, I top with grated cheddar and panko crumbs - it really is out of this world. With so many delicious recipes from bbcgoodfood, we would rather eat in than out.
We had so many tomatoes from our garden that were ripe at the same time. I found this recipe and gave it a try. It was delicious. I read the comments about adding pepper so I added a few peppers too. It was easy to prepare and really delicious. We did have French bread with it. I think a little pasta on the side would be great with it as well.
This is really, really nice. I add parmesan to the breadcrumbs, and have also added red peppers to the tomatoes, which was tasty. Next time I might put some olives in with it too.
Should this be frozen cooked or uncooked? I want to use a glut of tomatoes .


KB Article http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;885442 When you compile a delete query that contains sub-queries that use multiple "NOT IN" clauses, you may receive an error message that is similar to the following: Server: Msg 8624, Level 16, State 1, Line 3 Internal SQL Server error Prerequisites This hotfix requires Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Service Pack 3 (SP3). For information about how to obtain SQL Server 2000 SP3, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: Restart information You do not have to restart your computer after you apply this hotfix. You must restart SQL Server after you apply this hotfix. To enable this hotfix, trace flag 9057 must be turned on. Trace flag 9057 is a dynamic flag. To turn on trace flag 9057, use either of the following methods: • Run the following statement: DBCC TRACEON(9057, -1) • Add -T9057 to the SQL Server startup parameters. If the hotfix does not solve the problem, you may have to add a OPTION (MAXDOP 1) query hint to the query that is experiencing the 8624 error.


text:
Basketball Transfer Ben Carter Receives Sixth Year Of Eligibility
WKAR Public Media | By Current Sports
Published May 9, 2017 at 11:54 AM EDT
MSU Athletic Communications
The NCAA has allowed injury-plagued Michigan State men's basketball forward Ben Carter to play for the Spartans by granting him a sixth year of eligibility. Carter came to the Spartans last year following an ACL tear in his senior season at UNLV and reinjured his knee in preseason workouts.
"I feel blessed. First of all, I want to thank the NCAA for granting the waiver, and everyone at Michigan State, especially in the compliance office, for all their hard work," Carter said in a team press release. "I honestly didn't know if the waiver would be granted, but I kept praying that I would be able to play one more year of college basketball."
The NCAA officially approved a medical hardship waiver for Carter, who missed the entire 2016-2017 season and the final 11 games of the 2015-2016 campaign. He last played on January 30, 2016.
Rehab for Carter's knee is ongoing.
Normally, student-athletes have five years to complete four seasons of their sport. However, an additional season can be offered in the case of injury.
Carter averaged 8.6 points and six rebounds in his first and only year at UNLV. The six-foot-eight-inch forward came to MSU to help fill the void left by draft-bound Deyonta Davis in 2016 and was immediately available to play as a graduate transfer before his injury.
"When I first decided to transfer to MSU, I thought it would be just a quick eight-month stop," Carter said. "I never imagined I would form the strong bonds with my teammates that I have."
Before transferring to UNLV, Carter spent two years at Oregon. He did not play in 2014-2015 under transfer rules.
Michigan State basketball head coach Tom Izzo said that Carter still contributed to the Spartans last year by consistently attending practices and being "a great teammate." Next season, Carter will share front-court minutes with sophomore Nick Ward, incoming freshman Jaren Jackson, incoming freshman Xavier Tillman, redshirt junior Kenny Goins and redshirt senior Gavin Schilling.
"After two knee injuries, there are never any guarantees, but I'm hoping that he'll be able to contribute a little bit on the court and a lot off it," Izzo said.
Carter will complete his master's degree during his final year of eligibility.
Sports MSU Men's BasketballMichigan State Men's BasketballDeyonta DavisBen Carter


text:
Keon House, Coventry
Tile Hill Ln, Coventry, CV4
This location Available homes Site plan
Situated to the west of Coventry, Keon House is located in the heart of Tile Hill's residential area. With plenty of transport links, local shops, amenities and an excellent choice of schools on its doorstep, this location is perfect for families, commuters and young professionals looking for a new build property to call home.
Keon House is well placed offering good links by car to the A45 Coventry Bypass and easy access to Birmingham and the M42. Located just off the B4101 means travel to the east of the city and on to the Greater Warwickshire area is simple.
Tile Hill Railway Station is less than a 5-minute drive away with free parking on site. The station provides commuters with regular local and mainline services to Coventry (6 mins), Birmingham (22 mins) and London Euston taking just under 90 mins.
Regular bus services also run from the Limbrick Avenue stop (less than a minute's walk) to Coventry and the neighbouring town of Leamington Spa, commuters are truly spoilt for transport options.
If you prefer to travel further afield, Birmingham International Airport is just a 15-minute drive away. Alternatively, there is the option of using public transport if you want to avoid airport parking!
Located in some great catchment areas, residents at Keon House have plenty of choices when it comes to Primary and Secondary schools in the local area. Within a mile of the development, you have 6 primary schools with an Ofsted rating of good, to choose from.
Templars Primary School is the closest at just 0.1 miles away. Slightly further afield, there's the choice of Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Primary School (0.4 miles), Charter Primary School (0.6 miles) and Limbrick Wood Primary School (0.7 miles).
There's also a fantastic choice of secondary schools in close proximity to the site, again all of which are rated good or higher by Ofsted. Hereward College of Further Education is the closest, just 0.1 miles away. There's also Finham Park 2 (0.2 miles away), West Coventry Academy (0.6 miles) and also Sherbourne Fields School (1.8 miles), rated outstanding by Ofsted.
Further education options are available at Coventry College, whether it's part-time or full-time courses, A-level qualifications, apprenticeships, or even higher education opportunities that you're interested in – the college has courses to cater for all interests, at all ages.
Templars Primary School
Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Primary School
Charter Primary School
Limbrick Wood Primary School
St John Vianney Catholic Primary School
Hereward College of Further Education
Finham Park 2
West Coventry Academy
The Westwood Academy
Sherbourne Fields School
Residents are just a few minutes away from a handful of all the shops you need. The closest supermarket to Keon House is Sainsbury's, which includes an Argos and Lloyds Pharmacy. There's a great choice of local convenience stores less than a mile from the development, perfect for those bits and bobs you need last minute!
If you can't find what you're looking for locally, take a trip to Coventry Arena Park Shopping Centre (just under a 20-minute drive) where you'll find a great mix of high street favourites, department stores and plenty of food and drink outlets to choose from.
West Orchards Shopping Centre
Arena Park Shopping Centre
Roberts Ltd
Nisa Local
However you like to spend your free time, there are plenty of choices close to Keon House! For residents who enjoy the outdoors, there is a choice of Allesley Park, Coombe Country Park and Stoneleigh Abbey all within a 30-minute drive.
Coventry is full of well-known landmarks from the iconic Coventry Cathedral to the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum, for those who enjoy making the most of local attractions.
For those of you who enjoy sports, you could enjoy a round of golf at Nailcoat Hall, a football game at local team Coventry City FC's ground St Andrew's or a rugby match at Butts Park Arena. In the warmer months, there's plenty of places to enjoy a whole range of sports including cricket and bowling.
Allesley Park
Herbert Art Gallery
Coventry Transport Museum
Coventry Cathedral
St Mary's Guildhall
Coombe Country Park
Stoneleigh Abbey


Citizens of Egypt, Tunisia and other nearby nations, living under harsh rulers and through hard times, have taken to the streets to bring about "Democracy", jobs, and a better life, including enough to eat. They may get their first wish but time is running out on that future everyone dreams of. In fact, that dream is about to become a nightmare.
The world is being run into the ground by "free trade agreements." Corporations control much of what happens in nations. They decide if they want to move their plants to Egypt and hire local workers. And if they do, sometime later the company may decide to move to Guatemala and leave Egyptians without jobs and no where to go for help. This is the standard operating procedure for a world based on trade agreements. Nothing is permanent. It's all dependent on where corporate CEOs decide the next big quick payoff is.
Globalization, supported by political leaders, is breaking up families, neighborhoods and nations. The "average" citizen doesn't really have a nation anymore. American workers are now encouraged to go global and try finding work in other countries since corporations only want to hire cheap foreigners, even illegal aliens. Of course, that means you will have to work for less money and no benefits. And in this new world, you have to take whatever is available.
This ongoing corporate grab for easy money by way of "free trade" will only last as long as the resources that make it viable lasts. Well, that time is here. And free trade, based on cheap oil and cheap labor, is making easy profits for corporations while they can, at the expense of human workers and the environment. And the merchants of the world continue to build the infrastructures of a dying system, a system that is being drained of the finite resources that will soon be in short supply.
Now we have a confluence of factors coming together on this planet for the first and last time. And the world will never be the same again. Free trade will be a bad memory. And hunger will remain.
The problem is overpopulation. If the world had maintained a much smaller population we would not have all of the problems that are now affecting the world. And we would not be wondering how we will cope when 9.2 billion people inhabit the earth by 2050. That's twenty years after the first global crisis hits us in 2030 and the world experiences drastic shortages of the basic resources for survival; food, water, and oil (energy).
The recent riots and attempts to overthrow governments in overpopulated areas of the Middle East is a result of citizens understanding that they are being shortchanged with respect to the developed world. And in Egypt, the recent riots were in large part because the young, educated citizen can't get a job or even enough food to eat. And they have a government that doesn't exactly put the citizen first. The breaking news is that there aren't enough jobs to go around and there isn't enough food to feed the world and the situation, in the view of relevant organizations, is that it will only get worse.
"The main drivers of the looming crisis include population growth that will reach 9.2 billion by 2050, rising demand for protein foods such as meat, milk, fish and eggs, and a global food requirement by 2050 that will be up to double today's, out stripping growth in food output.
There is no coordinated effort to find a solution for producing more food. In fact, we are essentially ignoring the problem, thereby sealing our fate. Each nation is trying to lock up agricultural lands around the world to supply its citizens with food in the coming crisis. Some, like China, have sent armed security forces to their agricutural projects to protect their investment during widespread disorders.
*Extreme violence will become the norm when people realize how desperate the situation is. And the United States could become the most violent place on earth. In addition to 100 million more people in our nation, many more will come here after the integration of North America. Mexicans will continue their manifest destiny, their reclamation of the Southwest U.S., land that was "stolen" from them by the Americans in the War of 1848. Yes, they march. They threaten American citizens. They have physically attacked Americans for the better part of two decades. They constantly threaten to send white Americans back to Europe. The documentation will fill a large library.
And they are doing this with the aid of our last two presidents and their administrations. George W. Bush said that we, meaning he and the Republican Party, "welcome the new America." The America that looks like Mexico and speaks Spanish. Miami, 2000.
And the Southwest U.S. will become an environmental wasteland once the full complement of Mexicans descend on our soon-to-be North American Community. Even now, there is not enough water for the current population.
The one lesson you should take from all this is that you will be responsible for your survival and that of your family. You definitely cannot count on the government.
A few years ago three major hurricanes hit my town in a six-week period. The last storm took out the power over a large area. I had a burner and a small tank of gas plus some cans of food, crackers, rice, and coffee. Everything was shut down.
There was nothing much to do but conserve my energy and protect my property. At night I slept on the floor, next to the screen door, hoping for a little breeze to keep the mosquitos out. It was then that I realized how dependent I was on so many people to keep me alive.
Five days later supply trucks rolled into town and everything was fine. I had lost ten pounds and gained a new perspective. I can better understand what is coming down the road. When the crisis of resource shortages is here, the emergency won't be over in a few days and the chances are good there will be no one to help you. You and your family will be on your own. If you plan to be around for the festivities, make adequate preparations for a permanent life change.


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Are Low Prices Fueling Displacement? A Closer Look at Coffee and Emigration
by Chris Kornman | Oct 14, 2019 | Editorial, Education & Resources, Interview, Origin & Supply Chain Education |
Editor's note: This article first ran on October 8, 2019 in Daily Coffee News. It is republished here with permission.
If farmers can't — at minimum — break even with their costs of production, they will very likely abandon the crop. There's plenty of anecdotal evidence these days to suggest that many are even choosing to completely abandon their farms.
Forget climate change, a new rust outbreak, or other relatively long term crises; with coffee prices on the C Market in a 3-year downward trend, having spent the entirety of 2019 under $1.20 per pound and the near-majority of it under a dollar, there is an ongoing concern for the viability of coffee in the near future.
Concurrently, stiffened border patrols, immigration crackdowns, and intolerable conditions for families in migrant detention centers in the United States have captured headlines. While hardline policies have actually reduced the numbers of new immigrants to the U.S. in recent years, the treatment of those immigrants, particularly those from Mesoamerica attempting to enter the U.S. through Mexico, has in some cases reached humanitarian crisis levels.
In our industry, it begs the question: Are Central American farmers fleeing to the U.S. as a direct result of historically low coffee prices? Recently published work in the The Washington Post, The Independent, Time Magazine, and Quartz have made that link.
Alfred Klein of Finca San Carlos in Mexico.
Alfred Klein, of Finca San Carlos near Mexico's Southern border and just a short drive from Chiapas' transit hub and port city of Tapachula, recently reached out to me to discuss this issue.
"When there is no more incentive to grow coffee as there is no more money to gain from the hard labour, people leave for the nearest town to get a job, jobs for rural people are usually not there so many leave to the next bigger city on an ongoing quest for a good job."
Labor typically constitutes the majority of a farm's expense. If farmers can't afford to pay for labor, temporary labor will move elsewhere to find work. Without labor to work the farms, the harvest suffers, deepening a vicious cycle, until abandonment becomes the last viable option for survival.
Coffee producers were already at price risk before the market began to decline. Higher than average debt to income ratios were a burden before the Intercontinental Exchange price for futures contracts — or "C price" — dipped below the cost of production, according to a recent article by Dan McQuillan, a program manager for Catholic Relief Services in Guatemala and Mexico.
Wrote McQuillan, "The hard numbers as well as numerous qualitative features seem to bare out the hypothesis that the pressure on Central America's coffee farmers is growing."
The Independent quoted a familiar voice in the specialty coffee world, former Specialty Coffee Association Executive Director Ric Rhinehart, who is currently leading the SCA's Coffee Price Crisis Response Initiative. He told the news source, "A huge part of the migration America is seeing at its Southern border is because of the falling price of coffee."
One of the first people I thought to ask about the topic was my colleague Mayra Orellana-Powell, who returned to Santa Elena, Honduras a few years ago to spearhead the Catracha Project. For a number of farmers in her hometown, Mayra has thrown a lifeline that includes access to the international market, specialty premiums for exceptional quality, education opportunities, profit sharing, and improved quality of life through a variety of community events.
Mayra Orellana-Powell (left) consults with a producer in Santa Elena, Honduras.
Orellana-Powell shared with me her frustrations over what she sees as a direct connection between low coffee prices and emigration, while also venting frustrations over perceived corruption in governments at home and abroad. Her opinions were not necessarily shared by her husband Lowell, who has the added perspective of being former attorney for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, ICE.
"The economy in Santa Elena has always been terrible," Lowell told me. "Unless you are a school teacher or working your own land, there is just about nothing else to do to make a living here. As a laborer, you can not make much more than USD $5 a day, which sucks, and the bigger problem is that there is not work every day. [It's] kind of hard to be anything but poor when you are underpaid for part-time work.
"Young people have been leaving Santa Elena for decades — it's not new. A few have the economic ability to go to the urban areas to study, but very few. Most join the military or the police, and this includes women, too. During the coffee harvest, most people leave Santa Elena and go to the bigger coffee regions like Comayagua where they can make as much as $25 a day stripping coffee trees."
So perhaps pressure from low coffee prices alone might not be sufficient to drive farmers from their land. The decision to leave is certainly more complex, and economics is merely one of the important factor.
Lowell Powell speaks to producers in Santa Elena, Honduras.
Another is violence. Take Guatemala, for example, whose complex history can serve as a cautionary tale. In 1954, the democratically elected president Jacobo Árbenz was ousted in a U.S.-orchestrated coup. Árbenz's progressive policies included labor and land reforms that were unpopular with the established elite.
Shortly thereafter, the country descended into a civil war that lasted until 1996, costing more than 200,000 lives and creating the conditions for paramilitary groups and gang violence. Ongoing bloodshed and disillusionment with government corruption are stressors sufficient to drive emigration, regardless of the value of a pound of coffee. Add punitive socio-economic policies like sanctions and extortionary loan repayment policies from global superpowers like the U.S., and farmers are faced with a thoroughly unsustainable climate for survival. So they leave.
Seeking to better understand these strains on local coffee farmers in certain parts of the world, I reached out to my colleague Haileyesus Andualem, based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Much of the Western press coverage of recent political events in Ethiopia has outlined positive, progressive change. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed is generally seen as a youthful reformist with a progressive and inclusive agenda, but the country's inability to curb ethnic violence belies problems that run much deeper. A Slate article recently noted how the situation "brings to mind Alexis de Tocqueville's famous warning that the most dangerous moment for a bad government is when it starts to reform."
In rural Southern coffeelands — including Sidama, Gedeb, and Guji — violence has precipitated one of the largest, and widely under-reported, displacements in recent history. Ethiopia is in turmoil. In July of this year, violence in Sidama cost dozens of lives as security forces sought to suppress protests as the regional ethnic group sought official recognition by the government. This followed on the heels of more bad news from Guji and Gedeb, where ethnic violence displaced millions of people, although recent reports suggest tensions are easing there.
Especially disconcerting for coffee buyers is that this violence and mass displacement is taking place right in the heart of Ethiopia's Southern coffeelands. As if coffee growing weren't difficult enough — there's climate change, diseases like roya or CBD, and low C-Market prices — many farmers in Gedeb and Guji must attempt to struggle through a humanitarian crisis.
Haileyesus Andualem (left) with Bedhatu Jibicho (center) and her son Tesfaye Roba (right)
Haile directly challenged my long-held belief that supporting farmers through times of crises necessarily provides a measure of stability.
"Coffee growing can't give any stability or security to the people," he said, before sharing an anecdote from one of Royal's producer partners, Bedhatu Jibicho, who at one point was trying to move her family due to civil instability. "Because of the security and the instability in the area, [they] were in a hurry to move their coffee from the station to Gedeb town, which was relatively peaceful at that time. A couple of days before my visit to their farm, the OLF guerrilla fighters killed three military soldiers around the Gotiti Kebele, and people were so frightened. This all sums up that, had that situation continued a little longer, no one would care about coffee."
It makes sense. The stories we tell about the social benefit we provide by simply engaging in commercial activity have always rung hollow. Whether marketing or self-reassuring, the truth is that growing coffee has little meaningful correlation to the larger human struggle of survival, particularly when extreme poverty or violence are involved.
Furthermore, the fair payment for specialty coffee — or any crop, for that matter — shouldn't be dependent upon a contrived narrative.
"We have to get away from the 'noble land worker/farmer/producer' model," my colleague Candice Madison recently told me. "It's just a step up from the 'noble savage' character. Both are extremely racist. People shouldn't have to be paraded with their families, telling a 'story' in order to be paid a fair price for their crops. It's obnoxious and the specialty coffee market has truly embraced this, run with it, and hasn't yet been significantly challenged on this incredibly offensive marketing tactic."
Can paying farmers more for coffee help people survive? Sure, but ultimately growing coffee has little to do with the root causes and effects of displacement. In this sense, the coffee industry isn't truly in a position to alter the perceived negative effects of emigration from the coffeelands.
The ICE futures price for arabica coffee — or C price — over the past five years. As of this writing, the C price for December contracts futures was USD $0.9670 per pound.
But if immigration and refugee crises tug at your heartstrings, one place to start would be to donate money or time — either through your business or personally — to NGO humanitarian relief efforts. I've long supported the work of MSF (Doctors Without Borders). The Pan American Development Foundation works in the Western Hemisphere with vulnerable and excluded peoples.
Ultimately, I'd encourage you to do your own research, to find what might be the best fit for your time and energy. A starting point might be the Charity Navigator, which can help you choose your cause and organization. It's a better place to start than nowhere.
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Multichannel
LEGO on track to open 120 new retail stores this year
Danish toy manufacturer The LEGO Group has said it is on track to open 120 new stores this year.
Lego opened 46 new stores in the first half of the year. Credit: Karen Horton / Flickr.
The company has already opened a total of 46 retail stores in the first half of the year, of which 30 were in China.
The LEGO Group CEO Niels Christiansen said: "While retail has been transformed during the past six months, we continue to see great opportunity for an omnichannel model.
"We will continue to invest in upgrading our e-commerce capabilities to support both our retail partners and our own platform and continue to invest in creating fantastic physical brand experiences for shoppers and fans."
Shopify partners with JD.com to expand footprint in China
Specsavers reveals plans to open 200 stores in Canada by 2024
Vietnam's Con Cung secures $90m investment from Quadria Capital
The LEGO Group, which reported its first-half earnings for the six months, ending on 30 June, revealed that the company's revenue for the period grew 7% to kr15.7bn ($2.4bn) compared with the same period last year.
The LEGO.com e-commerce platform visitors have also doubled to more than 100 million in the first half of this year.
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Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the group has re-tooled moulding machines in its factories in Denmark, Czech Republic, Hungary and Mexico to manufacture more than half a million visors for frontline health professionals.
In June, LEGO unveiled a new LEGO flagship store in Hangzhou, the capital city of Zhejiang province of China.
In September, the company revealed that it is set to open more than 140 stores in 35 Chinese cities by the end of the year. The company aims to expand its physical and digital presence by opening own-branded stores globally.
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Retail Insight Network
The leading site for news and procurement in the retail industry


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Top 10 best used estate cars 2022
Estate cars are a great alternative to SUVs; they offer lots of boot space without compromising the running costs of a hatchback. Here are the best used estate cars you should buy.
by Carbuyer team
SUVs might be becoming more popular, but estate cars are still a firm fixture with British motorists. Based on a family-size hatchback or saloon, estates provide all the comfort and equipment of these cars with a much larger amount of load space. The boot sizes on some models are comparable to a small van, but you don't have to put up with swathes of hard plastic, unsophisticated suspension or a spartan interior.
Estates tend to have a bigger and more accessible boot than SUVs or MPVs. As the load space is often quite long and wide, which makes it versatile and capable of carrying a huge array of things - whether you're a windswept surfer or a regular at a Swedish furniture and meatball store.
Top 10 best estate cars 2022
If you need to make the most of an estate's carrying capacity, most allow you to fold the back seats down with a flick of a lever. MPVs and SUVs, meanwhile, often prioritise passenger space over boot space, and in seven-seat cars, there's usually very little boot space when all seats are in place. You'll either need to fold more seats down or remove some completely to get the same amount of space.
With estate cars sitting lower than SUVs, the boot is more accessible, and it's easier to haul heavy items into it. At the same time, it's easier for kids and dogs to climb into an estate than a large SUV or people-carrier. You don't need to worry about safety, either, because all of these cars perform as well as their hatchback and saloon counterparts - with many receiving a maximum five-star Euro NCAP safety rating.
Sitting lower to the ground also makes an estate car better to drive than many SUVs. They're similar to drive to the hatchbacks and saloons they're based on and tend to be more fuel-efficient than bigger SUVs. A welcome side-effect is other low running costs, and consumables like tyres will cost less on certain models.
Buying a used estate car means you can get all of these benefits without splashing out on a brand-new car. If you need even more luggage space, check out our guide to the cars with the biggest boots on sale, or continue reading our rundown of the best used estate cars to buy now.
Skoda Superb Estate review
A lot of people scoffed at the 'Superb' name when Skoda's largest car started production in the early 2000s, but now the car does live up to its name. It's truly massive inside, with enough space for adults to stretch out in the back seats and 660 litres of boot space behind the seats. With the seats down, there's more space than the Mercedes E-Class Estate, and you can even fold the front passenger seat down for long loads.
We've not awarded the Superb Estate top marks for its huge boot alone; it has plenty of equipment even in the lower trim levels, and the interior is well built. The latest Superb is a handsome machine, but it also impresses with tried-and-tested engines that offer both low fuel bills and excellent performance. There's even a Sportline version with a petrol engine from VW's hot hatchbacks, should you wish to surprise some sports car owners. Plenty are available used but, if you can afford it, we'd recommend going for the 2.0-litre diesel over the 1.6-litre - as fuel economy is similar, but the larger engine is far more powerful.
See the latest prices for used Skoda Superb estate models on our sister site Buyacar.
We tend to think of the Skoda Superb Estate and the BMW 5 Series Touring as being a similarly sized, but the difference in boot space is surprising. There are 570 litres to fill (90 litres fewer than the Superb), which is still a massive space. For those times when you need to carry longer items or more things, the rear seats fold down increasing available space to 1,700 litres. The 5 Series is also very good at hauling people, with ample room for three adults in the rear seats. BMW says you could even get three child seats side-by-side, so it's a little strange that only the outer seats have ISOFIX points.
We love how it drives - it's among the best-driving estates on sale - and, whether you fancy reasonable running costs, breathtaking performance or a bit of both, the 5 Series' engine range delivers. The 520d is most common, and plenty for most people's needs, but the 540i xDrive is incredibly quick (and thirsty). The interior feels incredibly premium and both SE and M Sport trim levels are well-equipped, although useful functionality like Apple CarPlay was an additional-cost option in pre-facelift cars.
See the latest prices for used BMW 5 Series Touring models on our sister site Buyacar.
Skoda Octavia Estate review
Many of the qualities of the Superb apply to the Skoda Octavia estate as well in a slightly smaller and lower priced package. The boot space is enormous for the size of the car; at 640 litres, it's one of the biggest in its class offering a generous amount of legroom too. Drop the rear seats and the boot space increases to 1,700 litres, which is comparable to the Ford Mondeo Estate, Mazda6 Tourer and the BMW 5 Series Touring which sit in the class above.
Being part of the Volkswagen Group guarantees a well-built interior (even if it's not the last word in exuberant design), and no version is poorly equipped. Air conditioning, an infotainment touchscreen measuring in at 8.25-inches, a DAB radio Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and alloy wheels are all fitted as standard and stepping up to the higher trim levels with more kit doesn't cost the earth. The Octavia Estate gets broadly the same choice of engines as the Superb, with petrol, diesel, and a range-topping plug-in hybrid. It's also available as a quick vRS model, with the same powertrain options as the standard car. These hold their value better than the standard model, which is also the case for the higher spec SE L model.
See the latest prices for used Skoda Octavia Estate models on our sister site Buyacar.
Volvo V60 estate review
Subjectively, we think estates are often better looking than SUVs, and the Volvo V60 is one of the reasons why. It channels the boxiness of Volvo estates of old, but brings it up-to-date with an ultra-modern design. The headlights and tail-lights are a particular success. It's a car that prioritises comfort over sportiness, so a BMW 3 Series Touring is a better option if you're a keen driver, but it does comfort very well. You'll enjoy its refinement and elegance on long motorway journeys and post-work commutes which is comparable to the Mercedes C-Class Estate.
All V60's have a premium interior quality, with a cabin that is almost identical to more expensive cars like the XC90 SUV. Dominating the centre console is a large portrait touchscreen that's fitted as standard, while the impressive kit list also includes LED headlights, sat nav, parking sensors and a powered tailgate. With 529 litres of boot space, it's practical too - that's more than its immediate rivals we've just mentioned, and there's even a pop-up divider than keeps your shopping upright on the drive home from the supermarket.
See the latest prices for used Volvo V60 models on our sister site Buyacar.
Mazda6 Tourer estate review
The Mazda6 Tourer estate isn't the obvious choice for a family estate, but it definitely deserves a place on your shortlist. It's very handsome and will stand out in a car park full of Ford Mondeo and Volkswagen Passat estates. While it may have been on sale for a few years now, Mazda has given it a few upgrades to keep it fresh, and the interior is on par with the more premium manufacturers. Aside from the steering wheel controls, the remainder of the dashboard is uncluttered, with only the dual-zone climate controls and the eight-inch touchscreen.
The latter is controlled by a rotary wheel, similar to BMW's iDrive system, and includes sat nav and online connectivity. There are three petrol engines, which all return around 35mpg, and two diesel engines, and even the most powerful 181bhp engine returns 53mpg. In terms of practicality, the 6 performs well - adults will be perfectly comfortable in the back seats, and the boot offers 522 litres of space increasing to 1,644 litres with the rear seats folded down.
See the latest prices for used Mazda6 Tourer estate models on our sister site Buyacar.
Kia Ceed Sportswagon estate review
All Kia models get an extensive seven-year/100,000-mile warranty from new, which is fully transferable to the next owner. This makes the Ceed Sportswagon appealing second-hand, as you'll have a much longer warranty than any of the other cars on this list, which all come with three years of coverage. The Ceed Sportswagon gets its place on this list for more than its strong warranty, because it's very practical and spacious.
At 600 litres, the boot is just shy of the Skoda Octavia Estate's available luggage space, and the lip you'll need to haul heavy items over is now much lower. On top of that, there's more shoulder room in the rear seats than the previous Ceed Sportswagon, and the interior is equal in quality to the Ford Focus and Volkswagen Golf. Even the entry-level '2' grade features cruise control, air-conditioning, smartphone mirroring, alloy wheels and windscreen wipers with a de-icing function.
See the latest prices for used Kia Ceed Sportwagon estate models on our sister site Buyacar.
SEAT Leon Estate review
Take the sharp looks of the SEAT Leon hatchback, add extra space and you have the SEAT Leon Estate. It's as good to drive as the hatchback, and the interior is built to the same high quality. While the interior could have a little more design sparkle, all models get a touchscreen, DAB radio, cruise control and air conditioning, with the higher-spec FR trim level models adding equipment sometimes reserved only for more expensive models.
There's class-leading headroom in the front and lots of space in the rear, and the estate is usefully practical with its maximum boot space of 1,620 litres. Storage space inside the cabin is good too. Using some of the same engines as the Skoda Octavia Estate, no Leon is sluggish or expensive to run - especially the 201bhp PHEV e-Hybrid model . Leons are usually well-priced on the used market, and you may be able to find some great deals on lightly used examples of the new model.
See the latest prices for used SEAT Leon Estate models on our sister site Buyacar.
Renault Megane Sport Tourer estate review
Like a few other cars on this list, the more practical version of the Renault Megane is known as the Sport Tourer. It has stylish looks, with eye-catching C-shaped LED daytime running lights and the nearly full-width tail-lights. The interior is just as smartly designed, with a large portrait touchscreen on top-spec GT Line models, but you can choose the mid-spec version if you want sat nav, auto lights and wipers and parking sensors.
While it's not quite as good to drive as other cars on this list, the Megane Sport Tourer focuses more on comfort than sportiness - and the ride comfort over rougher surfaces is very good. The estate isn't too much bigger than the hatchback but offers useful extra space; there are 521 litres to fill with the seats up and 1,504 with the seats down, and there's only a small lip to haul items over. There's a compartment below the boot floor and handy storage bits, plus the 2.77m load length is among the biggest in the class.
See the latest prices for used Renault Megane Sport Tourer models on our sister site Buyacar.
Volkswagen Golf Estate review (2013-2020)
As the Volkswagen Golf is the default family hatchback, the estate version should be on your list if you want a compact car with plenty of space. It uses the same underpinnings as the SEAT Leon and Skoda Octavia, and the same economical engine range, but adds a more premium feel for its higher price tag. A Golf Estate is therefore a shrewd used buy, especially as it'll hold its value better than many of its rivals too.
We'd recommend picking SE or above over the entry-level S spec, as you'll get adaptive cruise control, two sets of parking sensors and automatic headlights - as well as the Bluetooth and DAB radio offered on the S. Picking the estate gets you 225 litres more boot space than the hatchback, bringing the total to an Octavia-rivalling 605 litres. All but the S model get handy storage drawers under the front seats, and there are a number of useful cubbies and massive door pockets. If you want practicality and performance, hunt down a GTD diesel or a powerful R version.
See the latest prices for used Volkswagen Golf Estate models on our sister site Buyacar.
Audi A4 Avant estate review
The Audi A4 Avant was facelifted in late 2019, but that shouldn't put you off looking at pre-facelift versions as they're pretty similar. It's an estate that prioritises your family over your luggage, as the front and rear seats are very spacious - not to mention comfortable - although, like its rivals, the middle rear seat is a little tight.
The boot can carry 495 litres of things, or up to 1,495 litres if you fold the seats down. You'll feel like you've gone up in the world if you upgrade from a normal family car, as the interior is beautifully made and stylish. In this class of car, there are very few alternatives that offer such a compelling interior, and it sets itself apart with features like the Virtual Cockpit screen. The A4 Avant is slightly less efficient than the saloon due to its heavier body, but the smaller diesel engines still offer great fuel economy.
See the latest prices for used Audi A4 Avant estate models on our sister site Buyacar.
Superb Estate
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Mercedes CLA Shooting Brake estate
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Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo estate


text:
Weerdinge is a neighbourhood and former village of Emmen in the Dutch province of Drenthe.

History
Weerdinge is an esdorp which developed in the 10th century, on the road from Emmen naar Exloo. It was first mentioned in 1327 as Weerdighen. The name means "the people of Wardo". In 1905, a railway line between Emmen and Stadskanaal was laid and a train station was built in Weerdinge. The line closed in 1963. In 1932, it was home to 977 people. The gristmill De Hondsrug was built in 1910 and was restored in 1988.

In 1978, Weerdinge was annexed by neighbouring Emmen, and has become a neighbourhood.

The Pair of Weerdinge

On 29 June 1904, a pair of bog bodies were discovered by Hilbrand Gringhuis. Initially, it was thought that it was a man and a woman, but it has been established that they are two unrelated men. They have been dated 92 BC to 70 AD. Both have probably been killed. Both bodies are on display at the Drents Museum.

Gallery

References

External links

 Website of Weerdinge (in Dutch)

Populated places in Drenthe
Emmen, Netherlands

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Effective from September 25, 2020, Flood Economics will no longer be available and the site will be taken down.
Please be sure to download or save any information you wish to reference in the future. For more information on Flood Mitigation, visit https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/risk-management
Flood mitigation takeawaysHow homeowners take actionCommunity case studiesState mitigation analysis
Boston transforms historic waterfront district
A Boston redevelopment has transformed the waterfront district while improving the city's flood resilience. The 16-story mixed-use building at 6 New Street, which opened in 2016, replaced a crumbling warehouse with a structure designed to withstand salt air, severe weather and rising sea levels. Flood mitigation features—including reinforced entrances, a raised footprint and a seawall—will reduce the flood risks to the building during storm events, while new fishing piers, rain gardens and a harbor walkway have turned the once fenced-off space into a desirable waterfront location.
Photo: Stantec Architecture
Community facts
Source: US Census Bureau.
Mitigation actions
Resilience strategies—including raising the 267,150-sq-ft structure by 9", locating the electrical room above the 0.2-percent-annual-chance elevation, installing an emergency generator on the roof and reinforcing the granite seawall—lowered the cost of insurance premiums and deductibles. Designers worked closely with city officials to ensure that the project would be "built to last" rather than "built to code," helping to expedite the entitlement process.
The project, which was designed to reconnect the Boston community to the waterfront in East Boston, includes environmental and quality-of-life benefits such as restored access to the Boston Harborwalk, increased public open spaces, reduced emissions, new docks and fishing stations, and new water taxi transportation. Flood mitigation designs fit the project budget due to careful planning and a focus on sustainability. For example, soil collected from digging foundations was used to raise the grade, thereby eliminating trucking costs while reducing the expense of raising the structure.
Benefits of mitigation
Total monetized benefits
Annual energy cost savings
Rental premiums estimate
Estimated premium for rental units
Source: Urban Land Institute: Returns on Resilience: The Business Case. ULI Center for Sustainability. Washington, D.C.: ULI, 2015.
Project challenges
"Regulatory barriers had to be factored into planning to avoid bottlenecks during construction," notes architect Zach Pursley of Stantec, the project design firm
The development team was challenged by zoning regulations that control and dictate permissible activity on coastal and inland waterways in Massachusetts. Factoring these issues into the project plan helped the team to align its design choices with regulatory requirements to expedite delivery and win stakeholder approval.
The developers, the mayor and other city officials established great communication that streamlined conversations and facilitated key decision touchpoints. Early on in the project, the team of architects, engineers and managers met with Boston's sustainability officials to brainstorm about what types of sustainability features were feasible and would mitigate flood risk.
"It's about finding creative design solutions—not just putting up a barrier, but integrating the water with the project to make it a place that people want to go and experience and enjoy"
Zach Pursley, Stantec
Future considerations
Image by Stantec Architecture
The new mixed-use structure is expected to deliver financial and social benefits for decades to come
The project's sustainable design choices are expected to deliver long-term financial benefits to owners and renters. The designers expect the resilient construction to reduce insurance premiums and energy costs, prevent business interruptions, and avoid expenses from damages, thanks to flood mitigation features.
The project's insurance underwriter, Affiliated FM, estimates that the resilience strategies could reduce the flood-loss expectancy from $10 million to $1 million, which equates to a significant drop in insurance premiums.
Regular maintenance ensures effectiveness of drainage infrastructure
Flash flooding
A Louisiana town elevates homes after Hurricane Katrina
Inland flooding, Storm surge flooding
Hancock County, Mississippi
After Katrina, counties rebuild and elevate structures
Flood mitigation resources
Below is a non-exhaustive list of other flood mitigation information resources.
Flood mitigation takeawaysHow homeowners take actionCommunity case studiesState mitigation analysisCommunity blogVirtual eventPodcastsFlood mitigation resourcesAbout this research
Privacy policyCookiesTerms of use
The EIUThe Economist
© 2019 The Economist Intelligence Unit Limited. All rights reserved.
Commissioned by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)


Five national titles were won by Nelson boxers this year and they all came from Les Rackley's stable, which is a fitting reward for the tremendous amount of work put in by Les and his boys. A glimpse of the skill of one of these boxers, Les jnr, was given in the final tournament of the season at Richmond. We say "a glimpse" because the bout lasted barely a minute. Les, younger and lighter than his opponent Steve Rabbitt, the national intermediate light middleweight champ, had the Clyde boxer defenceless after flooring him for a count of eight. The bout was stopped.


Dr. William Flores, Provost/CEO and Vice Chancellor of Antioch University Santa Barbara will depart on June 30, 2017. In his statement to the campus, Flores explained he is stepping down for personal and family health concerns and to rejoin his family in Houston.
Dr. Barbara Lipinski will be welcomed as Interim Provost/CEO on July 1. Well prepared to step into this role, Dr. Lipinski has served AUSB for more than 10 years, most recently as Academic Dean, and in the past as Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Chair of the Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology, and Clinical Training Director. Lipinski has played a key role in maintaining Antioch University's stable accreditation status with the Higher Learning Commission and the institution's high academic standards.
With more than 4,500 distinguished alumni, Antioch University Santa Barbara (AUSB) has been honored to serve the diverse communities of Santa Barbara and the central coast of California since 1977. In 2017, we celebrate our 40 year anniversary of bringing the Antioch tradition to Santa Barbara. AUSB is proud to graduate leaders in the fields of education, clinical psychology, business, and writing – and to offer bachelor's degree completion programs that elevate our community.
Inspired by the work of pioneering educator Horace Mann, Antioch University provides learner-centered education to empower students with the knowledge and skills to lead meaningful lives and to advance social, economic, and environmental justice. With campuses in Keene, New Hampshire; Los Angeles; Santa Barbara; Seattle; and Yellow Springs, Ohio; Antioch University is a bold and enduring source of innovation in higher education. Antioch University also includes a Graduate School of Leadership and Change and Antioch Online. The University is a private, nonprofit, 501(c)3 institution and accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.


text:
Q: How to get request parameters from an encoded URL in Django? I am using Django Rest Framework.
The API receives GET requests with json objects encoded into the URL. For example:
/endpoint?%7B%0D%0A++%22foo%22%3A%5B%22bar%22%2C%22baz%22%5D%0D%0A%7D
Where the decoded parameters are
{
  "foo":["bar","baz"]
}

I can't find anything in the documentation for Django or DRF pointing to how the framework can handle this so that I get a QueryDict with the json objects in it by doing something like:
request.query_params # Should yield a dict -> {foo=[bar,baz]}
How can I decode JSON encoded URLs in Django Rest Framework?
Note that my actual parameters are much more complex. Using POST is not an because the caller relies heavily on caching and bookmarking

A: The Django request.GET object, and the request.query_params alias that Django REST adds, can only parse application/x-www-form-urlencoded query strings, the type encoded by using a HTML form. This format can only encode key-value pairs. There is no standard for encoding JSON into a query string, partly because URLs have a rather limited amount of space.
If you must use JSON in a query string, it'd be much easier for you if you prefixed the JSON data with a key name, so you can at least have Django handle the URL percent encoding for you.
E.g.
/endpoint?json=%7B%0D%0A++%22foo%22%3A%5B%22bar%22%2C%22baz%22%5D%0D%0A%7D

can be accessed and decoded with:
import json

json_string = request.query_params['json']
data = json.loads(json_string)

If you can't add the json= prefix, you need to decode the URL percent encoding yourself with urllib.parse.unquote_plus(), from the request.META['QUERY_STRING'] value:
from urllib.parse import unquote_plus
import json

json_string = unquote_plus(request.META['QUERY_STRING'])
data = json.loads(json_string)

A: urllib ought to do it:
from urllib.parse import unquote
url = "endpoint?%7B%0D%0A++%22foo%22%3A%5B%22bar%22%2C%22baz%22%5D%0D%0A%7D"
url = unquote(url)
print(url)

The above almost works, but the encoding might be incorrect, not sure:
endpoint?{
++"foo":["bar","baz"]
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Summertown Interiors is proud to announce that it has been shortlisted as a finalist for the Gulf Capital SME Info award for 'Sustainable Initiative of the Year 2013'.
Summertown has been recognised for its efforts to integrate CSR and sustainability into its overall business strategy and for its progress on achieving carbon neutrality. We are recording usage and waste and are using the data to enable us to identify activities that can be undertaken to reduce our consumption in 6 key areas. These are water, electricity, sewage, general waste, fuel, and paper. By auditing our environmental footprint across 6 key areas we know exactly the impact of our reduced consumption.
Externally, we remain committed to focusing our efforts on undertaking green projects and improving waste management practices across all sites. Within our portfolio, we have now completed 6 green projects.
By making sustainability a responsibility of every employee at Summertown it engenders great pride among our staff. We feel that by being sustainable gives us a competitive edge, particularly as companies prepare themselves for forthcoming green regulations in the UAE which will be enforced from January 2014. Our relationship approach to working with the design community means we act as a true partner, providing valuable know-how on implementing a green project and sustainable practices.
The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony taking place on November 6th.


I realy like the handle and the different patterns on the thong - especialy the checkerboard pattern at the transition is very stylish and functional at the same time!
Thanks very much for posting these photos, Robby!
That was made for me. To be specific - it was made for the WB Meeting. I wanted to teach a way more elegant and slow way to crack a whip, than the usual "Machine Gun" style. "A Whip Crack...loud as a gunshot!" So I asked Rachel for a whip, that rolls out not only slow, but very slow. And I asked for a red fall, so the motion of the whip is even more visible.
At some points I thought: "Unbelievable that it works THAT slow" The motion WAS indeed visible.
And as pointed out by others already: what a beauty of a whip with its different plaiting patterns!
Thank y'all. It was my pleasure to make.
Robby, Thank you for the beautiful pictures: your skill in photography really set it off.
I was only pointing into the direction of the whip. You did the rest...!
Maybe there is a video of the whip in action at the M&G.
Videos speak a million words.
Wow, those pictures really do it justice. Very nice.
I happen to know thta those are great whips. Enjoy yours, Robby!
Well, I felt in love after borrowing it for 15 minutes.
I am not good at whipcracking, but Never the less, I enjoy to see it roll out and feel the motuin of the whip in my body.
Flemming - it is not important how good you are at whip cracking.
You found new friends and discovered a beautiful blue sky.
I learned that, and I am smiling while enjoying our small garden while cracking.
Flemming, I appreciate it so much! Robby is right, the blue sky and that contentment is the best of all!
Very Cool! Love the wrapping on the handle in combination with the black whip and red fall.
It is wonderful to hold, to feel the smoothness of the handle and watch the thong as it rolls out. I will be placing an order for an exact replica of this as soon as I possibly can. I will wait for as long as it takes for Rachel to complete because I know it will be worth it!
Beautiful whip! I'd like to see footage of your technique sometime.


The all-new family of ClearChart® Digital Acuity Systems from Reichert® are all-in-one, elegant, simple-to-use, and uniquely designed to meet all of your acuity testing needs with a wide selection of optotypes and other special test charts. The ClearChart 4X Enhanced Digital Acuity System features a new 24 inch, high resolution, LED backlit display, is lightweight, cool running, and long-lasting. The intuitive user interface, whether controlled from the easy-to-use infrared remote or via the Phoroptor® VRx Digital Refraction System, provides the best user experience of any digital acuity chart.
The ClearChart 4X has additional features such as ETDRS testing, patient education images, and ability to import images and video.
Also available: ClearChart® 4P Polarized Digital Acuity System and ClearChart® 4 Digital Acuity System.


text:
<?php
/**
 * Created by PhpStorm.
 * User: Acer
 * Date: 26.10.14
 * Time: 0:06
 */

namespace Nurolopher\BlogBundle\Form\Type;

use Symfony\Component\Form\AbstractType;
use Symfony\Component\Form\FormBuilderInterface;
use Symfony\Component\OptionsResolver\OptionsResolverInterface;

class UserType extends AbstractType{
    public function buildForm(FormBuilderInterface $builder, array $options)
    {

        $builder->add('email','email')
            ->add('firstname','text')
            ->add('lastname','text',array('required'=>false))
            ->add('group','model',array(
                'class'=>'Nurolopher\BlogBundle\Model\Group',
                'property'=>'name'
            ))
            ->add('password','repeated',array(
                'type'=>'password',
                'invalid_message'=>'The password fields must match',
                'required'=>true,
                'first_options'=>array('label'=>'Password'),
                'second_options'=>array('label'=>'Repeat Password'),
            ))

            ->add('submit','submit',array('attr'=>array('class'=>'btn')));
    }

    public function setDefaultOptions(OptionsResolverInterface $resolver)
    {
        $resolver->setDefaults(array(
            'data_class'=>'Nurolopher\BlogBundle\Model\User'
        ));
    }

    /**
     * Returns the name of this type.
     *
     * @return string The name of this type
     */
    public function getName()
    {
        return 'user';
    }
}


text:
Eric Forcier
Transmedia Fan Communities
Defining the Robot Other
Games, Gamers and the Narrative Space
Digital Library North
Social Media & KM in Libraries
Social Media & KM in NPOs
My Role: Principal Researcher (2012-2015)
Status: This research is concluded (for now), but to a great extent informs my current PhD research into transmedia fan communities.
The role of narrative in video games has been highly contested and often challenged by video game scholars. The source of these debates can be traced to the hybrid nature of video games as both participatory and immersive. What exactly are these artifacts, if not stories? As a video game enthusiast I find the topic of more than passing interest. As a researcher, I noted that video game scholars often ignore the perspective of gamers, those actually engaging with the artifacts in question. In 2012 I undertook a pilot study of user-generated reviews for Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. Skyrim was chosen strategically as a game that was not only acclaimed by critics and gamers alike, but also because of its fusion of seemingly opposing elements (e.g., open world exploration and linear storylines). I wanted to understand how the players understood and defined concepts such as gameplay, immersion and narrative in relation to their experience of the game. Through a content analysis of reviews, I developed an emergent model for understanding "narrative space" in video games: the sphere of activity in which the carefully designed affordances of the game and the gamers' interactions conspire to co-author the overall experience of the game.
'The Controller is Mightier Than the Pen!' Narrative Space in Video Games. Words, Worlds and Narratives: Transmedia and Immersion. Eds. Eric Forcier and Tawnya Ravy. Oxford: Inter-Disciplinary Press, 2014. [Link] [PDF]
Pen, Sword or Controller? What Gamers Think of Narratives in Games. 1st Global Conference: Immersive Worlds and Transmedia Narratives, Salzburg, Austria, November 13, 2012. [Link] [PDF – Handout]
Copyright © 2018 Eric Forcier.


Deutsche Telekom reports on five operating segments, as well as on the Group Headquarters & Group Services segment. Three operating segments are distinguished by region (Germany, United States, Europe), one by customers and products (System Solutions), and another by tasks (Group Development). For three operating segments, business activities are assigned by customer and product (Germany, Systems Solutions, United States), while one operating segment allocates its activities on a regional basis (Europe) and another allocates them by equity investment (Group Development).
The Germany operating segment comprises all fixed-network and mobile activities for consumers and business customers in Germany. In addition, it provides wholesale telecommunications services for the Group's other operating segments. The United States operating segment comprises all mobile activities in the U.S. market. The Europe operating segment encompasses all fixed-network and mobile operations of the national companies in Greece, Romania, Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Slovakia, Austria, Albania, the F.Y.R.O. Macedonia, and Montenegro. In addition to consumer business, most of the national companies also offer ICT solutions for business customers. On January 1, 2017, management of the Netherlands subsidiary was transferred to the Group Development operating segment. Also, the new Technology and Innovation Board department is now responsible for the GNF (Global Network Factory) and Group Technology units as well as the Pan-Net companies; this new Board department is part of the Group Headquarters & Group Services segment. International Carrier Sales & Solutions (ICSS) will remain in the Europe operating segment. As part of the international wholesale business, the Europe operating segment sells wholesale telecommunications services to the operating segments as well as to third parties. On January 1, 2016, the business customer operations at Magyar Telekom, which had previously been assigned to the Systems Solutions operating segment, was integrated into the Europe operating segment. The Systems Solutions operating segment offers business customers integrated solutions for fixed and mobile networks, highly secure data centers, and a unique comprehensive cloud ecosystem made up of standardized platforms and global partnerships. Since January 1, 2017, Deutsche Telekom has reported on the Group Development operating segment: This includes T-Mobile Netherlands (previously in the Europe operating segment), Deutsche Funkturm (DFMG, previously in the Germany operating segment), Deutsche Telekom Capital Partners (DTCP), and the equity investments in BT plc and Ströer SE & Co. KGaA, as well as Strato AG, which was sold in March 2017, and the stake in Scout24 AG, which was sold in June 2017 (all previously in the Group Headquarters & Group Services segment). The Group functions of Mergers & Acquisitions and Strategic Portfolio Management have also been assigned to Group Development. The Group Headquarters & Group Services segment comprises all Group units that cannot be allocated directly to one of the operating segments. Since January 1, 2017, the segment also reports on the new Technology and Innovation Board department. Group Services provides services to the entire Group; in addition to typical services such as financial accounting, human resources services, and operational procurement, Group Services also includes agency services provided by the Group's personnel service provider, Vivento. Further units are Group Supply Services (GSUS) for real estate management and strategic procurement, and MobilitySolutions, which is a full-service provider for fleet management and mobility services. The EE joint venture was sold to the UK company BT on January 29, 2016.
Comparative figures have been adjusted retrospectively in segment reporting.
The business segments shown are reviewed at regular intervals by the Deutsche Telekom Board of Management in terms of the allocation of resources and their earnings performance.
a Group Headquarters & Group Services segment: Deutsche Telekom AG shareholders made use of the option of receiving part of their dividend entitlement for the financial years 2015 and 2016 in the form of shares in Deutsche Telekom AG. As a result, this dividend in kind had no impact on cash flows (see Note 15 "Shareholders' equity").
b Cash outflows for investments in intangible assets (excluding goodwill) and property, plant and equipment as shown in the statement of cash flows.
Information on geographic areas. The Group's non-current assets and net revenue are shown by region: Germany, Europe (excluding Germany), North America, and Other countries. The North America region comprises the United States and Canada. The Europe (excluding Germany) region covers the entire European Union (excluding Germany) and the other countries in Europe. Other countries include all countries that are not Germany or in Europe (excluding Germany) or North America. Non-current assets are allocated to the regions according to the location of the assets in question. Non-current assets encompass intangible assets; property, plant and equipment; investments accounted for using the equity method; as well as other non-current assets. Net revenue is allocated according to the location of the respective customers' operations.


text:
\section{Generating a Distribution}
Imagine we are given real data with distribution $P_r (x)$ over a feature space $\mathcal{X}$,
and wish to learn a distribution $P_g (x)$ that is as ``close" as possible to $P_r$.
Closeness will be measured by some divergence function $D ( \cdot, \cdot )$ between probability distributions.
So the generator is typically solving
\begin{align}
\label{eq:genprob}
P_g^* &= \arginf_{P_g} D (P_g , P_r)
\end{align}
where $P_g$ is in some class of distributions specified by the generator.
This manuscript considers $D(\cdot,\cdot)$ to be an $f$-divergence:
\begin{definition}\textbf{$f$-divergence.} For any convex $f (t)$ with $f(1) = 0$,
define the $f$-divergence of $P_g$ to $P_r$
\footnote{Note that $D_f (P_g , P_r)$ need not be positive.}
as
$$ D_f (P_g , P_r) = \evp{ f \lrp{\frac{P_g (x)}{P_r (x)}}}{x \sim P_r} $$
\end{definition}

Here we examine the method of highlighting differences between $P_r$ and $P_g$
by feeding them to a binary classifier (discriminator)
with corresponding labels $y = \pm 1$,
in equal proportion as for a typical GAN setup,
so that the data input to the discriminator are assigned a positive label if they are real data:
\begin{align*}
p := \prp{y = +1}{} = \frac{1}{2}
\quad,\quad
P_r (x) = \prp{x \mid y = + 1}{}
\quad,\quad
P_g (x) = \prp{x \mid y = - 1}{}
\end{align*}
Recall that any two-class loss function can equivalently be written in terms of \emph{partial losses} $\ell_{+} (g)$ and $\ell_{-} (g)$;
these are the losses with respect to true labels $\pm 1$ respectively, as a function of the label prediction $g$.

The discrimination problem is to find a function $h$ in some model class $\mathcal{H}$ that attempts to minimize some loss on average over the data:
\begin{align}
\label{eq:lossmin}
\inf_{h \in \mathcal{H}} \evp{ \ell (y , h(x)) }{(x, y)}
\end{align}
The \emph{generative} view of binary classification \cite{RW11}
writes this in terms of the class-conditional distributions $\prp{x \mid y = \pm 1}{}$:
\begin{align}
\label{eq:lossclasscondgan}
\evp{ \ell (y , h(x)) }{y} &= \prp{x , y = +1}{} \ell_{+} (h(x)) + \prp{x , y = -1}{} \ell_{-} (h(x)) \nonumber \\
&= p \prp{x \mid y = +1}{} \ell_{+} (h(x)) + (1 - p) \prp{x \mid y = -1}{} \ell_{-} (h(x)) \nonumber \\
&= \frac{1}{2} \lrb{ P_r (x) \ell_{+} (h(x)) + P_g (x) \ell_{-} (h(x)) }
\end{align}

The optimization problem \eqref{eq:lossmin} is standard in binary classification.
Typically, $\mathcal{H}$ is chosen to be a fairly rich class of deep binary classifiers.
This means that its performance is close to the Bayes risk, i.e.
the minimum risk over measurable functions
$\inf_{h} \evp{ \ell (y , h(x)) }{(x, y)}$ \cite{RW11}.
So the excess risk
\begin{align*}
\epsilon (\mathcal{H}) := \inf_{h \in \mathcal{H}} \evp{ \ell (y , h(x)) }{(x, y)} - \inf_{h} \evp{ \ell (y , h(x)) }{(x, y)}
\end{align*}
is small.

\section{Main Result}

\begin{theorem}
\label{thm:binlosses}
Take any loss function $\ell_{\pm}$ and any model class $\mathcal{H}$.
Define $\displaystyle f (s) := \sup_{\alpha} \lrp{ - \ell_{+} (\alpha) - s \ell_{-} (\alpha) } $.
This is a maximum of linear functions, so it is convex. Then
\begin{align*}
\inf_{h \in \mathcal{H}} \evp{ \ell (y , h(x)) }{(x, y)} =
- \frac{1}{2} D_{f} (P_g , P_r) + \epsilon (\mathcal{H})
\end{align*}
\end{theorem}

Changing the model class $\mathcal{H}$ only changes the second term of Thm. \ref{thm:binlosses}.
Therefore, when $\mathcal{H}$ is rich enough that the excess risk $\epsilon (\mathcal{H})$ is small,
the loss function $\ell$ of the discrimination problem corresponds almost exactly to an $f$-divergence.

\subsection{GA Training Solves the Generation Problem with $f$-Divergences}

Revisiting \eqref{eq:genprob}, to find $P_g^*$ to be ``close'' to $P_r$
under some $f$-divergence $D_{f}$, one could solve
\begin{align*}
P_g^* &= \arginf_{P_g} D_{f} (P_g , P_r)
= \argsup_{P_g} \lrb{ - D_{f} (P_g , P_r) }
= \argsup_{\prp{x \mid y=-1}{}} \lrb{ \inf_{h \in \mathcal{H}} \evp{ \ell (y , h(x)) }{(x, y)} - \epsilon(\mathcal{H}) } \\
&\approx \argsup_{\prp{x \mid y=-1}{}} \lrb{ \inf_{h \in \mathcal{H}} \evp{ \ell (y , h(x)) }{(x, y)} }
\end{align*}
So the adversarial game interaction between the generator and discriminator emerges as the solution to the generation problem for powerful enough discriminators, for any $\ell, \mathcal{H}$.

\subsection{Examples}

Table 1
shows the correspondence between $\ell$ and $f$ for several common $f$-divergences.
Similar lists can be found in \cite{NWJ09, RW11}.

In the GA setup, the variable $s$ is always a function over the data space $\mathcal{X}$.
The maximizing $\alpha$ in $\argsup_{\alpha} \lrp{ - \ell_{+} (\alpha) - s \ell_{-} (\alpha) }$ is a function of $s$;
as a function of the data $\alpha (x)$, it is the optimal discriminator
$h^* (x) = h^* (s(x))$.

\begin{table}[!htbp]
\centering
\small
\begin{tabular}{| Sc || Sc | p{2cm} | Sc || p{3cm} |} \hline \hline
Loss $\ell$ & Partial losses & $f (s)$  &  $h^* (s)$ & $f$-divergence \\ \hline \hline
 0-1 & $\ell_{\pm} (g) = \frac{1}{2}\lrp{1 \mp g}$  & $\frac{1}{2} \abs{s-1}$ &   $\sgn (s - 1)$
 & Total variation dist. \\ \hline
   Log & $\ell_{\pm} (g) = \ln \lrp{\frac{2}{1 \pm g}}$  & $- \ln \lrp{1 + s} - s \ln \lrp{\frac{1 + s}{s}}$  & $\frac{1-s}{1+s}$
  & Jensen-Shannon dist. \\ \hline
   Square & $\ell_{\pm} (g) = \lrp{1 \mp g}^2$  & $- \frac{s}{1+s} + \frac{1}{2}$ & $\frac{1-s}{1+s}$
   & Triangular discrimination dist. \\ \hline
   CW (param. $c$) & $\ell_{\pm} (g) = \lrp{\frac{1}{2} - \lrp{\frac{1}{2} - c} } \lrp{1 \mp g}$  & $\abs{1-c - cs} - cs + c - \abs{1-2c}$ & $\sgn (1 - c - cs)$
   & -- \\ \hline
   Exponential & $\ell_{\pm} (g) = \exp( \mp g)$  & $- 2 \sqrt{s} + 2$   & $- \frac{1}{2} \ln s$
   & Hellinger dist. \\ \hline
    ``Boosting" & $\ell_{\pm} (g) = \sqrt{\frac{1 \mp g}{1 \pm g}}$  & $- 2 \sqrt{s} + 2$  & $\frac{1-s}{1+s}$
   & Hellinger dist. \\ \hline
\end{tabular}
\label{tab:alllosses}
\caption{Some discriminator losses, with corresponding $f$-divergences.}
\end{table}

\section{Related Work}

The most related work to this manuscript is the $f$-GAN approach of \cite{NCT16fgan}, to our knowledge.
This solves the same problem of minimizing the $f$-divergence to the true distribution,
but by changing the discriminator objective from the binary classification risk,
(in contrast to Thm. \ref{thm:binlosses} which just interprets the risk).
The key fact is that a convex function $f$ has a well-defined \emph{convex conjugate} function $f^*$
such that $f(u) = \sup_{t \in \RR} \lrb{tu - f^* (t)}$,
so that the following is true\footnote{Ignoring conjugacy domain issues for simplicity.}:
\begin{align}
\label{eq:fganvar}
D_{f} (P_r , P_g)
&= \evp{ \sup_{t} \lrp{t \frac{P_r (x)}{P_g (x)} - f^* (t)} }{x \sim P_g}
= \sup_{t} \lrp{ \evp{t \frac{P_r (x)}{P_g (x)} - f^* (t)}{x \sim P_g} } \nonumber \\
&= \sup_{h} \lrb{ \evp{h(x)}{x \sim P_r} - \evp{f^* (h(x))}{x \sim P_g} }
\geq \sup_{h \in \mathcal{H}} \lrb{ \evp{h(x)}{x \sim P_r} - \evp{f^* (h(x))}{x \sim P_g} }
\end{align}
\cite{NCT16fgan} use this bound from \cite{NWJ10}.
It is quite tight when $\mathcal{H}$ is rich, exactly when Thm. \ref{thm:binlosses} is strong,
though the order of the arguments is switched.
\footnote{Note that \eqref{eq:fganvar} puts the modeled (generated) distribution in the second argument
rather than the first; the two orderings are related by Csisz\'{a}r duality \cite{RW11}.
Our proof of Theorem \ref{thm:binlosses} can be followed to prove an exact analogue of Theorem \ref{thm:binlosses} viewing the discriminator risk
as $D_{f} (P_r , P_g)$ with the arguments interchanged as in \eqref{eq:fganvar}.
The analogue result only differs in the definition of the convex function generating the divergence, which is
$\sup_{\alpha} \lrp{ - \ell_{-} (\alpha) - s \ell_{+} (\alpha) } $ instead of $f$ as defined in Thm. \ref{thm:binlosses}.
In this manuscript, we follow the convention of taking the real distribution to be the second argument with respect to which we measure the ``excess description length" of using $P_g$.}

More broadly, since the original GAN paper \cite{GAN14},
the GA approach has enjoyed a string of recent empirical successes
with very rich model classes $\mathcal{H}$ \cite{DCGAN15, BEGAN17}, in accordance with Thm. \ref{thm:binlosses}.

\section{Summary}

The correspondences here fundamentally link generative adversarial training and the generation problem,
and most are well known in decision theory.
However, within the GAN literature they do not appear well known and lack references,
which we address in this note.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaArXiv


text:
Beauty Marks
Ethnic Skin
Albinopecia
Witchy Skin
Realistic Scars
Skinnies Awards
2019 Skinnies Awards
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Some of film's best known actors reveal examples of dermatology in the cinema. Here, Harrison Ford shows a traumatic scar on his chin. In the third installment of the Indiana Jones' trilogy, director Steven Spielberg incorporated this scar into the film's plot. Actor River Phoenix, playing the young Indiana Jones, cut his chin in the exact same location as Ford's scar. Internet sources confirm that Ford sustained this injury in a car accident. He was supposedly trying to fasten his seatbelt while driving. More recently, Ford's crashed his small plane. Not a particularly Indianan Jones-style maneuver. Guess that's why they call it acting!
Back in the day, no star kept the tabloids and gossip columnists busy like Elizabeth Taylor. What would they have done without her extensive list of affairs, husbands, addictions, and catastrophes. Yet for all her glamor, she was a human being with skills and flaws like anyone else. In a publicity photo for her international smash "Cleopatra," a neck scar is clearly visible.
When the wind pipe is blocked, a surgical incision is made through the skin of the neck to provide air. Called a tracheotomy, this procedure leaves a characteristic scar. In Taylor's case, it was needed during a double pneumonia in 1960. The "trach" saved her life. All the more miraculous is how this 20th century scar ended up on the neck of the ancient Egyptian queen Cleopatra.
Catherine Zeta-Jones projects the Hollywood glamour of yesteryear. Yet even movie star perfection can reveal defects. This Welsh actress is often seen wearing a large necklace or ribbon around her neck, hiding a depressed vertical scar. Was this caused by Zorro's blade? Much like screen siren Elizabeth Taylor, Zeta-Jones has said in interviews the scar is a result of a tracheotomy performed when she was a young girl.
More Starlets with Scar-lets: Ms. Bullock's career went into hyperdrive after her action flick, "Speed." Perhaps too fast--resulting in a scar above her left eye? The cause of this defect is unclear, but it clearly has not slowed her progress at the megaplex. Even O-scar was not put off by her scar. She won the Academy Award for best actress in 2010.
Diane Lane, an outstanding screen beauty, shows a striking facial scar. Likely due to injury (as opposed to surgery), it is visible even in her paean to pre-teen love, "A Little Romance." The presence of all of these scars on A-list stars proves a consistent fact: Scars are not easy to treat. Though scar creams are big business, they do little to minimize long standing scarring.
Sharon Stone's dramatic neck scar is one of the largest to be routinely concealed in publicity pics. Reportedly due to a taut cord she ran into while riding horseback. Surgeons can perform scar revision, cutting around asymmetric defects and realigning a neck scar with facial contours.
Usually, deft makeup artists, talented camera operators and sympathetic lighting designers work to hide celeb scars. Their efforts can conceal scars like that seen on comedian Tina Fey. Occasionally, however, a shadow is cast, revealing a significant depressed scar. For years, despite media requests, the typically talkative Fey kept silent about the source of the flaw. In a Vanity Fair piece, Fey's husband disclosed that when she was five years old, Fey was randomly slashed by a stranger in her front yard. She avoided discussing the incident for fear that it would seem like exploitation.Yet, Fey's career has not suffered. This scar does little to dim her star power. When you have this much talent, why mess with (im) perfection?
Fashion models make a living as defect-free mannequins. Padma Lakshmi has had a soaring career despite this signficant arm scar. Lasers have been developed for scar treatments, with mixed results. This is probably why Lakshmi still displays hers.
Keloids are an extreme form of scarring. Collagen, the protein that gives skin tensile strength, usually forms a flat bridge after lacerations. Occasionally, as seen here on actor Benjamin Bratt, the collagen is abnormally overproduced, causing red, raised nodules. Keloids more commonly occur on the chest, especially in people of color. Often itchy and unsightly, they can be thinned with injections of cortisone. Presumably that was the solution for Bratt. Or just do a hell of an acting job and we'll never be the wiser...
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