text:
package org.keycloak.testsuite.springboot;

import org.jboss.arquillian.drone.api.annotation.Drone;
import org.jboss.arquillian.graphene.page.Page;
import org.junit.After;
import org.junit.Before;
import org.junit.Test;
import org.keycloak.admin.client.resource.ClientResource;
import org.keycloak.admin.client.resource.RealmResource;
import org.keycloak.common.Profile;
import org.keycloak.representations.idm.ClientRepresentation;
import org.keycloak.representations.idm.RealmRepresentation;
import org.keycloak.representations.idm.UserRepresentation;
import org.keycloak.testsuite.Assert;
import org.keycloak.testsuite.admin.ApiUtil;
import org.keycloak.testsuite.arquillian.annotation.DisableFeature;
import org.keycloak.testsuite.auth.page.account.Sessions;
import org.keycloak.testsuite.auth.page.login.OIDCLogin;
import org.keycloak.testsuite.pages.InfoPage;
import org.keycloak.testsuite.pages.LogoutConfirmPage;
import org.keycloak.testsuite.util.DroneUtils;
import org.keycloak.testsuite.util.SecondBrowser;
import org.keycloak.testsuite.util.WaitUtils;
import org.openqa.selenium.By;
import org.openqa.selenium.WebDriver;

import static org.hamcrest.CoreMatchers.equalTo;
import static org.hamcrest.CoreMatchers.nullValue;
import static org.hamcrest.MatcherAssert.assertThat;
import static org.hamcrest.Matchers.is;
import static org.hamcrest.Matchers.notNullValue;
import static org.keycloak.testsuite.util.URLAssert.assertCurrentUrlStartsWith;
import static org.keycloak.testsuite.util.WaitUtils.pause;
import static org.keycloak.testsuite.util.WaitUtils.waitForPageToLoad;

@DisableFeature(value = Profile.Feature.ACCOUNT2, skipRestart = true) // TODO remove this (KEYCLOAK-16228)
public class SessionSpringBootTest extends AbstractSpringBootTest {

    private static final String SERVLET_URL = BASE_URL + "/SessionServlet";

    static final String USER_LOGIN_CORRECT_2 = "testcorrectuser2";
    static final String USER_EMAIL_CORRECT_2 = "usercorrect2@email.test";
    static final String USER_PASSWORD_CORRECT_2 = "testcorrectpassword2";

    @Page
    private SessionPage sessionPage;

    @Page
    @SecondBrowser
    private SessionPage secondBrowserSessionPage;

    @Drone
    @SecondBrowser
    private WebDriver driver2;

    @Page
    @SecondBrowser
    private OIDCLogin secondTestRealmLoginPage;

    @Page
    @SecondBrowser
    protected LogoutConfirmPage secondBrowserLogoutConfirmPage;

    @Page
    @SecondBrowser
    protected InfoPage secondBrowserInfoPage;

    @Page
    private Sessions realmSessions;

    @Override
    public void setDefaultPageUriParameters() {
        super.setDefaultPageUriParameters();
        realmSessions.setAuthRealm(REALM_NAME);
        testRealmLoginPage.setAuthRealm(REALM_NAME);
        secondTestRealmLoginPage.setAuthRealm(REALM_NAME);
    }

    private void loginAndCheckSession() {
        driver.navigate().to(SERVLET_URL);
        waitForPageToLoad();

        assertCurrentUrlStartsWith(testRealmLoginPage, driver);
        testRealmLoginPage.form().login(USER_LOGIN, USER_PASSWORD);

        sessionPage.assertIsCurrent();
        assertThat(sessionPage.getCounter(), is(equalTo(0)));

        driver.navigate().to(SERVLET_URL);
        waitForPageToLoad();

        assertThat(sessionPage.getCounter(), is(equalTo(1)));
    }

    @Before
    public void addUserCorrect2() {
        addUser(USER_LOGIN_CORRECT_2, USER_EMAIL_CORRECT_2, USER_PASSWORD_CORRECT_2, CORRECT_ROLE);
    }

    @After
    public void removeUserCorrect2() {
        UserRepresentation userRep = ApiUtil.findUserByUsername(realmsResouce().realm(REALM_NAME), USER_LOGIN_CORRECT_2);
        if (userRep != null) {
            realmsResouce().realm(REALM_NAME).users().get(userRep.getId()).remove();
        }
    }

    @Test
    public void testSingleSessionInvalidated() {
        loginAndCheckSession();

        DroneUtils.addWebDriver(driver2);

        driver2.navigate().to(SERVLET_URL);
        waitForPageToLoad(); // driver2 will be used because of DroneUtils.addWebDriver()

        log.info("current title is " + driver2.getTitle());
        assertCurrentUrlStartsWith(secondTestRealmLoginPage, driver2);
        secondTestRealmLoginPage.form().login(USER_LOGIN, USER_PASSWORD);

        secondBrowserSessionPage.assertIsCurrent();

        assertThat(secondBrowserSessionPage.getCounter(), is(equalTo(0)));

        // Counter increased now
        driver2.navigate().to(SERVLET_URL);
        waitForPageToLoad(); // driver2 will be used because of DroneUtils.addWebDriver()

        assertThat(secondBrowserSessionPage.getCounter(), is(equalTo(1)));

        DroneUtils.removeWebDriver(); // From now driver will be used instead of driver2

        // Logout in browser1
        logout(SERVLET_URL);
        waitForPageToLoad();

        // Assert that I am logged out in browser1
        driver.navigate().to(SERVLET_URL);
        waitForPageToLoad();

        assertCurrentUrlStartsWith(testRealmLoginPage, driver);

        // Assert that I am still logged in browser2 and same session is still preserved
        DroneUtils.addWebDriver(driver2);
        driver2.navigate().to(SERVLET_URL);
        waitForPageToLoad();

        secondBrowserSessionPage.assertIsCurrent();
        assertThat(secondBrowserSessionPage.getCounter(), is(equalTo(2)));

        String logoutUrl = getLogoutUrl();
        driver2.navigate().to(logoutUrl);

        waitForPageToLoad();
        Assert.assertThat(true, is(secondBrowserLogoutConfirmPage.isCurrent(driver2)));
        secondBrowserLogoutConfirmPage.confirmLogout(driver2);
        waitForPageToLoad();
        secondBrowserInfoPage.assertCurrent();
        waitForPageToLoad();
        driver2.navigate().to(SERVLET_URL);

        waitForPageToLoad();
        assertCurrentUrlStartsWith(secondTestRealmLoginPage, driver2);

        DroneUtils.removeWebDriver();
    }

    @Test
    public void testSessionInvalidatedAfterFailedRefresh() {
        RealmResource realmResource = adminClient.realm(REALM_NAME);
        RealmRepresentation realmRep = realmResource.toRepresentation();
        ClientResource clientResource = null;
        for (ClientRepresentation clientRep : realmResource.clients().findAll()) {
            if (CLIENT_ID.equals(clientRep.getClientId())) {
                clientResource = realmResource.clients().get(clientRep.getId());
            }
        }

        assertThat(clientResource, is(notNullValue()));

        clientResource.toRepresentation().setAdminUrl("");
        int origTokenLifespan = realmRep.getAccessCodeLifespan();
        realmRep.setAccessCodeLifespan(1);
        realmResource.update(realmRep);

        // Login
        loginAndCheckSession();

        // Logout
        logout(SERVLET_URL);
        waitForPageToLoad();

        // Assert that http session was invalidated
        driver.navigate().to(SERVLET_URL);
        waitForPageToLoad();

        assertCurrentUrlStartsWith(testRealmLoginPage, driver);
        testRealmLoginPage.form().login(USER_LOGIN, USER_PASSWORD);

        sessionPage.assertIsCurrent();
        assertThat(sessionPage.getCounter(), is(equalTo(0)));

        clientResource.toRepresentation().setAdminUrl(BASE_URL);
        realmRep.setAccessCodeLifespan(origTokenLifespan);
        realmResource.update(realmRep);

        logout(SERVLET_URL);
        waitForPageToLoad();
    }

    @Test
    public void testAdminApplicationLogout() {
        loginAndCheckSession();

        // logout user2 with admin client
        UserRepresentation correct2 = realmsResouce().realm(REALM_NAME)
                .users().search(USER_LOGIN_CORRECT_2, null, null, null, null, null).get(0);
        realmsResouce().realm(REALM_NAME).users().get(correct2.getId()).logout();

        // user1 should be still logged with original httpSession in our browser window
        driver.navigate().to(SERVLET_URL);
        waitForPageToLoad();

        sessionPage.assertIsCurrent();
        assertThat(sessionPage.getCounter(), is(equalTo(2)));

        logout(SERVLET_URL);
        waitForPageToLoad();
    }

    @Test
    public void testAccountManagementSessionsLogout() {
        loginAndCheckSession();

        realmSessions.navigateTo();
        realmSessions.logoutAll();

        // Assert I need to login again (logout was propagated to the app)
        loginAndCheckSession();

        logout(SERVLET_URL);
        waitForPageToLoad();
    }
}


text:
Ullekh NP
Journalist, political commentator and author of 'Kannur' and 'The Untold Vajpayee'
In OPEN
In The Economic Times
The Untold Vajpayee
Banning burqas in MES isn't just tough, it is dangerous for its president Dr Fazal Gafoor
May 10, 2019 May 19, 2019 / Ullekh NP
Fazal Gafoor is a 'cosmopolitan', if you apply the great thinker Benedict Anderson's definition of the term. He speaks multiple languages, having been to primary school in Edinburgh where his mother and he had accompanied his father who had moved to the Scottish capital from Kerala to pursue studies in the 1950s. While Gafoor was there, he observed first-hand how his dad, a successful doctor and academic, encouraged his mother Fathima to break the glass ceiling long before the expression acquired feminist overtones. His father, Dr PK Abdul Gafoor, was founder-president of the Muslim Educational Society (MES) whose aim was to uplift the minority community, in Kerala as well as the rest of the country, through western education. MES currently runs 150 educational institutions, including medical and engineering and other professional colleges.
Gafoor Jr, who gradually took over the reins of MES from his father after the latter's death at age 57 in 1984, was destined to convert the organisation into a much larger entity than its founders had initially envisaged it to be. And all through, empowering women by imparting them state-of-the-art education remained priority for MES under Gafoor's watch. "In medical and engineering courses, we have more lady students than male ones," Gafoor tells me proudly.
For all his progressive credentials, he is in the eye of a storm lately for another reason though. It follows a circular he issued recently asking all women students of MES colleges and schools not to wear the veil or burqato classes. In response, a few religious fanatics in India's most literate state have even issued death threats to Gafoor for reportedly violating religious practices.
But the sexagenarian laughs off such wily pronouncements by a section of clerics in Kerala, saying he has merely insisted on students wearing a uniform primarily to 'obliterate' class biases among them. A stark display of class disparities is often visible when richer students don expensive and branded clothes. "As students, they have to focus on studies, not on ostentatious display of wealth or religiosity," avers Gafoor, a renowned neurologist, who vows to carry forward the tradition of his forefathers who had won laurels, thanks to them spurring social reforms within the Muslim community in Kerala and elsewhere.
Perhaps it is only natural that his statement over a dress code has kicked up a row in a state, which, despite being home to Muslims who are socially, economically and politically empowered, has been in the news lately for the wrong reasons. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has for long reported radicalisation among certain groups of Muslims in the state and of surfacing of outfits inspired by the Islamic State (IS). Shortly after the deadly terror attacks on multiple sites in neighbouring Sri Lanka, NIA has nabbed a youth, Riyas Aboobacker, for plotting Lankan-style bomb blasts in Kerala, where Gulf money has fuelled the rise of Islamism.
Gafoor, meanwhile, disregards the opposition from orthodox Muslims and refutes charges of being anti-Islamic saying, "There is nothing un-Islamic about insisting that students wear a uniform." He exhorts clerics opposed to the measures MES has undertaken to start their own educational institutions where they can enforce a suitable dress code. He emphasises that of the total 1 lakh MES students, 40,000 are girls and none of them have any grievance against this new order by the society, which decided to issue the statement this time around after it had to deny a student admission last year when she insisted on wearing a veil to college. She later went to court, which upheld the stand of the institution. It is in this context that MES issued a new circular to clarify its stated position on women students covering their face. This order also states that the dress code has to be implemented without inviting any controversy. Gafoor, for his part, vehemently rejects the view that a veil or a purdah reflects the cultural identity of a Muslim woman.
Gafoor's order, dated April 17th, 2019, which reiterated MES' well-known policy, stated that students must dress modestly and not let religious reasons or modern trends influence them. This prompted another campaign—that the MES management is against girls wearing leggings or jeans. Gafoor contests, "The order doesn't say that at all. But let's not forget the fact that MES is a Muslim body."
For Benedict Anderson, a cosmopolitan is someone who is worldly-wise, thanks to his or her exposure to other cultures and languages. For someone born to a progressive Moplah family in Kozhikode in Kerala several of whose members were peripatetic, Gafoor is a breakaway from the usual mould. He has not only travelled wide in India and overseas but he has also lived and studied in places in India where epoch-making political events took place.
But his confrontations with new cultures and languages, gender debates and politics were even older. As a young student in England, it was his mother who drove him to school because she was the first to gain a driving licence, much before his father got one—and that made his father swell with pride. Of course, promoting women is a trait that runs deep in the family. His maternal grandfather was one of the first among Muslims of Kerala who broke the habit of restricting women to households and sent his two daughters, Amina and Fathima, to college. It didn't mean that his family delinked themselves from Islam. On the other hand, his forefathers had launched various religious movements focusing on theology and related Islamic studies.
Gafoor however rues that radicalisation has rapidly taken roots among Muslims in Kerala as opposed to dialogue on Islam that was prevalent until the Gulf Boom of the late 1970s and the 1980s. "Poor Muslims went to work in Gulf countries and came under the influence of their Arab masters and brought back home not only money but also a perverse version of Islam," notes Gafoor. He is of the view that the intellectual dominance of well-heeled Muslims of north Malabar ceased to have impact over time, fostering fanaticism and a strict interpretation of Islam akin to the one in Islamic countries. Alongside, Kerala saw a quick adoption of dressing customs of the Middle East among Muslim women. In the searing heat of Kerala summer, many women wore burqas, in a big departure from earlier ways.
THE AFFABLE AND extroverted MES president also considers himself lucky enough to have come under the spell, as a young man, of various personalities and movements that altered the course of histories nationally and globally. He belongs to the flower generation—an expression to describe people in the 1960s-70s who are also known as Hippies. They were galvanised to think and question authority due to a series of movements and events, from rock and roll to Woodstock. First they were scoffed at and then their predecessors were less dismissive of them as protesting youths took to the streets from the universities of Europe to those in America to voice their angst against injustices and wars, including the one in Vietnam. Besides, music became their voice and 'flower power'. They knew the Beatles songs, admired Elvis Presley, worshipped psychedelic art, took drugs, celebrated gonzo journalism and gorged on anything to do with the Beat Generation.
Around this time in India, in 1973, Gafoor went to study medicine in Patna Medical College that soon became the crucible of Jayaprakash Narayan's Poorna Swaraj agitation. The young student from Kozhikode was swayed by the massive political churning that resulted in the Congress imposing Emergency. By then Gafoor shifted to Kashmir to continue his studies. He remembers Srinagar of the time as a modern city without religious frictions and where Muslim women hardly wore veils. As a table-tennis player, he and his classmates played mixed-doubles matches. In both Patna and Srinagar, his father's connections meant that he had access to people in high places, and therefore, exposure to political developments at close quarters. In Bihar, he had rubbed shoulders with Lalu Prasad, Nitish Kumar and was a frequent visitor to the residence of Bihar's then Chief Minister Abdul Gafoor. In Srinagar, Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad was then a fellow student.
It was around this time his father organised MES summits in various parts of north India, of which Fathima, his mother, was the spearhead. Interestingly, his parents allowed him to make friends with people of all backgrounds. After he returned from Edinburgh, he joined St Joseph's School in Kozhikode where he played football with people from fishing families and other disadvantaged groups, offering the rich kid an early introduction to the multiplicity of cultures in his city and beyond. Gafoor Jr also met influential people in his youth.
For instance, a few days after Sheikh Abdullah was released in the summer of 1964 after spending 11 years in jail, the Kashmiri leader was a visitor at his home and chief guest at an MES event. The MES also invited the likes of Dilip Kumar, Mohammed Rafi and boxing legend Muhammad Ali as guests at various functions organised by the society.
"I am least worried about these threats," Gafoor tells Openabout direct and indirect attacks against him following the ban on veils at the MES-run institutions, that have over the past several decades provided modern education to lakhs of students and employ 10,000 people. Almost all MES colleges and schools are co-ed, a step that the organisation introduced more than 30 years ago.
The MES also has set aside quotas in jobs for Dalits and other disadvantaged groups. "Which is why our colleges and schools have people from all communities," says Gafoor, adding that MES was the first private educational body in Kerala that reserved 50 per cent of seats in professional colleges in the state government's quota. "There was resistance from other similar organisations, but soon they too agreed to do so," Gafoor points out.
Higher studies took Gafoor first to Hyderabad, and then to Tamil Nadu. Not long after he joined Osmania University in Hyderabad to do his Doctorate of Medicine (MD), Rajiv Gandhi, then a Congress general secretary, humiliated party Chief Minister T Anjaiah at Hyderabad's Begumpet airport, apparently setting the stage for the decline of the Congress in the southern state.
The mistake that Anjaiah made was to organise a rousing reception for the young Gandhi scion, who lost his cool seeing large crowds at the airport and openly called the chief minister a "buffoon" for the wasteful effort. This public humiliation of a son-of-the-soil politician was used to the hilt by the Telugu Desam Party of NT Rama Rao who used the atmagauravam (self-respect) plank to cruise to power in the 1983 polls. Andhra Pradesh, too, like Bihar and Srinagar of the 1970s, left a lasting impression on Gafoor. A few years later, he shifted base to Chennai from where he did his MD.
Gafoor, who had read Periyar voraciously and even now calls himself a Periyarist, found a godfather in AIADMK lead C Ponnaiyan, a confidant of the late chief minister and matinee idol MG Ramachandran. It was his interactions with such leaders that cemented his understanding of Indian politics, admits Gafoor, who rues how funds from the Middle East have ruined Kerala's social fabric. "Those who professed Muslim identity politics in India succeeded in creating the 'otherness' of Muslims in the state in a decade that the RSS couldn't do in many decades," argues Gafoor, who has penned a book that offers a commentary of India from the Mughal period to the time of Narendra Modi through the eyes of 50-odd authors.
"The MES is a very secular and democratic set-up," states the 62-year-old, who dwells at length on how each member is elected and not nominated unlike in most registered trusts or societies. He himself had worked his way up to the post of president and not inherited the post from his late father, he says. Gafoor has been instrumental in introducing various reforms in the privately-run educational system in Kerala. As head of the Kerala Film Chamber of Commerce, he was at the forefront of crucial decisions to improve the financial viability of moviemaking.
As a minority among Kerala Muslims go radical, thanks to Wahabi money, internet and fascination for Jihadist organisations such ISIS that are out to recruit unsuspecting youth, Gafoor says that "such problems will recede only once the inflow of money from the Arab world slides". Undeterred, the award-winning educationist says that he loves a good fight in the face of verbal assaults and malicious campaigns that include insinuations that he had attended a seminar by a radical group, among others. His enemies call him names (and troll him endlessly) and his admirers find him gutsy and broad-minded.
As our conversation winds up, it is clear: his spirit is contagious.
First published in Open
ban, burqa, college, doctor, dr pk abdul gafoor, education, fazal gafoor, kerala, kerala muslims, kozhikode, MES, muslim educational society, orthodox muslims, policy, purdah, radicalisation, university, veil, wahabi money
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
The cost of doing nothing on health care
By The New York Times | Mercury News
"Hands off my health care" goes one strain of populist sentiment.
Suppose Congress and President Barack Obama fail to overhaul the system now, or just tinker around the edges, or start over, as the Republicans propose — despite the Democrats' latest and possibly last big push that began last week at a marathon televised forum in Washington.
Then "my health care" stays the same, right?
Far from it, health policy analysts and economists of nearly every ideological persuasion agree. The unrelenting rise in medical costs is likely to wreak havoc within the system and beyond it, and pretty much everyone will be affected, directly or indirectly.
"People think if we do nothing, we will have what we have now," said Karen Davis, the president of the Commonwealth Fund, a nonprofit health care research group in New York. "In fact, what we will have is a substantial deterioration in what we have."
Nearly every mainstream analysis calls for medical costs to continue to climb over the next decade, outpacing the growth in the overall economy and certainly increasing faster than the average paycheck. Those higher costs will translate into higher premiums, which will mean fewer individuals and businesses will be able to afford insurance coverage. More of everyone's dollar will go to health care, and government programs like Medicare and Medicaid will struggle to find the money to operate.
Policymakers, in the end, may be forced to address the issue.
"It will break all of our banks if we do nothing," said Peter V. Lee, who oversees national health policy for the Pacific Business Group on Health, which represents employers that offer coverage to workers. "It is a course that is literally bankrupting the federal government and businesses and individuals across the country."
Even those families that enjoy generous insurance now are likely to see the cost of those benefits escalate. The typical price of family coverage now runs about $13,000 a year, but premiums are expected to nearly double, to $24,000, by 2020, according to the Commonwealth Fund.
While some employers will continue to contribute the lion's share of those premiums, there will be less money for employees in the form of raises or bonuses.
"It's also cramping our economic growth," said Frank McArdle, a consultant with Hewitt Associates, which advises large employers and reported on the need for change for the Business Roundtable, an association of CEOs at major companies. Spending so much on health care is "really a waste of people's money," McArdle said.
The higher premiums will also persuade more businesses, especially smaller ones, to decide not to offer insurance. More people who buy coverage on their own or are asked to pay a large share of premiums will find the price too high. It doesn't take too many 39 percent increases, like the recent one proposed by Anthem Blue Cross that has garnered so much attention, to put insurance out of reach.
While estimates vary, the number of people without insurance is expected to increase by more than a million a year, said Ron Pollack, the executive director of Families USA, a Washington consumer advocacy group that favors the Democrats' approach.
There will be a cost in lives, too. Pollack's organization estimates that as many as 275,000 people will die prematurely over the next 10 years because they do not have insurance.


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text:
Waking the Spirit
A Musician's Journey Healing Body, Mind, and Soul
Andrew Schulman, Dr. McMillen, Marvin A. (Afterword by)
An Oliver Sacks Foundation Best Book of the Year selection, Finalist for the Books for a Better Life "Best First Book" Award, and a People Magazine Pick in non-fiction.
For millennia, music has been known to have a powerful role in the healing process. This moving and inspiring book tells the tale of a man pulled from the brink of death by music who, in turn, uses music as medicine to help heal others.
Andrew Schulman, a fifty-seven-year-old professional guitarist, had a close brush with death on the night of July 16, 2009. Against the odds—with the help of music—he survived: A medical miracle.
Once fully recovered, Andrew resolved to dedicate his life to bringing music to critically ill patients in the same ICU where music helped save his life. In Waking the Spirit, you'll learn the astonishing stories of the people he's met along the way—both patients and doctors—and see the incredible role music can play in a modern hospital setting.
In his new work as a professional musician, Andrew has met with experts in music, neuroscience, and medicine. In this book, he shares with readers an overview of the cutting-edge science and medical theories that illuminate this exciting field.
This book explores the power of music to heal the body and awaken the spirit.
Praise For Waking the Spirit: A Musician's Journey Healing Body, Mind, and Soul…
"Earnest but affable memoir....He talks with neuroscientists and psychiatrists and explores the legacy of Pythagoras, the ancient Greek mathematician and philosopher who was among the first to recognize the healing properties of music. Along the way, Schulman posits that the relationship between the pain we feel and the songs and compositions we love has its roots in a tender, transcendent form of symbiosis." - Meghan Daum, The New York Times Book Review
"Waking the Spirit is an inspiring story that teaches many important spiritual lessons, but the principal one is that to give thanks, you have to give. By healing others, he healed himself. You will never listen to music in the same way again." - John Kralik, author of 365 Thank Yous
"An inspiring personal story of the ageless power of music to comfort and to heal supported with plentiful compelling scientific evidence." - Caroline Stoessinger, author of A Century of Wisdom
"Andrew Schulman has chronicled his amazing journey in a book that should be read by everyone, not only by doctors, caregivers and musicians. 'Waking the Spirit' recounts Andrew's own miraculous recovery in an ICU when he was literally brought back to life. His profound discoveries related to healing and self healing through music will astound the reader. As a classical guitarist and composer I have witnessed music's power to heal, but nothing as dramatic as what the author, facing death, has been able to reveal." - Liona Boyd, author of In My Own Key: My Life in Love and Music
"In the grand tradition of Oliver Sacks'Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain, Schulman cannily narrates stories of the ways that music can bring healing not only to the broken spirit but also to the broken body." -- No Depression, Journal of Roots Music
"Inspirational." -- Publisher's Weekly
"Great new book on power of music in medicine by Andrew Schulman. A must read."
- Kate Edgar, Oliver Sacks Foundation
"Waking the Spirit is full of hope and wonders. Andrew Schulman has as light a touch with his pen as he does when he picks up his guitar. I think the world has been waiting for this book."
-- Bill McGlaughlin, Host and music director of the public radio programs Exploring Music and Saint Paul Sunday
"A very educational and uplifting look at music therapy from a world class musician." -- The Help Desk
"In his heartfelt chronicle of unorthodox medicine, professional guitarist Schulman celebrates his sixth year as resident musician in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit at Manhattan's Mount Sinai Beth Israel hospital. His own journey began years earlier when, at 57, he was admitted to the same ward as a terminal "Code Blue" patient with circulatory collapse following a routine pancreatic tumor excision. Along with the bedside presence of his wife, Wendy, also a professional musician, was an iPod loaded with Bach, Brahms, Debussy, Ellington, and the Beatles. It was, writes the author, "all the music that moved my heart"—just the thing to help him cope and sooth his spirit. Schulman miraculously survived his ordeal, escaping with only minor brain damage. He swiftly decided to redirect his music career toward patient care as a "medical musician" in the same ward where he was a patient just months prior. With a winning combination of anecdotal bedside stories, personal experience, and the research of neuroscientists, neuromusicologists, and fellow musicians, the author offers evidence of the calming, stabilizing, and synchronous ("entrainment") physical effects music therapy can have on a patient's nervous system, pain, and overall health. Though his own work in the ward was not without its share of trial and error, Schulman's innate intuitive skills (brain surgery patients were treated to Bach first) and compassionate demeanor made him an integral part of the hospital staff. The author considers his proactive role in patient care and his own astounding recovery to have both been beautifully transformed "by the bridge that music creates between the healthy and the sick."
An inspirational testament to the limitless benefits of music and its role in health care."
-- Kirkus Review
Picador, 9781250055774, 304pp.
ANDREW SCHULMAN is the Medical Musician/Critical Care at Berkshire Medical Center and the first Certified Medical Musician admitted as a member of the Society of Critical Care Medicine. He is the founder and artistic director of the Abaca String Band, which has performed throughout the United States, and also a solo guitarist who has appeared at Carnegie Hall, the Royal Albert Hall in London, the White House, and the Improv Comedy Club, among many others. Schulman lives in New York City with his wife, Wendy, and their dog, Phoebe. He is the author of Waking the Spirit: A Musician's Journey Healing Body, Mind, and Soul.


For the next academic year 2019-2020, the admissions department is currently accepting online applications.
The International School of London (ISL) Qatar offers a rigorous international education to students from age 3-18. In addition to the International Baccalaureate Primary Years, Middle Years and Diploma Programmes, ISL is known for its exclusive mother tongue language programmes integrated into the curriculum. 80 nationalities are represented in the student body with over twelve mother tongue languages taught. ISL Qatar is seeking students who have a good record of achievement and attendance and will contribute positively to the life of the school.
The best way to determine whether the school is a good match for your family is to make an online reservation for a school tour which takes place each Monday. Alternatively, the office is open from 7.30am to 3.00pm, Sunday to Thursday for scheduled appointments. Please note, due to the volume of applications, unscheduled visits cannot be accommodated.
Completed application form with one passport-size photo.
Copies of the applicant's and the parent or guardian's passport and Qatar ID (Residence permit number).
School records for the previous two years and all available records for the current year, as available.
The results of any and all standardized testing, including educational evaluations or other medical reports.
Copy of the applicant's vaccination card.
For Qatari students transferring from abroad, a certificate of equivalency attested from the MOE in Qatar is required.
Evaluation fee of QAR530 paid by credit card, cash, cheque or bank transfer. The Evaluation Fee covers administrative costs only and does not guarantee a place in the school.
Please note, the application will not be considered until all the items have been received. Parents are advised to read the Admissions Information which includes the Terms and Conditions of the school. The signature of the parent or guardian on the Application Form constitutes acceptance of all stated Terms and Conditions, Fee regulations and the notice of withdrawal.
Signing and returning the acceptance letter before the deadline set in the offer letter.
Paying the non-returnable Registration Fee of QAR 2,652.
Securing the seat by paying the non-refundable advance payment of QAR 2,500 per child (the advance payment will be deducted from the first installment).
Depending on acceptance date, the first term's tuition fee may also be due.
If the deadline is missed, the offer will be withdrawn.


We make contemporary and stylish shoes for the modern world. Our shoes symbolise who we are – innovative pioneers providing customers across the globe with tomorrow's shoes today.
Your eGift card can only be used in our UK and ROI stores (this excludes stockists and online).


text:
Surviving The Survivor-Horror Epidemic: The Good, The Bad, And The Early
But who do survival games like Rust and DayZ appeal to?
by Hobo With A Keyboard
A new wave of genre is currently taking the gaming world head on. In an effort to maximise realism and in turn immersion, new games with the 'survival' tag are fast-arising in 2014. And they don't appear to be running for cover anytime soon. The question is: who do they appeal to? From a fair few efforts I have made on DayZ and Rust, I have come to the conclusion that these games aren't for the time constrained. To have a proper gaming session on one of these titles, you need at least a couple of hours to get anything done.
I have already wasted many an hour lost in the virtual haze of post-apocalyptic disaster, desperately wandering to find food in a resource-strained environment. To accommodate for the mass online audience, a vast map also has to follow suit. So it is not uncommon to be dying of starvation (and boredom), seeking out nearby landmarks to coordinate some sense of orientation. But I have had some of my most enjoyable gaming moments to date on such titles. My heart has raced and sunk like nothing else in DayZ, diving into the thick treeline at the sound of a gunshot, or even the haunting approach of footsteps. You truly fear for your virtual life in games as scarily realistic as this.
I first played the DayZ mod around the time of August. I'd finally ticked off the "super PC" (mid-range I would later discover) from my bucket list that I desired for about 8 years. This game blew my mind. The foliage and the clouds swarming about my head looked so real. I felt like I was planting my own footsteps in these surroundings; searching for rations and any tool of self-defence, in this desolate post-apocalyptic wasteland. It's a game about nothing, where everything feels at stake. Finding a medical kit and an apple, only to be shot dead by a BOLD FACED LIAR who promised he was a "friendly," was and still is, both heart-breaking and embittering. The shrieks of incoming zombies pierce one's heart, and pit you right into the location of this nightmare in Chernarus. Without getting too in-depth (as the game has now been realised by most who have seen a computer before), it involves you, the survivor, to….survive. What happens beyond that is a concoction of your imagination, and a fate formed by your own decisions - or lack thereof, as many a strangers' bullet will dictate. Without hearing much of the surrounding hype, my initial fear and fascination was firmly invested into the zombies. But within the first hour, I discovered the true fear : other people. It is game mechanics in their most unadulterated form, effectively allowing the game to create itself on a blank canvas woven with paranoia and fear.
Rust is very much of a similar ilk, but crosses over into a Minecraft-esque territory. The graphics are relatively average, if not sub-par in places. Long grass and shadows are cataclysmically pixelated, and the night sky looks like the painted bedroom ceiling of a stargazing enthusiast. But that may also seem more so whilst comparing it to the generically associated title that is one of the most visually stunning games I've witnessed (DayZ).
Your means of survival are not so much dependant on finding items (aside from blueprints for 'special' items), but crafting them from raw materials. You find wood and stone to create a flint hatchet, to cut down more wood, and hunt animals to survive. You use wood to cook meat, and animal fats for lighter fuel to put into your newly built furnace, which in turn allows you to craft basic weaponry such as pistols and shotguns. You create a shed to stockpile resources, then with those resources build a house. It is not time-forgiving, and after about 8 hours I only just got around to finishing my 2 up 2 down detached in the countryside. Prior to this, I built numerous sheds across a mountainous landscape, creeping about my new habitat in the night, like an Al-Qaedan Quasimodo.
There seems to be a willingness from a larger majority of players to co-operate in comparison to DayZ. My first couple of hours saw me collate together a group of 5 strangers; one of whom was slain quite abruptly for his assault on a fellow member of the tribe. We encountered what appeared to be an obscenely large wooden design, that would put the Great Wall to shame. This moment was reminiscent to the end of Monty Python's Holy Grail, as a gawky invisible American's voice boomed across the landscape from his kingdom, and demanded that we leave the area. He mentioned the rent was steep, which I initially thought was an act of facetiousness. I realised that in fact rooms were being rented out to players in exchange for raw materials on a weekly basis. We eventually came to an agreement of 200 wood and 100 metal ore for the next couple of days. I continued my gaming session with these fine men, until the point where I realised it was past 5 in the morning..
Since that day, I haven't roamed with any new-found allies. I found myself gathering resources in an out-of-the-way area, and have not been able to pinpoint my whereabouts. The last time I tried to escape my Deliverance-esque surroundings, I accidentally jumped off of a cliff in the dark. Rust's main issue is that there is little surrounding you to ever really determine your true whereabouts. Everything looks the same. And, unlike DayZ, there are few permanent buildings to help navigate you around the vast map. But aside from that, it has so far been a very enjoyable experience.
The sandbox horror survival genre is now in full swing, and you can find a platitude of 'early access' games of a similar ilk by the bucket load on steam. But the problem lies therein: to contemplate the possibility of "Early Access" for a game, it needs to be justifiable. Titles such as Nether, Wasteland 2 (both of which I've heard positive things about) and 7 days to die (and more mixed feelings on the latter), are similarly categorised "post-apocalyptic" titles that are also part of the first-generation Early access Open World Survivor-Horror games(FGEAOWSHGs, obviously). And it is hard to differentiate between the genuinely dedicated and strong community-based FGEAOWSHGs titles, and those fronted by teams apparently lacking the patience to land a finished product before they turn a profit. This is a cynical statement, but I cannot help but feel that it is far more than mere coincidence that a slew of similiarly-paced titles are now invading our inner thoughts as adrenaline-hungry gamers.
In my view, the concept of "Early Access" games is fair enough. For some it has been a great way to back a project and help it develop into a greater final product as a result of additional funding prior to its final release. Minecraft's Markus Persson was able to leave his day job in order to focus more on the game as a result of alpha-game funding. Rust is devised by Garry of Garry's Mod, so has a resume – albeit brief – to bear some credibility behind the project. DayZ certainly had valid reasons to open up to the public early. It notoriously has a devoted and long standing community that wishes to see the game develop and blossom into something greater than it has ever been. The mod has survived for years, but never truly been a finished product. And devoted fans want to see just that, whilst committing monetarily and being part of the development process. And it is at the consumer's discretion to purchase an unfinished game, preferably without complaining non-constructively about all the alleged bugs in the title…. But the problem is, that is exactly what happens. Especially when you unleash an unfinished game upon a new or potential community.
7 Days To Die has a disconcertingly identical appearance to Minecraft's mechanics and aesthetics. Throw in the erratically twitchy NPC models, and this title gives off the body language of a shifty back alley character seeking your wallet ; a motive to utilise "Early Access" in order to financially captivate an already live demographic of zombie/horror fanatics. It comes across as if the concept of this game was devised by some marketing heads, and set upon amateur coding drones to complete the job. And graphically to say the least, it would appear that way.
But the real tragedy is not necessarily people wasting their money on "fad" games designed to fleece the consumer. The real tragedy it would appear, is that such a conclusion that I have deduced can easily be surmised through speculation. With "Early Access," a game can potentially dig its own burial spot, shoot itself in the head, and slump into its cold dirt-ridden grave before a final release is even announced; potentially cutting off its finished development. I went into this article believing that this game was of little worth because of what little information I could find through online forums and one or two articles.
But I realised that my bias shouldn't get the better of me, and I wanted to like the ideas and concepts of this game. I did more YouTube "research" and found more positive outlooks from some regular YouTube video posters. But the availability of opinions on this unfinished game was so thin at the time of writing this. And I could not accept anything less than an unanimous approval from what little information I could gather regarding it. The developers of this game might genuinely be trying to create something new and innovative. But visually, the game just looks really haphazard. It looks as if Left 4 Dead took a bucketful of sulphuric acid to the face and keeled over into a mess of broken of glass. The graphics are more reminiscent of 2005′s mediocre Land of the Dead: Road to Fiddler's Green than the survival horrors such as DayZ that it is attempting to compete with. But with its final release I really do hope to get a better idea of its worth, and hope to hear nothing but positivity - as the concept to me is genuinely intriguing.
The grey area that disallows for the possibility of consumers to make educated decisions upon purchasing a relatively unknown "Early Access" title such as 7 Days To Die (due to the lack of trusted reviewer sites or reliable games critics), is what could be so dangerous to new developers. And once they crash and burn on a non-fully released title, they won't stand a chance in recuperating. To release a priced unfinished game that isn't up to scratch and looks too bleak to redeem, is effectively getting caught with your pants down with piss all over your shins.
So I would say as a final word, that you must take heed when purchasing early access games. And developers, you should do when considering it as a viable concept to promote your creation. Your credibility is at stake if you try to push a half-baked product onto the mainstream gaming industry. And that industry is in a fantastic place now for independent game developers. There is a juxtaposition by which big companies such as EA and Activision are monopolizing the market with titles such as FIFA, Battlefield, and Call of Duty; but equally, outlets such as Xbox Arcade or Steam allow indie devs to put up their work for sale without the need to globally distribute physical copies. They can use the benefits of "Early Access" also, but the terms and conditions for both creator and consumer are finicky at the moment.
But, it is a new concept. If it does not get flooded with deception and crookedness, it could be another good thing to add to the indie developers' toolkit. But up until now, the concept is too short-lived to give us any solid conclusion as to whether it is beneficial. Perhaps as an afterthought, developers/publishers could allow potential customers to try the alpha for perhaps one day, so that they can make a formidable decision as to whether they want to help support the future of the title in question. Just a thought. I never said it was a good one.
Hobo With A Keyboard
Eats old food from beard, fuels tobacco habit with cigarette ends found at local bus stop. Donates charitable sums of money to the poker community.
Games 7 Days to DieDayZGarry's ModNetherRustWasteland 2 Genres ActionAdventureIndieMassively MultiplayerPartyRPGShooterSimulationStrategy	Platforms PCMacLinux	Tags bohemia interactivemultiplayersteam early access program steam games survival gamessurvival horror games valve
Published Oct. 27th 2017
Mr_and_Miss_D_Martin
Great feature piece, really captures genre popularity and the indie dev problem - earn your keep on alpha and pre-release, or trust that people will come to the castle that you've built?
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Styles vary from manufacturer to manufacturer and from year to year but there is little variation in the basic model.
Spacious deluxe sedan comprising four or more doors; the passenger area is separated from the chauffeur's.
Automobile designed to be driven on any kind of roadway or on rugged terrain.
Automobile comprising only one row of seats and an uncovered bed closed off by a gate.


What Is An Effective Dose of Omega-3 Fatty Acids?
Home > Resources > Dr. Sears' Blog > What Is An Effective Dose of Omega-3 Fatty Acids?
The November 10, 2018 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine contained two articles on the use of omega-3 fatty acids to treat cardiovascular conditions (1,2). One study (the VITAL trial) used essentially a low dose of omega-3 fatty acids (0.84 grams of omega-3 fatty acids) and found no cardiovascular benefits (1). The other study (the REDUCE-IT trial) used a much higher dose of omega-3 fatty acids (3.8 grams of omega-3 fatty acids) and found significant cardiovascular benefits (2).
Both studies used the same endpoint for determining cardiovascular benefits. The low-dose study found no benefits, while the high-dose study found highly significant benefits. This is probably because the omega-3 fatty acid dosage used in the REDUCE-IT trial was 4.6 times greater than that used in VITAL. However, this is far from breaking news. These findings from REDUCE-IT simply confirmed the 2007 JELIS Trial conducted with much larger group of patients (18,000) who were also all taking statins (3).
Are There Any Differences Between EPA and DHA?
Both studies demonstrated some basic misunderstandings on the mechanism of omega-3 fatty acids and its impact on cardiovascular disease. Both the products used in the studies are only approved to lower very high levels of triglycerides (greater than 500 mg/dL) and not approved for treating heart disease. In addition, one product contained a combination of EPA and DHA (Lovaza) and the other product only contained EPA (Vascepa). Since the REDUCE-IT trial that used the EPA-only product worked, this might imply that DHA is dangerous. This is a story that starts with a statement that EPA lowers LDL cholesterol and DHA raises LDL cholesterol levels and therefore only EPA containing products are useful. That's a marketing statement that is only partially true. A meta-analysis showed that EPA lowers LDL cholesterol levels by 0.7% and DHA raises LDL cholesterol levels by 2.6% (4). If you have a high LDL cholesterol level of 130 mg/dL, this means using EPA-rich omega-3 supplements will lower your LDL cholesterol by 1 mg/dL and using DHA-rich omega-3 fatty acid supplements will raise your LDL cholesterol by 3.5 mg/dL (4). These changes are clinically meaningless. Furthermore, the same meta-analysis study indicated that DHA-rich omega-3 fatty acid supplements are better than EPA-rich omega-3 fatty supplements in reducing triglycerides and increasing HDL cholesterol. These differential lipid effects between EPA-rich or DHA-rich omega-3 fatty acid products essentially balance themselves and suggest that there are no differences between EPA and DHA in lowering total lipid levels. Both are beneficial. Therefore, it is not the absence of DHA that is important, but the dose used. Lowering lipid levels, however, is not the reason that high-dose omega-3 fatty acids have the benefits in reducing cardiovascular events.
It is well established that heart disease is an inflammatory disease (5,6). Much of that inflammation is mediated by pro-inflammatory proteins called cytokines. A recent Harvard study indicated that reducing one of these inflammatory cytokines (IL-1b) using a targeted monoclonal antibody could reduce heart attacks without lowering LDL levels (7). An even earlier trial in 1989 in normal subjects demonstrated that high-dose omega-3 fatty acids (5 grams per day) significantly lowered the levels of a variety of pro-inflammatory cytokines (8). This is why the AA/EPA ratio in the blood is the best marker for determining the reduction of pro-inflammatory cytokine production. But reducing cytokine levels to lower inflammation is dramatically enhanced by the simultaneous increase in a group hormones known as resolvins.
Omega-3 fatty acids can produce two groups of hormones. One are pro-inflammatory hormones known as eicosanoids and the other is a group of pro-resolution hormones known as resolvins. When it comes to eicosanoids, DHA cannot produce eicosanoids and the eicosanoids produced from EPA are weakly inflammatory. Since the eicosanoids generated from EPA are 10-100 times less inflammatory compared to those generated from AA the end result is that as EPA is increased at the expense of AA in the body. This means the intensity of the inflammatory response is significantly reduced (9). What might appear to be an "anti-inflammatory" effect, is actually a significant reduction of the intensity of overall inflammation.
The real benefits of omega-3 fatty acids comes from their production of resolvins. This is why you need both EPA and DHA as each omega-3 fatty acid makes different types of resolvins that interact with different receptors. Furthermore, you need a much higher concentration of both EPA and DHA in the blood to generate the levels of resolvins that are necessary to resolve existing inflammation (10-12). Thus, the real benefits of high-dose omega-3 fatty acids may come from their ability to increase resolvin production as well as the reduction of pro-inflammatory cytokines.
This would explain why the low-dose of omega-3 fatty acids used in the VITAL study generated essentially negative results. Unless you generate adequate levels of resolvins and simultaneously reduce cytokines by sufficiently lowering the AA/EPA ratio with high-dose omega-3 fatty acid supplementation, it is unlikely you will have significant clinical benefits. This was demonstrated in the subsequent analysis of the JELIS study when it was demonstrated that only when the AA/EPA ratio had been reduced to a level of less than 1.3 that statistically significant differences in cardiovascular events between the active and control groups become apparent (13). It was also demonstrated in an earlier study that the level of EPA (3.8 grams per day) used in the REDUCE-IT study would lower the AA/EPA ratio to 1.2 (14). Using a lower dose of 1.9 grams of EPA per day, the AA/EPA ratio was only reduced to 2.3. Based on the clinical results of the JELIS and REDUCE-IT studies, it appears that you have to reduce the AA/EPA to less than 1.3 using high-dose omega-3 fatty acid supplementation to see a therapeutic effect in treating cardiovascular disease by a combination of two factors of increasing resolvins as well as lowering cytokine levels.
Since you need both EPA and DHA for optimal clinical benefits, I happen to believe a 2:1 ratio of EPA and DHA provides the greatest overall benefits to omega-3 fatty acid supplementation. The REDUCE-IT trial indicates you probably need 4 grams of EPA per day to get a cardiovascular benefit, but that means to get an optimal cardiovascular result you would want another 2 grams of DHA per day or a total of 6 grams of EPA and DHA per day.
How Do You Know How Much EPA and DHA to Take?
It is virtually impossible to measure either eicosanoids or resolvins in the blood and it is relatively difficult to measure cytokines, but you can easily measure the AA/EPA ratio. The published data from the JELIS and REDUCE-IT trials indicates that to have maximum cardiovascular benefits, the AA/EPA ratio should less than 1.3. This is why you should always test, not guess about your health. Furthermore, don't believe statements that omega-3 fatty acids have no health benefits. They do, but only if you lower the AA/EPA ratio in the blood to an appropriate range, which requires higher amounts of omega-3 fatty acids to do so (15, 16).
Calder PC. "Omega-3 fatty acids and inflammatory processes: from molecules to man." Biochem Soc Trans. 2017 Oct 15;45(5):1105-1115.


As CEO of Cronos Group, a globally diversified and vertically integrated cannabis company, Michael has led the company's global expansion by building an international portfolio. Cronos now has a presence across four continents, including production and distribution platforms in Canada, Germany, Israel and Australia. Previously he co-founded Alphabet Ventures, a New York-based investment vehicle, and was an attorney who leveraged transactions for clients including Goldman Sachs and AT&T.


text:
Prochyliza inca är en tvåvingeart som beskrevs av Mcalpine 1977. Prochyliza inca ingår i släktet Prochyliza och familjen ostflugor.

Artens utbredningsområde är Ecuador. Inga underarter finns listade i Catalogue of Life.

Källor

Ostflugor
inca

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


If you are looking for something exciting to do in the Lake Cumberland area, you will want to contact Bobby's Outdoor Adventures for a professional guided kayaking trip on the Cumberland and Green Rivers. Bobby Williams is an avid outdoorsman and experienced kayaker offering guided kayaking excursions for individuals and groups. Kayaking adventures are tailor made to fit your group and can be customized for you and your group regardless of your experience level. Never paddled a kayak before? No problem! You will receive all the instruction needed for your experience level. Everything is provided for you to enjoy a fun filled adventure.
Kayaking adventures can include half day trips to overnight camping trips. Families have enjoyed fishing, frog gigging as well as stopping along the way to enjoy a meal cooked over the open fire. Bobby and his team go to great lengths to customize the trip for you and provide you with a trip that will have you falling in love with kayaking and the great outdoors.
Whether you're looking for a laid back trip for your family to enjoy the beauty of nature that surrounds you or a fun filled overnight adventure, Bobby's Outdoor Adventure welcomes the opportunity to provide a fun and safe excursion for you.


All are welcome to join the youth group on a Stations of the Cross hike from the Church to the desert (near Kodell's Canyon, in the Kings View Subdivision). We'll have a very light (meatless) lunch before heading out for the hike. Bring water!


Everyday that goes by, I get farther and farther from the pain. Or so I think. And then it hits me again as if it were just yesterday. I know what I need to do to move forward, but that doesn't stop me from slipping backwards to where I was. The tears are more infrequent, but they still tend to fall. It's frustrating knowing that something I wanted so badly slipped out of my reach.
And each day I move forward and feel good about myself.
And each day I look back, and wipe the tears from my eyes.
And each day I know that better things are to come.
And each day I realize how much that I have lost.
And each day I wish for a happy ending.
And each day I see the empty spot beside me.
And a tear rolls down my face remembering what was once there. And will never be again.
Previous: Leaving, on a Jet Plane!!


text:
using static FenixLib.IO.NativeFormat;

namespace FenixLib.IO
{
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    {

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        protected override string[] KnownFileMagics { get; }

        protected override ISpriteAssortment ReadBody ( Header header, NativeFormatReader reader )
        {

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            reader.ReadPaletteGammas ();

            int fontInfo = reader.ReadInt32 ();

            GlyphInfo[] characters = new GlyphInfo[256];
            for ( var n = 0 ; n <= 255 ; n++ )
            {
                characters[n] = reader.ReadLegacyFntGlyphInfo ();
            }

            var bpp = header.ParseBitsPerPixelFromMagic ();
            SpriteAssortment fpg = new SpriteAssortment ( palette );

            foreach ( var character in characters )
            {
                var dataLength = character.Height * character.Width;

                if ( character.FileOffset == 0 | dataLength == 0 )
                    continue;

                var pixels = reader.ReadPixels ( (GraphicFormat) bpp, character.Width,
                    character.Height );

                IGraphic graphic = new Graphic ( ( GraphicFormat ) bpp,
                    character.Width, character.Height, pixels );

                ISprite sprite = new Sprite ( graphic );

                fpg.Add ( fpg.GetFreeId (), sprite );
            }

            return fpg;
        }
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Q: Proof that a linear transformation is isomorphic As homework, I need to proove whether a few linear transformations are isomorphic or not, however i do not know how to achieve this. First of all i have proven that the following map is linear:
$$f:\mathbb{R}^2\mapsto\mathbb{R}^2, f\left( \begin{bmatrix}x\\y\end{bmatrix} \right)=x\begin{bmatrix}1\\1\end{bmatrix} + y \begin{bmatrix}-1\\1\end{bmatrix}$$
via the definition that a linear transformation $T: X\mapsto Y$ must satisfy the following condition (let $X$ and $Y$ be linear spaces over the field $\mathbb{K}$)
$$\forall\alpha,\beta\in\mathbb{K}\wedge x_1,x_2\in X\,:\,T(\alpha x_1+\beta x_2) = \alpha T x_1+\beta T x_2$$
Can you explain me where to go ahead? (I am from germany so please make your explanations not that difficult :-))

A: See the kernel of the linear transformation. If it contains only the zero vector, then the linear transformation is one to one and hence an isomorphism (as the two spaces in question are of the same finite dimension).
Clearly,
$$\begin{aligned}
\operatorname{ker}T&=\{(x,y):T(x,y)=(0,0)\} \\
   &=\{(x,y):(x-y,x+y)=(0,0)\}\\
   &=\{(x,y):x-y=0,x+y=0\}.\end{aligned}$$
As $x-y = 0,x+y=0$ easily imply that $x=y=0$ so $\operatorname{ker} T=\{(0,0)\}$ and we are done.

A: By the definition the linear isomorphism is a linear bijective map. We should show that for any point $(x,y)\in \mathbb R^2$ there exists unique point $(x',y')\in \mathbb R^2$ such that $f(x',y') = (x,y)$ (this point is called pre-image of $(x,y)$).
Note that these any + unique are properties of a bijection.
The simpliest way here is to provide explicitly such a pre-image. By the construction of $f$ we know that
$$(x,y) = (x'-y',x'+y').$$
On the other hand, we can extract $x'$ and $y'$ through $x$ and $y$ from the last equation. We obtain
$$
\begin{cases}
x'-y' = x,
\\
x'+y' = y
\end{cases}
$$
and then
$$
x' = \frac{x+y}{2},\quad y' = \frac{y-x}{2}.
$$
This formulas give a unique result for any $x$ and $y$, hence we proved that $f$ is isomorphic.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


The Eileen Gray end Table was originally designed in 1926, and throughout the decades has long been regarded as a true design classic furniture icon. Our version of the Eileen Gray dining Table is of exceptional high quality and can be used in a variety of settings. The Eileen Gray coffee tables versatility means it can be used as a side table in dining rooms, offices, waiting rooms and even as a cocktail or lamp table. Eileen Gray designed the Eileen Gray table to be used as a bedside table, whereby the base slides underneath the bed allowing for a perfect fit over the top of the bed.
This Eileen Gray height-adjustable coffee table from 1927 is one of Eileen Gray's most rational designs and reflects her desire for functional perfection. It is useful as a side table in living rooms, office reception areas or, on the terrace.
Eileen Gray End Table in stainless steel tubular frame with polished finish.
10 mm thickness tempered glass top.
Table in 52cm diameter, height adjustble from 70 to 100 cm .


text:
Berrys 2 picks carry Kansas City Chiefs to 29-28 win over Atlanta Falcons
Kansas City Chiefs strong safety Eric Berry (29) runs back an intercepted ball from a Atlanta Falcons two-point conversion during the fourth quarter on Sunday in Atlanta. - photo by Chuck Burton
ATLANTA — Eric Berry returned an interception for a touchdown, and then brought back another pick for a 2-point conversion that gave the Kansas City Chiefs an improbable 29-28 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.
The Falcons, rallying from a 27-16 deficit, went ahead 28-27 on Matt Ryan's 5-yard touchdown pass to Aldrick Robinson with 4:32 remaining.
Atlanta decided to go for 2, looking to stretch the margin to a field goal. But Berry stepped in front of Ryan's pass and ran 99 yards the other way to give the Chiefs (9-3) their winning margin. It came after Denver stole a game in similar fashion last month, returning a blocked PAT for the winning points at New Orleans.
Sunday's outcome meant even more to Berry, who grew up in suburban Atlanta and was playing in the city for the first time as a professional. Also, it's where he was treated after being diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma near the end of the 2014 season.
"I shed a few tears before the game, I shed a few tears during the game and I shed a few after," Berry said. "It was just a lot of emotions. I tried to contain them and let it show through my play."
Ryan was clearly down after the game, knowing this was one that got away from the Falcons (7-5).
"A poor play on my part," the quarterback said. "I was expecting combination coverage to the outside. Eric Berry did good job coming down off and going onto the tight end. A disappointing play."
Berry had another huge play with less than a minute to go in the first half, picking off Ryan's pass over the middle and bringing it back 37 yards for a touchdown. After reaching the end zone, he handed the ball to his mother sitting in the stands at the Georgia Dome.
"I just handed it to her and told her I'd be back." Berry quipped.
He fulfilled that promise.
Those weren't the only backbreaking plays given up by the Falcons. On fourth-and-2 from their own 45, Kansas City faked a punt and snapped the ball directly to Albert Wilson , who played his college ball in the same stadium for Georgia State. Wilson burst up the middle for a 55-yard touchdown that extended Kansas City's lead in the third quarter.
"I had a sense it would come down to the end, and it did," Falcons coach Dan Quinn said. "But I reminded the team that it never comes down to one play."
Alex Smith completed 21 of 25 passes for 270 yards, including a 3-yard touchdown to Spencer Ware. Travis Kelce was Kansas City's top receiver, hauling in eight passes for 140 yards.
Ryan was 22 of 34 for 297 yards, but his two huge mistakes doomed the Falcons. Julio Jones hauled in seven passes for 113 yards, while Devonta Freeman had a couple of 1-yard touchdown runs.
LONG KICK
Forty-one-year-old Matt Bryant closed out the first half with the second-longest field goal of his career for the Falcons.
Barely across midfield, Bryant booted a 59-yarder that easily clear the crossbar, cutting Kansas City's lead to 20-16 at the break. The only longer kick for Bryant was a 62-yarder with Tampa Bay in 2006.
He also tied Atlanta's franchise record for longest field goal. Morten Andersen made a 59-yarder in 1995.
The Falcons lost left tackle Jake Matthews to a left knee injury in the first half.
Trainers put a sleeve over the knee, and Matthews tested it out on the sideline with some runs and cuts. But he headed to the locker room just before halftime and didn't return. Tom Compton finished out the game protecting Ryan's blind side.
Kansas City was again missing Jeremy Maclin, its leading receiver. He returned to practice Wednesday and it was thought he'd be able to play after sitting out three straight games with a groin injury. But he didn't dress against the Falcons.
Chiefs: Return home for a huge Thursday night game against AFC West rival Oakland, the first of three straight games at Arrowhead Stadium before the season finale at San Diego.
Falcons: Travel to Los Angeles next Sunday to take on the Rams.
Dustin Johnson pulls away to capture green jacket at the Masters
Deshaun Watson agrees to 4-year, $160 million extension with Texans
Thank you Kobe: Times sports reporter Nathan Berg reflects on the legacy of an NBA legend
Matt Ryans role as leader grows in 10th camp with Atlanta Falcons


Down the bay, passing the busier beach side suburbs, you will find Edithvale – this tranquil, relaxing suburb is everything you could want in a living holiday. Edithvale being only a stone's throw away from the city, makes it easy to commute to the heart of the city with all the amenities just a couple of minutes away, means every night you get to re-enter your very own getaway.
This sequestered suburb is a great place for young families, very community driven with plenty of smiley faces to be seen. Everything is a ten-minute walk away; the main strip has a variety of shops to cater to your day to day needs.
Various recreational activities such as the great parks and foreshore, Edithvale recreation, two golf courses gives you a lot more reasons to get outside. Let's not forget about the beach, with its colourful beach huts, white sand, and clear water a little slice of heaven.


The reporter on this one failed massively!
The IP on the mp3 has expired and so the group that owned it isn't charging for it anymore. Sure they'd like to have everyone think it's dead and use more "modern" things like AAC, which they can still charge for! My guess is that you'll actually see a resurgence in mp3 format now that it's free.


text:
Q: Using a GeoPoint location and meters X/Y, how can a Longitude/Latitude be calculated? I have a little project I've been playing with (Android, GPS, mapping APIs), and I need to figure how to find a longitude/latitude/GeoPoint from a given longitude/latitude/GeoPoint with only knowing the meters/km longitude and latitude. e.g. I want to figure out where a point is from me, that I know is +1000 meters along the longitude and +1000 along the latitude.
It's a little different than the usual GeoPoint/distance questions you'll see, and it's not quite geo fencing radius related as the distance is X,Y meters/kms, and I don't have a bearing. (I could work out a bearing, but I don't have a suitable direct distance)
Basically, if I could reverse GeoPoint.distanceTo() it would do the job for me.
Update
Just a little more background. I'm basically applying a node triangulation idea I had, but the algorithm requires that my inputs be in a map normalized form that's not the same as longitude and latitude. I create a map/grid where 0,0 (the bottom/left) is the left/west and bottom/south most longitude/latitude values from the nodes I'm working with. All the other node X/Y on the map are determined by finding their meters from the 0,0 node's longitude/latitude using GeoPoint.distanceTo(). (note that I find their X/Y by performing distanceTo twice for each node so I have the X and Y meters from 0,0, not a direct line to the node) That distance in meters is fed into the algorithm and new X/Y map points are produced.
And so I need to figure out how to convert distance from a longitude/latitude into another, previously unknown, longitude/latitude.
double startPointLongitude = 23.459821;
double startPointLatitude = 76.998200;
double distanceLongitude = 100; // 100 meters along the longitude
double distanceLatitude = 75; // 75 meters along the latitude

A: Basically i took the Answer from AlexWien, corrected two things and made it into a java method
private static final double WGS84_RADIUS = 6370997.0;
private static double EarthCircumFence = 2* WGS84_RADIUS * Math.PI;

private static Position getPosition(Position sourcePosition, double mEastWest, double mNorthSouth){
    double degreesPerMeterForLat = EarthCircumFence/360.0;
    double shrinkFactor = Math.cos((sourcePosition.getLat()*Math.PI/180));
    double degreesPerMeterForLon = degreesPerMeterForLat * shrinkFactor;
    double newLat = sourcePosition.getLat() + mNorthSouth * (1/degreesPerMeterForLat);
    double newLng = sourcePosition.getLng() + mEastWest * (1/degreesPerMeterForLon);
    return new Position(newLat, newLng);
}

A: The distance between two degrees of latitude never change, it is always aprox. 111 km
(The exact value you should caculate by using the WGS84 Earth radius:
 EarthCircumFence = 2* WGS84_RADIUS * Math.Pi;

metersPerDegree = (Earth Cirumfence / 360)
With this info you easily can calculate the latitude offset,
just reverse the factor and have:
degreesPerMeterForLat = EarthCircumfenceMeter / 360.0

with longitude its a bit different, the distance between two degrees of longitude shrink
the more you move away from aequator.
shrinkFactor = cos(toRadians(locationLatitude));

compensate now:
degreesPerMeterForLon = degreesPerMeterForLat / shrinkFactor;

Finally
newLatPos = latOld + numMeters * degreesPerMeterForLat;
newLonPos = lonOld + numMeters * degreesPerMeterForLon;

This works for distance offset < 10 - 50 km

A: Sigh, I posted this like 6 hours ago but it does not appear to have gone through.
Ok, worked it out in spite of most geographical formulas and facts occasionally going over my head. Working with geography is like working with the Gregorian calendar, it makes sense if you program for it all the time, but otherwise it's easy to get confused by an incorrect assumption.
The following except from my app will take a starting GeoPoint's long/lat
   /**
    * the length of one degree of latitude (and one degree of longitude at equator) in meters.
    */
   private static final double DEGREE_DISTANCE_AT_EQUATOR = 111329;

   /**
    * calculates the x,y in meters from a given starting point's long0, lat0 to a target destination point's long1, lat1.
    * @param long0 start point longitude
    * @param lat0 start point latitude
    * @param long1 end point longitude
    * @param lat1 end point latitude
    * @return
    */
   public static Pair<Double, Double> xyFromLongLat(int long0, int lat0, int long1, int lat1) {
    double x = (long1 / 1E6 - long0 / 1E6) * longitudeDistanceAtLatitude(lat0 / 1E6);
    double y = (lat1 / 1E6 - lat0 / 1E6) * DEGREE_DISTANCE_AT_EQUATOR;
    return new Pair<Double, Double>(x, y);
   }

   /**
    * calculates longitude and latitude from a given starting point, with only the X/Y meters
    * @param long0
    * @param lat0
    * @param x
    * @param y
    * @return
    */
   public static Pair<Double, Double> longLatFromXY(int long0, int lat0, double x, double y) {
        double lat1 = (y / DEGREE_DISTANCE_AT_EQUATOR) + (lat0 / 1E6);
        double long1 = x / longitudeDistanceAtLatitude(lat0) + (long0 / 1E6);
        return new Pair<Double, Double>(lat1, long1);
   }


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PITTSBURGH (April 14, 2007) – TUMS Racing has found the best chef of the speedway, the grill master of the grandstands and the culinary expert of the campgrounds – all within the confines of Texas Motor Speedway.
The winners (L-R) — Jimmy Dunn and Mike Childress; Robert Farely; and Matt Champion –show off their trophies.
The category winners in the TUMS Diner Delights Cookoff each won a TUMS pit tour for two on Sunday morning and a TUMS Diner Delights trophy. The nine semi-finalists took home a TUMS t-shirt and a TUMS Racing flag. All participants received a TUMS hat and TUMS gift pack. Winning recipes will be available for fans to download at www.TUMSracing.com.
TUMS knows that race weekends are full of food, fun and fast action that can sometimes lead to heartburn and indigestion. But with TUMS, there's no need to pack it up and go home Just "pit" for a little fast relief at the "Dinermobile" exhibit in the fan concourse area and continue enjoying the weekend.
TUMS celebrated the art and science of campground cuisine in honor of their primary sponsorship of the No. 41 TUMS Dodge Charger for Reed Sorenson in the race at Texas on Sunday, April 15, 2007.


text: Sanbralio rarely remembered who they were. When he wasn't doting on Nita and trying to charm her, he spent most of his time throwing nasty out comments about Andreno, or bemoaning his losses. More often than not, he ended the meal by breaking down into tearful sobbing. "You don't have to look as if you just swallowed something slimy." Nita giggled at Jerryck. "We only have a couple more days here. Then you won't have to deal with him anymore. Go get ready. Then meet me in my room." Jerryck went. He took his time putting on something appropriate for dining with royalty. He never had figured out why people wore different clothes to court than to meals, but for now it made a good excuse for procrastination. Then he dragged his feet the short distance to Nita's room. When he entered, a hairdresser was taking mounds of Nita's hair down from where it had been piled on top of her head. "I'd think you'd have figured it out by now." Nita sat in front of her vanity, arms crossed, scolding the hairdresser. "I don't care about the latest fashion. I refuse to show myself in public with hair so high I have to duck to go through doorways that aren't vaulted." Jerryck dropped into a chair to wait. It only took a couple minutes for the hairdresser to come up with something different. Nita scrutinized her reflection and nodded her approval. The hairdresser left and Nita opened her jewelry box. Her reflection frowned at Tajor. "You look amused," she said. "Whims of fashion are fickle and every-changing," Tajor leaned casually against the wall next to Deek. "Did you notice that when you first arrived, not one noble woman showed herself in public without her hair standing a foot higher than the top of her head?" "A stupid way to wear your hair." Nita put on a pair of ruby earrings. "I kept watching to see if they'd fall over sideways." "Now several of them are wearing their hair more like yours." "Which means there are some women here that have brains." Nita latched a gold locket around her neck. "Do you have any advice before we go to Prince Sanbralio?" Tajor smirked. "When do I ever give advice?" Jerryck rolled his eyes. Why did Nita play this game of questions with Tajor? Why would anyone willingly put themselves through that kind of misery? "I know you usually give riddles and make me figure things out on my own, but…" Nita turned from her vanity to look at him directly. "I don't have time for that right now. You always have something in mind. Tell me. Please?" Tajor dropped the smirk and stood straight. "Don't get your hopes up." She stood. "That wasn't what I expected." "What was your true intention for requesting this luncheon?" "I'm going to ask Prince Sanbralio to let me take Charlass to Brend," Nita said. She slowly paced, circling the furniture. "Don't get your hopes up." "Why?" "Exactly." Tajor spread his hands apart. "Why is she here? Why did he take her in?" Nita stopped pacing. "She's his granddaughter." "She's illegitimate," Tajor said. That set Nita to motion again. When she said nothing, he continued, "In the eyes of every noble in this country, her very existence is an affront and an embarrassment. In a land where image is everything, and nobles have had their reputations smeared just for association with a commoner, why would the greatest noble of them all take a commoner into his household?" "She's his granddaughter," Nita repeated, passing by the vanity. "Surely that counts for something." "It counts for everything. And nothing. It's the very reason she's here. It's the very reason he neglects her." "Should I point out his neglect? Use that to say she'd be happier in Brend?" "He won't understand," Tajor said. "Here in Shontarra, commoners live in misery. She lives in a palace. They dress in filthy rags. She adorns herself with jewels. They eat scraps and crumbs they've fought for. She dines at the table of the prince." "A woman needs friends," Nita said, clenching her fists. "A need most men don't comprehend very well," Tajor replied. "Men need friends too!" "Not the same way, and not for the same function. Their attachment is just as strong and deep, yes, but it stems from a different facet of humanity. Sanbralio is blind and deaf to this need in her." "I could tell him." "How loud would you have to shout for a deaf person to hear you?" Tajor asked. "How bright does a light have to shine before a blind person can see it?" "Jerryck," Nita turned to him. "How do your sister and wife get you to understand things. Help me out here." "Uh…" Jerryck fumbled for words. "I'd rather stay out of this." "But…" "They usually just get mad at me," Jerryck said. "I can't help you. I'm sorry if that upsets you, but I really don't understand half of what they get mad at me for. Especially if they try and explain it." Nita huffed and clucked her tongue, stomping out of her room, "Fine, I'll figure it out myself." She wouldn't look at either Tajor or Jerryck the entire way to the dining hall. At the luncheon, the old prince ignored his food, as usual. He put his chin in his hand, propped his elbow on the table, and stared blankly at Nita's face. All the while she talked about how much companionship and friends meant to a woman. Several times, she mentioned Charlass. He never reacted. Finally, at the end of the meal, she set her fork down and said, "When I go back home, may I take Charlass with me?" "Charlass? Why would you want that?" Sanbralio sat back in his chair with a frown. "I thought you were a noble. Yes, I'm sure I was told you're a noble. You came to bring condolences from your father. Is this your father?" He pointed to Jerryck. Before anyone could correct him, he shook his head. "No, no, you can't be her father. You're that magician I made Andreno do that favor to Masorno for." "What favor?" Jerryck asked. "Doesn't matter." Sanbralio slumped. "I don't really remember anyway. What was the question again?" "Charlass," Nita said. "Oh, yes, Charlass." Sanbralio picked at a loose thread on his napkin. "I doubt your father would want you associating with someone like her. What district is he premiere of again?" "My father is Terrence, King of Brend." Sanbralio looked up at her. "Oh, that's right. You're the Brendish princess. Then absolutely not. I'll not sully the Brendish King's home. She is my own personal shame. She stays here." Nita spared everyone her raging rant until she was back in the privacy of her room. Jerryck considered leaving, giving her more room to pace and throw things around. But then Masorno would hear he was available. He stayed where he was, tuned out the rant, and sent someone to fetch him a book. # The next day, Jerryck used the excuse that he needed to pack. It got him out of attending court in the morning. And it got him out of the socializing afterward. Not that he did any of the actual packing. Every time he tried, the servant assigned to him just about had a silent, apoplectic fit, wincing and gasping, wringing his hands, glancing nervously around the room before snagging at the nearest thing he could pack before Jerryck could touch it. When Alysses arrived for lunch, it was Garret who let him in and announced him. He came alone, and beamed so broadly Jerryck could see his back molars. He said, "Thank you so much for this invitation." "Glad you could come." Jerryck used a polite response. The servant left off packing long enough to quickly and silently set out a meal that he had stashed away somewhere. It was the normal amount Jerryck had been given for every meal since arriving at the Shontese palace, far more than he was accustomed to eating. "You barely caught me," Alysses said, seemingly oblivious to the servant dashing about the room. "I stayed around in the city, even though Masorno swore you wouldn't see me again since I came out of turn. When I heard you were leaving tomorrow, I thought maybe he was right. I told my nephew and my apprentice to go ahead and pack up." "I wanted to talk to you again," Jerryck said. They sat down to the meal and the servant silently went back to packing. Alysses dug right in to the food, talking with his mouth full. "I assume none of the boys Masorno introduced were suitable for your needs?" "Not really," Jerryck said. He looked over at Garret. The guard was the man who should be making this conversation. He was the one who had given suggestions for how to steer the talking. As it was, Jerryck made his first inept attempt to turn the subject in the direction they needed it to go. "I didn't really expect to find any with Masorno. This was just my first try at looking outside my country." "Did Masorno bring in more than one boy at a time and get them bickering and fighting for his own amusement?" Somehow, Alysses was able to keep his words clear and intelligible even while chewing. "He did, actually," Jerryck said. "As much as I respect the Shontese court magician and his skills, I think his ego holds him back." Alysses shook his head, swallowed, and took another bite. "That's why I've done everything I can to teach my nephew and my apprentice to keep their ego in check." "Know anyone else with an ego that's too large?" Jerryck made a second attempt at steering the conversation. Whoever would poison an entire river had to have a very large ego. Alysses swallowed again, this time without taking a replacement bite. He stared down at his plate. "I probably shouldn't say it." "Please, say it." If Alysses was going to name someone Jerryck hadn't heard of, that would be perfect. "You have to have a rather large ego yourself." Alysses glanced up at Jerryck. "Or you wouldn't have gone this long without a license. I'm glad to hear that you're finally humbling yourself properly." Jerryck leaned back in his chair with a frown. "What do you mean?" "Surely you wouldn't be seeking an apprentice if you didn't have plans to get your license." Alysses looked him square in the eye. "Because if you don't, I won't allow you to take my nephew, no matter how good you are at pleasing your employer." Now Jerryck was utterly confused. "Your nephew?" The door burst open. Garret jumped between it and Jerryck. It was just Masorno, so Jerryck told him, "It's all right." He started to rise to give a more proper greeting when Masorno put his hands on his hips and glared. "So it is true." Jerryck stopped halfway to his feet. "What's true?" "I ate by myself, because I thought you were packing," Masorno said. "Until someone told me you had a guest. I couldn't believe it. I didn't think you would do that to me. Yet here you are." "Here I am," Jerryck repeated. "Doing what, exactly?" "My last chance to share a meal with you privately." Masorno pointed at Alysses. "You're giving it to someone else." Jerryck leaned on his hands on the table and hung his head, trying to figure out which social blunder he had committed this time. "No one told me I had to spend every lunch with you." "Not every lunch," Masorno said. "You didn't have to. But this is the last one!" "That makes a difference?" Jerryck asked. Masorno made a wry face. "If I didn't know you so well, I'd think you were mocking me." Jerryck threw his hands up in the air. "I have no idea why you would think that from what I said." "I know you don't," Masorno said. "No more than you understand how important it is for you to get your license." "Please don't start that." Jerryck turned away. Everyone else in the room was looking elsewhere. The servant had his head bent over Jerryck's luggage. Garret kept his gaze fixed on Masorno. Alysses was staring at his plate again. The only one watching him was Masorno. "He's getting his license soon," Alysses spoke quietly, almost a mumble. "He told you that?" Masorno's face darkened with anger. He frowned at Jerryck. "You'll get a license after talking to him once, and not after all these times I've tried to help you along the process and offered to finish out that mentorship for you?" "I don't need you for a mentor!" Jerryck nearly exploded. "I'm not getting my license! Ever!" Alysses snapped his gazed to Jerryck. "What do you mean you're not getting your license ever?" "I don't need it," Jerryck said. "You do if you want my nephew." Alysses rose to his feet too. "Unless you thought you could steal him by deceiving me." "Why do you keep mentioning your nephew?" Jerryck asked. "What does he have to do with any of this?" "He has everything to do with all of this if you want to apprentice him," Alysses said. Jerryck shook his head, trying to sort his way through all this confusion. "I never said anything about apprenticing him." Alysses stiffened up, throwing his shoulders back. "You didn't have to. Why else would you invite me here?" Jerryck looked over to Garret, wishing he could pick up on visual cues better, just in case the guard was giving any. Was he supposed to just come out and say that they wanted information on the foreigner he had referenced? Were they supposed to string him along and deny it? And now that Masorno was there, what was Jerryck supposed to do about that? Ask him to leave? "You can't tell him to throw us out," Masorno said, pointing to Garret with his chin. "Not here." "I wasn't going to," Jerryck said. "They why are you looking at him as if you expect something?" Masorno asked. "Are you hoping he'll help you steal my nephew?" Alysses headed for the door. "Good thing I didn't bring him. Let's see how your precious elite guards help you when I report to the Gathering what you just tried to do to me." "You think you're the only magician who's complained to them about me?" Jerryck rolled his eyes. "You may need to wait in line to submit your grievance." Alysses paused at the door just long enough to speak over his shoulder. "If enough of us point out how wild and uncontrolled you are, the kind of damage you're causing, maybe they might do the right thing and force a leash on you." He slammed the door on his way out. Masorno shook his head. "You can't keep this up forever, Jerryck. There's a reason they take their time before they take action. They're very strategic that way. Eventually, they're going to find something that hurts you so bad you'll have no other choice." "There's always a choice," Jerryck said. "I'm sure you think so," Masorno said. "When you learn otherwise, don't say I didn't warn you. Perhaps we can discuss it more when next I come visit you." With that, he left. Jerryck slouched in his seat. What an abysmal failure this trip was. They had dug out no information. He had agitated the magicians in Shontarra. And now Masorno felt free to return to Coraline Palace and pester Jerryck into getting a license. Worse than a failure.