Collaborating with Zaha Hadid Architects, Sensing Places designed multiple elements to enhance the typical airport experience and help guide weary travelers around the massive space.
One of the designs included a mobile application that uses augmented reality to translate signage in various languages. The app interacts with the airport's digital network to provide each traveler with current flight information and personalized pathways based on gate location and travel time. Visitor searches and preferences prompt relevant shopping discount offers redeemable at many of the airport's retailers.
We also created a signature interactive LED lighting sculpture using an intricate variation of colored dot patterns to visually communicate the various travelers circulating throughout the space.


Newspaper Article: Curtis B Haight, aged 66, died Saturday morning at 10:30 at his home at Williamsport RD2. He was a member of the Newberry Church of Christ and the Loyal Order of Moose No 145 this city. He is survived by his wife, one son, Ross Haight, of Rochester, NY; a brother, Walter of Altoona, and three sisters, Mrs. Jean Darrow of Elmira NY; Mrs. Grace Reed of Ithaca NY, and Mrs. Lillian Baldwin of Mansfield. Prayer service will be held at the home tomorrow morning at 10 o'clock with further services in the church at Steam Valley. The Rev Foster Fuller, pastor of the Newberry Church of Christ, assisted by the Rev. L Maxwell, retired , will officiate. Interment will be made in the Steam Valley Cemetery.
Newspaper Article: Adrian Edward Hales, 66, died Tuesday at his home in Montoursville. He was a member of Masonic Lodge No 397. Surviving are his wife; a son, Clifford Hales, of this city; a daughter, Mrs. Eugenia Smith of Montoursville; four grandchildren, and two brothers, Elmer and Harry Hales, of Montgomery. Services were held at the Bastian-Maneval funeral home Friday afternoon with the Rev. W C Hanning, pastor of St. Paul's Lutheran Church, officiating. Burial was at Montoursville.
Newspaper Article: Miss Eliazabeth Harleman of Walnut Street, Williamsport, died at the Williamsport hospital at 12:15 o'clock yesterday morning, following an operation. She is survived by three brothers, J W Harleman, of Lock Haven; T E Harleman of Sequim, Wahsington and J L Harleman of Crookston, Minn.; and by one sister, Mrs. L Maxwell with whom she made her home. Funeral services will be held in the Church of Christ in Newberry at 1:30 o'clock Saturday afternoon. The Rev Foster Fuller will officiate. Interment will be made at Blanchard, PA. Friends may view the body at the Bastian-Maneval funeral home from 7 - 9 o'clock this evening.
Newspaper Article: Mrs. Sophia Hartsock, aged 75 years died at the Home for the Friendless last evening at 6 o'clock. She is survived by two sisters, Mrs. George Cook of Kane, and Mrs. Laura Utley of Daytona Beach, Fla., and by one brother Edward sechrist of Blossburg. Funeral services will be held at the Bastian-Maneval Funeral parlor Friday afternoon at 1 o'clock, the Rev G A Duvall of the High Street Methodist Church officiating. Interment will be made in the Blossburg Cemetery.
Newspaper Article: Mrs. Mary J Haswell, 65 wife of Fred E Haswell, died at her home 1227 Isabella Street, yesterday morning as the result of a stroke she suffered Tuesday. Surviving are her husband; a daughter, Mrs. Willard Potter of Newberry; two sons, Earl Haswell, of Bellefonte, and Alfred Haswell of Lock Haven, and a brother, Harry Lucas of Lock Haven. Services will be held at the home at 3 o'clock tomorrow afternoon with the Rev J Ray Houser, Pastor of St. Mark's Lutheran Church officiating. Friends may view the body after 2 o'clock this afternoon.
Newspaper Article: Mrs. Rosa Houck, widow of Frank C Houck, died at the Williamsport Hospital Tuesday morning at the age of 79 years. She formerly lived with her son at Syracuse but for the past year has been residing with her daughter, Mrs. George W. Heap of 687 Second Ave. Besides her daughter she is survived by two sons, Harry F Houck of Syracuse and Clarence S Houck this city. She is also survived by two grandchildren, Lieut. George L Heap, U.S.N. and C. Riley Houck this city. Funeral services will be held from the home of her daughter, Mrs. George W. Heap Thursday afternoon at 2 o'clock, Rev Hiram Rockwell Bennett, rector of Christ Episcopal church officiating. Interment in Wildwood Cemetery. Friends may call at the home this evening form 7 - 9 o'clock.
Newspaper Article: John B Heether died suddenly Friday afternoon at his home, at the age of 74 years. He is survived by his wife, two sons Edward Heether of Curwensville, and James Heather of Philadelphia; two sisters, Mrs. Margaret King and Mrs. Emma Heeter this city. Three brothers, Fred and Joseph of this city and Samuel of Pittsburgh. Funeral services will be held from the Bastian and Maneval funeral home, Monday at 2 o'clock. Interment will be in wildwood cemetery. The body may be viewed at the funeral home Sunday evening.
Newspaper Article: Clarence E Heddens aged 77 years, died at his home at 3 o'clock yesterday. He was a former resident of Danville where he at one time owned the Heddens house hotel. He was formerly treasurer of Montour county where he was prominent in politics. He is survived by his wife, Margaret B Heddens and a daughter, Mrs. George Bedan of this city; a sister, Mrs. Albert Masten of Binghamton, NY; three brothers, Daniel and William of Danville and George of Washingtonville. Mr. Heddens was a member of the Masonic bodies. Funeral services will be held at the home Monday morning at 10:30 o'clock. Dr. M A Levy, pastor of First Baptist church, will officiate and interment will be made at Danville.
Newspaper Article: Mrs. Margaret B. Heddens, 77, widow of James C. Heddens died Thursday night of a heart ailment at the home of Harry M. Billmeyer of Milton RD2 where she had gone Tuesday to visit. She was a member of the First Baptist church of Williamsport, and the Order of the Eastern Star at Danville. Surviving are a daughter, Mrs. George Berdan of Williamsport RD 2; a brother Frank Billmeyer of West Milton and one grandchild. Services will be held at the Bastian-Maneval funeral home at 1:30 o'clock this afternoon with the Rev J Ray Houser, pastor of St. Mark's Lutheran Church officiating. Burial will be made a Danville.
Newspaper Article: Lewis Heinley, 67, dies at home - associate of local grocery company and city fireman for 25 years succumbs at early hour - Lewis Heinley, 67 years old, of 409 Park Avenue died at his home this morning at 6:30 o'clock. Mr. Heinley for almost 40 years was an active member of the First Evangelical Church. For 39 years he was a member of the Knights of Pythias Lodge No 98. He also was a charter member of the Loyal Order of Moose, and belonged to the United Commercial Travelers. Mr. Heinley was manager of Cash and Carry Department of the Williamsport Wholesale Grocery Company and had been a resident of this city for 44 years. He had been a member of the Williamsport Fire Department for 25 years and was a member of the Firemen's Association. Surviving Mr. Heinley are his wife; three daughters, Mrs. W S Guyer, Mrs. Robert W Catherman and Mrs. Melvin W Nichols this city. Funeral services will be held at the home on Monday afternoon at 2 o'clock with the Rev. J W Thompson, pastor of the First Evangelical Church officiating. Interment will be made at Jersey Shore.
Newspaper Article: Hiram Heller, 49 years old of 330 Clayton Ave, Kenmar, died this morning at 9:15 o'clock at his home. He had been in ill health since spring, but had been seriously ill just a week. Mr. Heller was a lifelong resident of Williamsport, having been born here on April 16, 1885. For the past several years he had been employed by the county commissioners in charge of the bridge repair crew. He had been a candidate for sheriff at the last election and was planning to enter the race for the same office in the coming election. An active member of St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Mr. Heller was a past president of the Men's Bible Class of the church. He also was vice president of the Billy Sunday Brotherhood. Surviving Mr. Heller are his wife, and a son, LeRoy Heller; also the following brothers and sisters; John, Harry and Christ Heller, Jr. and Mrs. Elizabeth Householder and Mrs. Joseph Zimmers this city; Ridge Heller of Lock Haven and Mrs. E L Hanscom of Cleveland Oh. Funeral services will be held at the home Friday afternoon at 2 o'clock with the Rev W C Hanning officiating. Interment will be made in Wildwood Cemetery.
Note: birth date different in funeral records and newspaper article.
Newspaper Article: Mrs. Ella R Henne, 78 years of age, widow of John N Henne, died yesterday at 5:20 a.m. at the home of her daughter, Mrs. John R Heim, 140 Grampian Blvd. In addition to her daughter, Mrs. Henne is survived by a granddaughter, Margaret Ella Heim. The deceased was a member of the First Baptist Church. Funeral services will be held Friday afternoon at 2:30 o'clock at the home of the daughter. Dr. Maurice A Levy, pastor of the First Baptist Church will officiate and burial will be made in Wildwood Cemetery.
Newspaper Article: DEATH OF CHILD: Don Hennigan, 4-year old son of Mr. and Mrs. Donald D Hennigan of 1664 Andrews Place, died in the Williamsport hospital yesterday morning following an illness during which meningitis developed. He is survived by his parents, by a brother, Jarvis and by his grandparents. Funeral services will be held at the home Friday afternoon at 2 o'clock with Rev Ralph L Mayberry, pastor of the Central Baptist church, officiating. Interment will be made in Wildwood cemetery. The body may be viewed at the home after his evening.
Newspaper Article: Mrs. Vonda Kasten Hennigan, 28 years old wife of Ned Hennigan, died at her home last night at 11 o'clock. Surviving her, besides her husband are three children, Douglas, Constance and Jane. Funeral services will be held at the home on Sunday afternoon at 2 o'clock. Interment will be made in Wildwood cemetery.
Newspaper Article: Miss Martha Hepler, 21, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. George W. Hepler, of Lycoming Creek Road, died at her home Sunday night of diabetes. Surviving are her parents, a sister, Madaline and a brother, Donald Hepler at home. Prayer services will be held at the home Wednesday afternoon at 2:30 o'clock with further services in the Trinity Evangelical Church at the Maples. The Rev. David Young, pastor of church, will officiate. Interment will be made in Wildwood cemetery.
Newspaper Article: WIFE DIES WEEK AFTER HUSBAND - Mrs. Fidelia Hertel, aged 74 years, widow of John C Hertel, near Ralston, died of pneumonia at her home Sunday morning at 12:15, just a little more than a week after the death of her husband. Mr. Hertel, a native of Williamsport, died Thursday Dec. 28, Funeral services were held for him Sunday, Dec. 31 and the following day Monday Jan 1, MRs. Hertel became ill. Mr. and Mrs. Hertel were among the best known residents of the county. On August 21, 1933, they celebrated their golden wedding anniversary. Mrs. Hertel is survived by the following sons and daughters; J. L. Hertel, of trout Run; and Howard H Hertel, of Ralston; Gwendolyn Hertel of Philadelphia; Miss Georgia Hertel, Mrs. Charles Feeney and Mrs. William Forde, of Endicott, NY; and Mrs. Emerson Weigle, of Ralston. Eight grandchildren, a brother, Emery Plank of Sidney, Neb.; and three sisters, Mrs. T H Lieb of Williamsport, Mrs. Anna Vedder of Elmira Heights, NY and Mrs. Jack Bunn, of Ogdensburg, also survive. Funeral services will be held at the home a mile from Ralston, Tuesday afternoon at 3 o'clock in charge of Rev. Adam Sommers of Ralston and interment will be made in the Hillside Cemetery at Roaring Branch.
Newspaper Article: John N Hessler, 80 years old, formerly of Hughesville, died at the home of his granddaughter, Mrs. C M Kahler, at 1 o'clock this morning. He had been a resident of Hughesville all his life. Surviving are a son, James Hessler, Muncy RD 2; two daughters, Mrs. O P Hess, this city; and Mrs. William Benshaw, Renovo; also a brother, G C Hessler, Picture Rocks; also seven grandchildren and ten great grandchildren. Mr. Hessler had been a member of Trinity Lutheran Church in Hughesville and the I.O.O.F. Lodge at Hughesville. Funeral services will be held Saturday afternoon at 3 o'clock at the Pleasant Hill Cemetery chapel at Hughesville, with the Rev. Herman G. Steumphle pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church, officiating. Interment will be made in the Pleasant Hill Cemetery. Friends may call at the home Friday evening 7 - 9 o'clock.
Newspaper Article: Jersey Shore, Feb 17 - Mrs. Harriet R Heyler, 54, wife of Lawrence C. Heyler, passed away at her home 227 Oak Street, at 6:30 Saturday evening. She was a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Harry C Seely, and was a life-long resident of this place. She was a member of the First Baptist Church, the local chapter of the D.A.R. and American Legion Auxiliary. She is survived by her husband, two sisters, Mrs. Albert Bair and Mrs. Clifford Snyder, of Jersey Shore; two brothers, Clarence Seely, Jersey Shore, and Harry H Seely of Los Angeles. Private funeral services will be held at her home at 2 o'clock Tuesday afternoon with her pastor, the Rev. Judson C Barrows, assisted by the Rev H F Shoaf in charge. Interment will be made in the Jersey Shore Cemetery. Friends may call at the home from 7 to 9 o'clock Monday evening.
Newspaper Article: Miss Mary F Hill died at the Polk State school at Polk, Sunday afternoon. Miss Hill was born and reared in South Williamsport. She is survived by one sister, Mrs. A J Nuss. Funeral services will be held at 10 o'clock Wednesday morning from the Bastian-Maneval funeral home with the Rev. W C Hanning officiating. Interment will be made in Wildwood. Friends may view the body at the Bastian-Maneval funeral parlors Tuesday evening after 7 o'clock.
Newspaper Article: Mrs. Sarah F Hill, widow of Charles J Hill, formerly of this city, died Thursday in her home at Philadelphia . She leaves a son, William C. of Lewistown; two daughters, Mrs. David Kinley, of Philadelphia, and Mrs. Donald Rutherford, of Harrisburg. The body was brought here, and services were held yesterday afternoon in the Bastian-Maneval funeral home, with burial in Wildwood cemetery.
Newspaper Article: Funeral services will be held at 2:30 o'clock tomorrow afternoon at the Bastian-Maneval funeral home here for William Hill, formerly of this city, who died Friday at his home in Rochester. While a resident of this city Mr. Hill was employed by the E. Keeler Company. He leaves three sons, John, Frank, and Walter of Rochester, and a sister, Mrs. Walter Fraus of Canton. The Rev. Ralph L Mayberry will be in charge of the funeral service. Burial will be in Wildwood cemetery.
Newspaper Article: Harry Cook Holmes, of 329 Woodland Ave, died Sunday morning at 11:30 in the Williamsport hospital, where he had been taken a few hours before. He had been in ill health for several years. Mr. Holmes was born in Lock Haven, coming to Williamsport when he was a young man. For the past twenty-five years he had been employed by the Pennsylvania railroad as an air brake inspector. Surviving Mr. Holmes are his widow and five daughters: Emily and Dorothy, both at home; Mrs. Charles W Heim, Mrs. Russell Blankley, and MRs. Martell Evans, and five grandchildren. A sister, Mrs. John W Kuns, and a brother, Elmer, all of Williamsport, also survive. Funeral services will be held at the home Wednesday afternoon, at 2 o'clock, the Rev. C E Granger officiating. Interment will be made in Wildwood cemetery. Friends may call at the home after 7 pm Tuesday.
Newspaper Article: Mrs. Emma Julia Holt died at home, yesterday morning. She is survived by two sons, _____ C. of this city; and Thomas of Piladelphia; also by a sister ____ Myrtle Jackson of Philadelphia. Funeral services will be held at home Friday afternoon at 1:30 o'clock. Rev E.R. Williams, pastor of Memorial Baptist church will officiate. Interment will be made at Jersey Shore.
Newspaper Article: William H Holzinger, age 64, died at his home Sunday morning at 1:50 o'clock. He is survived by his wife, two sons, Lewis T., of this city and Arthur J., of Detroit. Two brothers, Joseph H., of Tyrone, and Amos H., of this city and two sisters, Mrs. Lydia Arnold, Los Angeles, Cal., and Mrs. Lizzie McKinney, Elizabeth, PA, also survive. Mr. Holzinger was an employe of Grit for thirty years. He was a member of the Knights of Malta, Mt. Olivet Commandery No. 17. Funeral services will be held at the late home, Wednesday at 1:30 p.m., with Rev. I. M. Shambaugh, pastor of St. Paul's Evangelical church, officiating, assisted by Rev. Walter H. Williams, pastor of the High street Methodist church. Interment in Mound cemetery.
Newspaper Article: Mrs. Elsie E Smith Hoover, 67 year old widow of John Hoover, died Sunday in the home of her daughter, Mrs. Charles Darling. Besides Mrs. Darling, she leaves a son, Clair I., of this city; three brothers: Irvin Smith, of this city; L. Smith of Corning, NY, and William Smith of Oregon, and five sisters: Mrs. Sadie Davis, Mrs. Herman Alter, and Mrs. Clair Gee of this city; Mrs. Daisy Sparkman of Tampa, Fla., and Mrs. Hubert Smith of Cuba. She was a member of St. John's Lutheran Church. Services were held Wednesday in the home with burial in Wildwood cemetery.
Date of Funeral Name of Mother ?
Newspaper Article: Mrs. Phoebe Ann Hornberger, 75 of Cogan Station, widow of David H. Hornberger, died at the Williamsport hospital last Sunday night. She was a member of St. Michael's Lutheran church, at Quiggleville, and of the sons and daughters of Liberty, this city. Surviving are a daughter, Mrs. Stella M Dauber, of Cogan Station; four sons, David H., of Detroit; Edward L. of Cogan Station; Clarence S., of this city, and Foster J., of Williamsport RD2; three brothers, Edward Ludwig, of Cogan Station; Charles of this city; Harry of South Williamsport; three sisters, Mrs. Elmer Eck of this city; Mrs. Fred Egley of Salisbury, MD., and Mrs. Jacob Reighart of Cogan Station; 33 grandchildren, and 12 great-grandchildren. Services were held at the home Wednesday afternoon with further services in St. Michael's church. Burial was in Mound cemetery.
Newspaper Article: Mrs. Alice M. Miller Hunt, 67, widow of Frederick F. Hunt, died at 8:30 o'clock Friday evening at her home after a brief illness. Surviving are two daughters, Helen, at home; Mrs. T.A. Wittich, Rochester, NY; two sisters, Mrs. Emma Briel, this city; Mrs. Julia Unangst, Philadelphia; and two brothers, Oten Miller, White Deer, and Clarence Miller, South Bend, Ind. Mrs. Hunt was a member of St. John's Lutheran Church. Funeral services will be held on Tuesday afternoon at 3 o'clock at the home, with the Rev. L. G. Shannon officiating. Interment will be made in Wildwood cemetery.


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text:
J Surg Surgical Res
Journal of Surgery and Surgical Research
General surgery under limited conditions on the Syrian border
Mustafa Senturk*
Clinic of General surgery, Ceylanpınar City Hospital, Sanliurfa, Turkey
*Corresponding author: Dr. Mustafa Senturk, Clinic of General surgery, Ceylanpınar City Hospital, Sanliurfa, Turkey, Tel: 05362029499; Email: m-sntrk@hotmail.com
Received: 25 July, 2019 | Accepted: 03 August, 2019 | Published: 05 August, 2019
Keywords: General surgery; Rural hospital; Cohort
Senturk M (2019) General surgery under limited conditions on the Syrian border. J Surg Surgical Res 5(2): 066-067. DOI: 10.17352/2455-2968.000074
Aim: People living in the countryside are less to have access to health care than those
Living in the city center. In addition to this, when migrants are added, it becomes more difficult to use health services. Although 20% of the US population lives in rural areas, only 9% of physicians work in these areas, and general surgeons seem to be inadequate in small rural towns. This study was planned to determine the general surgical procedures performed in the district state hospital.
Methods: The study was carried out in the Ceylanpinar State Hospital with 50 beds, located approximately 150 km far from the city center of Sanliurfa. İn 2018, patient files were reviewed for general surgery polyclinic. Elective and urgent procedures were recorded and their results were evaluated. Patients who were operated for trauma were not included in the study
Results: During the study, 9576 patients were seen in the outpatient clinic. The total number of working days in 2018 was 228 and 42 patients per day. 424 major operations were performed during the study period. 84 appendectomies, 36 anal fissures, 17 hemorrhoids, 109 hernia, 35 laparoscopic cholecystectomy, 30 umbilical hernias, mesh repair in 8 patients with an incisional hernia, 101 pilonidal sinuses, 2 goiter and 2 cases omentum resection and hernia repair surgery was performed.
Conclusion: Especially in rural areas such as Şanlıurfa, where the population of rural areas and the number of refugees is high, the surgeon working in rural areas may need adequate infrastructure and experienced teams to provide a good health service.
The health services of rural areas in developing countries are limited due to the insufficient and irregular distribution of human resources [1,2]. This unequal distribution of health workers further increases health disparities in rural areas [3,4]. Although 50% of the population is in rural areas, less than 25% of physicians and 38% of nurses are in these areas. The attrition of health care workers is an important problem in rural areas. In 2010, the World Health Organization proposed policies to keep health workers in tourist areas and rural areas. Recommendations include the recruitment of rural staff in rural areas, including rural health needs in the curriculum and the use of rural services in a rural area [5]. Şanlıurfa is a province where the population of rural areas is high and about half of the population lives in towns and villages. Due to the Syrian war, 22% of the population is refugees. The same applies in Ceylanpınar. Our hospital serves the refugees together with residents. This study was planned to determine the general surgical procedures performed in the district state hospital.
Informed consent was not obtained because the study was retrospective. The descriptive retrospective cohort study was designed. Research, World Health Organization Declaration of Helsinki "Involving Human Subjects Ethical Principles for Medical Research" was conducted according to the principles. The patients who applied to the general surgery clinic of Ceylanpınar State Hospital in 2018 were included in this study. All operations recorded. This rural hospital has a capacity of 50 beds during its working period and is 150 km and 1.5 hours away from Şanlıurfa province. There were two general surgeons about 6 months, one general surgeon for the other 6 months. The blood bank and most radiological studies were not available. There was a 7/24 emergency service in the hospital. In this study, non-traumatic general surgery clinic applications and results will be presented. Statistical analysis Variables are expressed as mean ± standard deviations (SD) or median (range) depending on their distribution. Categorical variables were expressed as frequency and percentage.
During the study, 9576 patients were seen in the outpatient clinic. 2890 of these patients were refugees. 30% of our patients were refugees. The total number of working days in 2018 was 228 and 42 patients per day. 424 major operations were performed during the study period. 84 appendectomies, 36 anal fissures, 17 hemorrhoids, 109 inguinal hernias, 35 laparoscopic cholecystectomy, 30 umbilical hernias, mesal repair in 8 patients with an incisional hernia, 101 pilonidal sinuses, 2 goiter and 2 patients with omentum resection and hernia repair surgery was performed. The female/male ratio was 0.94 (4648/4928), in 164 cases general anesthesia was applied and in others, regional anesthesia was applied. Biopsy subcutaneous mass excision, 637 minor surgery was performed. Operations were sent to the pathology clinic of another hospital. Malignant pathology was not detected in any of the samples. Due to the patient's preference, some of them were transferred to the hospital in Sanliurfa.
It shows that surgery in rural areas can be an important part of health services but is limited due to some shortcomings. In our hospital, a surgeon carried out only 424 major and 637 minor operations in one year due to the lack of surgical devices with new technology, the absence of blood bank and the patient's preference as not choosing the hospital.
Most hospitals in the countryside consider providing surgical services very important for their hospitals. However, the inadequacy of surgeons and facilities limits this service. Concerning the rustic surgical workforce, the expanding period of specialists joined with the way that less broad surgery occupants are honing in rural proposes that the lack will just intensify in coming years [6,7]. Considering that the rate and severity of injury in rural areas is higher than in urban areas, the need for specialists will increase further [8,9]. The reason for the low number of experts in the health facilities in rural areas is that they resign before the workforce matures and new experts arrive [10].
The constant change of employees in rural hospitals is one of the biggest obstacles to the development and institutionalization of these hospitals. Some precautions can be taken to prevent this situation. It is possible to improve the financial situation of small clinics and increase their motivation with money to keep experts in rural areas. Some future specialists may be picked not to rehearse rustically to some degree since they feel deficiently arranged to go up against the various caseloads that numerous provincial specialists experience in their training [11,12]. There are a few preparing programs for situating in rural or provincial preparing track. Increasing the amount of general surgical specialty programs that offer knowledge of rustic preparation is a way to address the shortage of labor in the country's surgery [10]. To prevent this situation in our country, financial support is provided to the experts working in the countryside.
There are some possible limitations to the study. Our data only includes cases that applied to Ceylanpınar State Hospital. Patients who were brought to the hospital but could not be operated due to technical insufficiency were not included in the study. The number of operations was not very low compared to rural hospitals. The reason for this is that the district is far from the center and that refugees tend to solve their health problems instead of going to the city center. These results may not apply to all rural areas.
Ethics Committee Approval: Ethics committee approval was not received for this study because of the retrospective design.
Lehmann U, Dieleman M, Martineau T (2008) Staffing remote rural areas in middle- and low-income countries: a literature review of attraction and retention. BMC Health Serv Res 8:19. Link: http://bit.ly/33bKTJQ
Appiagyei A, Kiriinya RN, Gross JM, Wambua DN, Oywer EO, et al. (2014) Informing the scale-up of Kenya's nursing workforce: a mixed-methods study of factors affecting pre-service training capacity and production. Hum Resour Health 12: 1-10. Link: http://bit.ly/2GHUiPG
Serneels P, Montalvo JG, Pettersson G, Lievens T, Butera JD, et al. (2010) Who wants to work in a rural health post? The role of intrinsic motivation, rural background, and faith-based institutions in Ethiopia and Rwanda. Bull World Health Organ 88: 342-9. Link: http://bit.ly/2YyxZWL
Buchan J (2010) Reviewing the benefits of health workforce stability. Human Resources for Health 8: 29 Link: http://bit.ly/2YjrSGt
(2010) Increasing access to health workers in remote and rural areas through improved retention. World Health Organization. Link: http://bit.ly/2Yz6Hj3
Thompson MJ, Lynge DC, Larson EH, Tachawachira P, Hart LG (2005) Characterizing the general surgery workforce in rural America. Arch Surg 140: 74-9. Link: http://bit.ly/2T38cRb
Zuckerman R, Doty B, Gold M, Bordley J, Dietz P, et al. (2006) General surgery programs in small rural New York State hospitals: A pilot survey of hospital administrators. J Rural Health 22: 339-42. Link: http://bit.ly/2ZtC2kk
Kwakwa F, Jonasson O (1997) The general surgery workforce. Am J Surg 173: 59-62. Link: http://bit.ly/2KiqiuA
Jonasson O, Kwakwa F, Sheldon GF (1995) Calculating the workforce in general surgery. JAMA 274: 731-4. Link: http://bit.ly/2OCYVks
Başak F (2018) General surgery service with limited feasibility in a rural hospital; Retrospective cohort study. J Surg Med 2: 236-238. Link: http://bit.ly/2YHLAuN
Ritchie WP, Rhodes RS, Biester TW (1999) Workloads and practice patterns of general surgeons in the United States, 1995-1997: A report from the American Board of Surgery. Ann Surg 230: 533-42. Link: http://bit.ly/2KeaPNd
Landercasper J, Bintz M, Cogbil TH, Bierman SL, Buan RR, et al. (1997) Spectrum of general surgery in rural America. Arch Surg 132: 494-6. Link: http://bit.ly/2Kl3MBb
© 2019 Senturk M. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Iced coffee typically comes loaded with sugar and my version of the healthy iced coffee is really easy to make. Iced coffee is a perfect hot weather alternative to the hot version!
I frequently get asked if coffee is good or bad for you and coffee is actually overflowing in health benefits.
Coffee consumption lowers the risk of heart disease and stroke (the top two biggest causes of death globally).
The caffeine in coffee can enhance sports performance and endurance.
Add 1 tsp of coffee granules to 50 ml boiling water and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
Add a handful of icecubes to a glass and combine the coconut milk, vanilla and optional maple syrup.
If you like an Iced Coffee, you might also like my Watermelon Refresher!


Which seeks the formation of leaders of community members and grassroots organizations, in the different topics according to the nature of the service they lead within their territories, which are especially of recreational and cultural and / or educational nature.
This way, we find that leaders can develop their practices and / or intervention; in Kindergartens, in Libraries and Ludotecas, or developing playful-recreational or sports activities directed to groups of boys and girls, young people and / or to groups of the elderly population.
Once the formative processes advance in a positive way, community members can access the young-adults scholarship, in order to improve their work profile and/or be guided within the employment management processes.
In addition from this axis, productive unities of intervention sectors are identified, in order to consolidate and increase their efficiency, effectiveness and therefore their income.
From this axis, the school provides tools to the population for the restitution of their rights and resolution of conflicts through psychosocial attention platform and the arrival of local, district and national services to the territories is channeled, in order to facilitate the effective restoration of them (housing, recreation, education, nutrition, etc).
In addition, actions to promote, raise awareness and training in human rights, citizenship, environment, gender and equity (campaigns, training workshops, etc.) are developed.


Transgressing oneself and becoming a Super Saiyan is triggered by an event of incredible despair and anger. In the moments leading up to the change, the eyes become unfocused and the body rattles like an earthquake is welling up inside – after which, the transformation occurs like an instantaneous maelstrom of energy! Supposedly, one must have a power level in the multi-millions beforehand, and also have a pure heart (good, evil, or otherwise…) during the time of transformation. The power increase is relatively unknown, as it depends on the Saiyan, and how much training they have undergone.
Visual changes:- The hair turns deep gold; flows upward into thick, slanted spikes; bangs tend to hang down over the face and sides of the head.
- A complete black border is inscribed around the eyes, giving a much more focused and "mean" look. The pupils turn to a deep green.
- The aura is a steady, form fitting flame of pure white that encompasses the body at all times.
- For Saiyans whom haven't come far in bringing the best from their Super Saiyan forms, a state of great ferocity and ecstasy overcomes them.
- This is the only Super Saiyan transformation that requires rage or any sort of powerful emotion to unlock, as the rest are brought about by training.
- Through rigorous training, a Saiyan can bring himself to a point where Super Saiyan is his natural state. In this manner, he relieves the state of ecstasy normally accompanied by the change. No aura is displayed in this "stage".
- When a Super Saiyan either brings himself to a point where transforming bring no strain upon himself or makes the stage his natural state, their full power aura undergoes a change in which it becomes larger and more vibrant (the hair may also become slightly more elevated). This also marks the point in which the Saiyan has truly mastered the power of the Super Saiyan – far surpassing the "Super Saiyan type 2" and "Super Saiyan type 3" stages outlined later in this guide.
to transform into a super sayian level one type one it requires 10000 experiance points so therefore everyone can start out as a super sayian BUT requires one post ipf intense training first.
This transformation has no roots in rage – but is brought about by extensive training and control over the state of Super Saiyan. Turning into this state resembles that of an extensive power-up sequence, in which the aura rages uncontrollably and is finally finished with a great flash of light, with a transformed Saiyan at the center.
- The hair spikes further on end and is more defined.
- The aura for this state is rough, and much more vibrant than that of the previous level.
Extra Detail(s) –- Based on what little we see of this form, it seems the user tends to rely on single-hitting strong attacks, and much less on rapid attacks. This may or may not be a side effect of the extra bulk presented in this state.
A state the pushes even further beyond the Super Saiyan type 2, taking everything to an even greater level. Conditions to meet in order to transform are the same as the previous stage, but for a longer period of time. Transforming is a much longer process than before, and causes an earthquake as though the planet fearful of the power soon to be unleashed. During this, the pupils may disappear, returning once the transformation is complete.
Visual Changes (From the Super Saiyan type 2) –- Each hair strand becomes very large and juts out extremely far.
- The aura is very wild and all over the place, and tends to branch off in random directions like a massive surging ball of electricity.
- Muscle mass increases even further, to well over twice the size as the original Super Saiyan.
Extra Detail(s) –- Because of the incredible increase in muscle mass, the Saiyan finds himself incapable of moving in any sort of fast or fluid manner, leaving them completely useless against an opponent with any kind of speed. Theoretically, this stage would be extremely effective against a large group of much weaker opponents.
requirements for Super Sayian level one part two is 15000 Experiance and for Super Sayian level one part 3 is 18000 Experiance.
The first true transformation beyond the original state of Super Saiyan – this stage is not so common as its predecessor(s) and sets an entirely new standard for the way battles are fought. Gohan unlocked the ability to tap this power in the Room of Spirit and Time, but held himself back for a number of reasons. It isn't until the Cell Game that it is finally forced out of him. Based on this, along with Goku and Vegeta's eventual following in those footsteps, it can be concluded that this stage is unlocked simply through training and completely mastering the state of Super Saiyan.
Visual Changes (from the Super Saiyan) –- The hair spikes stand as far upward and on end as possible, with the occasional tendril hanging down in front of the Saiyans face.
- The aura holds itself very far out from the body, a further extreme of the Aura of the type 2 Super Saiyan. Most unique is the thick bolts of lightning that surge all over the body constantly.
Behold the Ultimate Super Saiyan!!! This transformation marks the end of the progression of Super Saiyans, and is the greatest culmination of Saiyan power when naturally realized. Only 2 warriors every unlocked this state, one of which is a fused warrior. This is also the only Super Saiyan stage capable of matching up against the series' final central antagonist – Majin Boo.
Visual Changes (from the Super Saiyan level 2) –- The hair grows several times in length, down to the back of the waist or knees (depending on users own height).
- The aura closely resembles that of the Super Saiyan level 2, but the border almost seems to meld right into the air itself from time to time.
- The eyebrows disappear completely, giving the Saiyan a face that may somewhat resemble that of a Namekian.
Extra Detail(s) –- The demand of Ki required to tap the awesome power the Super Saiyan level 3 makes it so that it can only be freely used in the afterlife. When used in the living realm, it causes the user to either borrow against time before returning to the netherworld, or completely drain oneself of all power after just a few minutes of transforming. It may well be impossible to access the full power of this state in the living realm. For fused fighters, this stage can be used freely, but with a time limit of 5 minutes.
requiremenets for transformation of Super sayain 3 is 200 posts and a experiance reading of 45,000.
the ultimate power level for all sayains.- most sayians cannot achive this level f power due to it being unlocked only by someone who is a warrior with years of experiance. the power of this stage can destroy even the most powerful of foes with the least bit of power used in this stage.
the hair countinues to grow as it does in SS3 but instead it stops at the waist line and points everywhere simular to super sayian level one type three. the eye line redens and the eye color turns into a deep gold. also the user gains fur around the arms and regrows a tail that all sayians are born with along with slightly increase muscle mass.
-the power levels of this stage are massive and requires insane levels of concentration, training, and experiance to even begin to reach this stage. little is known about this stage when mastered but other than that only the strongest of sayians can even begin to understand the form.
ready? requires 400 posts and 85,000 experiance level reading before able to reach the stage.
Is SSJ5 a real one? I know its not canon and its only in DB AF. Which isn't a canon show, but would SSJ5 count as a SJJ?
Wouldn't Baki have replied with yes?
Baki personally asked me to be an Admin for him... He didn't say it and I was online, So I did you a favor by answering your question earlier than he did. Is that a problem?
Oh no, thanks . Is Baki gonna put the requirements for SSJ5?
Why? The site clearly says DBZ:the new legends. not dbaf. (unless you guys skip some sagas/plots or whatever and suddenly reach DBaf.
Its kinda like that. Its been a long time since the Z fighters were alive here, so I think they would have skipped SJJ5.
SSJ5 is often argued over in alot in a few DBZ sites and its form is often argued over for example some groups belive SSJ5 to have white hair and look like a mix of 3 and 4 and others belive it to be other stuff.
BUT later if alot of people reach SSJ4 and want SSJ5 ill make it happen.
I personally dislike SSJ3 and up, so I'd rather not have any more unnecessary transformations , but that's just my opinion.
Is there going to be a false Super Saiyan and Super KAIO - KEN? False Super Saiyan is far easier to achieve but is way weaker, its also called ' Glorified KAIO - KEN '. The user looks like their in KAIO - KEN but their hair stands on end and turns red, their skin tone turns tan. Super KAIO - KEN is a mixture of SSJ and KAIO - KEN, it was used by Goku in the otherworld tournament.


The wind howls outside , moaning, screeching. Rain driving down like knives shearing leaves from the trees. The world outside is in turmoil and one would believe that Cailleach Bheur, Bone Mother is out walking. It is cold, dark, and very wild. Another panel needs to be created for GAIA . It is September 2008. A promise had been made.
When the brush dipped into paint and then to fabric I had no idea of what was to appear. A shadowy face was revealed and constantly changed. Quite eerily layers dissolved and reworked became bone; a skull, leering, terrifying. Something that was quite alien to my usual methods and subjects. She insisted on being present. Scrubbed out, worked over many times She re-emerged; that death mask.
Like so many, initially, my reaction to Her was one of fear and avoidance. No matter how I tried to alter Her the changes did not last. Till at last surrender. Surprisingly this aspect became a very comforting presence.
Mythology and folk tales of Her are of dread and terror. She is depicted as an old woman often referred to as that old hag. She was regarded as ugly, cruel and evil; The Dark One – yet in essence She is The Wise One, The Crone, The Healer. An Ancient One whose bones creek in winter and rattle the eternal story of regeneration.
Look into Her eyes. Do they appear bloodshot, crazed, piercing, cruel? Perhaps. Look deeper for there is love and sorrow; compassion and hope. Above all I found kindness.
Her offering is a seed that is sprouting, a gift of life and renewal.
She promises healing. All she asks is to surrender. Her task for us is to strip down to bare bones, to let all the old constricting habits and prejudices, fears and restrictions go. Sink down into her, Knowing. Trust. Surrender. Die. In total release live.
The back of this quilt is equally important in this piece. It is has significant symbolism connected to the Crone as an aspect of the Great Mother. This backing fabric is covered in snakes. A strip of the fabric is also incorporated at the base of the front figure. The snakes, or serpents, are done in a primitive art style. This fabric was chosen to represent connection to ancestors, the land and as a powerful and universal symbol related to life and death, creation and renewal. In this instance it is also appropriate for its healing ( think caduceus) and chthonic attributes that were the hallmarks of the Crone.
Bone Mother was painted and then overlaid with a cloak of silver mesh which features a disc of three flowers representing the Three Stages, the cycle of life. Her hair, windblown and of the wind, formed from strands of silver thread that are couched to hold in place. Her Staff of Life is painted and like the seed hand appliqued in place. The backgound is quilted with whirling lines to suggest swirling energy of a wild, windy day. Yet the Bone Mother is still and at peace. Waiting.


Paris Saint-Germain may be Qatar-owned now, but the club still doesn't occupy the place in the hearts of Qataris the way clubs like Barcelona and AC Milan do.
Paris Saint-Germain may be Qatari-owned, runaway Ligue 1 leaders, unbeaten all season and an outside bet for this season's Champions League but they are still battling to win over Qatari fans.
The French champions are currently on their winter tour in Doha, a four-day visit combining training sessions, PR work and, ultimately, Wednesday's friendly against Italian league leaders Inter Milan in front of a sell-out crowd.
The club have been Qatari-owned since 2011, when Qatar Sports Investments became the majority shareholder, in a deal thought to be worth around €50 million (Dh200m).
It made Paris not only the richest club in France but one of the wealthiest in the world, pushing PSG into competition for a worldwide fanbase with clubs such as Barcelona, Manchester United and Bayern Munich.
But winning over fans even in the country where the club is now owned, is proving considerably more difficult than winning the Ligue 1 title for PSG.
And as on the pitch, off it, in Qatar at least, PSG are in a battle to overcome the Spanish giants of Barcelona and Real Madrid.
"They (PSG) are not the most popular because they have just been around for five years," says Mohamed Majdi Al Jozali, a Qatari football fan.
The 23-year-old civil engineer – "Qatar's biggest AC Milan fan" – was speaking after a PSG training session.
Wearing a yellow Swedish national team shirt with the name "Ibrahimovic" emblazoned on the back, Jozali says it will take time, and success, for PSG to become the No 1 team in Qatar.
Talk to any random Qatari football fan and it is more than likely they will tell you they support Barcelona.
There is a Qatari Barcelona supporters' club and the Catalan club has just signed a contract to set up its first themed cafe in Doha.
In contrast, PSG have just announced their first local supporters' club on this trip, according to officials.
It has even been suggested that one of the reasons domestic Qatari league games are poorly attended is because locals wold rather spend their money flying to Spain instead to watch their heroes there.
Barcelona also have a local connection, being sponsored by Qatar Airways, but Jozali said the club's history and tradition is something that appeals to Qataris.
One local sports journalist in Doha, who wished not be named, said it was vital that PSG replaced Ibrahimovic with a star name to keep their profile high in Qatar.
"PSG have the star factor going for them," he said.
However, Mansoor Mohamed Al Ansari, the general secretary of the Qatar Football Association, told AFP that support for the club among Qataris is growing.
"Of course, I believe that all Qataris feel that they have a sense of belonging to the team due to the fact that it is a Qatari-owned club. And most Qataris are also new fans of the club as well," he said.
There does seem to be one way though for PSG to make themselves the most popular club in Qatar – winning the Champions League.
"They have to prove themselves first," adds Jozali.


Frequently Asked Questions on all things Pergolas, Decks & Alfrescos!
Does Pergola Land have a showroom i can visit?
Yes, we have a large showroom open 6 days with full size displays. Our friendly team will be able to discuss your needs and arrange an onsite visit at your home.
Any building project over $5,000 must have a signed building agreement.
We will come to your home and go through the building agreement with you. Once everything is confirmed, our representative will sign the agreement with you.
Can Pergola Land handle the approval process with council for me?
We have a dedicated compliance officer who will prepare all required documentation and plans and lodge to council for approval on your behalf. All you need to do is sit back and wait for our call to say the job is approved!
You can read more on our DA / Council Assistance section.
Do you have insurance to protect me and my home?
A contractor must always have valid insurances. Pergola Land has all the required insurances, including Public Liability, Workers Compensation and Contract works insurance. You can rest assured that we have you, your property and our team covered.
Do you supply materials only for me to build my own pergola or deck?
Pergola Land does not supply materials only.
We have a highly skilled team of qualified carpenters who will arrive at your home to construct your new deck or pergola, saving you time and providing you with the peace of mind that our work carries a 10 year guarantee.
Can you repair my existing deck or pergola?
Unfortunately we do not carry out repair work on existing decks or pergolas. You are best to contact a local handyman for this type of work.
Do you have galleries of completed projects?
Absolutely! Please check out our galleries section for a collection of photos sorted by project type or our projects page for a more detailed run down of recent jobs.
What's the process for engaging Pergola Land?
To find out more about how we handle a project from start to finish, please view the 'Our Process' page. Give us a call if you have any questions or would like to arrange a quote!
Do you custom design each project?
Yes we do. We have a Design Consultant who will visit your property and custom design the perfect area for you. We do not use prefabricated kits. Every home is different and has different requirements.
Give us a call if you have any questions or would like to arrange a quote!
What areas of Sydney do you work in?
If you are outside of these areas, please contact us as we may be able to help you.


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text:
Long Point ist ein sandiger Landstreifen im nördlichen Bereich des Eriesees. Dieser gehört zum Norfolk County in der kanadischen Provinz Ontario. Der Landstreifen ist etwa 40 km lang und bis zu einen Kilometer breit. An seiner Ostspitze steht der mehr als 100 Jahre alte und aktive "Long Point Lighthouse". Weiter westlich steht das ältere und nicht mehr aktive "Old Cut Lighthouse".

Der Landstreifen ist der Kern des im Jahr 1986 eingerichteten Biosphärenreservat "Long Point Biosphere Reserve". Große Teile der Landzunge sind als Naturschutzgebiet ausgewiesen. Auf der Landzunge liegt zum einen der Long Point Provincial Park. Östlich des Provincial Parks liegt als weiteres Schutzgebiet das Long Point National Wildlife Area und westlich das Big Creek National Wildlife Area, zwei von insgesamt 55 kanadischen National Wildlife Areas.

Ganzjährig leben dort rund 450 Einwohner. In den Sommermonaten steigt die Zahl auf 5000 Personen an, die in Hütten wohnen oder campen. Long Point ist sehr beliebt bei Wassersportlern wie Seglern, Schwimmern, Anglern oder Kanufahrern. Jedes Jahr verbringen rund 100.000 Touristen ihre Sommerferien in dem Ort.

Weblinks
 Offizielle Webseite von Norfolk County (englisch)
 Long Point Provincial Park (englisch)
 Long Point National Wildlife Area (englisch)
 Big Creek National Wildlife Area (englisch)

Einzelnachweise

Halbinsel (Kanada)
Biosphärenreservat in Amerika
Eriesee
Strand in Kanada
Strand (Nordamerika)
Ort in Ontario
Norfolk County (Ontario)
Ort in Nordamerika

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


A patient safety coalition is asking the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for more testing into a device that treats complications from aneurysms treatments.
According to a report by Qmed, a letter was sent to FDA commissioner Margaret Hamburg urging that the device, the endovascular suturing system, should have been classified as high risk and subjected to more rigorous testing. FDA granted approval after a study involving 10 women and 144 men under the de novo process, which is intended for low and moderate risk medical devices.
The letter asks FDA to rescind the approval and review it using the more rigorous Premarket Approval Process.
FDA has been criticized because many medical devices have been recalled as potentially lethal after having been approved by FDA without scientific clinical trials proving that the devices were safe or effective, according to Qmed.


Looking for Christmas Games for your Kids? You found the perfect app!Elf Adventure is a Christmas Countdown story and Advent Calendar 2017 which tells an enchanting story with fun games for children young and old. Count down to Christmas by playing one new free game each day in this beautiful Advent... see more Looking for Christmas Games for your Kids? You found the perfect app!
Elf Adventure is a Christmas Countdown story and Advent Calendar 2017 which tells an enchanting story with fun games for children young and old. Count down to Christmas by playing one new free game each day in this beautiful Advent Calendar. With fun free puzzles and a great story this app is a great way to shorten the wait for the holidays for all kids, for your boys and girls. This is the free version of "Elf Adventure Calendar 2017" with 24 free episodes.
* An Advent Calendar and an interactive Children's book at the same time.
A delegation of Elves travels to the Giant's cave to wake up the sleepy head, but this proves far more difficult than expected.
The tale starts with the Elves working at Santa's workshop.
At the workshop, kids enjoy different games, involving santa's list, some jigsaw puzzles, other ones containing drawings.


text:
/**
 * The thread that executes the script...
 * @type {interval}
 */
var exec_interval = null;

/**
 * The currently executing script...
 * @type {array}
 */
var exec_script = [];

/**
 * Clear execution thread.
 */
function exec_clear() {
	clearInterval(exec_interval);
	exec_interval = null;
	exec_script = [];
}

/**
 * Execute the command object stack.
 * @param {array} the stack of command objects
 * @param {tag} the HTML5 video tag
 * @return {interval} the execution thread
 */
function exec_exscript(commands, video) {
	// current script
	exec_script = commands;
	// update video properties
	var duration = video.duration;
	video.currentTime = commands[0].time1;
	video.playbackRate = commands[0].rate;
	exec_interval = setInterval(function () {
			// process video state
			if (video.currentTime >= commands[0].time2) {
				// check additional reps
				if (--(commands[0].reps) > 0) {
					// loop!
					video.currentTime = commands[0].time1;
				}
				// no more reps for current command object
				else {
					// remove command object
					commands.shift();
					// check additional command objects
					if (commands.length === 0) {
						// done!
						exec_clear();
						video.playbackRate = 1;
					} else {
						// update video properties
						video.currentTime = commands[0].time1;
						video.playbackRate = commands[0].rate;
					}
				}
			}
		}, 250);
	return exec_interval;
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Q: Codeigniter check if values exist with database I want to compare values with what's in the database.
This is my database
            Id  xone     xtwo   yone    ytwo
            1   519      819    64      364

The name of the database is num.
 public function coord_check() {

               $X = $this->input->post('X');
        $Xm = $this->input->post('Xm');
         $Y = $this->input->post('Y');
         $Ym = $this->input->post('Ym');

        $query = $this->db->where('xone',$X)->select('xone')->get('num');
         $query2 = $this->db->where('xtwo',$Xm)->select('xtwo')->get('num');
         $query3 = $this->db->where('yone',$Y)->select('yone')->get('num');
         $query4 = $this->db->where('ytwo',$Ym)->select('ytwo')->get('num');

         if($query->num_rows() > 0 && $query->num_rows() > 0 )        {

             echo "xerror";
                               }
         elseif($query3->num_rows() > 0 || $query4->num_rows() > 0 )        {

             echo "yerror";  }

               else{
                   echo "noerror";
               }

 }

My code at the moment only echo's no error even if i ake the values exactly the same with what's in the database.. Can anyone see where the problem is?
What i really want is to compare lets say if $xm is in the range of database values xone and xtwo. Is that possible?
Many Thanks in advance..

A: I'm not sure if you're following MVC Architecture or not because your post is actually kind of confusing.
However, this is what I would do -- in Codeigniter. I'll try and match your code style as best as possible. Also there are a ton of ways you can do this, some might be way more efficient than this, but this will get the job done. I never ran this script, so it might have errors or require a little debugging:
<?php
/* Controller
*************************/

class Something extends CI_Controller {

function coord_check() {

    //Form Validation -- if necessary
    $this->form_validation->set_rules('X', 'X', 'required|xss_clean');
    $this->form_validation->set_rules('Xm', 'Y', 'require|xss_clean');
    $this->form_validation->set_rules('Y', 'Y', 'require|xss_clean');
    $this->form_validation->set_rules('Ym', 'Ym', 'require|xss_clean');

    if ($this->form_validation->run() == FALSE) {
        $this->load->view('your_view');
    } else {
        $this->load->model('num');

        $X = $this->input->post('X');
        $Xm = $this->input->post('Xm');
        $Y = $this->input->post('Y');
        $Ym = $this->input->post('Ym');

        $X_result = $this->num->check_if_coord_thingy_exists('xone', $X);
        $Xm_result = $this->num->check_if_coord_thingy_exists('xtwo', $Xm);
        $Y_result = $this->num->check_if_coord_thingy_exists('yone', $Y);
        $Ym_result = $this->num->check_if_coord_thingy_exists('ytwo', $Ym);

        /*
        if ($X_result == TRUE && $Xm_result == TRUE && $Y_result == TRUE && $Ym_result == TRUE) {
            //all things inputed match database
        } else {
            //all values don't match database
        }

        if ($X_result == TRUE && $Xm_result == TRUE) :
            //all X things inputed match database
                    endif;

        if ($Y_result == TRUE && $Ym_result == TRUE) :
            //all X things inputed match database
                    endif; */

        $data['X_repsonse'] = ($X_result == TRUE ? 'X exist' : 'X doesn\'t exist';
        $data['Xm_repsonse'] = ($Xm_result == TRUE ? 'Xm exist' : 'Xm doesn\'t exist';
        $data['Y_repsonse'] = ($Y_result == TRUE ? 'Y exist' : 'Y doesn\'t exist';
        $data['Ym_repsonse'] = ($Ym_result == TRUE ? 'Ym exist' : 'Ym doesn\'t exist';

        $this->load->view('your_view', $data);
    }
}
?>

<?php
/* Model
*************************/

class Num extends CI_Model {

    function check_if_coord_thingy_exists($value, $variable) {
        $this->db->select($value);
        $this->db->where($value, $variable);

        $query = $this->db->get('num');

        if ($query->num_rows() > 0) {
            //Value exists in database
            return TRUE;
        } else {
            //Value doesn't exist in database
            return FALSE;
        }
    }
}

?>

<?php
/* View -> your_view.php
*************************/

    echo validation_errors('
', '
');

    if (!empty($X_response)) echo '
X: '.$X_response.'
';
    if (!empty($X_response)) echo '
'.$Xm_response.'
';
    if (!empty($X_response)) echo '
Y: '.$Y_response.'
';
    if (!empty($X_response)) echo '
Ym: '.$Ym_response.'
';

?>

<?php echo form_open('something/coord_check'); ?>

<?php echo form_label('First Coord', 'X'); ?>

<?php $first_coord = array('name' => 'X', 'id' => 'X', 'value' => set_value('X')); ?>
<?php echo form_input($first_coord); ?>

<?php echo form_label('Second Coord', 'Xm'); ?>

<?php $second_coord = array('name' => 'Xm', 'id' => 'Xm', 'value' => set_value('Xm')); ?>
<?php echo form_input($second_coord); ?>

<?php echo form_label('Third Coord', 'Y'); ?>

<?php $third_coord = array('name' => 'Y', 'id' => 'Y', 'value' => set_value('Y')); ?>
<?php echo form_input($third_coord); ?>

<?php echo form_label('Fourth Coord', 'Ym'); ?>

<?php $fourth_coord = array('name' => 'Ym', 'id' => 'Ym', 'value' => set_value('Ym')); ?>
<?php echo form_input($fourth_coord); ?>

<?php echo form_submit('submit', 'Coord Check or Whatever'); ?>
<?php echo form_close(); ?>

Hopefully this helps. This is all assuming you autoload your database and form_validation libraries.
Lastly, your database is strange. X and Y I feel should be different tables. I don't know the extent of your project though. Good luck!

A: Will the table have more than 1 value?
If not, then it's better to use a single query to pull the entire record first. Then you can compare if the values fall within the range of the x's and y's.
Something like this:
public function coord_check() {

  $X = $this->input->post('X');
  $Xm = $this->input->post('Xm');
  $Y = $this->input->post('Y');
  $Ym = $this->input->post('Ym');

  $query = $this->db->where('Id',1)->get('num');
  if ($query->num_rows())
  {
    $row = $query->row();

    if ($row->xone > $X || $row->xtwo < $X || $row->xone > $Xm || $row->xtwo < $Xm) {
      echo "xerror";
    }
    elseif ($row->xone > $Y || $row->xtwo < $Y || $row->xone > $Ym || $row->xtwo < $Ym) {
      echo "yerror";
    }
    else {
      echo "noerror";
    }
  }
}

A: function check_record($db, $table, $where) {
    try {
        $db->where($where);
        return $db->count_all_results($table);
    } catch (Exception $e) {
        return false;
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Left to right: Chairman Takeshi Uchiyamada; Minister Pierre Arcand; Johanne Gélinas, President, Transition énergétique Québec; Larry Hutchinson, President and CEO, Toyota Canada Inc.. PHOTO: Toyota Canada Inc.
TORONTO—Toyota Canada and Transition Energetique Quebec are going to study the need for hydrogen infrastructure to support the introduction of fuel cell vehicles in Quebec.
The two sides announced plans to sign a memorandum of understanding to study the market requirements for hydrogen infrastructure.
Transition Energetique Quebec was established by Quebec's Ministry of Energy to promote energy transition, innovation and efficiency in the province.
Earlier this month, Toyota Canada said its first hydrogen fuelling and service facility will be built at its Quebec zone office.


Cars are driven on the left of the road and you need to get a temporary local licence which the rental company can arrange.Some cars may be left hand drive which makes over taking difficult –check this out with the rental company before making your reservation. Main roads are usually in good condition but as you get further from Basseterre the roads deteriorate though the worst you'll come across is the odd pot hole,speed bump or drainage grooves. You need to be alert for animals in the road, particularly goats and slow driving locals who may stop without warning to pick up or chat to a friend. Driving at night presents extra hazards in this respect. The only traffic you're likely to encounter is in Basseterre and this is unlikely to be worse than rush hour in any small town in USA or Europe. Local driving style is generally laid back and polite and driving abroad on the islands should be a fairly easy and pleasurable experience.
This company can arrange car rental on both Nevis and St Kitts. They are the local Thrifty franchise.
Theres also a full list of rental companies on each Island on this link. Most only have an email address rather than a website.


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Author: Joey Truty
I like long walks on the beach, playing video games and writing about them too. Wait - this isn't my dating profile?
What Game Streaming Means For Indies
July 5, 2018 July 5, 2018 by Joey Truty, posted in Viewpoints
Ubisoft co-founder Yves Guillemot recently said in an interview, "I think we will see another [console] generation, but there is a good chance that step-by-step we will see less and less hardware."
More recently at E3, EA introduced Origin Access Premier, a Netflix-for-games streaming service which gives players access to more than a handful of games for a flat, monthly rate. Even Xbox has already started to play with Game Pass and by the end of the decade, I'm sure more publishers will announce their own services, as well.
What Netflix did to movie theatres and DVD players and what Spotify did to CD players and radio, streaming game services will inevitably do to the PlayStation and Xbox consoles (at this point Nintendo plays by its own rules so let's move them aside for now).
There's a very possible future where a smart TV and a game controller will be all anyone needs to load up Square Enix's probably-coming streaming service and dive straight into Octopath Traveler. But what does this mean for indie games?
In order for this to be successful publishers will need to beef up their library in order to compete with each other and they may find (as Netflix has found with their premium content) AAA games to be too complex to pump out quickly enough.
Indie games could be the solution. Steam already offers an experience in which indie games populate most of their storefront, peppered in with extremely popular AAA titles. It would be easy to see EA mirror this infrastructure and bulk up their EA Originals line to try to curate a better offer for their Origin Access Premier service. This creates tremendous potential in the growth of the indie market.
However, in this console-less transition, indie games might begin to suffer an image problem too. It's not unreasonable to think indie games will be held to a higher, possibly unfair standard. By removing price tags and putting all games on a level playing field, games like Tunic will be given the same scrutiny from players as Halo Infinite.
When players are paying the same base price for an indie game as they are for an AAA game, will they be okay with the obvious size and graphical disparity? Will gamers be upset if indie games make up the bulk of any prospective streaming? Gamers who already play a wide breadth of games may instantly think this won't be a problem, but for the gamer who only plays Call of Duty annually, will they be upset that they're paying for a service that keeps offering them indie games?
On the flip side, this could be an opportunity for that Call of Duty player to try their hand at smaller stories. There's no extra work required to boot up Celeste when none of your friends are online and play a few levels in-between shooting matches.
Indie games could see a boom in their audience as they are paired next to games that they would otherwise not be associated. There can be tremendous potential to appeal to audience that wouldn't otherwise choose to buy the game, but plays it now because they're handed the experience for free.
The outlook may be bleak for consoles, but the future is uncertain for indie games. There could be tremendous potential to take advantage of future streaming services as long as they hold fast to their quality and create fun experiences.
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Weekend Thoughts: The Rise of Independent Voices
May 26, 2018 May 29, 2018 by Joey Truty, posted in Viewpoints
In the beginning, computers were functional but not intuitive. With invention came innovation and today the world is walking around with personal computers in our pockets.
Technology's ease of use has lowered the barrier of entry for game developers; it has democratized video game development and given the power to the people.
The Rise of Independent Voices
Software like Game Maker Studio, Unity, and Stencyl have opened the gateways for amateur hobbyists and small indie studios to tell a story and create an experience that, just fifteen years ago, would've been restricted to mass-market video game titans.
We are at a time when indie games are at their most prosperous and the call to action is here to begin filling the void of diverse, untold stories. In the 90s we got games with male protagonists or female protagonists with busty tops and wide bottoms. Granted the men were in peak physical form as well.
Today, we still carry this tradition onto a new generation, but also sprinkle in protagonists like Mae, a twenty-year-old cat college dropout, from Night in the Woods and Madeline trying to scale the titular mountain in Celeste.
The innovations in game development have opened the door for these types of representations, which can only be helpful in expanding the longevity of video games and growing the possible market.
Gameplay Ideas
It's not just representation of characters, either. Indie games have become a breeding ground of new gameplay ideas from fresh perspectives.
The shooter is a genre that is as old (if not older) as the people playing them. It's gotten faster, it's added locked-on aiming, it's added a battle-royale mode, but it hasn't truly evolved in any monumental way since the second Halo brought playing online to the mainstream.
That changed or is in the process of changing, with the help of indie titles leading the charge.
Superhot, a game that blasted onto the scene in 2017, introduced the idea of syncing your own movement with the game's speed. They added a new perspective to the genre and created new opportunities to interact with FPSs.
Call of Duty slaps a fresh coat of paint onto their engine each year, but Superhot took the shooter genre and created a new way to play and think about killing your enemies.
An Influx Of Indie Game Developers
Indies have redefined characters and gameplay, but the biggest space that has developed from an influx of indie game developers is story. Games like the aforementioned Night in the Woods, Firewatch, and Undertale have tackled political issues and stories that would never dare be addressed in a AAA title.
The ease of technology afforded by innovation has opened the market for indie video game developers to contribute their voices to the gaming scene. They have brought with them new characters, gameplay, and stories that can now appeal to a vast number of niche markets that were once thought to be unattainable from the AAA perspective.
Power has been given to quieter voices in the past few years and with Steam and Switch leaning hard into indie games, the roar doesn't look to be silenced anytime soon.
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Nintendo Is Playing The Long Game
May 2, 2018 May 2, 2018 by Joey Truty, posted in Viewpoints
There's a meme that I've seen circulating on the Internet that shows the Xbox One console package promoting Microsoft's exclusive characters. It shows Master Chief (obviously), Lara Croft, Marcus Phoenix, and… 'car'. This latter figure represents the Forza series, but it's a bit jarring to see it next to the likes of the others. This image speaks to Microsoft's biggest problem, but that's discussed so much that to elaborate more here would be pointless.
The real lesson to be learned from this meme is not just that consoles need exclusives to differentiate themselves, it's that gamers get attached to their characters (as opposed to just gameplay) and a strong line-up will benefit the success of the console. Video game companies need characters that players can form an attachment to. PlayStation and Nintendo have cracked this code with Nathan Drake and Mario to name a few respectively. Where Nintendo differs, however, is in their decision to capture a child's interest and hold their devotion through their adult life. The big N's youth-targeted strategy ensures the company's livelihood for decades.
They've been smart to create all-ages games. It ensures that almost all kids can play (believe it or not some parents don't let their children play M-rated games) and form a connection with their characters during the prime nostalgia-building period of their lives. When Super Mario Odyssey came out last fall and sold over 9 million copies by the end of the year, the game wasn't just purchased by children. While the content of the game was far more "kiddie" than other AAA on the market at the time, it tugged on the nostalgia cord of adults who had formed a connection with the character from their childhood. They were itching to dive back into adventures with Mario.
This year, one of the most anticipated games is Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo Switch. Yeah, the gameplay is fun, but more so it's entertaining to see your favorite character kick the living [redacted] out of each other. These are characters that you've met before and they are characters you can look forward to meeting again (well, maybe not the Ice Climbers). Nintendo built their properties with longevity in mind and isn't afraid to tug on the nostalgia heartstrings not just to attract their current audience of gamers, but also the audience that has grown up and retains fond memories of playing with these characters.
This is a strategy that is not just proven in games, but probably has been most visibly successful at Disney. They have created a stable of properties that appeal to kids, for example Beauty and the Beast from 1991, and continued to lean into these properties to keep their fans coming back time and time again, whether that's enticing them to come to Disney World or see the "grittier" live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast from last year. That film made over a billion dollars and that's not because the story was particularly groundbreaking. It's because children wanted to see a princess movie and adults wanted to revisit the characters they had grown up with.
The console market is extremely fluid. Just last generation Xbox 360 was the market king in the US and PlayStation was in third place. Even this generation Nintendo saw themselves struggling with the Wii U – one of their big risks that didn't pay off. Given the tendency for the market leaderboard to fluctuate, it's smart to focus on creating exclusive characters (not just games) that fans can attach themselves to only on your family of systems. This is, as aforementioned, something Microsoft has always found great difficulty with.
If your console is underpowered as a home console (Switch) or is lacking a huge online community (Xbox One) then you'll still find an audience by milking nostalgia and using your core gaggle of memorable characters. Create fans when they're young, keep them forever. That's smart business – Rodders.
The Devil Is In The Details – Be More Specific About Video Games
April 21, 2018 by Joey Truty, posted in Viewpoints
When I'm feeling stressed or overwhelmed, there's something about zoning out into Mario Kart's easy-to-play-hard-to-master, three-button gameplay that relaxes me. It's not that I'm imagining my coworkers exploding from a blue shell or pretending that a cheating ex is knocked off the Rainbow Road into the empty loneliness of space. For me, the physical act of pressing three buttons on a controller (or handheld, because it's a new era!) and watching Baby Luigi soar through anti-gravity puts me at ease.
At a time when there's increased scrutiny and negative opinions about video games, in America, we should remind ourselves that there are also benefits to digitally turning off the stresses of the day and that while the medium may have 'questionable' material, the industry as a whole should not be punished.
While Mario Kart's effects on me might be anecdotal, there is tangible evidence to be found in science. In 2009, scientists at East Carolina University took up the challenge of measuring a player's electroencephalography (basically brain wave) changes while playing casual video games. In their study, 134 participants played a combination of Bookworm Adventures, Bejeweled II, and Peggle as the scientists studied their mental behaviour. Not surprisingly, "the results of this study clearly demonstrate the intrinsic value of certain casual games in terms of significant, positive effects on the moods and anxiety levels of people suffering from any level of depression."
Be More Specific About Video Games
While these games are tonally far from the cavalcade of gore that the President saw in the now infamous video about violence in video games, his talk about video games has been all-encompassing of the medium. He said: "I'm hearing more and more people say the level of violence in video games is really shaping young people's thoughts." Full stop. He doesn't qualify which video games he's alluding to but refers to the industry as a whole.
While these talks continue and the US grapples with how to approach an increasing amount of violence in communities, it's important to remember that video games are a medium and, just like any other medium, contain content that is mature and sensitive. To speak about the industry as a whole discounts the positives and I worry, if talks continue to be so non-specific, it could eventually hurt the growth of the industry. No one wants that.
This fear isn't unfounded though. With almost poetic symmetry, comic books encountered a similar scare in the mid-50s. At the height of comics like The Vault of Horror and Tales from the Crypt, the US Senate began looking into how the content of these books affected their audience. What arose was the Comic Code Authority (think the ESRB for video games). They released a set of guidelines that a comic must follow in order to have their approval, among them rules like "no comic shall use the word 'horror'" and "scenes dealing with walking dead, torture, vampires and vampirism, ghouls, cannibalism, and werewolfism are prohibited."
They weren't tactful with their rules, but instead targeted broad categories of violence and supernatural with an almost careless approach. In fact, the rule was so broad that the CCA discussed whether it was okay for an author with the last name "Wolfman" to be mentioned within the pages of the book. Yes, really.
Imagine if similar broad rules were put in place today in the video game industry. GTA would be the first to be banned, Activision's biggest title could be Skylanders, and even Lego Harry Potter would cease to exist.
Ok, while this is a hyperbolic picture of the future, it's a warning that if discussion about video games becomes more about the fear of the medium itself, the industry may face more victims than just the ultra-violent games. It's always important to stress the positives and remember the benefits, on the other hand, we need to shine a light on questionable content while discussing censorship. So, we need balance, common sense and specificity.
Assault Gunners HD Edition Review [PS4] – Even Mech Suits Can't Save It
March 16, 2018 March 19, 2018 by Joey Truty, posted in Reviews
Perhaps hoping to piggyback off the promotion of Pacific Rim: Uprising, Marvelous Games brings their PSP, Japanese exclusive game about mech suits to the PS4 and PC with middling results. A lack of captivating gameplay, setting, or story stifles any chance of elevating this interesting concept above a sub-standard shooter.
Assault Gunners HD Edition Review PS4
If it wasn't already clear from the early 2000s' graphics, just starting this game immediately signals it's a port from a previous generation (in this case a handheld) – the menus are navigated with the D-pad. Though scrolling through menus becomes more tedious this way, the variety of menu and customization options is worth it if you're determined to play the game. Before starting one of the 20 main levels (or additional two DLC packs), the game lets you select a difficulty, set friendly fire, and modify your supporter settings.
Assault Gunners HD Edition Review
In addition, the game allows you to personalize your units and manage your troops. Even seeing this pared-down version of an RPG-system is a welcome addition and a benefit to the game as a whole. However, this feature only became apparent to me after seeking it out and was not explained in-game, which would've been nice since the end of each stage listed various bonuses and supplies you collected from the level.
Though some may argue that video games have become too easy and straightforward, this lack of communication is frustrating (and it doesn't help that all of the voice acting is in Japanese) and a flaw across many of the game's aspects. There is clearly love, or at the very least effort, put into the story but the narrative never finds a compelling way to explain itself. Beyond slapping quick scrolling text (a la Star Wars) before every mission, there is little else directing the players' motives. Who are these people? Why should we care? It seems the developer thought about those questions but buried them deep within the aforementioned menus to never be found unless the player is digging for them.
In addition, I often found it hard to determine whether my bullets or missiles were hitting their projected targets. If the attack struck (and the combatant was weak enough) the enemy would poof off the screen. For enemies that couldn't be one-shotted, they merely absorbed the attack until, like the others, they just disappeared. I didn't feel as if I was learning. I was just shooting until I cleared the stage. It wasn't until the timer threatened to countdown and flunk me that I found any bit of fun, challenge, or variety of play. Those moments, however, were too scarce and most of the time I felt as if I was just mashing buttons and walking around the various arenas with no clear objective.
Button mashing can be fun, but the game has to have more diverse environments to explore or ambience to set the mood. It didn't help that as you marched your mech suits across the mostly flat stages, the music was bland and consistently played a similar tune. At times it was disjointed with the action; other times it faded into the background. It wasn't fully a failure, but not even close to a success.
Why Is Pixel Art Still Around?
March 5, 2018 March 5, 2018 by Joey Truty, posted in Viewpoints
My obsession with video games came at a later stage of my youth than most; I was a late bloomer. Growing up in the 90s, I dabbled in Crash Bandicoot and earned all the gym badges in Pokémon Red (FWIW: Charmander is and will always be the best starter), but that was the extent of my gaming experience. No one played Doom or Wolfenstein in my neighbourhood, Mega Man was barely in my periphery, and abandon any hope for seven-year-old me trying to figure out which Final Fantasy to start with.
It wasn't until the late 2000s (a less embarrassed me would claim the early 2010s) that I finally sunk my teeth into gaming. That's all to say, I pretty much cruised past the first pixel art era – a time when pixel art wasn't an aesthetic choice, but a hardware limitation. However, as someone who's invested more than a handful of hours into Stardew Valley and watching Let's Plays of Celeste and Hyper Light Drifter, I sought to understand why pixel art has resurged in a new era – an era in which popular indie games insist on returning to this stylistic well.
Screenshot from The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, originally released on the Super NES.
In the article "Pixel art games aren't retro, they're the future," published by The Verge in 2014, author Sam Byford spoke with game designer Jason Rohrer. Rohrer claimed that he saw pixel art as "a digitally native [form of] cartooning." His argument here is that pixel art is intrinsic to computers. Even though the technology has evolved towards high definition, the idea of breaking art into blocky pixels is something that transcends innovation. It's a basic understanding of how computers display 2D images. To an entire generation of (older) gamers, pixel art is the simple, underlying language of the computer. The reason it has had such a lasting presence is partly a bid towards nostalgia, but more so because pixel art is a two-dimension expression of digital minimalism. It is, at its core, simplistic.
Compare an image of Lara Croft from the original PlayStation Tomb Raider to an image of Link from the SNES. The latter has aged well, while the former looks dated and low-tech. Tomb Raider's low-poly aesthetic strived to push the technology towards complicated realism and landed too far away from the finish line to not be judged by time. In seeking to create the next-best thing, Tomb Raider moved away from graphical minimalism for flashy, groundbreaking effects. They didn't embrace the jagged edges that they were limited to and, instead, attempted to mix curves and exaggerated body structures to hit a point of realism that they couldn't achieve. Over the years, the low-poly aesthetic disappeared by way of graphical evolution but re-emerged after taking note from pixel art. Superhot, Minecraft, and Grow Home are just a handful of modern day examples.
Screenshot from Tomb Raider, originally released on the Sega Saturn, PlayStation, and MS-DOS.
As oxymoronic as it is to say, the resurgence of dated low-poly art and the longevity of pixel art lie in the ability to evolve with the technology. Designers of today who wish to re-connect with old gaming trends continue to refine the aesthetic and improve upon the capabilities of the original consoles. They take advantage of colors, expressions, and angles that were foreign to those classic machines.
In a blog post published on Gamasutra, Shovel Knight developer David D'Angelo talks about how their intention was to evoke the feeling of older games while simultaneously "breaking" the limits of the NES. They wouldn't box themselves into old specs. He mentions the integration of parallax scrolling, an expanded color palette, and particle effects among other ways they improved the game's pixel art aesthetic compared to its original era counterparts. While the style may originate from the 16-bit era, it owes its lastingness to its adaptability.
Ultimately, gamers are ageing into game designers who are seeking connection with their youth. They are embracing the technological shortcomings of the past and re-appropriating these aesthetics to become timeless art styles by paring them down to their most minimal, simplistic expression.
Yes, Mobile Gamers Are 'Real' Gamers
February 26, 2018 February 26, 2018 by Joey Truty, posted in Viewpoints
In South Park and The Simpsons we're shown as internet trolls, in Future Man we're a lowly janitor still living with our parents, and in The Big Bang Theory, we're a group of gangly and awkward nerds with social anxiety. The stereotype of a "gamer" is not one that is often shown with tact. Often these characters are reduced to a trope that is tired, lazy, and incredibly inaccurate. It would be easy to blame these portrayals on the "others" who don't play games, but the problem is only exacerbated by the sense of ego and console class wars that the gaming community has seemed to foster.
If you scroll through the comments section of any big gaming site you'll notice there's often a litany of rallying cries around the "PC Master Race," or the declarations of the death of the "Xbone" or the idiotic ineptitude of both "Nintendo and Sony fanboys." As a community, we have created a toxic class system in which one console, or more broadly speaking one medium, has power and a status above another. For example, there is an entire Wikipedia page dedicated to the idea that PC gamers are 'superior' to their home console counterparts. The PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch are subservient. Do PC games look and run better? Yes, if you have the right set-up they generally always will, (the technology advances at a quicker rate). Does that, therefore, make a PC gamer better than everyone else? Of course it doesn't. Even within the said latter console communities, there is a further hierarchical debate considering power, portability, and exclusives.
It's this very immaturity that propagates the gaming industry into not being taken as seriously as it should be. This 'class' system has done more than just fueled poisonous debates about which console or platform is the 'best'; it has also stunted the very definition of a "gamer" and is a key reason why the industry as a whole is still looked down on when compared to films, books and TV. It has created a rubric for what constitutes a "good" game and has set in place a structure for how serious or dedicated a gamer is based on their choice of system.
Under these guidelines, it would be a stretch to consider anyone who plays three hours of Candy Crush Saga a day on their phone a "gamer". A game on a device that is graphically substandard and comparatively low-powered. And yet the gamer is sinking the same amount of time in as someone who is playing a game purchased on Steam. Obviously, comparing the capabilities of a PC and the gaming abilities of an iPhone is a fool's errand, but does that mean we should discount someone who chooses this type of user experience? That should be celebrated, or at the very least tolerated, but is instead often crucified by a community that is seeking to organize their players by superficial graphics and frame rates.
With The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild winning Game of the Year at the D.I.C.E. Awards, we have definitely made an effort to discount the power of the console – the Wii U and Switch stand nowhere near the other platforms when it comes to frame rate or graphics. Let's extend this trend to mobile gaming and acknowledge that people who seek enjoyment from a mobile device are putting their knowledge of power behind them and simply embracing the game experience. If they devote ungodly amounts of time to Alto's Adventure on the iPhone, they are no less a "gamer" than someone who spends an equal amount of time playing Overwatch.
In a 2015 study by the Entertainment Software Association, they reported that four out of five homes owned a device to play games on. Further, 42% of Americans played video games regularly. This is not a community that is devoted to one system, but a population that is spread out over many different gaming experiences. I've personally played games on every format imaginable: a "gamer" is a "gamer" if they're dedicated to playing games. Like a "reader" of books is a "reader", regardless of the length of the book.
We should celebrate our wide range of mediums if only so our portrayal in the mainstream is not so inaccurate and narrow. We should put the console/system 'war' (the silliest war I've ever heard of) behind us and admit that wherever, whatever platform we choose, we're all just gamers trying to navigate an increasingly harsh reality.
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Dow's Enlist Products on Track for 2016 Launch
by Sara Schafer
If you could replicate a star athlete every team would want one. That's what happens with seed trait technology—a trait "star" often plays for multiple "teams."
Currently, Dow AgroSciences is developing a weed control system, comprised of Enlist herbicide tolerant traits for corn, soybean and cotton seed, and Enlist Duo, a proprietary blend of 2,4-D choline and glyphosate. By combining two modes of action, Dow AgroSciences says the herbicide will control and help prevent further development of herbicide-resistant weeds.
Upon commercial release, Dow AgroSciences will sell Enlist in its seed brands, including Mycogen Seeds, Pfister Seeds, Prairie Brand Seed, Brodbeck Seeds, Dairyland Seed and PhytoGen Cottonseed.
Plus, the company will license the technology to other seed companies so farmers will also have access to the technology through other brands.
"Farmers want and deserve choices in technology and seed brands," says Damon Palmer, marketing directors of U.S. seeds for Dow AgroSciences. "Our plan is to broadly license Enlist through other seed companies, and we're excited to be able to provide Enlist through multiple seed brands."
So far, Stine Seed Company and Merschman Seeds have signed on to license the Enlist E3 soybean technology. Monsanto has taken a license for Enlist corn. Additional licenses are pending.
Dow AgroSciences recently announced quality standards for stacking glyphosate traits with Enlist, he says. For example, Enlist will only be stacked with advanced glyphosate traits. Dow AgroSciences will not allow stacking with older generations of the Roundup Ready trait.
Monsanto Company officials plan to launch Roundup Ready Xtend soybean seeds, a competing product to Dow's Enlist soybean products, in 2016. This new trait and herbicide system will contain the Genuity Roundup Ready 2 Yield trait technology stacked with a trait tolerant to dicamba as well as glyphosate herbicides. The herbicides will be paired in a premix of dicamba and glyphosate called Roundup Xtend herbicide.
DuPont Pioneer is licensing Monsanto's Roundup Ready Xtend soybean seeds. Syngenta is evaluating whether to use Xtend technology, according to a recent Bloomberg article.
The Road to the Planter
Weed resistance is a chronic problem that doesn't appear to be fading—instead, it seems to be growing.
"In 2014, acres of glyphosate-resistant weeds actually increased another 20%, according to some data we just received," Palmer says. "Over 80 million acres are now infected with glyphosate resistance."
Dow AgroScience's Enlist traits and herbicide will provide another tool for weed control, Palmer says. "The farmers who have been able to use the Enlist products under permit have been happy with the results," he says.
These products have been in development for years and are close to clearing the final hurdle for full U.S. commercialization. Palmer says Enlist corn, Enlist soybeans and Enlist E3 soybeans (which feature three herbicide-tolerant genes stacked together) have received full U.S. deregulation and approval.
In October, EPA approved the use of Enlist Duo herbicide in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin, with 10 more states pending registration.
Before U.S. farmers can plant seeds with this technology, however, Dow AgroSciences has to gain approval for the traits by importing countries. "We are making great strides in global registrations for the products," Palmer says. "We are currently awaiting China." He says the technology has been approved to be grown by farmers in Canada, and they are seeking cultivation approval in Argentina and Brazil.
For 2015, Palmer says a select group of farmers will be planting Enlist corn and Enlist soybean seed, coupled with the Enlist Duo herbicide, through a highly monitored testing program. He says the team at Dow AgroSciences will ensure the farmers are using the technology properly, and the company will maintain the grain after harvest to prevent it from being exported.
Full commercial launch of the Enlist traits and herbicide for corn, soybeans and cotton is expected in 2016. "We anticipate we'll have all the necessary registration in most of the corn, cotton and soybean growing areas," Palmer says.