text:
C2E2 2012 Guide & Day 1 Recap
Idol Threat: Warning Shots at the Mainstream 12:54 AM C2E2, Chicago, Comics, Cool Stuff, Fashion, FREE STUFF FOR CHEAPSKATES, Godzilla, Live, NERD ALERT, Video Games
The 2012 annual Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo is finally here! This is the third year of C2E2 and I'm happy to say that it has definitely established itself as a worthy competition to its convention counterpart, the long running Chicago Wizard World.
Since the Wizard Convention has been moving more towards the entertainment and Sci-Fi end of the nerd culture spectrum C2E2 has been a welcome addition in providing more comic-themed content to fill the void. Major comic companies such as DC and Marvel (who have been noticeably absent from the Wizard Con the past few years) are present here at C2E2 as well as various new indies such as Archaia and the newly relaunched indie company legend First Comics. Combined with a plethora of quality panels and a full Artists Alley the rest of C2E2's weekend is looking mighty promising.
Highlights from the day include new themed bathrobes now available at the Stylin' Online booth (including a Star Trek uniform design and a hooded Batman design,) The Chris Hardwick/Nerdist Podcast panel, the Tom Morello autograph signings, The Super-hero themed snap-back and fitted caps being offered at the New Era booth and the professionals and aspiring artists in Artist Alley (including actor Shia Lebouf who apparently has a new comic book he's promoting.) There was even a live DJ performing sets throughout the day, although I HIGHLY question his choice of playing "Ice Ice Baby" even considering the company involved. Among the other very few noticeable fails is the rise in parking prices ($21 flat fee for Parking Lot A) but that is more a fault of McCormick Place rather than the organizers of the con.
You can visit the C2E2 site for a full lists of the remaining panels and guests but I strongly suggest that you take the time to fully explore the Artist Alley which is full of hidden gems like artists, both aspiring and professional, offering commissioned fan art and sketches. Eric Powell artist writer and creator of The Goon comic was even nice enough to offer a few free quick sketches to those receiving free autographs, and his brand new amazing sketchbook was only being sold for a mere $10!
While you're there you'll also want to check out many of the indie comics being promoted such as the hilarious "comedy of words and pictures" Lost the Comic Book, written by Derek Glascock & drawn by Jay Osterkamp of NightOwls Media (Artist Alley Booth M17.) If paintings are more your style you can check out pop culture mash-up painter Steve Seeley, who takes time off from his European art tours and Rotofugi shows to share a booth with cover artist Jenny Frison at booth C12. The booth will also be shared by Steve's frequent collaborator writer Michael Moreci who will be promoting their new book Hoax Hunters, which is about a reality tv show that tries to convince the world that YouTube sensations & "tabloid creatures" such as Yeti and Chupacabra aren't real (even though they are.) There's also the famed artist team "Greg & Fake" who create 80s & 90s cartoons-influenced, Underground comix style cardboard paintings which are so affordable you'll have to see the prices to believe them! They really should be charging more for their paintings, so head over to booth N18 before they smarten up and raise their prices.
There is way too much to go through in one post or to experience in one day so make so you aren't late and that you explore every inch of the sales floor and take advantage of as many shows and panels being offered as you can. You can spend half a day alone just taking pics of all the people in Cosplay walking around (see the slideshow below.) Check back for more updates throughout the weekend and hopefully I'll be able to upload some audio of panels from this year and last once I figure how to convert them. C2E2 is open from 10-7pm on Saturday and 10-5pm on Sunday. You can see the full schedule and more details here: www.c2e2.com/
By Idol Threat: Warning Shots at the Mainstream at 12:54 AM
Labels: C2E2, Chicago, Comics, Cool Stuff, Fashion, FREE STUFF FOR CHEAPSKATES, Godzilla, Live, NERD ALERT, Video Games


text:
est une expression anglaise signifiant « l'instant ». Elle peut faire référence à :

Série télévisée

 , série télévisée américaine diffusée du  au  sur .

Cinéma

 , titre anglais de , film roumain de Gheorghe Vitanidis sorti en 1979 ;
 , film américain de Jane Weinstock sorti en 2013.

Musique

Groupe

 , groupe britannique des années 1980 ;

 , groupe de R&B des années 1960.

Album

 , album de Framing Hanley sorti le  ;
 , album de  sorti en  ;
 , album de Kenny G sorti le  ;
 The Moment, album de Lisa Stansfield sorti le  ;
 , album de Manafest sorti le  ;
 , album de Stefanie Sun sorti le .

Voir aussi

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Watch the election platforms of the various White Rock mayoral candidates as well as the issues of the election platforms for the majority of the candidates in the Saturday civic election. JUST VOTE!
Dario Devic's four-month sentence is to be served in the community. He will then spend 12 months under probation.
JOY - TV'S roving report LEAH BOLTON goes one on one with Surrey mayoral candidate BRUCE HAYNE.
Surrey is poised to become British Columbia's largest city.
Traffic along Johnston road in uptown White Rock returned somewhat to normal last night. Work crews finished up work around 5 p.m. and took down the barriers. There is still [plenty of work to do on the "beautification" re-do but traffic will now flow smoothly in and out of our City by the Sea.
New trees have arrived and will be planted in the silva cells, which are modular pavement systems that hold lightly compacted soil that support healthy tree growth. These cells will also allow trees to spread their roots without disrupting sidewalk safety.
Over the weekend THE WHITE ROCK COALITION group who are running behind the leadership of GRANT MEYER who is vying for the mayor's chair in White Rock, took to social media (at this point) with the above posting/ad.
Is HOGG endorsing THE COALITION? You be the judge.
When the blow-back hit HOGG over the weekend he informed THE COALITION the messaging needed to be changed. This is the new version. In your mind is it any better?
There is nothing in the LGA that would prevent another elected official from endorsing a local government candidate. This is pretty common practice in many places throughout the Province.
Friday LANCE PEVERLEY the editor of the Peace Arch News weighed in on whether or not MP GORDON HOGG had in face "endorsed" councillor MEYER for mayor.
The City of Vancouver says it's investigating in conjunction with the cities of Richmond and Burnaby. It has notified the VPD. This comes as Mounties in Surrey confirm dozens of absentee ballot applications are fraudulent, more than a week before voters head to the polls.
The investigation into concerns of possible wrong-doing in Surrey's mail ballot registration process for the 2018 Civic Election is progressing.
To date, 69 out of 73 people whose personal information was used to complete the application to vote by mail have been interviewed. (Note: Previously, Surrey RCMP stated 72 vote by mail applications were being investigated; this number should be corrected to 73 applications identified by Surrey's Chief Elections Officer as having irregularities.) The investigation revealed that 67 of these applications were fraudulent, in that they were not completed or signed by the voter listed on the application. Two of these applications requested ballots be sent to addresses that were not associated to the named applicant; the other 65 applications listed the applicant's correct address for delivery of the voting ballot.
It should be noted that no ballots were sent out to any individuals or residences based on the fraudulent applications. The process to apply for a mail ballot was amended by the Chief Elections Officer on October 1st to preserve the integrity of the election.
To date, the investigation team has not found any evidence to link any candidate or party to the fraudulent applications.
Investigators have identified and interviewed two persons of interest in this investigation, however further investigation will be required to determine if criminal charges or charges under the Local Government Act are warranted.
Yesterday afternoon just before 2:00 p.m., the Surrey RCMP was called to the 6700-block of 130 Street for a report of a shooting. Responding members located the victim and attempted life-saving measures until the BC Ambulance Service and Surrey Fire Department took over, however the male succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced deceased at scene.
IHIT is working closely with its partners including the Surrey RCMP Serious Crime Unit, Lower Mainland Integrated Forensic Identification Services and the B.C. Coroners Service to gather evidence.
In order to further the investigation, IHIT is confirming the victim as 30-year-old Sumeet Randhawa of Surrey. Mr Randhawa was known to police.
"This is believed to be a targeted incident related to the ongoing Lower Mainland gang conflict and anyone with information is asked to contact IHIT" says Detective Lara Jansen of IHIT.
Anyone with information is asked to call the IHIT information line at 1-877-551- IHIT (4448), or by email at ihitinfo@rcmp-grc.gc.ca.
Should you wish to remain anonymous, please contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
Welcome to the City of White Rock's Construction Information Portal!
To find out more about various City capital projects relating to beautification, revitalization, and infrastructure upgrades (e.g. the Johnston Road Gateway Streetscape Project, the Memorial Park Upgrade, etc.), you can find out more at our City Projects webpage.
Yesterday Canada became only the second country in the world to legalize the commercial sale of marijuana.
The people visiting a large shopping center in Kaiserslautern, Germany are treated to an awesome performance of the classic rock song by Queen. This entertaining flash mob performing Bohemian Rhapsody features various musicians as well as the popCHORn choir.
ways he hadn't in quite some time.
It almost tickled as his fingers started at her neck, and then began moving down past the small of her back.
He then caressed her shoulders and neck slowly worked his hand down over her breasts stopping just over her lower stomach.
Then he proceeded up her inner thigh, stopping just at the uppermost portion of her leg.
He continued in the same manner on her right side, then suddenly stopped, rolled over and started to watch the TV.
As she had become quite aroused by this caressing, she asked in a loving voice, "That was wonderful. Why did you stop"
He said,"I found the remote".


Anchor Foundation Repair Colleyville is professional foundation repair services in Colleyville Texas. They guarantee customer satisfaction in solving home and business structures foundation problems.
Visit http://www.anchorfoundationcolleyville.com for more information on its quality works and tips created for you.
You may remember the song you sang as a little child about the wise man that once built a house upon a rock. The song goes on to tell about a foolish man who built his home upon sand. This is a clear indication that it is the foundation that serves as the base of any building. If this important element is not included as the beginning of the building, the entire structure will suffer and maybe crumble and fall. Modern homes and other structures that don't have a good foundation will be weak and eventually require foundation repair. Nevertheless, some wonder if there is a way to repair the foundation without breaking the house down.
The answer to that question is a resounding yes. Foundation repair companies know how to diagnose the symptoms of a failing foundation. Those symptoms include cracked or bulging walls, doors and windows that will not shut properly and others. The cause of infirm foundations might be expansive soil that makes the building settle deeper into the earth. When the brick veneer on a building exhibits crack, the windows and doors separate from the walls or become misaligned, or cracks show up in the floor foundation repair may be indicated.
In truth, there are lots of different foundation repair companies in existence today that can be approached if one requires slab foundation repair or pier and beam foundation repair for home or office. Many of these companies offer a variety of services to help in this instance. With their expertise, it is often possible to repair the building foundation quickly without disruption to the family or business. This is all done through the manpower and resources available to them for the purpose of putting foundations right again.
Depending on the type of foundation your building has, when you notice signs that it has become weak slab foundation repair may be required. You just need to ensure that you are selecting the right company to affect the cure with well-designed solutions and high quality products. Anything else may lead to the repair not being effective. With the help of reputable foundation repair companies, properly owners can rest assured that their building will be brought back whole again. A good company will return later to do a follow-up inspection to make sure that the client has receive true value for their money.
If there are poor drainage problems around the foundation, this could cause waste and rain water to become trapped and damage the foundation. The right foundation repair service will correct this situation and create an effective drainage system to make the water drain properly.
Various techniques, such as mud jacking, crawl space repair, foundation settlement repair, foundation wall straightening, foundation wall stabilization and street creep repair among others are used by foundation repair companies. Because these are by no means simple or easy processes, and for that reason, it is important that homeowners not attempt to do these as DIY projects. The result of doing so may end with an ineffective cure for a serious problem.


When the client approached MQA about this project, they had just completed the La Creme Recruitment restoration project, which had extensively tested their knowledge of restoration techniques and interior design skills. The client was impressed with their work and wanted the same level of skills to be used, only this time on the exciting project of Dublin's first Private Members' Club.
The only issue was time, in that it had to be completed from inception to completion in 3 months. At that time, the new Protected Structure Planning laws were in the being enforced, so with careful skill and negation by Una McQuillan, the project proceeded on a phased basis under great time constraints. Between the client, MQA and the construction team, the project was successfully delivered in 3 months, with a spectacular opening night to celebrate.
Architecturally it was very interesting. Built in the 1840′s, it had been carved up and refurbished for many uses over time, with the original staircase to the ground floor removed and moved, cornices and period features taken out and air conditioning inserted with no regard for the historic fabric. MQA was able to create an opulent, vibrant bar and nightclub experience, whilst restoring the original and re-inserting appropriate historical features. It was a challenging but extremely enjoyable project, which they would gladly take on again.


text:
Terms of Service and Privacy Policyvalaadmin2020-03-12T21:21:12+00:00
Last updated: March 12, 2020 Electric Brew ("us", "we", or "our") operates the Electric Brew website (the "Service").
We use your Personal Information for providing and improving the Service. By using the Service, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy. Unless otherwise defined in this Privacy Policy, terms used in this Privacy Policy have the same meanings as in our Terms and Conditions, accessible at https://theelectricbrew.com
Please read these Terms of Use ("Terms", "Terms of Use") carefully before using the https://theelectricbrew.com website (the "Service") operated by Electric Brew ("us", "we", or "our").
The Service and its original content, features and functionality are and will remain the exclusive property of Electric Brew and its licensors.
Our Service may contain links to third-party web sites or services that are not owned or controlled by Electric Brew.
Electric Brew has no control over, and assumes no responsibility for, the content, privacy policies, or practices of any third party web sites or services. You further acknowledge and agree that Electric Brew shall not be responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with use of or reliance on any such content, goods or services available on or through any such web sites or services.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Virginia Adopts Workplace Safety Standards for the Pandemic — May be Coming to a State Near You
Virginia has become the first-in-the-nation to approve workplace safety standards to protect Virginia workers. Governor Ralph Northam signed Executive Order 63 in May that directed the Virginia Department of Labor to promulgate regulations to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace. The Virginia Department of Labor and Industry (DOLI) Safety and Health Codes Board (VSHCB) approved these new emergency standards on July 15, 2020.
The Safety and Health Codes Board met through the early summer and voted to mandate standards regarding appropriate personal protective equipment, sanitation, social distancing, infectious disease preparedness and response plans, record keeping, training and hazard communications in workplaces across the commonwealth. These temporary emergency standards will take immediate effect upon publication in a newspaper published in the city of Richmond. These temporary emergency standards will take immediate effect July 27 and will remain in place for six months. The agency has begun the process of making the regulations permanent.
They have identified four classifications of exposure risk: very high, high, medium, and lower risk.
Employers in all risk levels are to comply with:
Exposure assessment and determination, notification requirements, and employee access to exposure and medical records.
"Flexible" sick leave policies
Return to work policies and procedures including testing, physical distancing, sanitation, and disinfecting
A dministrative and work practice controls (e.g. prescreening, access, signs, sanitization, flexible work schedules, etc.)
Training (employers have 30 days to train employees on emergency standards)
Written infectious disease preparedness and response plan within 60 days (those with 10 or less employees in medium, high, and very high risk)
Building and facility owners must notify employer tenants of COVID-19 cases
For those employers with very high or high exposure risk additional requirements include:
Engineering controls (e.g. air handling systems, isolation rooms, autopsy suites)
Employee training (employers have 30 days to train employees on the emergency standards)
These standards are designed to supplement and enhance existing VOSH laws, rules, and regulations. Application will be based on the exposure risk level present or by job tasks undertaken by employees.
Very high risk jobs include medical, postmortem, or laboratory procedures that involve aerosol-generating procedures (e.g. intubation, collecting specimens, autopsies).
High risk jobs include, doctors, nurses, cleaners, hospital staff (including field hospitals and testing sites), skilled nursing, dental care, primary care, blood donation, assisted living, nursing homes, first responders, mortuary services, etc.
Medium risk jobs include, poultry, meat, and seafood processing, agricultural and hand labor, commercial transportation of passengers by air, land, and water, schools, colleges and universities, daycare and afterschool settings, restaurants and bars, grocery stores, convenience stores, drug stores and pharmacies, manufacturing settings, indoor and outdoor construction settings, correctional facilities, retail stores, call centers, package processing settings, veterinary settings, personal care, salons and spas, venues for sports, entertainment, movies, theaters, and other forms of mass gatherings, homeless shelters, gyms and fitness centers, etc.
Jerry W. Kilgore
jkilgore@cozen.com
Julia Ciarlo Hammond
Principal, Cozen O'Connor Public Strategies
jhammond@cozen.com
COVID-19 Task Force
Government Relations - Cozen O'Connor Public Strategies


We manufacture crown cork bottle caps with different lining materials, in standard Pantone PMS colours, with neutral one colour printing, multicolour printing or customer designed printing using the offset printing method. We also make crown caps with inside printing.
Our crown caps are made of tinplate, electrolytically lined with tin, or TFS steel , chromium plated sheet metal, according to DIN 6099.
A range of crown caps are available in standard stock colours.
See our crown cap colour range on this page link or click the photo above.
Request information about crown cork bottle caps by clicking Crown cork bottle caps to send an enquiry to Finn-Korkki Oy.
Are you interested in our bottle caps?
Invalid Input - please fill in Your email in correct form.


text:
Building Up Jax: Impact Church ready to develop at Regency Square Mall
IMPACT CHURCH SET FOR BUILD-OUT AT REGENCY SQUARE MALL
Impact Church received a permit for interior renovations to the former Belk location at Regency Square Mall.
The church plans to build out its international headquarters within the building, which it bought a few years ago after Belk relocated further down Atlantic Boulevard. It recently sold off its existing property in the Regency area, which will be used for a charter school.
The permit is for the first phase of work, valued at $5 million.
NOTED PROJECTS
Dollar General received a permit for construction of a new standalone store at 3005 Post St.
A permit was issued for the demolition of an existing structure at 1822 Bisbee St.
Studio 6 Extended Stay Hotel received a permit for renovations to guestrooms within its hotel at 8765 Baymeadows Rd.
Nova Southeastern University received a permit for renovations to its campus at 6675 Corporate Center Pkwy.
Chase Bank received a permit for renovations to its existing branch location at 7301 Baymeadows Rd.
Cady Studios received a permit for build-out at 10475 Fortune Pkwy.
Ascension St. Vincent's received another set of permits, totaling over $2.8 million in work, for renovations to its hospital at 4201 Belfort Rd.
Detours will begin this weekend to allow for the long-planned demolition of the Hart Bridge elevated ramps along Bay Street.
Mayo Clinic received a permit for the construction of a six-story, $65 million addition to its existing building at 4500 San Pablo Rd.
Honda of the Avenues received permits for construction of a new parking deck and car wash at 11333 Philips Hwy.
ALDI submitted plans for a 19,209 sq. ft. grocery store within Durbin Creek Crossing in northern St. Johns County.
City, VyStar Credit Union Partner on Emergency Business Loan Program
Building Up Jax: AC Hotel to Town Center; Murray Hill lofts move forward
C says:
I had such hope for Regency reopening. Sad!


David Speck's project, Part Time, is known for dreamy synths and easy, laid back pop songs. This offering (new to Spotify, five years old to the real world), "Useless Information," is a refreshing release. Staying true to his trademark drum machine base and nostalgic sound, Speck delivers a track with more drive than most of his other work. Starting the track off with sound bites of various television shows and commercials is an appropriate prelude to lyrics about the world's constant stream of stimulation and (surprise, surprise) useless information. The tongue in cheek commentary, serious or not, is a relevant accompaniment to a fun, yet simple track.
Check out more of Part Time's music on Bandcamp or Spotify.


Remember that mobile game from Supercell, a little thing called Brawl Stars? Launched about four months ago? Had some pretty cool "no time to explain" ads that popped up on your videos? Well, it's pretty big now, attracting the attention of some real-life stars—not to mention its whopping 75 million plus downloads. In this first episode of Brawl with the Stars—a brand new celebrity series—host Chief Pat brings in stars of Stranger Things Finn Wolfhard and Caleb McLaughlin to talk games and extracurricular fun as they dive into a wild rapid-fire tournament. You can check it out below if you're a fan of Brawl Stars or Supercell's other popular games (Clash Royale and Clash of Clans) or, you know, to see some of the immensely popular Stranger Things stars. Whatever floats your boat.


text:
Microsoft States That More Next-Gen Xbox's Will Be Available On November 10 Citing Record-Breaking Sales
Sep 23, 2020 Chris Miller 0 comments 450
Credit: Xbox via YouTube
It's not exactly a secret anymore: Sony struggled to offer any form of competence with their pre-orders on the PlayStation 5, resulting in retailers jumping the gun and a snowball of frustration for users eager to be one of the first owners of the newest technology.
It went so poorly, in fact, that Sony actually offered up an apology to their fans and stated that they will do better in the future. Granted, it's a fair bit more long-winded than that, but that's the overall gist.
Microsoft has taken a page from Sony's hilarious 2013 E3 advert filmed in a hotel room and has used this to their advantage as they have offered transparency beyond their norm when announcing times and dates for availability for the Xbox Series X console.
We are humbled by the record-breaking demand for Xbox Series X and S. Huge thanks to everyone for the excitement. 🙏
If you weren't successful today be sure to sign up with retailers for updates, and expect more consoles to be available on November 10. 💚
— Xbox (@Xbox) September 22, 2020
The first wave has already come and gone, but Microsoft is once again on top of the demand: they've announced that more will be available to purchase on November 10 from retailers, giving fans a clear sight at what and when they should expect it. Strange, as many are noting that Micosoft is taking a page from Sony regarding the acquisition and locking of studios to ensure long-term growth for a console.
This matches what Sony has announced regarding the arrival of the PlayStation 5, making the inevitable holiday rush for consoles a thing this year: as is tradition.
PS5 Global launch schedule: pic.twitter.com/zgwfUX6iVl
— PlayStation (@PlayStation) September 16, 2020
PlayStation has further cemented a release schedule after baiting fans and attempting to intice them arguably blew up in their faces. A rare moment where everyone wins after corporate blunders, take a screenshot.
Many are predicting that Microsoft's proverbial horse in the race is now going to gain a sizeable amount of steam after Microsoft acquired Zenimax which appears to promise the possibility of exclusive Elder Scrolls and Fallout (both becoming more troubled as time progresses in the eyes of many fans) skipping the Sony platform entirely in the future.
With Microsoft making a statement that they are planning on continuing to purchase game studios to offer more exclusive titles, thus combatting Sony in their preferred manner of console-combat, Microsoft's statement that they're seeing a 'record-breaking' number of sales and interest in the upcoming console believeable.
Even after the rough Xbox Games Showcase where the upcoming Halo failed to impress, and was roasted by internet denizens for its graphical fidelity and frankly mediocre-looking gameplay.
Since then, Microsoft has stated the delay of Halo Infinite to 2021 to ensure that they're doing justice to the Master Chief and fans of the franchise, righting the wrong in the eyes of many. We won't have the official numbers from either manufacturer until January, but it's looking like the race could be a bit more interesting than originally thought.
Pixel Action-Adventure RPG Aruna's Adventure Launches On iOS Today
The Elder Scrolls Online Announces Months Of Events In Preparation Of Tamriel Together Celebration
Limbo, Prodeus And More Coming To Xbox Game Pass In July
Jun 23, 2021 Harry Alston 4550
After recent announcements at E3, the value of Game Pass has skyrocketed, and the next games arriving in July cement it as one of the best deals in...
Jan 22, 2021 Harry Alston 4450
So you may have heard the rumors circulating a couple of months back about the potential of Xbox Live Gold going free-to-play with the launch of the...
Minecraft Earth To Be Closed On June 2021, Removes All Real-Money Transactions In Newest Patch
Jan 6, 2021 Chris Miller 5620
In a blog post on Minecraft.Net, Microsoft has announced that Minecraft Earth is coming to an end that seems at least tangentially related to the...


They also asked how credible the patients thought their treatment was, and how effective they believed it would be in relieving their symptoms. The patients' symptoms were assessed when admitted, and again upon release from the program.
"The researchers point out that people who believed in a god, or were affiliated with a religion, were also more likely to believe their psychiatric treatment was credible and to expect positive results.
It may be, they write, that 'the tendency to have faith in conventional social constructs' can be generalized both to religion and the medical establishment. Since other studies have shown that faith in a given treatment is an important predictor of its effectiveness, that could help explain the association with improved outcomes found here."
The recent suicide of 27-year-old Matthew Warren,3 youngest son of Pastor Rick Warren, founder of the mega-church Saddleback Valley Community Church in California, brought mental illness back into view for many within the confines of religion.
This is a Flash-based media clip and may not play on mobile devices.
While the stigma of mental illness does not cling to all denominations, some churches can tend to marginalize mental health problems and view them as issues that are best approached by reading the bible or praying.
In Scheller's experience, the anti-psychiatry rhetoric used in some churches can delay much-needed treatment. When it became clear that Scheller's younger son also suffered with depression, she decided to ignore the advice of the church, opting instead to seek professional help for her son.
"[S]tigma about mental illness is not unique to the evangelical community. We have our own particular ways in which it's stigmatized, but it's a pervasive problem," she says.
"Although many people see depression as a chemical imbalance in the brain, scientists say social context and the way you see yourself and the world can be critical in causing and sustaining the illness... 'Thinking styles are a really important factor in risk for depression,' says the study's lead author Gerald Haeffel, associate professor of clinical psychology at Notre Dame University. 'How one thinks about life stress and negative moods is one of the best predictors that we have of future depression.'"
"For example, a person who feels hopeless might lose a job and see it as a personal failure and a sign that he will never be employable again. A more resilient person might blame the economy or see the situation as an opportunity to get a better position."
The latter, hopelessness, was not found to be contagious, but rumination was. A suggested reason for this is because hopelessness centers around your own thoughts and deeply embedded beliefs about yourself, and so therefore may be less likely to have a major influence on the way others think about themselves and their lives. Ruminating and constant brooding, however, which focuses on all the bad things that might happen and sees the worst in every situation, is a mode that is more easily spread and mirrored by others.
"Interestingly, depression symptoms themselves were not contagious: simply having a roommate with symptoms of the disorder did not increase risk of developing the mental illness. But those who picked up a ruminative style of thinking from their roommates during the first three months of school had more than double the number of depressive symptoms of those who either weren't exposed to this perspective or didn't adopt the rumination three months later. And the risk was magnified if they experienced high levels of stress," Time reports.
Positive Thinking Is Contagious Too!
Fortunately, the study also found that healthier modes of thinking were equally contagious, with the capacity to make a roommate adopt a more optimistic outlook as well. More than likely, you didn't need a study to take notice of this. Most people will at some point or another have encountered someone in their life that either made you feel more positive or negative, simply by spending time with them.
A question they could not answer, however, was what the determining factor was that decided which roommate would adopt a thinking style more closely mirroring that of the other. Why are some people's thinking styles more likely to dominate, rather than be influenced?
"Such information could enhance the current findings and contribute to new ways of treating and preventing depression," Time writes. "The results suggest that depressive thinking styles can still be influenced during young adulthood — so this risk factor can be minimized even if it has already developed during high school or earlier. Targeting ruminative thinking might also enhance therapy.
"The therapist could assess if people in the patient's life are modeling and providing adaptive cognitive feedback about stress and negative life events," says Haeffel. "The therapist could then provide those with negative thinking styles with information about the contagion effect along with training that would help them identify negative thought patterns and provide examples of more adaptive ways of thinking."
In 1993, only three of the United States' 125 medical schools offered any sort of course work exploring the area of spirituality and medicine. Today, over 90 of these medical schools have formal courses where they explore randomized controlled studies and the effects of spiritual practices on longevity and health outcomes—a sure sign that what was once considered taboo is beginning to receive the discussion and serious investigation it deserves. Dr. Larry Dossey has written 11 books primarily focused on consciousness, spirituality, and the impact of spirituality on your health, including the book Healing Words: The Power of Prayer and the Practice of Medicine.
"I think we're opening up," Dossey said when I interviewed him, three years ago. "I'm sure you remember, about 40 years ago when meditation burst upon the scene in medicine, it was put down. It was called California Woo woo. Nobody wanted to have anything to do with it. But now nobody raises an eye about meditation and yoga, even in medicine. We're in the same place with spirituality that we were with meditation about 20 years ago. People know you can't ignore it. The correlation between spiritual practice and health outcomes is just too strong.
For example, the data shows that people who follow some sort of spiritual path in their life live on average seven to 13 years longer than people who do not follow a spiritual practice... We have a huge spectrum of data that shows, I think compellingly, that your thoughts really matter when it comes to getting well."
"Given the prevalence of religious belief in the United States -- more than 90 percent of the population -- these findings are important in that they highlight the clinical implications of spiritual life. I hope that this work will lead to larger studies and increased funding in order to help as many people as possible."
EFT was developed in the 1990s by Gary Craig, a Stanford engineering graduate specializing in healing and self-improvement. It's akin to acupuncture, which is based on the concept that a vital energy flows through your body along invisible pathways known as meridians. EFT stimulates different energy meridian points in your body by tapping them with your fingertips, while simultaneously using custom-made verbal affirmations. This can be done alone or under the supervision of a qualified therapist.7 By doing so, you help your body eliminate emotional "scarring" and reprogram the way your body responds to emotional stressors.
While the following video will teach you how to do EFT, it is VERY important to realize that self-treatment for serious mental health issues is NOT recommended. For serious or complex issues, you need someone to guide you through the process as there is an incredible art to this process and it typically takes years of training to develop the skill to tap on deep-seated, significant issues.
I have been a fan of energy psychology for many years, having witnessed its effectiveness in my medical practice and in my own personal life. However, studies have been few and far between as science has been trying to "catch up" with clinical experience. That has finally started to change. Several studies have been published in the last few years, showing just how safe and effective EFT really is.
Getting adequate vitamin B12. Vitamin B12 deficiency can contribute to depression and affects one in four people.
Optimizing your vitamin D levels, ideally through regular sun exposure. Vitamin D is very important for your mood. One study found that people with the lowest levels of vitamin D were 11 times more prone to be depressed than those who had normal levels.
Getting plenty of animal-based omega-3 fats. Omega-3 fats are crucial for good brain function and mental health,12 and most people don't get enough from diet alone. So make sure you take a high-quality omega-3 fat, such as krill oil.
Evaluating your salt intake. Sodium deficiency actually creates symptoms that are very much like those of depression. Make sure you do NOT use processed salt (regular table salt), however. You'll want to use an all natural, unprocessed salt like Himalayan salt, which contains more than 80 different micronutrients.
Getting adequate daily exercise. Exercise is one of the best-kept secrets to preventing depression.


text:
DO-219 is a communications standard published by RTCA, Incorporated. It contains Minimum Operational Performance Standards (MOPS) for aircraft equipment required for Air Traffic Control (ATC) Two-Way Data Link Communications (TWDL) services.  TWDL Services are one element of Air Traffic Services Communication (ATSC).  ATSC addressing requirements are supported by the Context Management (CM) Service.  The Aeronautical Telecommunications Network (ATN) provides the media and protocols to conduct data link Air Traffic Services Communication.

Outline of Contents
Purpose and Scope
Performance requirements and Test Procedures
Installed Equipment Performance
Operational Characteristics
Appendix A: ATC Two-Way Data Link Communications Message Set
Appendix B: ATC Two-Way Data Link Communications Data Structures Glossary
Appendix C: An Overview of the Packed encoding Rules ISO PDIS 8825-2; PER Unaligned
Appendix D: A Guide for Encoding and Decoding the RTCA SC-169 Message Set for ATC 2-Way Data Link, According to the Packed Encoding Rules
Appendix E: ATC Two-Way Data Link Communications Sample Messages
Appendix F: State Table

See also
Air traffic control
Aeronautical Telecommunications Network
ACARS

RTCA standards
Avionics


Craving a delicious glass of orange juice?? Try these instead! Anyone who loves the juicy, citrusy flavor of a ripe orange will love these Ornery Orange Gummi Bears! Take a bite and experience the bursting orange flavor that really wakes up your taste buds! The bright orange color will remind your guests of a beautiful sunset sure to make them relaxed and happy. Be sure to include these Ornery Orange Gummi Bears into your next candy buffet or event and you'll definitely have some happy guests.


They couldn't wait to tell their families their good news, Nancy and Justin planned a special reveal with each of their families sharing their surrogate was officially pregnant with their baby…but that wasn't the only surprise.
I can't tell you how thrilled we are for Nancy, Justin and their growing family! Check out a few favorite photos from Nancy and Justin's maternity session in Salt Lake City along with their lovely surrogate.


Would This Be a More Stable Week Than Last Week?
We have some interesting results to share with you this week, proving that sometimes all kinds of dollar currencies follow a similar pattern on the currency markets.
Right – here we go with a fresh week's worth of trading. The British pound began on 1.2487 versus the US dollar, and experienced a fall over the first two days of the week. This took it to 1.2365 by Tuesday night. We then did better over the next two days, which meant by Thursday night the pound had risen to 1.2565. This was better than we'd started with on Monday, but could we retain that rise? We dropped to 1.2462 on Friday night, which meant the answer was no. We dropped just below the opening rate for the week.
Next up is the pound against the euro. Here, we began trading on 1.1626 before rising to 1.1634 on Monday night. It was a good start, but after this we fell back to 1.1583 the following day. Despite that, two better days followed and this meant that by Thursday evening, the pound was looking much healthier on 1.1752 against the euro. Could we hold onto that improvement? Well, we did drop back to 1.1724 by Friday night, but at least this was still higher than we'd opened the week on.
Moving over to Hong Kong now, and their version of the dollar, the pound opened this trading head-to-head on 9.6895 last week. We had the same two poor days to open with (taking us to 9.5937) that we had against the American dollar. And yes, we followed up with two good days as well. This took us to 9.7487 by Thursday night. We then fell back to 9.6697 by Friday night, meaning we were worse off on Friday than we had been on Monday morning.
Moving over to New Zealand now, we started with a similar fall here over those first two days last week. This meant we opened trading on 1.7184 before dropping to 1.6947 on Tuesday evening. We also followed the pattern by improving over the next two days. That meant we ended up with an exchange rate of 1.7396 by Thursday night. And of course, we also followed the final drop in rates to reach 1.7350 by the end of the week. This still meant we had done well in this part of the world, though.
Finally, it's the turn of the Australian dollar to go head-to-head with the British pound. The pound began on 1.6342 before falling to 1.6233 by Tuesday evening. You can see that same pattern is being followed once again here. And in traditional style, it carried on throughout the rest of the week, too. The pound increased to 1.6412 by Thursday night, before rising to close the week on 1.6303 on Friday.
The Canadian dollar was pushed back by the British pound last week, and the pound rose from 1.6303 to 1.6373.
Here too we had some good news, as the pound began trading on 1.2434 and rose to 1.2509 at the end of the week.
We didn't achieve a good result here, but at least the fall from 141.598 to 141.492 was a small one.
So, it has been an interesting week on the currency markets, as always. We have seen several good results but the week was not without its hassles for the pound. It did do well against the euro, though, which is good news at least.
Whether this will carry on is unknown. Perhaps we can hope for good results in future weeks, but whether we can report them here or not will remain to be seen. We know how volatile these markets can be.


The most innovative alternative since the invention of the seed drill!
The working width can be steplessly adjusted between 2 and 24 metres. The variable spreading width is achieved by steplessly controlling the SuperVario®'s spreading disk between 200 rpm and 3000 rpm from the comfort of the driver's cab. The control panel also comes as standard with various monitoring functions such as the empty indicator or automatic slider monitoring. The preparation for headland management (VGM) also comes as standard.
Seeder volume is controlled from the tractor seat.
Key parts made of stainless steel.
Digital electronic controls (computer operated from tractor seat) for spreading from 6' - 72' (1.8m - 22m).
Variable spreading is made possible by the continuous regulation of the spreading discs, between 200 and 3,000 RPM.
Operating guide gives settings for a wide range of seed and seeding requirements.
Visual and sound error monitor/display.


text:
MPOV: Ready Player One
Director: Steven Spielberg
Casts: Olivia Cooke, Tye Sheridan, Ben Mendelsohn, Simon Pegg, T.J. Miller
Category: A 2018 American science fiction adventure film
In 2045, much of Earth's population centers have become slum-like cities. To escape their desolation, people engage in the virtual reality world of the OASIS (Ontologically Anthropocentric Sensory Immersive Simulation), where they can engage in numerous activities for work, education, and entertainment. Users have discovered Anorak's Quest hidden within OASIS, a game programmed by the late OASIS creator, James Halliday. The first to find the Easter egg within Anorak's Quest is promised full ownership of OASIS among other gifts. This has attracted a number of Gunters ("egg hunters") to play the game. Innovative Online Industries (IOI), a video game conglomerate and manufacturer of most of the virtual reality equipment used to access the OASIS, also seeks ownership of the virtual reality world, and its CEO, Nolan Sorrento, has amassed an army of debt-indentured players, known as Sixers (due to their six-digit identification), to seek the prize. However, to date, no one has managed to finish the first quest, a vehicle race across an ever-shifting version of New York City.
Wade Watts, an orphaned, 18-year-old Gunter, lives in a Columbus, Ohio slum with his aunt. In the OASIS, Wade goes by his avatar Parzival, and has partnered with Aech, a male avatar that serves as a virtual mechanic. He later befriends well-known player Art3mis after saving her from being "zeroed out", which would reset their avatar's character progression, by King Kong. Wade decides to study the virtual OASIS library to learn about Halliday's personal life, hoping to find a hint to finish the race. Wade learns that Halliday felt regret when he had to accept the resignation of his partner, Ogden Morrow, over a personal falling-out, with Halliday musing, "Why can't we go backwards for once? Backwards really fast, as fast as we can – really put the pedal to the metal." At the next race, Wade reverses from the start line, finding a hidden, safe path to the finish line of the race. He gains the first of three keys and a clue to the next quest. Aech, Art3mis, as well as players Daito and Sho follow Wade to finish the quest, and the five appear atop the global scoreboards, becoming known as the "High Five".
IOI takes interest in them, desiring to learn their real-life identities. Bounty hunter i-R0k overhears Wade tell Art3mis his real name, disclosing it to Sorrento, who approaches Wade in an attempt to convince him to join IOI to solve Anorak's Quest, but Wade refuses. In retaliation, Sorrento has his assistant F'Nale Zandor attack Wade's slum, killing Wade's aunt and her boyfriend. Wade is rescued by Art3mis' real-life friends and is taken to a Gunter hideout in Columbus, where he meets Art3mis' player, Samantha Cook. The two discover that Halliday had once dated Kira, who later became Morrow's wife, and was the source of their falling-out. In the virtual OASIS archives, Wade wins a bet with its Curator regarding whether Kira's memory remains anywhere within the archives, and the Curator rewards him with a 25-cent coin and grants him access to Halliday's memories of Kira, which turn out to be the entrance to the second quest. By surviving a re-creation of The Shining while searching for Kira, the High Five team each gain the second key and the clue that the last quest is in Castle Anorak on Planet Doom.
I've not read the original book written by Ernest Cline so it's a blank slate for me. Overall, the movie was truly entertaining, from the start to the end! Engaging original plots with some throwback to the 80's, it's so refreshingly cool and nice to watch especially those realistic mind-blowing CGI's!
I can so imagined our future to be of such especially even now, gadgets have taken over the human minds. So in a matter of years, we would live in the fake world of future-doms, somewhat similar to many other AR related sci-fi flicks with fake persons/ avatars.
According to Cline, there's a possible sequel so if Spielberg is still at the helm, I'll definitely watch it. Great casts with a superb awesome story-line, a must watch movie in the cinema!


Every spring, since as long as they could make it happen, my sister-in-law and her husband take a trip someplace tropical. With three daughters—now fifteen, twelve and ten—the couple has spent countless hours navigating schedules and car pools, coaching softball, packing snacks, braiding hair, cheering on half-time tumbling shows, bumping volleyballs, nursing hurt feelings and broken hearts, planning camping trips and pool trips and sports trips and putting together play sets and backyard pools, sorting a million Lego pieces and dressing hundreds of Barbies and well, let's be realistic, the rest of their free time is spent doing laundry.
So if you were wondering, it should be clear now, this annual trip does not include their daughters.
"It is the one time every year that the two of us are guaranteed to make it about us," my sister-in-law said as I was complaining about the impossibility of a conversation with my husband without a tiny blonde girl (or two) loudly doing her best to try to steal his attention.
And she nodded, and laughed a little, because while she's in a different phase of parenthood, she's definitely been at that crazy toddler supper table. And she's definitely missed her fair share of date nights, the kind that loom over your head as just one more thing you should be doing to do things right, if only you could get your head out of the weeds for a minute.
And so they go to Jamaica. Or to Mexico. Or some other island far away from the slushy snow of spring break in North Dakota.
Before we had kids of our own, and before we thought we could afford to join them, I served as the auntie babysitter for a few days during their trips. I morphed from childless and free into chauffer, cook, beautician, alarm clock, snuggler and planner of all the fun things I could think of doing with three little girls I adored. Once, when their parents were gone during Saint Patrick's Day, I successfully convinced the two youngest that it was the leprechaun who turned their milk and Ramen Noodles green. Another time I bought them matching pink cowgirl hats, brought them to the ranch and taught them all about horses and wildflowers.
A couple months ago my daughters returned from a trip to their cousins' house with those pink hand-me-down cowboy hats hand. My heart melted in my chest at the memories of the time I spent with the tiny versions of my nieces, who are now hovering on the edge of adulthood, serving as wonderfully willing babysitters to my little girls, which is something I couldn't even dream about when we were struggling to start a family of our own, holding their tiny hands trying to help them up the sticky gumbo hills at the ranch.
And I'm thinking about this today because my husband and I took that spring trip. We went someplace tropical and we left the kids with my in-laws and those three little nieces who aren't so little anymore.
Dropping them off with their extended family and hearing the reports from home—the fun they were having swimming, sledding and jumping at the new trampoline park with their grandparents and cousins—reminded me of the times I spent with my nieces as their stand-in-momma when they were little.
I'm not sure if their for-real-momma thought about it or not, but her vacations away with her husband not only gave them a much needed breather, but it provided her children and me with the life-long gift of quality time together, something that has laid the groundwork for a special relationship with my nieces that has continued through the years.
And so it was with those memories in my pocket that I could confidently leave my young children behind so we could lay on the beach in Jamaica, sleep in and converse over every meal, only interrupted by someone filling my drink. Because I understood that time away from our kids meant time for them to spend with the other people in their lives that adore them.
And teach them new words.
And work on potty training.
And spoil them beyond repair.
So cheers Prairie Parents! Enjoy this issue and the tips, insight and inspiration from parents just like you. And as you celebrate Easter and look toward the new, warm season, remember that village is out there waiting for the call to take over for a second so you can breathe in that warm air wherever you decide to escape to!
Previous article What is the right type of pet for your family?


That time, it was replacing an ancient light fixture — this time I was taking on the kitchen sink.
Look at that thing?! It's like a combination of a kitchen and bathroom faucet all in one. It's horrible!?
A couple of weeks ago, though, the drip turned into a stream. Then it started to whistle. And then I noticed that it was the hot water that was running 24 hours per day.
So off to Lowe's we went to pick up the cheapest (but better) "kitchen" faucet they had. It was around $39.
The instructions said that the new faucet should take around an hour to install.
I turned the water off and proceeded to remove the old faucet.
Hmmmmm… It didn't take to to realize that this was going to be harder than I'd thought… Nothing was moving. Nothing.
I made a quick trip to Home Depot to buy a monkey wrench and some WD-40 to loosen up the the nuts on the copper pipes.
With-in minutes of being WD-40'd, I had the water pipes disconnected but I still couldn't get the old faucet off of the sink.
The underside was held down by these big plastic wing nuts that were fastened so tight (courtesy of corrosion) that I couldn't get them to budge. Really, even if it weren't such a tight cramped space, I don't know that it would have been possible loosen them — they were that tight.
Another trip to Home Depot — this time to purchase a mini hack saw. My plan was to hack saw through the plastic wing nuts.
The plan was a total failure though as there wasn't enough room under (and behind) the sink to get the saw blade up to where the wing nuts were. Argh?!
In the process of attempting the impossible, I'd managed to loosen/mangle things up enough on one side to slip the hack saw between the sink and the faucet so I cut right through the copper pipe (above the countertop). Hack saws are the best.
Out came the drill…even though it wasn't listed a tool "needed" for installation.
From under the sink, I started to drill the plastic wing nut, here, there, from this side, from that side and then, suddenly, it started to give! No, not fall apart, but actually spin!
So, since it worked on the other side and now that I had a little give, I went back to the hacksaw method.
Five hours later, I'd drilled and hack sawed the old faucet from the sink. Really, the one plumbing tool I'd purchased (the monkey wrench) was of no use. None.
Twenty minutes later, we had a new faucet.
I swear, the home improvement projects that I attempt would be *so* much easier if they were more of the addition kind rather than the renovation sort.
My Home's Value -- Explained.
I plan to pick up tomorrow!
What's the best kind of stuff? FREE STUFF!


text:
Q: If $A$ is subspace of topological space $X$ is compact and closure of $A$ is not compact then $X$ is particular point topology I am looking for a topological space $X$ which if $A\subset X$ is compact but closure of $A$ is not compact.
From this Find a topological space X and a compact subset A in X such that closure of A is not compact., I know that if $X$ is particular point topology then a closure of compact subspace of $X$ is not compact.
My question is
is there any topological space $X$, except particular point topology, such that a closure of compact subspace of $X$ is not compact? or is it true:
If $A$ is subspace of topological space $X$ is compact and closure of $A$ is not compact then $X$ is  particular point topology?

A: Not in general. The discrete union (topological sum) of finitely many infinite spaces, each with the particular point topology, is another example: the set of particular points is finite, hence compact, but it's also dense, and the space is not compact. The product of two infinite spaces, each with the particular point topology, is yet another example.
The space described in this answer is a much less trivial example; the set $X\setminus P$ is compact, infinite, and dense in $X$.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Viplav told the whole story. Shalu put her hand on her forehead and said shame on him. She told him that he was not a Superman who could fly. Shambhu said to stop talking and asked to go home. They left.
The next evening it was Shalu's birthday party. Dhaani's family came. Vidhani smiled looking at each other.after everyone has arrived, Shambhu made an announcement saying that today he will fulfill any wish of his daughter that particular day. Shalu smiled.
Shalu cut the cake while everyone smiled and clapped for her.She fed the cake to Shambhu and Kanak, and also they fed that to Shalu. Viplv said shalu forgot her brothers both Viplav and Raj. Everyone laughed while Shalu fed cake to them.
Then everyone began to eat food. Kanak told the wish to Shalu in her ears. Shalu thanked her maa for that. She went and said Shambhu her wish. Shambhu was shocked. He said he will never fulfill that wish, and he went to his room leaving all guests shocked. Mohan, who saw all that, went to Shambhu's room.
Shambhu was sitting sadly. Mohan went to him and asked what has happened to him. Shambhu said the wish Shalu asked for was not possible for him to fulfill. Mohan asked but what the wish was that left him shocked. Shambhu told him that Shalu asked to settle with his family in America.
Mohan asked him to fulfill her wish. He asked Shambhu whether he remembered the promise they made 5 years ago. A flash back was shown. In that Dhani was learning to walk as she was just one year old and Viplav was holding her hand as he was two years old. Shambhu and Mohan were watching that scene happily with a smile on their face.
Shambhu asked Mohan that Dhani and Viplav grow up then could they change their friendship into a relationship. He meant that could they make them marry. Mohan said of course as they were best friends and he would be very happy to change their friendship into a relationship.
So they made a promise that when Viplav would become 23, wherever they would be, they will make them marry each other. Shambhu promised and smiled. They came out of FB.
Mohan said if he could fulfill his promise then why not Shalu's promise. Shambhu began to think. The episode ended.
Stay tuned for latest Ishq Ka Rang Safed news and updates.


Octavian, the future Emperor Augustus, dawdled through much of his youth before leaping into action at the decisive moment.
His great-uncle, Julius Caesar, had encouraged him to gain the military experience required for a political career, but Octavian was slow to heed his advice. Even his parents seem to have assumed — and hoped, for his sake — that he would turn down his inheritance when he was named as the late dictator's adopted son and primary heir. The fact that Octavian accepted it without hesitation was the first sign that there was more to him than met the eye.
There is nothing hagiographical about the late Jochen Bleicken's monumental and highly readable biography of Rome's first emperor, now published in an elegant translation by Anthea Bell from the 1998 German original.
Through his early years, Octavian is presented as incredibly lacklustre, not to say spoiled. His father, a politician, came from an upper-class family from Velletri, south-east of Rome. His mother was the daughter of one of Julius Caesar's sisters, and married handsomely, first Octavian's father, then a distinguished senator. Perhaps the young Augustus had it too easy. In 45 BC, the year before Caesar died, the 18-year-old future heir had no political or administrative experience to speak of, and no military experience in the field. Mark Antony, who was one of Caesar's reserve heirs, had all three.
There was always going to be chaos in the wake of Caesar's death, but things might have been marginally less chaotic had Octavian taken his parents' advice and rejected the role as heir. Mark Antony would still have faced a considerable struggle to put Rome back on an even keel, but who knows how quickly the situation might have been resolved without the conflict that resulted in the casualty-heavy Battle of Actium between Antony and Octavian.
Although Octavian's late leap to military prowess was significant in his rise, Bleicken also emphasises the way in which his beneficence presaged his victory. Whereas Antony kept hold of what he had acquired of Caesar's goods after his death, Octavian handed over much of his inheritance to the citizens of Rome, who were always grateful for gifts.
Then, at the age of 27, he charmingly asked them for their pardon for the chaos of the civil war, before providing the veteran soldiers with new settlements. The loyalty of the military was a sound investment for a man whose life would often be under threat.
Since neither Antony nor Octavian, nor indeed an alliance between them, was about to do the impossible and reestablish the defunct republic, Octavian's prevailing challenge after his victory at Actium in 31 BC was to shape, almost imperceptibly, a one-man rule that would be acceptable to a population that had grown up innately fearful of monarchy.
After impregnating his wife Scribonia, Octavian fell passionately in love with the married Livia Drusilla, who was descended from the illustrious Claudii Pulchri family, and herself pregnant at the time with her husband's child. Surprising though it may be, their marriage proved to be a strong one. Livia's virtuous reputation to some degree made up for Augustus' deficiencies, which was important because he liked to present himself as the redeemer of national morality.
Before he died, he wrote the Res Gestae, an immodest account of his own achievements, which included the reconstruction of many of Rome's temples, and the introduction of laws to reinvigorate family life. One of these laws required the Roman people to marry and have children. Another — which remained in force until the third century AD — rendered adultery illegal.
While it is easy to point to Augustus's hypocrisy, not least in his failure to have children by Livia, we are discouraged from doing so. The majority of Rome's senators supported his legislation, Bleichen reminds us, as it professed to revive good old-fashioned morals. In its very willingness to agree to it, however, "society gave up a part of its freedom". The people led themselves into the principate that Augustus was subtly establishing by combining the flavour of the old with the new.
Bleichen has acknowledged a debt here to the 19th-century historian Theodor Mommsen, whom he gushingly called "the foremost historian of the ancient world, and not only in his own time". While Mommsen attracted criticism from fellow scholars for appearing to play down the monarchical nature of the principate by emphasising its continuity with the early republic, Bleichen has breathed new life into his argument. Augustus's preoccupation with moral legislation helped him to make radical changes beneath a veil of tradition.
Look at almost any portrait bust of Augustus (there are no plates in this volume so one must look elsewhere) and you will be struck by his serenity. The smooth appearance of the man who believed in his own divinity and championed the Pax Romana, one starts to realise, isn't mere whitewash.
The first emperor of Rome was perfectly capable, and certainly fixed in his ideas, but by comparison with Julius Caesar he was just a bit bland. Fortunately for Augustus, a bit of blandness wasn't entirely uncalled for in Rome after the turmoil of the previous decades.
Augustus will always be remembered as the architect of empire, and it is no failure on Bleichen's part that the architecture is more interesting than its draughtsman.


Canada launched its Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) program a decade ago with the goal of fast-tracking patent examination and improving patent quality. Since its introduction, the PPH program has been an enormous success and offers numerous benefits to applicants. Data published by the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) on the use of the PPH program suggests that applicants who have used the PPH program have seen their applications examined sooner and have encountered fewer office actions. The success of the PPH program has resulted in foreign patent office participation being extended. For example, CIPO recently announced that it has extended the PPH program with the European Patent Office for a period of three years.
Smart & Biggar recently conducted its own internal study of PPH efficacy and confirmed that applications handled under the PPH program indeed bettered CIPO's averages for (i) the wait time to first action, (ii) the total number of office actions, (iii) the allowance rate with no office actions, and (iv) the overall grant rate. These statistics, combined with the absence of a government fee for participating in the PPH program, mean that using the PPH program in Canada can be exceptionally fast and cost-effective.
Entry into the PPH program is based on a favourable examination outcome of a foreign application such a national work product indicating allowance ("PPH application") or a Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) work product with a positive International Report on Patentability ("PCT-PPH application"). When requesting entry into the PPH program, the claims of the Canadian patent application must be of the same or narrower scope than those on which the PPH request is based or must be amended to be so.
The list of foreign patent offices whose work products can form the basis of a PPH entry request is a long one and includes the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the European Patent Office, the Japanese Patent Office, the Korean Intellectual Property Office, and the State Intellectual Property Office of the People's Republic of China. A complete list can be found here along with specific requirements for participation in the PPH program.
Time from PPH request to first action. For all PPH and PCT-PPH applications that had a first action (either an office action or a notice of allowance) issued in the first quarter of 2017, CIPO issued the first action on average about 4 weeks after a PPH request was made for PPH applications and about 5 weeks after a PPH request was made for PCT-PPH applications. By contrast, for all non-PPH applications that had a first action issued during the same time period, the average time to issue a first action after a request for examination was much longer at over 11 months. Thus, using the PPH program can eliminate most of the delay before a first action is issued.
Time from PPH request to final decision. For all PPH and PCT-PPH applications having a final decision in the first quarter of 2017, the average pendency from a PPH request to final decision was less than six months for PPH applications and about eight months for PCT-PPH applications. The average pendency for non-PPH applications having a final decision during the same time period, by contrast, was much longer at over 30 months. Thus, using the PPH program tends to reduce overall examination time.
Average number of office actions. For all PPH and PCT-PPH applications that were allowed in the first quarter of 2017, the average number of office actions was only 0.9 for PPH applications and 1.2 for PCT-PPH applications. By contrast, 1.7 office actions were typical for non-PPH applications that were allowed during the same time period. This represents significant cost savings to applicants in terms of the dollars spent prosecuting an application.
Allowance rate without office action. Consistent with the tendency to reduce the number of office actions received, for all PPH and PCT-PPH applications that were allowed in the first quarter of 2017, 37% of PPH applications and 23% of PCT-PPH applications did not have any office actions at all. By comparison, only 3.9% of non-PPH applications that were allowed during the same time period did not have any office actions issued.
Grant rate. When comparing applications that were either granted or permanently abandoned in the first quarter of 2017, grant rates are significantly higher for PPH applications (89%) and PCT-PPH applications (88%) compared to non-PPH applications (70%).
In summary, applicants who use the PPH program can benefit by saving time, cost and effort. Smart & Biggar has extensive experience using the PPH program to accelerate examination in Canada and achieve cost benefits for our clients.
To learn more about how your organization or your clients can participate in the PPH program in Canada, please contact a member of our Patent Group.