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Home News Thailand, RI refuse reconciliation
Thailand, RI refuse reconciliation
Both Thailand and Indonesia have made the transition to more progressive forms of government.
In the former, the concept of democracy has repeatedly been tested. Even though several prime ministers have been elected constitutionally since the 1980s, military coups and strong grassroots protests against governments remain.
On the other hand, Indonesia has undertaken tremendous efforts to reform its political system. Since the collapse of long-time ruler Soeharto in 1998, Indonesia has become an example of a modern democracy among other developing countries. Additionally, the two countries differ in their treatment of long-ruling leaders.
Interestingly, though he faced public anger at times, former president Soeharto was able to head back to his beloved house in Cendana peacefully after handing over the presidency to his successor.
In sharp contrast, Thailand's former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra has been in exile since a military coup toppled him in 2006.
However, both countries face deep grievances after an era of corrupt governments. Thaksin has been creating divisions by splitting the country into two camps, namely his proponents, the "Red Shirts" and his opponents, the "Yellow Shirts".
Following Indonesia's Soeharto, we still see the demarcation between the victims of gross violations of human rights and alleged perpetrators of those violations.
Further, these cases show how democratic governments deal with national reconciliation.
Reconciliation depends on the capacity of elected governments to establish or restore democratic relationships.
This is critical to the pursuit of domestic peacemaking. In pursuing reconciliation, the value of justice has to be upheld together with national stability.
To achieve this, two important steps can be undertaken, namely proposing a genuine apology and enforcing a legal prosecution.
In the case of Thailand, Thaksin's sister and current Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has failed to build national reconciliation by issuing an apology, as she promised in her first address as prime minister.
The Yingluck administration showed no political will to prosecute those responsible for the 2010 crisis that brought Thailand to a severe political standoff. A bloody crisis in 2010, in which 98 people died, was initially expected to be a turning point for her government to achieve national reconciliation.
Yet no one from the military or the previous government has been held accountable for the violent suppression of the protests. While the Yingluck administration has provided monetary compensation to the affected families, it has given no official apology.
Meanwhile, of the 1,019 protesters arrested during the crackdown, 20 still remain in prison (World Politics Review, 2013).
This situation has been aggravated by the government's arrangement to "protect" the military by granting them a major role in security matters without exercising much oversight, including of its annual budget allocation.
Meanwhile, the intention of Yingluck administration's to reconcile Thailand by granting amnesty instead triggered political opposition, mainly from the elite and educated who had long been seen as initiators of local protests against the Thaksin-backed government since 2006.
They view Yinluck as similar to her brother, who governed amid corruption and constrained citizens' freedom.
In the Indonesian case, reconciliation is also easier said than done. Since the end of Soeharto's government, Indonesia has failed to achieve reconciliation at the national level.
There has been no genuine apology from the current government for the shocking abuses of human rights, particularly during the Soeharto period.
One report completed by the state's National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) is in regard to the 1965 massacre. Its recommendation that the government issue an apology has been ignored, and there has been no further investigation by the government.
In terms of pursuing legal prosecution, neither Thailand or Indonesia have shown a strong political will to consistently enforce laws. A number of initiatives since the end of Soeharto's rule to deal with human rights violations included a law on truth and reconciliation — but it has been annulled.
In this regard, the two countries have aims to "protect" particular groups, such as the military, with long records of impunity.
In Papua's case for instance, no apology has been offered by the Indonesian government for the state's exploitation and intimidation of Papuans since they became part of Indonesia.
Ironically, instead of declaring a genuine apology and enforcing legal prosecution, the current government has initiated giving national hero status to Sarwo Edhie Wibowo, a former Special Forces commander and also father-in-law of current President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. Sarwo Edhie was considered responsible for ordering the death of thousands of Indonesians in 1965. This fact amplifies the assumption that impunity in Indonesia has become embedded in the nation's political culture.
Both countries have refused to seek national reconciliation. If Thailand has been facing a prolonged crisis due to the absence of a genuine apology and legal prosecution, Indonesia also has long-term grievances that could turn unexpectedly into social conflicts.
These two countries will not be able to build a strong transition if reconciliation remains absent, particularly at the national level.
SOURCE www.thejakartapost.com
Elections / Democracy
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Assuming he's confirmed by the Senate, Jerome ("Jay") Powell will become the 16th chairman of the Federal Reserve Board in early 2018. Almost by definition, he instantly becomes the most important economic policy-maker in the world. But who is he? Outside economic circles, hardly anyone knows.
"Setting monetary policy [interest rates and credit conditions] in most economic environments is pretty straightforward, and I don't think a Ph.D. from an Ivy League school is needed," says economist Mark Zandi of Moody's Analytics, who has a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania.
The Fed's immediate focus is how to sustain the economic recovery without having low interest rates fuel inflation or financial speculation. To defeat this problem, the Fed has been gradually raising overnight interest rates since late 2015. Rates have gone from about zero to their current range of 1 percent to 1.25 percent. In addition, the Fed is reducing its massive holdings of bonds. This, too, would nudge rates higher.
So far, the transition to higher interest rates -- presided over by Janet Yellen, the Fed's present chair -- has gone smoothly. Powell has consistently backed Yellen, suggesting much continuity.
Binder and Spindel suggest a political cycle: When the economy is doing well, Congress ignores the Fed; when the economy stumbles, it tends to blame the Fed -- and restrict its powers or require more accountability. Powell has pronounced himself against many recent proposed restrictions (for example, a requirement that the Fed set interest rates according to a formula).


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Ten artists who've made me want to play music (& blow a few paychecks over it).
Music makes me feel. Whether I'm playing on a crappy day or a great day, or putting in a CD and just letting a fantastic album wash over me, well… music's always been there. It's not surprising to me that I would just go nuts wanting to learn some of my favorite tunes and figure how my fave artists learned their crafts.
Over the course of my life, these artists have come and gone depending on mood and familiarity, but I've gone back to them more times than I can count, looking for inspiration or just that one thing that makes me feel better.
And I'm talking individual artists, even if they're part of bands, because the bands list would just go too far. The composers list would take even longer, so none of those are on this list, either.
So, in the loosest possible order with only an hour to think about it (because that would take weeks to narrow down and solidify otherwise):
#10–Ella Fitzgerald
I have to say, I adore this woman. I'll try to sing along to her and that bit of bravado's made me want to maybe take voice lessons some day. Never sung in public (barely ever outside of my car, either), but I'd love to learn how if I had just a fraction of her talent.
I've loved her music to the point where hers is probably the only Christmas album I'll put on without grumbling or getting annoyed with it. I got into jazz in my late teens, and the selections on the Ken Burns Jazz: Ella Fitzgerald album surprised me. I think she's the lady I listen to most often and will try to sing to. Her version of "Night and Day" is just wonderful, and I can't help trying to sing along.
Playful and powerful in turns. I love her. And odd as it is, I think her duets with Louis Armstrong are some of the best duets ever done (dunno why, the incredible difference in their voices is just fun to listen to).
#9–Cat Stevens (Yusuf today)
I grew up listening to him probably more than anyone else. My dad had his albums backed up onto his reel-to-reel (and got cassette tapes to put on in the car during road trips all the time). I think it was the softness of his playing, the fun simplicity, like a child of nature given instruments and told to go freaking play and don't come back til dinnertime.
I was more than happy to find a giant Cat Stevens songbook for guitar and threw it in my online cart before I could change my mind. I just remember humming and tapping my foot to those tunes, and I wanted to have a carefree, musical existence where I could write songs or poetry. He's probably the first person whose songwriting I paid any attention to, and made me think more about it.
#8–Dolores O'Riordan
I cried the day she died. She'd been in and out of my life for many years through the radio speakers, one of those artists I would go back to as The Cranberries put out a new album. I was in 6th grade when I heard "Zombie" for the first time, and I was bowled over by the power in her voice, the raw energy and anger in the lyrics. And then to hear other songs with her softness and strength, the speed she could sing, too, just made me wonder about the art of songwriting and singing.
I just thought that voice was amazing, and when life was really crappy and I wanted to be angry and just let it out, listening to her sing "Zombie" was so damned cathartic.
#7–Dave Brubeck
He made me want to play piano. I have pretty much every Ken Burns' Jazz album there is, and his was the first I'd listen to on repeat. I just loved his playing on the piano, and I don't just mean the very famous and obvious "Take Five." He made me really consider what I knew about jazz (very little) and made me want to investigate more. I was classic rock and alternative all the way through til my late teens (with a sprinkling of R&B), and then Dave Brubeck made me want to hear more jazz and piano.
And made me want to learn piano for real.
#6–Tom Petty
Definitely one of my faves, even though it took forever for me to buy an album or two. He was always on the periphery, but when I let myself think about Tom Petty and his music, I just remembered feeling good listening to it. And the guitar–it's not insane or out of reach, or at least doesn't feel like it. He was a fantastic artist and guitar player, and I thought his voice was fun to listen to, just right for the music.
He's a good "bad day" musician when you're just trying to get through the day and enjoy a few things. Some days I could listen to his albums over and over again, and I was itching to learn how to play guitar because of him.
#5–Yoko Kanno
Someone who helped introduce me to music beyond the U.S. I swear, Japanese jazz was some of the best shit in the late 1990s, and with The Seatbelts, they created the Cowboy Bebop sound. I've heard other works she's been part of (largely as a composer), other anime films, but the four disk album with all the bits of Cowboy Bebop available is one of the first I listened to and actually wore out, then had to buy again.
I'm itching to find any sheet music attached to her (and I'll have to save up). She really opened my eyes beyond American music, and made me want to listen to far more things I'd never tried. And she also made me dream about making my own music, or writing films scores, rather like #4 on this list–
#4–Vangelis
Okay, this might be a slight cheat because he's technically a composer, but considering he plays every instrument (electronically, of course), it fits to call him a playing artist.
Vangelis was the first one who made me want to create music. My dad got an album of themes he'd made for different films (I still have it), and I wondered how the hell one guy who couldn't even read music could make so much beautiful music for films. I wanted to learn how to be a composer badly because of him, and itched to learn as much about music as I could.
I'm still learning, and wanting to hear more and do more led me to signing up for music masterclasses, and getting instruments to help me along. The electronic music aspect will have to wait, but I'm eager to learn what I can when I can, thanks to the awesome, wildly-different themes he'd come up with in his career.
#3–Chester Bennington
Linkin Park blew me away when I first heard them, and then they were everywhere and I guess we got complacent. What hit me most was his rawness, his ability to lay himself bare and show what he was going through for better or worse. I was very upset when he died, and probably listened to every album with his stuff on it all that week.
It's his range, his heart, and his songwriting ability. You can feel him, and I loved his voice so much. It let me feel when times were rough, and I wanted to feel when in the midst of my own depression. Listening to him reminded me that I wanted to make poetry and music someday, and why not today, dammit, because tomorrow may never come.
#2–Nancy Wilson
I was 14 when I first saw Heart on Behind the Music (back when VH1 was good). I knew there were women in the band, two sisters (obviously, Ann's singing was unmistakable), but it never occurred to me that women could play guitar as bad-ass as the guys could (if not more so). Well, I saw her just whaling on that acoustic during "Crazy on You" and my jaw hit the floor. I couldn't believe a woman could play like that.
And that prompted me to ask dad for a guitar for my birthday. She's the first reason I wanted to pick up a guitar and learn how to play, and be a songwriter. I was so moved seeing her kick ass on that lovely instrument, and keep doing it over the years.
Sadly, I didn't keep it up because I didn't have anything but exercise books to play that first year and change, then my car broke down and I had to pawn the guitar to pay for repairs. But when I got really thinking about it, and my earlier dreams of playing, Nancy Wilson and my #1 were the main reasons I bought my acoustic electric.
#1–David Gilmour
He's the reason I bought my first Stratocaster, because when I was looking for an electric as my second guitar, someone told me "find the guitarist you'd most love to play like and find out what they play, because then you'll stick with it."
Well, that would be David Gilmour. And then I got other guitars to experiment with and never looked back.
He's the reason I've wanted to pick up electric guitar and learn how to do all the awesome stuff he and all my favorite rock and rollers could do. I am just amazed by what he can do with a Stratocaster and any other instrument he touches. Watching him do slide guitar for "One of These Days" made me want to learn that. Watching him with his acoustic on "Wish You Were Here" made me want to learn that. And the more I listen to his part (and yes, every Pink Floyd album ever on repeat), the more I just love music and want to play, play, play.
David Gilmour is fantastic, and I can't get over his playing after all these years. He hasn't lost his touch, and just listening to that guitar makes me have a great day.
Posted in: The Limelight: stumbling into the performing arts | Tagged: artists, Cat Stevens, Chester Bennington, Dave Brubeck, David Gilmour, Dolores O'Riordan, Ella Fitzgerald, favorites, feeling, feelings, music, musicians, Nancy Wilson, playing, soul, Tom Petty, top 10, Vangelis, Yoko Kanno
Q#123: Why do many Democratic voters (seem to) think that only an "old white guy" can beat D.T.?
This is the first morning in a long time where I'm excited to get up & start my day… weird.
Penny for your thoughts? We'll listen... Cancel reply

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Warrior cats movie poster
Warriors is a series of novels based around the adventures and drama of feral cats living in 4 clans, later to be 5. The series takes place in the fictional location White Hart Woods, and halfway though the second series, around Sanctuary Lake. The series was published by HarperCollins and written by authors Kate Cary, Cherith Baldry, and Tui T. Sutherland, with the plot developed by editor Victoria Holmes under the collective pseudonym Erin Hunter. The series follows the adventures of six groups of cats, called Clans — ThunderClan, WindClan, RiverClan, ShadowClan, SkyClan, and StarClan — in their forest and lake territories.
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Major Issues: First appearance of Wally West
By Dallas Jackson - September 6, 2017 01:03 am EDT
Hundreds of comic book characters are being portrayed in film and television, and with each new day more are being announced.
Major Issues -- a ComicBook.com original video series -- will speak to true comic book hobbyists as well as new fans in a short, fast-paced digital series featuring the first appearances of characters we all love. Each episode will feature the actual comic book, info on the creators, and the backstory on the creation and legacy of the character.
Beginning with this episode of the show, our users will be able to win the actual issue used in the filming!
The first is our look at the introduction of (the second) Wally West.
The description of this Flashpoint character is pretty interesting, according to his ComicBookDB.com page he is the nephew of Iris West and was arrested for painting anti-Flash graffiti over Keystone City walls.
This version of Wally West made his first appearance in The Flash Annual 03 (2011). The New 52 product was 48-pages and cost its readers $4.99. It is available on the DCComics.com page for the same price.


The online travel agent hopes to boost business at home and appeal to a European market ripe for growth.
The price may be right to invest in online travel agent Priceline.com, known for its "Name Your Own Price" booking system. Citigroup analyst Mark Mahaney upgraded the stock (symbol PCLN) on May 17 to "buy" from "hold" on the premise that Wall Street misinterpreted the company's first-quarter results. Priceline's shares rose 6% following the upgrade, and closed at $60.78. Mahaney thinks the shares are worth $69.
The Norwalk, Conn., company's stock has plunged 10% since it posted its first-quarter results on May 8. The results included a first-quarter loss that widened to $16.3 million, or 44 cents a share, from $964,000, or 2 cents a share, in the first quarter of 2006. These numbers are misleading, however, because the loss stemmed from a $55 charge relating to settlement of a lawsuit. Excluding the charge and other benefits and expenses, Priceline turned out a profit of 43 cents a share. That's a dime more than analysts were expecting, according to Thomson Financial.
Revenue during the first quarter rose 25%, to $301.4 million, from the year-ago quarter. Not accounting for a $15.9 million gain from an IRS refund, Priceline's revenue rose 18%, to $285.5 million. The company also reported that its gross travel bookings -- the total value of all travel products and services, including fees and taxes -- rose 91% in Europe. Meanwhile, the company's domestic gross travel bookings grew 8%.
The sell-off in the stock "represents a misread of Priceline's strategy," Mahaney wrote in a note to clients. "Simply put, Priceline's strategy is to aggressively grow its early-stage European business and to profitably mine its more mature U.S. business."
Along with rival Expedia, Priceline has been expanding in Europe, where only 22% of all leisure travel was booked online last year (versus 50% in the U.S.). Citigroup expects the European online travel market to grow nearly 25% through 2008. Europe is also ripe for continued growth in Web-based bookings, considering that independent hotels far outweigh chains. "Given the relative characteristics of the two online markets -- Europe is less penetrated, faster growing, and more fragmented -- a U.S. profit/European growth strategy is right," writes Mahaney.
Europe now accounts for half of Priceline's bookings, versus about 20% for Expedia. "While growth [in Europe] may slow, it will still be very robust," says Mahaney. He thinks Priceline's shares are attractively valued, given Priceline's own estimate of 43% to 53% earnings growth in 2007. The stock trades at 19 times the $3.06 per share that analysts expect the company to earn this year.


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Q: Elastic Search server searching remain continious while indexing the data into it How to serve search or query operation uninterrupted from a elastic server while we index/re-index the data into that particular elastic search server at the same time.

A: You need to look at using aliases:
https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/elasticsearch/guide/current/index-aliases.html
Essentially you create new index with a unique name, and swap the alias out with the old index, in one atomic step

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Q: Trying to retrieve xml data from a website through excel I am writing an excel spreadsheet for use with a game called Eve Online. My spreadsheet needs to automatically retrieve data through a data provider website called eve-marketdata.com. On the developer page of eve-marketdata: http://eve-marketdata.com/developers/item_history2.php it gives some instructions on how to request data by sending a 'post' request through http.
For instance: The url used for a market history request would be: http://api.eve-marketdata.com/api/item_history2.xml?char_name=venoushka patel then, lets say I want to retrieve 45 days of data for item id 34, from region 10000002. I would put at the end of the url: item_id=34, days=45 and region_ids=10000002 each separated by the & symbol for a finished product of: api.eve-marketdata.com/api/item_history2.xml?char_name=venoushka patel&type_ids=34&region_ids=10000002&days=45  (removed the http:// due to posting regulations on this site)
So, I need certain cells to use the info in the spreadsheet such as item ids, region ids, etc, to parse together the appropriate url, submit the url to the site and then grab only the info that I am looking for and place it into a cell. This is currently much easier on google docs instead of excel because of their 'importxml' feature utilizing xpath. However, google docs limit the number of xml calls to 50 per spreadsheet and my spreadsheet is going to have a few thousand, so I HAVE to use excel.
And no, I am not going to use the 'import from web' or 'map xml' to cells features in excel because I have thousands of these to do in a spreadsheet, not time or resource efficient.
I've been told that this can be done using the following vba code:
Set objHTTP = CreateObject("MSXML2.ServerXMLHTTP")
URL = "http://www.somedomain.com"
objHTTP.Open "POST", URL, False
objHTTP.setRequestHeader "User-Agent", "Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.0)"
objHTTP.send ("")

The problem is, although i'm very good at programing excel spreadsheets, I have never used VBA before. I know how to open the visual basic editor but that is about it. First off:
How would I paste this into the vba editor and then call upon it in my workbook? I believe I would have to put something like function () at the beginning and end function at the end, right?
How would I call upon this function in my worksheet to do what I need it to do?
Could someone explain what the above code does, and how I need to modify it to perform my task?
In advance, I REALLY APPRECIATE any help received on this and there is a huge part of the community (thousands out there) that need a way to do this as well!

A: You wouldn't do it quite like that. Firstly, the request is GET and not POST, so that changes things. You can use something like the below:
    Function ImportData(sUrl As String) As Variant
        Dim oDoc As Object
        Dim oAttr As Object
        Dim oRow As Object
        Dim x As Long: x = 1
        Dim y As Long: y = 1
        Dim vData() As Variant

        Set oDoc = CreateObject("MSXML2.DOMDocument")
        With oDoc
            .Load sUrl
            Do: DoEvents: Loop Until .readystate = 4
            ReDim vData(1 To .getElementsByTagName("row").Length, 1 To 8)
            For Each oRow In .getElementsByTagName("row")
                For Each oAttr In oRow.Attributes
                    vData(x, y) = oAttr.Text
                    y = y + 1
                Next oAttr
                y = 1
                x = x + 1
            Next oRow
        End With

        ImportData = vData

    End Function

    Public Sub Test()
        Dim g
        'g = ImportData("http://api.eve-marketdata.com/api/item_history2.xml?char_name=venoushka%20patel&type_ids=34&region_ids=10000002&days=45")
        'or
        g = ImportData(Sheets(1).range("a1").Value)
        Sheets(1).Cells(2, 1).Resize(UBound(g), UBound(g, 2)).Value = g
    End Sub

You can test it by putting it in a normal module then running the macro Test you can see where you'd put your url. I have to admit though, you might be up for a steep learning curve with this one, it's not going to be the easiest project to cut your VBA teeth on


A lot of my advice has focused on how not to get ripped off when buying a car, but I also get asked from time to time what advice I have for individuals who are selling a used car to another... This step-by-step selling guide outlines what you need to do to sell your car, and the strategies that could help you get a great price for your pre-loved vehicle. Ways to sell your car There are four ways to sell a used car.
I brought the car into the dealership this morning, the dealer signed and I signed the REGO, he did an electronic Fund Transfer for me and gave me a receipt (screenshot of the bank page and said the money has been paid into my account). gundam g generation overworld how to sell all units 21/11/2010 · The last 2 cars i bought privately have both had homemade receipts If all goes to plan i will have sold my car tomorrow.. Will it be wise to make one of these "sold as seen" receipts?
Selling an old car or truck privately doesn't have to be complicated. With a little research and organization, you can simplify the process and get the most profit possible. With a little research and organization, you can simplify the process and get the most profit possible.
This step-by-step selling guide outlines what you need to do to sell your car, and the strategies that could help you get a great price for your pre-loved vehicle. Ways to sell your car There are four ways to sell a used car.


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Tbilisi Railway Bypass Bypasses Landowner's Rights
Tbilisi Railway Bypass project that is implemented by the state owned Georgian Railway Ltd, is accused of illegal expropriation of lands and intimidation of landowners in the frames of resettlement plan. Georgian Railway swears it is not guilty.
The fourth phase of expropriation of lands within the framework of the resettlement plan of Tbilisi Railway Bypass Project, which is tentatively estimated at EUR 300 million reportedly started about a fortnight ago, Zakaria Kutsnashvili, Head of non-governmental organization Law for People, informed
Georgian Journal. Kutsnashvili protects interests of about 100 landowners whose rights of ownership were violated by the resettlement plan of Georgian Railway (GR). According to him, rights of more than 860 proprietors have been violated by the resettlement plan that stretches from one end of the capital to the other along 27 kilometers. GR had been offering much lower than market price to landowners and forcing reluctant landowners to sign transaction through intimidation methods.
GR undertook the bypass project to discharge the city of environmentally-related problems and noise as well as make railway transportation more comfortable. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) co-finances the project by EUR 100 million and European Neighborhood Investment Fund (ENIF) donates EUR 8.5 million worth technical assistance and grants. However the strong provision for funding is compliance of resettlement plan with the EBRD's environmental and social requirements based on international standards. These standards first of all include disbursement of fairly calculated compensations to the affected landowners.
But proprietors affected by the resettlement process claim GR underestimated market prices for the negotiated lands, and as far as it has a right of expropriation implements illegal expropriation in fact thanks to the state and court support. According to Kutsnashvili, GR undertook policy of intimidation before the court empowered it by expropriation right and forced 630 victims to sign so called "volunteer" land hand-over transactions and started land-acquisition based on this allegedly legal paper-work in four phases since February of 2011 up to date. The second phase was in March-April, the third phase in this past June and the fourth phase launched just recently. About 17 people contacted Kutsnashvili and claimed on the illegal expropriation.
"The violation methods did not change however. If municipality sells lands for GEL 20 per square meter GR offers just GEL 6 in lands of the similar market value. There are several co-owners in some cases but GR pays compensation only to one. Moreover, the major part [90%] of the questioned lands are agriculture and railway track dissects many of them in two-three parts that makes them useless for farming and gardening. According to Georgian law, GR must pay 100% of compensation for all sections of the dissected land plot but it pays only for one and even this one is underpaid. GR calls people to the police stations and forces them to sign a transaction that violates their property rights, but most people fear and sign that diminishes number of protesting victims officially but it never means that they stroke fair transactions." Kutsnashvili said.
On the other hand government upholds the GR to get through with the illegal expropriation process as soon as possible. The court is responsible to grant expropriation right to any state body according to Georgian law. But the state body has a right to appeal to court only after it gets a status of expropriator from the minister of economy. However, GR had a shorter route to this end. Vera Kobalia, minister of economy of Georgia, in her order issued in this past June directly granted the GR with the expropriation right thus encroaching on the court's competence.
To find a fair treatment part of the offended proprietors appealed to the EBRD for help. The EBRD sent an independent audit to check whether land acquisition, compensation and resettlement activities carried out by GR comply with EBRD requirements.
"This audit has led to a number of recommendations and questions to GR. We are currently expecting GR's final response on these questions and implementation of recommendations contained in the audit report," The EBRD commented to GJ. The Bank did not disclose details of questions and recommendations however under the pretext that the audit was undertaken as part of the project implementation and is an internal tool that the EBRD used in response to some complaints which came from members of the public.
"The audit's findings are not planned for public disclosure at this time, but they will be used to find a solution acceptable to all parties," The EBRD source said.
According to Nina Phkhakadze, Head of Legal department at GR, the resettlement plan that is one of the preconditions to get the EBRD funding is already through and GR may appeal to the EBRD for the loan transfer any time. She assures that "the EBRD independent audit did not discover any serious infringement and that the compensations were disbursed in full compliance with the Georgian law as well as the EBRD's environmental, social policy and resettlement requirements."
The EBRD meantime accentuated that "the EBRD to date did not disburse any part of the loan. Per the loan agreement such disbursements are conditional to satisfactory resolution of land acquisition issues, amongst other conditions."


The Dorothy Nolan Senior Center is hosting a fundraiser on Friday, September 14th at the center located at 330 N. Pinal Street. Biscuits and gravy for $2 are offered from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. while chili cheese dogs go on sale for $5 from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Proceeds will be used to fund home improvement projects for senior citizens in need. The center is also looking for volunteers to donate their skills and efforts toward this project. Call (520) 868-7622 for more information.


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How Quiet Is This Lawn Mower?
Rhett Allain
I'm not really a product review kind of blogger (maybe you already know that). However, when I got an email asking if I wanted to review a quiet lawn mower I said "yes." Why this product? Well, I thought to myself "they won't really ship me a lawn mower, will they?" They did. That's fine because I like to challenge myself with new things.
Image: Rhett Allain
Just to be clear, this is the Craftsman Quiet Front Wheel Drive Mower. The nice people at Craftsman provided the lawn mower for me to test. In this post, I am just going to look at the sound levels for this lawn mower.
What Is the Sound Level?
Maybe I should first look at sound. Sound is a compression wave in air. Usually, this is produced by some oscillating source that compresses the air. This compression in the air then travels outward. A larger compression would produce a greater pressure in the compression of the wave. This pressure is a measure of the "strength" of the audio signal and it has the typical units of pressure of Newtons per square meter.
Humans (like you - unless you are a robot) do not directly measure the pressure levels for sound. If we (I am also human) did measure the pressure, you could double the sound source and that would double the audio strength level. This is actually a problem because we humans want to be able to hear both very quiet things and very loud things. The only way to do this is to have some type of logarithmic hearing scale. And so we do, it's call the sound intensity in Decibels.
If I know the pressure of some sound wave (P), I can find the Decibel level like this (I will call the sound intensity in Decibels as just I):
Here, the P0 is the threshold of hearing at 2 x 10-5 N/m2. How about a quick example. Suppose that there is a quiet 10 year old child (yes, this is just a hypothetical example) that produces a sound wave with a pressure of 0.014 N/m2. How loud would this child sound?
Now suppose there are TWO quiet children that produce identical sounds. What would happen to the sound level? The pressure wave would be twice as much. If I put in a pressure of 0.028 N/m2, I get a sound level of 63 dB. So doubling the sound source does NOT double the sound level.
Actual Lawn Mower Data
But what about the lawn mower? Is it quiet? Well, here is the test that I will perform. I will use a sound level meter to measure the sound level at different distances from a typical mower and the Craftsman Quiet mower. It's that simple.
How do you measure the sound level in Decibels? The easiest way is to use a sound level meter. Here is the one that I used.
There are several sound level apps for the iPhone. I played with them, but I'm not sure how accurate they are. In fact, I'm not sure this meter is accurate. However, since I'm looking at a comparison for sound levels it should work fine.
For the data, I will collect the sound level starting at 1 meter from the center of the engine. I put the sound level meter on a tripod so that it was about 1.4 meters above the ground (near human ear level). Oh, I also recorded the background sound level with the mower off. Finally, I repeated these measurements for moving away from the front, rear and both sides of the mower. Here is the data.
I didn't include the background noise in the plot because it was boring. It varied between about 55 and 60 dB and made it harder to see the lawn mower data. I also measured data from the left and right sides of both mowers - but they weren't that interesting either.
Is the Craftsman Quieter?
Yes. Just look at the plot of the data. At every distance, it is 1 to 2 dB quieter. Is that a big deal? Let's just do a similar calculation for the sound level of the 10 year old kid. What if I had two of the Craftsman mowers both running side by side. What sound level would this be?
First, I need to find the sound pressure for one mower. Let me say that the sound level for the Craftsman at a distance of 1 meter is 88 dB. I can then solve for the pressure level at this same point:
With a sound level of 88 dB and a threshold of hear at 2 x 10-5 N/m2 this gives pressure level of 0.5 N/m2. With two lawn mowers, the pressure would be twice as much at about 1 N/m2.
Just for comparison, the Toro mower at 1 meter has a pressure level of 0.63 N/m2. That might not seem like much of a difference, but it is a 26% increase in pressure levels.
So, 1.5 dB doesn't sound (pun) like a major improvement. However, a reduction of 1.5 dB at 90 dB is more significant than the same decrease at 60 dB. This is because the dB sound level scale is not linear. Maybe this plot will help. Here is a plot of sound level (in dB) vs pressure level.
Look at the pressure difference going from 70 dB to 71 dB, it's just an increase of about 0.0077 N/m2. An increase from 96 to 97 dB is a pressure increase of 0.199 N/m2. Get it?
Yes. This mower is quieter. In fact, a 1.5 dB difference is quite noticeable. Check out this nice graph at HyperPhysics that shows the Difference Threshold in hearing. Basically, at 90 dB even a 0.5 dB difference is noticeable.
What About a Weed Eater?
My weed eater is way too loud. I didn't have a good way to put it in the proper position and measure the sound level so this it's just sitting on the ground with the sound level meter still at 1.4 meters above the ground.
You have to be 5 meters away from this monster in order for it to be the same sound level as the Craftsman at a distance of 1 meter. Really, I suspect that more lawn mowers are like this weed eater with a much higher sound level than the Toro. The Toro is probably on the quiet end for typical mowers. Maybe I should go borrow my neighbor's noisy mower.
There are many things to explore. The thing that I thought about first was the decrease in sound level as a function of distance. If a lawn mower created spherically symmetric sound waves, the pressure levels should decrease as 1 over distance squared. However, the sound level vs. distance looks fairly linear. Should it be this way? Make a plot of both pressure level and sound level vs. distance for a spherical sound source (it could be a spherical mooing cow).
What about these iPhone sound level apps? Do they measure sound levels accurately?
What about the human factor? Take some random humans and make a blind hearing test. Don't let them see the mower and ask them which one is louder. I am almost positive they will say the Craftsman is quieter. However, it would be interesting to make other comparisons. How far away would a Toro have to be in order for a human to pick the Toro as quieter?
Can you measure the sound level with a microphone? I suspect that you can, but I didn't check.
How many Craftsman quiet mowers would I need running together so that they have the same sound level at a distance of 1 meter as the noisy weed eater? How many quiet 10 year olds would be the same as a Craftsman mower?
Rhett Allain is an associate professor of physics at Southeastern Louisiana University. He enjoys teaching and talking about physics. Sometimes he takes things apart and can't put them back together.
TopicsmeasurementsSounds


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Stephen King's FIRESTARTER Starts Production & There's Some Fiery Footage From the Set
Stephen King's FIRESTARTER Starts Production & There's Some Fiery Footage From the Set
Stephen King's classic novel Firestarter is being adapted into a film for a second time, with production is underway. The movie is being directed by Keith Thomas from a script by Scott Teems and some burning behind-the-scenes footage has been released by Blumhouse.
King's original story follows a young girl named Charlie McGee who develops pyrokinetic abilities and is abducted by a secret government agency called the Department of Scientific Intelligence, aka "The Shop." They want to harness her powerful gift as a weapon.
Here's the description of the novel:
Andy McGee and Vicky Tomlinson were once college students looking to make some extra cash, volunteering as test subjects for an experiment orchestrated by the clandestine government organization known as The Shop. But the outcome unlocked exceptional latent psychic talents for the two of them—manifesting in even more terrifying ways when they fell in love and had a child. Their daughter, Charlie, has been gifted with the most extraordinary and uncontrollable power ever seen—pyrokinesis, the ability to create fire with her mind. Now the merciless agents of The Shop are in hot pursuit to apprehend this unexpected genetic anomaly for their own diabolical ends by any means necessary…including violent actions that may well ignite the entire world around them as Charlie retaliates with a fury of her own….
Zac Efron has been cast as the girl's father, Andy McGee. Michael Greyeyes will play the villainous Rainbird, "a relentless powerful man who has been pushed into a violent life."
Take a look at the set video below:
Walking into the first day of production like…. #firestarter @jason_blum @ZacEfron @AkivaGoldsman @StephenKing @MichaelGreyeyes pic.twitter.com/bOtUWd4k56
— Blumhouse (@blumhouse) May 25, 2021
In this article:Blumhouse, Blumhouse Productions, Book, Entertainment, Entertainment news, FIlm, Firestarter, horror, horror movie, Keith Thomas, Michael Greyeyes, Movie, News, Novel, novel adaptation, Scott Teems, Stephen King, Zac Efron
Peach Momoko's Covers for HORIZON ZERO DAWN are Turning into Posters
Contemporized Gaston Leroux Musical 'Phantom' In Works From Scooter Braun & Anthony McCarten


Also known as honeycomb shades, these window coverings provide full protection from sunlight, are opaque from the street outside, and do an excellent job at keeping heat from getting into or out of the building.
Cellular shades are made of many hollow, synthetic tubes hanging in a curtain by a pair of tapes. The tubing comes in a range of sizes, not to mention materials, which affects the shades' flexibility and insulating properties. The simplest cellular shades consist of a single sheet of tubes, while others have two or even three layers stuck back to back. The mass of circular openings going up and down the sides of a two or three layered model is where the term "honeycomb shade" comes from.
The air pockets inside of the hollow tubes serve as insulation. In order to get in or out of your house, heat will need to be conducted through multiple layers of plastic and convect across the air inside each tube. Windowpanes are some of the biggest heat conductors in a building, with up to a third of unwanted warming and cooling happening through them. With heat-blocking cellular shades, your building will stay cooler when the outside heats up and warmer when it cools down, minimizing the workload for your electric air conditioning and heating units.
Cellular shades can be made to roll up around a spindle, collapse and flatten their tubes together into a compressed stack. Otherwise, in the case of single-layered cellular screens, or honeycomb made from finer tubes, they can be pulled into a tight zigzag of pleated curves just like a classic Roman shade. Depending on the closing structure you choose, you can also have the tubing covered on one or both sides with a thin, decorative fabric layer that lets you have whatever aesthetic you please.
If you think cellular shades are right for you, let us know and our team will be over pronto. Call today!


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Pławy  is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Oświęcim, within Oświęcim County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It lies approximately  west of Oświęcim and  west of the regional capital Kraków.

The village has a population of 350.

History
The village was first mentioned in 1272 as Francisci in a Latin document issued by Władysław of Opole which endowed the village of Rajsko, lying close to Pławy, to Herman Surnagel in order to resettle it under German law. The primordial name of the village Franciszowice evolved later into Pławy.

Politically it belonged then to the Duchy of Opole and Racibórz and the Castellany of Oświęcim, which was in 1315 formed in the process of feudal fragmentation of Poland into the Duchy of Oświęcim, ruled by a local branch of Silesian Piast dynasty. In 1327 the duchy became a fee of the Kingdom of Bohemia. In 1457 Jan IV of Oświęcim agreed to sell the duchy to the Polish Crown, and in the accompanying document issued on 21 February the village was mentioned as Franczyschowicze.

The territory of the Duchy of Oświęcim was eventually incorporated directly into Poland in 1564 and formed the Silesian County in the Kraków Voivodeship in the Lesser Poland Province. Upon the First Partition of Poland in 1772 it was annexed by Austria, and made part of its newly formed Kingdom of Galicia. After World War I and the fall of Austria-Hungary it became again part of Poland, as the nation regained independence.

Following the joint German-Soviet invasion of Poland, which started World War II in September 1939, the village was occupied and annexed by Nazi Germany. In connection with the construction of the Auschwitz II-Birkenau death camp in nearby Brzezinka, in 1941, the occupiers expelled the entire Polish population of the village, which was initially deported to the nearby Pszczyna County, and afterwards either enslaved as forced labour or deported to the General Government in the more eastern part of German-occupied Poland. In 1944–1945, the Germans operated a subcamp of the Auschwitz concentration camp in the village. Hundreds of people, both men and women, incl. Jews, Poles and Russians, were subjected to forced labour in the subcamp. On January 18, 1945, the subcamp was evacuated during a death march to Wodzisław Śląski, and then the surviving prisoners were deported to Germany. After the war, the village was restored to Poland.

References

Villages in Oświęcim County

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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STUDY: E-cigarette flavours can increase risk of heart attack, stroke
By Tolulope Lawani
Though electronic cigarettes are preferred on the basis that they are not as carcinogenic as traditional cigarettes, a new study has revealed that flavours found in it can increase risks of stroke and heart disease.
According to researchers at Stanford University, flavoured "e-liquids" used in e-cigarettes, otherwise known as vapes, may damage the cells which line blood vessels, thus leading to cardiovascular disease.
For the study, the scientists tested six vape flavours, including fruit, tobacco flavours, cinnamon and menthol, on the cells which line blood vessels.
To understand the effects of these flavours on human cells, especially the arteries, the researchers removed the cells from the blood of patients and re-engineered it into cells which line the blood vessels.
To see how they might affect arteries, researchers took cells from the blood of patients and 'reprogrammed' them using chemicals in the lab into the cells which line blood vessels. This avoided painful surgery to remove the cells naturally.
After administering the flavours on the modified cells, the study found that flavoured e-liquids causes DNA damage, cell death and inflammation.
Published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology on Monday, May 27, findings of the study identified cinnamon and menthol flavours as having the highest harmful effects on cells, though these flavours do not even contain nicotine.
"Until now, we had no data about how these e-liquids affect human endothelial cells," said Joseph Wu, led-researcher for the study, of the Stanford University School of Medicine.
"This study clearly shows that e-cigarettes are not a safe alternative to traditional cigarettes. When we exposed the cells to six different flavors of e-liquid with varying levels of nicotine, we saw significant damage."
'The cells were less viable in culture, and they began to exhibit multiple symptoms of dysfunction."
On his part, Won Hee Lee, the study's co-lead, of the University of Arizona, said that e-cigarettes are deceptive.
"When you're smoking a traditional cigarette, you have a sense of how many cigarettes you're smoking," he said.
"But e-cigarettes can be deceptive. It's much easier to expose yourself to a much higher level of nicotine over a shorter time period.
"And now we know that e-cigarettes are likely to have other significantly toxic effects on vascular function as well."
"It's important for e-cigarette users to realise that these chemicals are circulating within their bodies and affecting their vascular health."
Findings of the research justify previous studies which stated that smokers of e-cigarettes are at a 70 per cent risk of stroke and heart attacks.
However, this new scientific enquiry is the first to specifically analyse the impact of e-liquids on cardiovascular cells.
Kit Harington, Game of Thrones star, admitted in rehab for stress, alcohol
Imade Adeleke, Davido's daughter, launches hair care line
Scientists discover potential treatment for Parkinson's disease
Study: Excessive coffee consumption increases cardiovascular disease risk
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Study: Testosterone may protect men from developing allergic asthma


Our Time in Rome has come to an end. We are already a little blue about leaving this city, but knowing that in a few hours we'll be on a hydrofoil crashing through the waves of Capri makes the goodbye a little more bearable. We were sure to shovel in some extra gelato for good measure. Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone!


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Investigation Continues in Co. Kildare Carjacking 19/02/19
Gardaí in Naas are appealing for witnesses following a carjacking incident in Kill, Co Kildare on 19/2/2019
Shortly before 7am a female motorist in her 40s was flagged down by a male pedestrian as she approached a roundabout on Bothar Philip near Kill. She spoke with the pedestrian who proceeded to threaten her at knife point before making off in her car, a Blue Hyundai Tucson. It's understood the car travelled in the direction of the N7 (northbound). The woman, although not physically harmed, was left badly shaken by the incident.
The car has yet to be recovered and no arrests have been made to date. Investigating Gardaí say the pedestrian was wearing a high-vis jacket when he approached the car and may have been involved in a single car collision on the Straffan road a short time earlier.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Naas Garda Station 045-884300 or the Garda Confidential Line 1800 666 111.
Gardai Appeal for Witnesses in Fatal Ballinasloe Crash, 1 Man Dead
Gardaí are investigating a single vehicle fatal road traffic collision that occurred on the Ballinasloe to Laurencetown Road, at Sycamore Hill at approximately 8.30pm on Tuesday evening, 19th February, 2019.
The sole occupant of the vehicle, male driver (70 years of age) was fatally injured when his car hit a wall. His body was removed from scene and taken to the morgue at University Hospital Galway where a post mortem will take place.
Gardaí are appealing for witnesses to this collision or persons who may have travelled the road around the time of the collision to contact Ballinasloe Garda Station on 090-9631890, The Garda Confidential telephone Line 1800 66 111 or any Garda Station.
Court Appearances Scheduled in Dublin and Wicklow Seizures
A 41 year old and a 37 year old male were scheduled to appear before Bray District Court this evening at 7.30pm charged in connection with the above seizure.
A 28 year old male who had been detained at Ballymun Garda Station in relation to the above is scheduled to appear before Court No 4, The Criminal Courts of Justice at 10.30am today (22/02/19) charged in relation to the seizure.
Previous story below refers.
As a result of an intelligence led operation targeting an organised criminal group operating in the Dublin and Wicklow areas, a planned operation was carried out by the Garda National Drugs & Organised Crime Bureau and local Gardaí.
A number of searches of residences were carried out in Enniskerry, Tallaght and Ballymun areas on the 20th February 2019. Cocaine and Cannabis herb with a street value of approximately €250,000 (pending analysis) and approximately €20,000 in cash was seized.
Three males aged 41, 37 and 28 years were arrested and are currently detained under Section 2 of the Drug Trafficking Act 1996 at Bray and Ballymun Garda stations.
MISSING: Warren Altman, 29, Last Seen in Cabinteely 20/02/19
Gardai wish to seek the public's assistance in tracing the whereabouts of 29 year old Warren Altman who is missing from Cabinteely since the evening of the 20/02/19.
Warren is described as being approximately 5' 10'' tall and of medium build. When last seen he was wearing navy coloured jeans, a red and grey check shirt with a white t- shirt underneath and navy coloured boots. He is believed to be driving a 02 D registered Silver VW Polo car.
His family are concerned for his welfare.
Anyone who has seen Warren or who can assist in locating him is asked to contact Dun Laoghaire Garda Station on 01 6665000 or any Garda Station.
UPDATE: Woman Found on Cork Roadside Identified
Gardaí in Macroom wish to thank the public and media for their assistance in identifying the woman from the incident at Annagannihy Bridge, Rylane, Macroom Wednesday 20th February, 2019.
This has been confirmed as a Sudden Death and a file will be prepared for the Coroners Court.
Gardaí in Macroom are seeking the public's assistance in relation to the discovery of a woman in her 70s who is seriously injured and was found on the side of the road at Annagannihy Bridge, Rylane, Macroom this morning Wednesday, 20th February, 2019 at approximately 6.40a.m.
This lady has been removed to Cork University Hospital and any persons who can assist Gardaí are asked to can contact Macroom Garda Station on 026 -20590 or any Garda Station.
MISSING: Elaine Sweeney, 16 – Last seen February 14th
Gardaí are seeking the public's assistance in tracing the whereabouts of Elaine Sweeney, 16 years, who is missing from Balbriggan area since the 14th February, 2019.
Elaine was last seen in Donabate on the morning of 14th February, 2019 at approximately 11am and she is described as being 5'5″, with brown hair, of slim build with blue eyes. Elaine was wearing a red top, blue jeans and white runners.
Anyone with information on her whereabouts are asked to contact Gardai in Balbriggan on 01 8020510, the Garda Confidential Line 1800 666 111, or any Garda Station.
MISSING: Susanna O'Malley, 24 – Family Concerned
Gardai wish to seek the publics assistance in tracing the whereabouts of 24 year old Susanna O'Malley.
Susanna was last seen at approximately 6am this morning (21/02/19) in Achill Sound, Co Mayo. Susanna is described as being 5' 3'' tall and with long dark brown hair. When last seen she was wearing a green woollen jumper, black leggings, grey jacket with a fur collar and black UGG boots.
Gardai and her family are concerned for her welfare.
Anyone who has seen Susanna or who can assist in locating her is asked to contact Westport Garda Station on 098 25555 or any Garda Station.
1 Woman Dead in Fatal Co. Kildare Traffic Collision
Gardaí in Naas, Co. Kildare are appealing for witnesses following a fatal traffic collision.
At approximately 11pm last night, Sunday 17th February 2019 Gardaí and emergency services were alerted to a single car crash at Rathangan Road, Allenwood South, Naas, Co Kildare.
The driver of the car a 52-year-old female (only occupant) was pronounced dead at the scene. The body of the deceased has been removed to the mortuary at Naas General Hospital where a post-mortem examination will be carried out today. The local Coroner has been notified.
Investigating Gardaí are appealing for witnesses. Anyone with information is asked to contact Naas Garda Station 045-884300 or the Garda Confidential Line 1800 666 111.
MISSING: Waterford Local Mary Ryan, 54
Gardai wish to seek the public's assistance in tracing the whereabouts of 54 year old Mary Ryan, who was last seen at Clonard Park, Waterford on 15th December, 2018.
Mary is described as being 5' 7'' in height, of slight build and with black hair. The photograph of Mary has blond hair, but it is now dyed black. It is not known what clothing Mary was wearing when last seen.
Anyone who has seen Mary or who can assist in locating her is asked to contact Waterford Garda Station on 051 305300, The Garda Confidential Telephone Line 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station.
No Update in Missing Tallaght Men Appeal
Gardaí are seeking the public's help tracing two missing men. The two, Noel Leeson (34 years of age) and Anthony Keegan (47 years of age), both from the Russell Square area in Tallaght, were last seen on the 3rd of February 2019.
It is believed that both men may have travelled to Birmingham in the United Kingdom and are possibly driving motor vehicle 05-D-46207, a black Audi A3.
Noel Leeson is described as 5'9 inches, of slim build with short brown hair. He has blue eyes and usually has stubble/beard and speaks with a Dublin accent. He has a distinctive scar on his neck.
Anthony Keegan is described as approximately 6ft tall, of slim build with short brown hair. He has brown eyes and usually has stubble/beard and speaks with a Dublin accent. He has a number of distinctive ink dots on his knuckles. When last seen, he was wearing a brown leather jacket, navy jeans, and black shoes.
If any person has any information in relation to the whereabouts of either man, they are asked to contact the Gardaí at Tallaght Garda Station on 01-6666000.


Experience the power of Intel®'s Sandy Bridge architecture in a compact form factor with the ZOTAC ZBOX nano ID61 mini-PC. Powered by an Intel® Celeron® Processor 867, the ZOTAC ZBOX nano ID61 takes CPU performance to the next level with desktop-class processing power that sips miniscule amounts of energy.Experience the power of Intel®'s Sandy Bridge architecture in a compact form factor with the ZOTAC ZBOX nano ID61 mini-PC. Powered by an Intel® Celeron® Processor 867, the ZOTAC ZBOX nano ID61 takes CPU performance to the next level with desktop-class processing power that sips miniscule amounts of energy.


Belongs to the "T. doliatus group" (which see). See also T. palliatus. Morphological characteristics distinguishing races appear to be clinal (with possible exception of selvae); however, ranges of most are probably disjunct, so careful study of differences needed. Four subspecies recognized.
T. m. brachyurus Todd, 1927 – W Colombia in W Andes (except at R San Juan headwaters) and W slope of C range, in W & C Antioquia, Quindío, Valle del Cauca and W Cauca.
T. m. selvae Meyer de Schauensee, 1950 – W slope of W Andes at headwaters of R San Juan (in Risaralda and Caldas, Colombia).
T. m. multistriatus Lafresnaye, 1844 – E slope of C Andes and W slope of E range, in Santander, E Antioquia, E Caldas, W Cundinamarca, E Tolima, Huila and E Nariño, Colombia.
T. m. oecotonophilus Borrero & Hernández, 1958 – extreme W Venezuela (Sierra de Perijá) and NC Colombia (W slope of E Andes in Norte de Santander and Boyacá).
Zimmer, K. & Isler, M.L. (2019). Bar-crested Antshrike (Thamnophilus multistriatus). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from https://www.hbw.com/node/56664 on 18 April 2019).


Last night, we learned that my cousin, Robert Lundeen, died after a protracted battle with Alzheimer's Disease. Bob was the big brother I never had. To understand how this came about, I have to acknowledge that my mother and her younger sister, Frances Lundeen (Bob's mother), had a very special closeness. Thus, it came to pass that I spent my summers on the farm of my Aunt Fran and Uncle Irving for many years. I was treated just like their two boys, Harlan and Bob. In addition to my idyllic summers on the farm, we visited them every Christmas, and they visited us most every Thanksgiving. Their farm was about a 4-hour drive from our house, near Galesburg, IL.
Cousin Bob, in 1998. That wry smile was a trademark of his.
Being a few years older than I, it was inevitable that I thought of Bob as a role model. It was also inevitable that he would tease me without mercy. That's what older brothers do, naturally. There were times when his teasing would really make me upset, but I eventually learned that if I didn't show him I was upset, he'd quit - teasing's no fun if it has no impact. That was when I sometimes referred to him as "Sweet Old Bob - or sometimes just the initials"! Despite all the teasing, Bob was mostly pretty good to me and we did many fun things together, including him taking me to the drag races: specifically, the World Series of Drag Racing at the dragstrip in Cordova, Illinois.
We had many hours together on the farm, so we sometimes did things that young boys do. One time, we filled up a pipe welded closed at one end, used to pound metal fence posts into the ground, with about 50 large grasshoppers. Bob's parents had left us alone on the farm - with Bob, that was an open invitation for boyish deviltry. After filling the pipe, we threw in a "Silver Salute" firecracker (an M-80) that Bob had obtained somehow. When it went off, a jet of flame and grasshopper parts sprayed out and splattered pieces of grasshopper all over the north exterior wall of their house. The pipe itself contained a "soup" of grasshopper parts and the goo of grasshopper guts. Blech! I don't know if his parents ever discovered the evidence, which was gradually washed away by rainfall. We didn't repeat the incident.
I'd already been leaning toward a career in meteorology, and Bob was destined to become a mechanical engineer. During slack moments on the farm, we would talk about our dreams and hopes for the future. Bob had a small mirror telescope and we would go out into a field in the evening and use the telescope to see Jupiter and Saturn and the Moon and nebulae and star clusters and so on. On a warm Illinois evening in the summer, it was an inspirational trip to the planets and stars we made many times. I always loved the night sky on the farm - the very little light pollution and virtually no haze made the dark sky pop!! The typical summer rains in Illinois corn country are associated with nocturnal thunderstorms. Many a night I was awakened, in the room Bob and I shared when I was there, by the thunder and lightning show. My enjoyment of storms was a foreshadowing of my storm chasing hobby, as well as my career as a scientist.
Bob wanted to get away from the farm, whereas I felt it was a delightful vacation to be part of an American family farm enterprise. I guessed eventually that living it constantly could give one a different perspective, as opposed to my occasional dabblings in family farm agriculture. Bob helped me to see how someone might have a different point of view from my own. He was teaching me a life lesson. One of many.
When we had both grown up and established in our careers, Bob used to call me on the phone from Idaho and just wanted to talk, sometimes at great length. I always was happy when he called and so I could hear about what was going on in his life, and share my experiences with him as an equal. Bob's mechanical engineering career led him to work for the Navy in Idaho Falls; evidently associated with the nuclear machinery in a submarine. His work was classified so he couldn't say much about it. Vickie and I finally made it to Idaho Falls on a 2012 vacation trip out West, and it was great to visit with him in the Idaho home where he raised his two boys, Chris and Gregg. Chris and his wife Cindy have been caring for Bob during the course of his battle with Alzheimer's.
I can't even begin to recount all the ways that Bob has influenced me in positive ways. His passing leaves an unfillable hole in my life. He is already profoundly missed.


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Latin American and Latinx Studies Minor
The Latin American and Latinx studies minor allows you to explore the Latin American region and U.S. Latinx communities through a variety of lenses, through an individualized and multi-disciplinary course of study.
What Is the Latin American and Latinx Studies Minor?
The Latin American and Latinx studies minor curriculum is designed to cover the Latin American region as well as Latinx communities in the United States. Students select from courses primarily in economics, history, philosophy, political science, sociology, religion and Spanish to further expand their knowledge of the Latin American culture and Latinx communities.
Ways to Study Latin American and Latinx Studies at Saint Joseph's University
Latin American and Latinx studies is only available as a minor at Saint Joseph's University and can be completed in six courses. A level of proficiency in one of the region's languages (e.g., Spanish, Portuguese) is a key component of the minor, and to ensure its interdisciplinary focus, you must complete courses from at least three participating departments in the College of Arts and Sciences, the Haub School of Business and the School of Health Studies and Education. You can also petition the Latin American and Latinx Studies Director to receive credit for special courses or activities, such as study abroad or supervised research in Latin America or in/with U.S. Latinx communities.
What Can I Do with a Latin American and Latinx Studies Minor?
Over the years, many Saint Joseph's students have taken advantage of the opportunity to know and care deeply about the Latin American region, and to enjoy careers in which they share that expertise and concern with others. Graduates from this program have gone into distinguished careers in:
Diplomatic or government service
All facets of business and the private sector
How Will Saint Joseph's Latin American and Latinx Studies Program Prepare Me for a Career?
You will be encouraged to participate in study abroad or a study tour to Latin America to experience the culture first-hand. The Latin American and Latinx Studies program is happy to offer financial support to students whose interests and passions lead them to study in the Latin American region. Over the years, students have participated in curricular and co-curricular programs in countries including Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico and Uruguay, among others.
Latin American and Latinx Studies' award-winning faculty are highly regarded for the quality of their teaching and research. They embrace the Ignatian and Jesuit tradition of whole-person education which manifests in strong mentoring inside and outside the classroom. Their research, experience and mentoring skills will provide you with the tools necessary to pursue a successful career in Latin American and Latinx studies as well as a wide range of other avenues.
Course Catalog Information
Richard Gioioso, Ph.D., Program Director
Interdisciplinary College of Arts and Sciences
The Spanish program at Saint Joseph's University focuses on the language, literature, history and cultures of Spain and Latin America, as well as Spanish linguistics. Small class sizes allow for the individual attention necessary in learning a language.
As an international relations major, you will study world regions, global affairs, economic development and human rights from various disciplinary perspectives.
The political science major at Saint Joseph's University offers the opportunity to examine politics, government and the political process. This program is ideal for those interested in the study of power, behavior, compromise and relationships between political figures in a variety of different contexts.


14 Places Ripe for House-Flipping?
ShutterstockA stretch of beach in Monroe County, Florida, a county seen as one of the most promising prospects for house-flippers.
Credit.com For people who like a serious project, house flipping can be quite the money maker. In some parts of the country, flippers see hefty profits from their investments, selling their properties for well over 30% more than they paid for it, according to new data from real estate company RealtyTrac.
The best counties for flipping are concentrated along the East Coast, but it's a popular practice across the country. If you're interested in snagging an inexpensive home and selling it for%VIRTUAL-pullquote-A higher foreclosure inventory increases investors' opportunities to flip.% significantly more than you paid for it, RealtyTrac came up with a list of counties with the best opportunities.
Where to Cash In: In order to be considered a good place to flip, the county had to have at least 100 single-family homes flipped between April 2013 and March 2014, the flips had to have at least a 30 percent return on investment, unemployment had to be below the national average of 6.7 percent in March and have an increase in foreclosure activity in the first quarter of 2014, compared to the same time a year ago. A higher foreclosure inventory increases investors' opportunities to flip.
6. Saint Marys County, Md.
1. Prince George's County, Md.
There are plenty of counties with a higher average ROI on flips than some of the ones listed above, but those locations generally had a sharp decline in foreclosure inventory from 2013 to 2014, so there's less of an opportunity to make a profitable investment.
Whether you're flipping or house shopping in a traditional sense, you need to have a good understanding of buying a home and how to get a good price on it (here are some negotiation tips).
You also need to know your credit history, because mortgage lenders look at it carefully when considering you for a home loan. It's much easier to improve your credit (and become a more attractive borrower) once you understand what you're dealing with, so take a look at your credit reports and credit scores. You can look at your credit data for free through Credit.com.


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Justice for Black Federal Public Service Workers
Black Federal Public Service Workers Class Action started this petition to Justin Trudeau (Prime Minister of Canada/Premier ministre du Canada)
We are calling on Justin Trudeau and the Government of Canada to end systemic discrimination and Black employee exclusion within the Federal Public Service.
In August 2019, in recognition of the United Nations International Decade for People of African Descent, the Canadian government announced its commitment to taking positive measures to acknowledge the unique challenges Black Canadians face and to ensuring that all Black Canadians have a fair and equal chance at success. Still, today, Black Canadians are overwhelmingly underrepresented in the upper echelons of the Public Service.
We have taken steps to create an opportunity for our Canadian government to advance this initiative, and to redress the economic and psychological harm imposed on thousands of current and former Black employees of the Federal Public Service.
By signing this petition, you are calling on the Government of Canada to fulfill its promise and to address the discriminatory impact Black Federal Public Service Workers have faced for decades and continue to face at a systemic level.


text:
Q: Algorithm to find most efficient way to send data parallely There are 2 computers A and B. Computer A can send data at x MB/s and computer B at y MB/s.
Example - If x = 20, y = 10 and Z = 100 then minimum time would be 4 sec because computer A can send 80 MB data in 4 seconds and B can send 20 MB in 2 sec parallely.
The algorithm given below has a time complexity of O(n^2). How can we solve it in a more efficient way?

EDIT - How can it be done for n computers and find the data being sent from each computer?
My Solution -
int main()
{
    int x = 50;
    int y = 10;
    int Z = 200;

    vector<int> xvec, yvec;
    for(int i = x;i <= Z; i+= x)
    {
        xvec.push_back(i);
    }

    for(int i = y;i <= Z; i+= y)
    {
        yvec.push_back(i);
    }

    for(int i = 0; i < xvec.size(); i++)
    {
        for(int j = 0; j < yvec.size(); j++)
        {
            if(xvec[i] + yvec[i] >= Z)
            {
                cout << "min time : " << i+1;
                exit(0);
            }
        }
    }
}

A: If the question is realy to calculate it for those two nodes, then the comments to your question are fine. If the question was to calculate for an arbitrary number of nodes, then your problem is an instance of the flow problem in graphs. So, encode your problem in a graph and use a known standard algorithm for it, e.g., Ford-Fulkerson O(|V|*|E|u_{max}), Edmund Karp O(|V||E|^2), or Dinic O(|V|^2*|E|).
After you found your maximum flow, you can divide amountof data by your max. flow.

A:
How can it be done for n computers ?

The logic z/(x1+x2+...+xn) is the most efficient and easy way to understand the logic.
Using the function ceil will provide that you have the surplus part for many calculations, for example 50 MBs and 3 computers with speeds 5 MB, 4 MB and 2 MB per second. After the calculation, your possible min time is 50/(5+4+2)=4.54 and system will wait for one more second after 4 seconds to handle 0.54 s part (will decide which computer to execute-probably the fastest one).


WARREN — The annual Bradley County Memorial Day program will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, May 28, at the Veterans Monument on the courthouse square at Warren.
The event will include the annual "Wreath Laying" ceremony sponsored by the Bradley County Veterans. The community is invited to attend, according to a news release.
The speaker will be Carol Nichols, regent of the Captain Robert Abernethy Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR). R. DeWayne Banks will sing the National Anthem and lead the audience in singing other patriotic songs.
In case of rain, the alternate location is the Bradley County Veterans Museum, 210 N. Main St., Warren.


With airport security becoming an ever more serious issue, arrive at your destination with your luggage still locked and secure. You have enough to think about while traveling, why have to remember a padlock combination when you can get your lock open with the swipe of a card! The TSA certified Card Key Lock allows airport safety agents access to your bags without having your padlocks cut off or worse, your zip sliders cut off. The Card Key Lock features the Travel Sentry® approved Red Diamond, alerting the TSA and other airport security agencies that they can open this lock without destroying it.
Uses a credit card and key-ring sized key-cards you keep in your wallet or travel documents.


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Q: HttpServletRequest returns null session after authenticated IDP and redirected to SP I'm setting up OKTA SAML 2.0 integration with Struts 1.0 in Wildfly 8.1.0. Earlier I had the same setup in JBoss 7 server in which everything works fine. I just replicated the same in Wildfly 8 but after the authentication is completed in OKTA and the web page is redirecting to my application in which
 request.getSession(false)

returns null.
Here is my SecurityFilter.java
public void doFilter(ServletRequest req, ServletResponse res,
            FilterChain chain) throws IOException, ServletException {
        HttpServletRequest request = (HttpServletRequest) req;
        HttpServletResponse response = (HttpServletResponse) res;
        HttpSession session = request.getSession(false);
}

JBoss-WEb.xml
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<jboss-web>
   <!-- local -->
   <context-root>application</context-root>
   <!-- production
   <context-root>/</context-root>  -->
</jboss-web>

SecurityContext.xml
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" ?>
<beans xmlns="http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans"
       xmlns:security="http://www.springframework.org/schema/security"
       xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
       xmlns:context="http://www.springframework.org/schema/context"
       xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans http://www.springframework.org/schema/beans/spring-beans-3.1.xsd
              http://www.springframework.org/schema/security http://www.springframework.org/schema/security/spring-security.xsd http://www.springframework.org/schema/context http://www.springframework.org/schema/context/spring-context-3.1.xsd">

    <context:annotation-config/>
    <context:component-scan base-package="org.springframework.security.saml"/>
    <security:http entry-point-ref="samlEntryPoint" use-expressions="false">
        <security:intercept-url pattern="/**" access="IS_AUTHENTICATED_FULLY"/>
        <security:custom-filter before="FIRST" ref="metadataGeneratorFilter"/>
        <security:custom-filter after="BASIC_AUTH_FILTER" ref="samlFilter"/>
    </security:http>
    <bean id="samlFilter" class="org.springframework.security.web.FilterChainProxy">
        <security:filter-chain-map request-matcher="ant">
            <security:filter-chain pattern="/saml/metadata/**" filters="metadataDisplayFilter"/>
            <!--<security:filter-chain pattern="/saml/SingleLogout/**" filters="samlLogoutProcessingFiler"/> -->
            <security:filter-chain pattern="/saml/login/**" filters="samlEntryPoint"/>
            <security:filter-chain pattern="/saml/logout/**" filters="samlLogoutFilter"/>
            <security:filter-chain pattern="/saml/SSO/**" filters="samlWebSSOProcessingFilter"/>
            <security:filter-chain pattern="/saml/SSOHoK/**" filters="samlWebSSOHoKProcessingFilter"/>
            <security:filter-chain pattern="/saml/discovery/**" filters="samlIDPDiscovery"/>
        </security:filter-chain-map>
    </bean>
    <bean id="successRedirectHandler"
          class="org.springframework.security.web.authentication.SavedRequestAwareAuthenticationSuccessHandler">
        <property name="defaultTargetUrl" value="/login.do?method=home"/>
    </bean>
    <bean id="failureRedirectHandler"
          class="org.springframework.security.web.authentication.SimpleUrlAuthenticationFailureHandler">
        <property name="useForward" value="false"/>
    </bean>
    <bean id="successLogoutHandler" class="org.springframework.security.web.authentication.logout.SimpleUrlLogoutSuccessHandler">
        <property name="defaultTargetUrl" value="/"/>
    </bean>
    <security:authentication-manager alias="authenticationManager">
        <security:authentication-provider ref="samlAuthenticationProvider"/>
        <security:authentication-provider>
            <security:user-service id="adminInterfaceService">
                <security:user name="admin" password="admin" authorities="ROLE_ADMIN"/>
            </security:user-service>
        </security:authentication-provider>
    </security:authentication-manager>
    <bean id="samlLogger" class="org.springframework.security.saml.log.SAMLDefaultLogger"/>
    <bean id="keyManager" class="org.springframework.security.saml.key.JKSKeyManager">
        <constructor-arg value="classpath:security/samlKeystore.jks"/>
        <constructor-arg type="java.lang.String" value="nalle123"/>
        <constructor-arg>
            <map>
                <entry key="apollo" value="nalle123"/>
            </map>
        </constructor-arg>
        <constructor-arg type="java.lang.String" value="apollo"/>
    </bean>
    <bean id="samlEntryPoint" class="org.springframework.security.saml.SAMLEntryPoint">
        <property name="defaultProfileOptions">
            <bean class="org.springframework.security.saml.websso.WebSSOProfileOptions">
                <property name="includeScoping" value="false"/>
            </bean>
        </property>
    </bean>
    <bean id="samlIDPDiscovery" class="org.springframework.security.saml.SAMLDiscovery">
        <property name="idpSelectionPath" value="/idpSelection.jsp"/>
    </bean>
    <bean id="metadataGeneratorFilter" class="org.springframework.security.saml.metadata.MetadataGeneratorFilter">
        <constructor-arg>
            <bean class="org.springframework.security.saml.metadata.MetadataGenerator">
                <property name="extendedMetadata">
                    <bean class="org.springframework.security.saml.metadata.ExtendedMetadata">
                        <property name="idpDiscoveryEnabled" value="true"/>
                    </bean>
                </property>
            </bean>
        </constructor-arg>
    </bean>
    <bean id="metadataDisplayFilter" class="org.springframework.security.saml.metadata.MetadataDisplayFilter"/>
    <bean id="metadata" class="org.springframework.security.saml.metadata.CachingMetadataManager">
         <constructor-arg>
            <list>
                <bean class="org.opensaml.saml2.metadata.provider.FilesystemMetadataProvider">
                 <constructor-arg>
                    <value type="java.io.File">classpath:security/idp.xml</value>
                 </constructor-arg>
                 <property name="parserPool" ref="parserPool"/>
                </bean>
            </list>
        </constructor-arg>
    </bean>

    <bean id="samlAuthenticationProvider" class="org.springframework.security.saml.SAMLAuthenticationProvider">
    </bean>

    <bean id="contextProvider" class="org.springframework.security.saml.context.SAMLContextProviderImpl"/>

    <bean id="samlWebSSOProcessingFilter" class="org.springframework.security.saml.SAMLProcessingFilter">
        <property name="authenticationManager" ref="authenticationManager"/>
        <property name="authenticationSuccessHandler" ref="successRedirectHandler"/>
        <property name="authenticationFailureHandler" ref="failureRedirectHandler"/>
    </bean>

    <bean id="samlWebSSOHoKProcessingFilter" class="org.springframework.security.saml.SAMLWebSSOHoKProcessingFilter">
        <property name="authenticationManager" ref="authenticationManager"/>
        <property name="authenticationSuccessHandler" ref="successRedirectHandler"/>
        <property name="authenticationFailureHandler" ref="failureRedirectHandler"/>
    </bean>

    <bean id="logoutHandler"
          class="org.springframework.security.web.authentication.logout.SecurityContextLogoutHandler">
        <property name="invalidateHttpSession" value="false"/>
    </bean>

    <bean id="samlLogoutFilter" class="org.springframework.security.saml.SAMLLogoutFilter">
        <constructor-arg index="0" ref="successLogoutHandler"/>
        <constructor-arg index="1" ref="logoutHandler"/>
        <constructor-arg index="2" ref="logoutHandler"/>
    </bean>

    <bean id="samlLogoutProcessingFilter" class="org.springframework.security.saml.SAMLLogoutProcessingFilter">
        <constructor-arg index="0" ref="successLogoutHandler"/>
        <constructor-arg index="1" ref="logoutHandler"/>
    </bean>

    <bean id="processor" class="org.springframework.security.saml.processor.SAMLProcessorImpl">
        <constructor-arg>
            <list>
                <ref bean="redirectBinding"/>
                <ref bean="postBinding"/>
                <ref bean="artifactBinding"/>
                <ref bean="soapBinding"/>
                <ref bean="paosBinding"/>
            </list>
        </constructor-arg>
    </bean>

    <!-- SAML 2.0 WebSSO Assertion Consumer -->
    <bean id="webSSOprofileConsumer" class="org.springframework.security.saml.websso.WebSSOProfileConsumerImpl"/>

    <!-- SAML 2.0 Holder-of-Key WebSSO Assertion Consumer -->
    <bean id="hokWebSSOprofileConsumer" class="org.springframework.security.saml.websso.WebSSOProfileConsumerHoKImpl"/>

    <!-- SAML 2.0 Web SSO profile -->
    <bean id="webSSOprofile" class="org.springframework.security.saml.websso.WebSSOProfileImpl"/>

    <!-- SAML 2.0 Holder-of-Key Web SSO profile -->
    <bean id="hokWebSSOProfile" class="org.springframework.security.saml.websso.WebSSOProfileConsumerHoKImpl"/>

    <!-- SAML 2.0 ECP profile -->
    <bean id="ecpprofile" class="org.springframework.security.saml.websso.WebSSOProfileECPImpl"/>

    <!-- SAML 2.0 Logout Profile -->
    <bean id="logoutprofile" class="org.springframework.security.saml.websso.SingleLogoutProfileImpl"/>

    <!-- Bindings, encoders and decoders used for creating and parsing messages -->
    <bean id="postBinding" class="org.springframework.security.saml.processor.HTTPPostBinding">
        <constructor-arg ref="parserPool"/>
        <constructor-arg ref="velocityEngine"/>
    </bean>

    <bean id="redirectBinding" class="org.springframework.security.saml.processor.HTTPRedirectDeflateBinding">
        <constructor-arg ref="parserPool"/>
    </bean>

    <bean id="artifactBinding" class="org.springframework.security.saml.processor.HTTPArtifactBinding">
        <constructor-arg ref="parserPool"/>
        <constructor-arg ref="velocityEngine"/>
        <constructor-arg>
            <bean class="org.springframework.security.saml.websso.ArtifactResolutionProfileImpl">
                <constructor-arg>
                    <bean class="org.apache.commons.httpclient.HttpClient">
                        <constructor-arg>
                            <bean class="org.apache.commons.httpclient.MultiThreadedHttpConnectionManager"/>
                        </constructor-arg>
                    </bean>
                </constructor-arg>
                <property name="processor">
                    <bean class="org.springframework.security.saml.processor.SAMLProcessorImpl">
                        <constructor-arg ref="soapBinding"/>
                    </bean>
                </property>
            </bean>
        </constructor-arg>
    </bean>

    <bean id="soapBinding" class="org.springframework.security.saml.processor.HTTPSOAP11Binding">
        <constructor-arg ref="parserPool"/>
    </bean>

    <bean id="paosBinding" class="org.springframework.security.saml.processor.HTTPPAOS11Binding">
        <constructor-arg ref="parserPool"/>
    </bean>

    <!-- Initialization of OpenSAML library-->
    <bean class="org.springframework.security.saml.SAMLBootstrap"/>

    <!-- Initialization of the velocity engine -->
    <bean id="velocityEngine" class="org.springframework.security.saml.util.VelocityFactory" factory-method="getEngine"/>

    <!-- XML parser pool needed for OpenSAML parsing -->
    <bean id="parserPool" class="org.opensaml.xml.parse.StaticBasicParserPool" init-method="initialize">
        <property name="builderFeatures">
            <map>
                <entry key="http://apache.org/xml/features/dom/defer-node-expansion" value="false"/>
            </map>
        </property>
    </bean>

    <bean id="parserPoolHolder" class="org.springframework.security.saml.parser.ParserPoolHolder"/>

</beans>

If the authentication is redirected to
http://localhost:8080/application
then there is value in the session
but when I try the same in production URL
http://www.myproductionsite.com:8080/
then I'm getting null pointer exception at
request.getSession(false);

A: You would have encountered this issue in Chrome v80 and above. Chrome now requires the session cookie to have samesite=NONE attribute if our application allows other domains such as Okta to POST data on the path /saml/SSO. This feature exists to protect applications against CSRF
If the cookie doesn't have the samesite=NONE attribute, Chrome will not include this cookie with the request Okta posts making your application see this request as a completely new request explaining the request.getSession(false) value to be null
Please see more here - https://support.okta.com/help/s/article/FAQ-How-Chrome-80-Update-for-SameSite-by-default-Potentially-Impacts-Your-Okta-Environment?language=en_US
There are different options to provide the sameSite attribute. The cleanest I think is by using spring session and providing a cookie serializer bean or using the latest release of spring session.
See this link for more options - Same-Site cookie in Spring Security


Mozilla may be working on a voice-controlled platform of its own. A listing for an all-hands internal meeting appeared about what seems like a new project: Scout. "With the Scout app, we start to explore browsing and consuming content with voice," it read. It's very unclear what the platform may or may not end up doing, as the meeting is focused on technical requirements for a "voice browser" that would, as a stated example, be able to read users an article about polar bears.
CNET interpreted Scout to be a new voice-controlled web browser. With Google, Apple, Amazon and Microsoft falling over themselves refining their voice assistant technology (with Facebook not far behind), it's unsurprising that Mozilla would join the fray. Given the company's decades of web platform experience, a browser is surely simpler to implement than a new proprietary speaker. Plus, vocal navigation through a browser setup is probably easier for the average person to grasp.
And, if we're being honest, Mozilla's fierce commitment to privacy and protecting user data makes it a more trustworthy company for vocal interaction. Not just for user data either, which tech titans are struggling to ensure will stay out of other companies' hands, but even simple searches. I'm less likely to ask Alexa dumb questions or make strange inquiries if I know it may hand off my search transcripts or non-identifiable data to developers without my knowledge.


text:
Q: How to calculate the total VPN time on a network? How can I calculate the total active connection time to a network? Ex. I work from home and when i do I create a VPN connection to my work network. I want to be able to let me boss see total of connection time.
Thanks

A:
If you stay connected 24/7, you can claim 128 hours of overtime a week.


text:
About Verztec
Articles from our CEO
← Speak their language
YouTube expands it's global reach with more languages →
Social Networking: A New Solution for Global Success
Planning to expand your business overseas? First things first, you would probably need to conduct a thorough social and cultural research on your target markets before you actually venture further, but how are you going to do that? Well, there's the World Wide Web, but isn't there simply too much information to start with, not to mention the issues on credibility. All of these are stumbling blocks which might prevent you from venturing further.
But the good news for businesses is that we're living in the era of social media; more specifically social networking; which is fundamentally shifting the way the world communicates and how we look at information, with the advent of social networking sites, this new movement has paved the way for businesses to connect, engage and listen to real people on a global scale.
One name that is instantly associated with social networking is Facebook. Having only started in 2004 as an internal university network, it grew exponentially in the next couple of years. Presently, it offers more than 70 different translations and has recently hit 500 million registered users.
But before you start planning extravagant strategies using Facebook, it's wiser to have an overview of the other social networks out there, especially the dominant social media networking sites in your target markets. Even though Facebook is generally the most popular social networking site in the world, a host of similar social networking sites still dominate the local social networking scenes in some of the most populous nations in the world.
Take China for instance, the most populous nation in the world. Its social networking scene is being dominated by QQ and Renren, with QQ boasting an astronomical number of 300 million users and counting.
Although Google's Orkut never seemed to have hit off in most parts of the world, it is the number one social networking site in Brazil, which is listed in the fifth most populated nation in the world. Orkut was also previously the number one social networking site in India (2nd most populous nation in the world), but according to statistics from comscore, Facebook had recently overtaken them as number one in India.
In the far eastern world, Mixi is the number one social networking tool in Japan and in South Korea, the crown belongs to Cyworld.
In Russia, the scene is dominated by a few local names with Vkontakte heading the pack with Mail and Fotostrana coming close behind.
Another competitor of Facebook, Hi-5; leads the charge in countries such as Mexico, Peru, Romania and Portugal.
Friendster who has lost its leadership position to Facebook, still holds a strong social presence in South East Asian countries like Indonesia and the Philippines.
According to statistics from socialnomics.com, 78% of consumers trust peer recommendations and only 14% trust advertisements. Businesses can now look into leveraging on the prevalent usage of social networking sites as a tool for analyzing social and cultural trends of their target markets.
The revolution of these social networking sites has certainly helped to erase borders and allow people from around the world to be easily connected, making the world a much smaller place.
Such is its ease of use that anyone with basic or little computer knowledge can easily sign up for membership on any of the available social networking sites and place their profile online for the whole world to see.
In terms of cost, it is perhaps the most cost effective platform out there for businesses to utilize as the cost of joining any social networking site and creating a business profile is usually free or at a low cost
With the participants of social networking sites being expected to grow even more exponentially in the next few years, the potential of social networking looks promising; considering the significant opportunities and the extent of its reach, businesses can tap on social networking sites to help expand their global presence.
[Source: Cindy King, Brain Solis - Engage]
This entry was posted in Social Media and tagged Facebook, global, social media, social networking. Bookmark the permalink.
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National Boss's Day is around the corner! Wish your boss a happy Boss's Day with a festive bouquet of flowers instead of just a Boss's Day card! Community Flower Shop offers same day and next day flower delivery to Munhall, PA and nationwide!


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Religion in Malawi
Christianity in Malawi
Islam in Malawi
Christianity is the majority religion in Malawi with around 77% of the country's population being Christian.
Islam is another significant religion with around 14% belonging to this denomination.
Other religion is around 7% and atheists who do not believe in the existence of God or Supreme Being are around 2% of the population.
Scottish missionaries introduced Christianity to the region in the nineteenth century.
In 1859 David Livingstone reached Lake Malawi, which he called Lake Nyasa, a Yao word for "lake".
Within two years of the "discovery" of Lake Nyasa, in 1861 Livingstone brought the Universities Mission to Central Arica (UMCA), under Bishop Frederick Mackenzie, to Magomero, in Chiradzulu District.
The Christian missionaries encountered resistance from the Yao people, who had settled in Magomero before 1860 and had embraced Islam.
Bishop Mackenzie and Livingstone sided with the Mang'anja, who were non-Muslims.
When war erupted between the Yao and the Mang'anja, Bishop Mackenzie and Livingstone supported the Mang'anja campaign to expel the Yao and burn their houses and fields.
The involvement of Livingstone at Magomero in 1861 is not explicitly stated in the history textbooks of Malawi.
Islam arrived in Malawi with the Arab and Swahili traders who had settled along the East African Coast and traded in ivory, gold and slaves beginning from 16th century to the 19th century.
A large number of Muslims in Malawi come from the Yao people, who are described as "the most important source of Islam in the country".
Bakili Muluzi is an important Malawian Muslim, the first freely elected President of Malawi from 1994 to 2004.
Malawi is one of the most peaceful countries and religion has never been a source of conflict.
The two major religions, Christianity and Islam, happily coexist and in some places mosques and churches are side by side.
Due to intermarriages and mixed communal lifestyle, it is difficult to imagine neighbours fighting each other over religious differences.
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[Chichewa Lesson8] Useful Statements/Quest...
Communal Life in Malawi
Entertainment and Sports in Malawi
Traditional Arts and Crafts in Malaw...
Hiking Dedza Mountain (Dedza)
The 18 Best Hiking Spots in Malawi
Hiking Mount Mulanje, the highest mountain in Malawi
Top 20 Companies University Students in Malawi Want to Work for