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Q: How could I make a drawing canvas? My question is related to Change all Options of Plot Dynamically where Mathematica remembers the series of changes in the appearance of a drawing using Plot or similar commands like ParametricPlot etc. I would like to generalize my question: I want to use the Show command for making a nice drawing. I am going to use Plot, ParametricPlot, ListPlot, Graphics, etc., so I need a popup menu with these commands An InputField for the data or functions or graphics primitives to be ploted and a popup menu with the corresponding options. For example, if I select ParametricPlot then I will take the list of options for this command. The series of changes in the drawing have to be "recorded" so that the user could make any possible adjustments at any time! How would I build such a canvas on which the plots can be added and modified step-by-step? A: This may help get you started. I once did something similar, but with a different UI, for my multivariable calculus class, but the students' inclination to make things as complicated as possible was sometimes greater than my ability to fix bugs. It was easier and more useful to teach those students how to use Mathematica. I did not incorporate the popup menu for editing options from my answer here. This was to keep the focus here on adding and editing graphics objects. Since it is the OP's project, I felt that the decisions involved in incorporating such functionality belonged in the OP's hands. Some sort of simple database seemed needed, which is maintained in the variable allplots. I opted for the following as the basic entry: { graphics head, graphics arguments, options, evaluated plot } The evaluated plot is included so that the code is evaluated only once after the arguments or options are edited. The first entry in allplots is used only for editing options to pass to Show that affect the overall plot. I didn't spend much time figuring out just which control structures/variables are best. As a result, there are somewhat kludgy dummy variables used merely as an easy way to label the controls that allow the editing of parts of a database entry (graphics, options) and adding a new graphic. Again the OP can decide the exact UI that is desired. A delete button would be a nice addition. With[{ $head = 1, $args = 2, $opts = 3, $plot = 4}, Manipulate[ Show[If[Length@allplots > 1, allplots[[2 ;; -1, $plot]], Graphics[]], ReleaseHold@allplots[[1, $opts]]], {{allplots, {{Graphics, Null, {}, Graphics[{}]}}, None}, {{edit, 1}, Thread[Range[Length@allplots] -> Join[{"Overall"}, Show[#, Ticks -> None, FrameTicks -> None, ImageSize -> 40] & /@ allplots[[2 ;; -1, $plot]]]], PopupMenu}, {{graphics, Null},(* dummy variable *) InputField[Dynamic[allplots[[edit, $args]], (allplots[[edit, $args]] = #; allplots[[edit, $plot]] = allplots[[edit, $args]] /. {Null -> Graphics[{}], Hold[{args__}] :> allplots[[edit, $head]][args, Evaluate @ ReleaseHold @ allplots[[edit, $opts]]]}) &], Hold[Expression], Enabled -> edit > 1, ImageSize -> Full, FieldHint -> "select graphics to edit"] &}, {{options, Null},(* dummy variable *) InputField[Dynamic[allplots[[edit, $opts]], (allplots[[edit, $opts]] = #; allplots[[edit, $plot]] = allplots[[edit, $args]] /. {Null -> Graphics[{}], Hold[{args__}] :> allplots[[edit, $head]][args, Evaluate @ ReleaseHold @ allplots[[edit, $opts]]]}) &], Hold[Expression], ImageSize -> Full] &}, {{new, Null},(* dummy variable *) PopupMenu[ Dynamic[new, createObj[#, allplots] &], {Graphics, Plot, ParametricPlot, ListPlot}] &}, Initialization :> ( (* structure: { head, Hold[{args}], opts, Graphics } *) defaultObj[Graphics] = {Graphics, Hold[{{}}], {}, Graphics[{}]}; defaultObj[Plot] = {Plot, Hold[{x, {x, 0, 1}}], {}, Plot[x, {x, 0, 1}]}; defaultObj[ParametricPlot] = {ParametricPlot, Hold[{{t, t^2}, {t, 0, 1}}], {}, ParametricPlot[{t, t^2}, {t, 0, 1}]}; defaultObj[ListPlot] = {ListPlot, Hold[{{{0., 0.}, {0.5, 0.7}, {1., 1.}}}], {}, ListPlot[{{0., 0.}, {0.5, 0.7}, {1., 1.}}]}; SetAttributes[createObj, HoldAll]; createObj[head_, database_] := AppendTo[database, defaultObj[head]] ) ] ] Note on edit One of the subtle things about Manipulate that can frustrate the unaware programmer is that controls are formatted before the Initialization code is executed. That means that the code for the controls should not depend on definitions in the Initialization code. From a fresh kernel, the old control declaration, {{allplots, {ReplacePart[defaultObj[Graphics], {$args -> Null, $opts -> {}}]}}, None}, initializes allplots to {defaultObj[Graphics]} (literally). Whenever it is used later, after Initialization, it evaluates to {{Graphics, Hold[{{}}], {}, Graphics[{}]}}} I had intended it to be as above, with the second element Null so that the field hint is displayed in the InputField for graphics whenever "Overall" is selected.

Deen never drinks wine and doesn’t eat swine, but if you don’t bring him his motherfucking cognac, he’ll kill you. I think it’s safe to say that few folks still give any fucks about Rick Rawse in 2014. If you disagree then you’re either a stan or as delusional as the man himself. After all, none of the singles that were supposed to get Mastermind off the ground took off and if we’re keeping it all the way 100, Rawse has been dropping dud ass singles for the last 3 years or so. Some are better than others, but I’d probably select “9 Piece” as his last really good and successful single. On the current album cycle, he’s dropped … man, fuck it. Y’all didn’t care when he actually dropped the songs, so I don’t see how me bloviating about said failed singles is going to change anything. Let’s just say they’ve all flopped and leave it at that – despite all manner of features (Jay-Z, Future and even Jeezy). Nonetheless, he’s still what we’d consider an important artist in today’s rap industry. And I concur, even though I’m still not entirely sure why, given his origins and my continuing distaste for his existence. Despite the cold reception his album is about to endure, someone has to listen to this shit and tell you if it sucks or not. I’m here to tell you that it sucks. I mean, you could spend the time downloading and listening to this shit or you could just take it from me: it sucks. Rawse’s saving grace, even at his most amateur, was his immaculate ear for beats. That seems to have deserted him and his rapping, while much improved and occasionally impressive, isn’t consistently excellent enough to carry average production. But the weak ass music isn’t even the most egregious shit to me. So much about this album offends the rap nerd within. So much so that I need to list shit out for y’all: The ‘remake’ of Biggie’s “You’re Nobody Til Somebody Tries To Kill You”: I don’t understand why anyone would ever consider this a good idea. Diddy is the worst. And I don’t care about the quality of the song; some shit deserves to remain sacred. I think Biggie’s tiny ass catalogue is one of those things. Dancehall and Reggae: Somehow, Rawse managed to get Sizzla AND Mavado on a BORING song. “Mafia Music 3″ is aggressively boring. I can’t list all the rap + dancehall combos we’ve heard over the years, but this is easily the least memorable one ever. Gunshot effects: they’re all over the album. It’s nauseating. For a guy that supposedly got shot at (I still think that was a calculated set up – niggas missed everything during what was supposed to be an assassination attempt), Rawse is kinda enamored with gunshots. If he really wanted to be a G, he should have recorded the sound of himself fucking seizing on the floor of his private jet and used that in lieu of gunshots. That was a legit threat. Camp Lo’s “Luchini” hook: French Montana returns to bastardize one of the greatest things in rap history. And right as you’re trying to figure out just how irritated you should be by that shit; ODB’s ‘Shame on a Nigga’ hook gets dragged in to the morass. This is all very tiring. This must be how folks felt when Michael Bay signed on to do the Transformers movies. I was around for that too, but drugs – I does them. Then Justice League decides to take a run at reusing the sample from Souls of Mischief’s ’93 Til Infinity’. So much outrage coursing through my veins mane. I can’t take too much more of this shit. And to make matters worse, Lil Wayne, the undisputed A-list gawd of trash raps, shows up and washes Rawse. Sad. If Wayne washes you in 2014, you need help. He didn’t even crack any dick or pussy jokes. Then someone let Scott Storch outta storage to lace Rawse with a boring ass beat. I’m beginning to suspect that I’d enjoy Mastermind a lot more if I could afford cocaine. And for the most egregious offense of all, Rawse thought that it would be appropriate to use Trayvon Martin’s name in a lame ass punchline. I’m not even sure I’m offended or even upset, but given annoying nature of Rawse’s last excursion into the world of controversial rap lines, one would hope he’d think better of being a tasteless hack. So that’s ten (10) solid reasons why Mastermind sucks. Don’t say I never did shit for you. The album has its moments (The D.Rich productions, Scarface, Z-Ro and Kanye strangling every vestige of DJ Mustard outta their co-production on ‘Sanctified’), but Rawse’s music simply ain’t good enough to keep our attention anymore. Whatever is after running on fumes is what Rawse is on at this point. Kinda where Jeezy was circa TM103. So I guess I’m looking forward to a new Jeezy album now – provided it doesn’t have as many DJ Mustard beats as YG’s album. Mastermind is utterly forgettable.

Q: Notify service defined in included LWRP recipe Is there a way to notify a service to restart which is defined by an included LWRP? I wrote an LWRP called "sidekiq" which sets up a service, like this, and appears to be working fine on its own. service "#{new_resource.name}_sidekiq" do provider Chef::Provider::Service::Upstart action [ :enable ] subscribes :restart, "template[/etc/init/#{new_resource.name}_sidekiq.conf]", :immediately end The problem is I am using it another recipe which I use for deployments, and need it to notify the service defined in the LWRP. I currently have something this include_recipe "sidekiq" deploy_revision my_dir do notifies :restart, "service[myapp_sidekiq]" end The problem is at compile time, chef looks at this recipe and gives an error ERROR: resource deploy_revision[my_dir] is configured to notify resource service[myapp_sidekiq] with action restart, but service[myapp_sidekiq] cannot be found in the resource collection. I can get rid of the error by defining an empty service in my deployment recipe, like service 'myapp_sidekiq', and everything will work fine when first provisioning the machine. However if I run a deployment and nothing changes in the sidekiq LWRP, the myapp_sidekiq service is never redefined and thus cannot be restarted. A: To notify a resource to complete an action, that resource must be defined previously in the current Chef run, and as Tensibai notes not defined inline in it's own run_context Place holder The simple way is to create a place holder in your deploy script of your non default provider that has an action of :nothing, but you can notify it later. service "myapp_sidekiq deploy notifier" do provider Chef::Provider::Service::Upstart service_name "myapp_sidekiq" action :nothing end You can also modify the overall default provider for a resource in client.rb if you are using Upstart all the time on a platform that Chef has configured as something else, like systemd Chef::Platform.set :platform => :yours, :resource => :service, :provider => Chef::Provider::Service::Upstart There are changes coming in Chef 12 that will let Chef evaluate which service provider to use at run time instead of static configuration. This is basically due to systemd coming along and shaking up something on systems that was once very stable and predicatable. Be careful of the name you use for resources. If you have multiple service resources defined via the same service name you can run into issues due to they way Chef treats them as clones and you may be running something you didn't expect. If you are using multiple service definitions try naming them something unique for the specific purpose. Then in the attributes, specify the service with service_name LWRP If you had a particularly complex resource that you are defining repeatedly and you think you should only be specifying all the generic parameters for it once, you could create your own Light Weight Resource and Provider encapsulating all the generic setup so you can define the resource more easily in recipes: service_myapp_sidekiq "deploy notifier" do action :nothing end service_myapp_sidekiq "config subscriber" do action :nothing subscribes :restart, 'blah' end That is a lot of work as you have to create an LWRP action for every underlying action you want to support and as you can see, doesn't make your use case much easier. Library function You could also do the same sort of thing with a function in a library that defines the basics of the resource and allows you to add any of the customisations you want (like name). def create_myapp_service name, action, options = {} s = Chef::Resource::Service.new "myapp service #{name}" s. service_name "myapp_sidekiq" s.provider Chef::Provider::Service::Upstart s.action action end create_myapp_service "deploy", :nothing Again, these are probably only needed for much more complex resource setups and cases where you repeatedly need to define the same complex resource with small variations. TLDR: Define a place holder service which does :nothing for the deploy.

It is a good practice to format SD before installing a new ROM, I had a lot of problems with FC's when testings some custom ROMS, but finally I could save my phone from dying by formatting the SD and checking for errors. XDA Developers was founded by developers, for developers. It is now a valuable resource for people who want to make the most of their mobile devices, from customizing the look and feel to adding new functionality.Are you a developer?

Welcome to my blog - a place where I chat about my hobbies, craft projects, interests and, just occasionally, a bit about trips out and places visited. Hope you enjoy the chat enough to come back another time. Tuesday, 14 June 2011 Postcard Notecard - Vintage Style Good Afternoon to You All, I made this card last night just to get myself back into the crafting way of things again. Though, to be honest, I did suffer from the occasional withdrawal symptom whilst away. And I did return home refreshed and raring to go so, after all the dreary but necessary chores, unpacking, etc., it wasn't too difficult to get going again. The postcard topper was one I had, in true Blue Peter style, already prepared. I applied a wash to the watercolour paper with diluted shades of Twilight Blue and Straw Yellow AquaMarkers before stamping the Penny Black's Keepsake stamp. The flowers were water coloured with Twilight Blue too then I distressed the edges with a combination of Tim Holtz's Stormy Sky and Pumice Stone distress ink pads. The insert is computer generated after scanning the V&A papers. To decorate the back I just folded one of the DPs over from the front. I must admit I like the look of vintage collage so this card really pleases me. However, after admiring it for a while, the EM did ask me when I was likely to use it, what occasion would it be appropriate for and who would I give it to! Well, I'm not sure - I'll put it away in the box with the rest and maybe one day I'll find a use for it. According to a certain TV shopping channel Christmas crafting begins today - even though we are still in 'flaming June' and midsummer is still a week or so away!!! Of course, for some of us it started the first week of January and because of my resolution I now have quite a stash of Christmas cards already prepared. However, I've fallen behind by a week because of the holiday so I'll need to get a wriggle on to catch up. So much to do and so little time :) The EM is at the dentist this afternoon, having a tooth removed, so he'll be needing a bit of TLC afterwards so not sure when I'll be back in my craft space - we'll see how he does. Hi, many thanks for taking the time to visit today. Your comments are important to me and always appreciated so please don't stop. However, a note to anonymous, of necessity I have had to block you - this is due to a spam overload. Total Pageviews My Blog List Subscribe To Google Website Translator Gadget About Me AKA The Silver Scrapper, i.e. a silver haired surfing senior citizen who is never happier than when crafting and scrapping in the craft space, and then scribbling about it all. Thank you for taking the time to visit. Need to know something, contact me ... I’d be delighted to hear from you ... Elizabeth.

There's a lot of baggage attached to being a nationalised bank - you are accused of incompetent customer service, low employee motivation and inertia. Then along comes the Verma Committee and labels you one of the weakest public sector banks. It would be enough for the most hardened employees to throw in the towel right there. The Kolkata-based United Bank of India, on the other hand, decided to focus on its people. The result: over a period of 15 months, it generated one million new accounts. Here's how it happened. Figure it out In 1997, United Bank's accumulated losses were Rs 1,434 crore (Rs 14.34 billion). It got rid of the "weak bank" tag in 2002, after posting profits from 1998 onwards, but this was primarily from the money generated by selling government securities. According to a 1999 report by the Reserve Bank of India, the reasons for United Bank's poor performance were weaknesses in the areas of operations, HR and management (What was left?). In 2004, Business Standard Research Bureau's ranking placed United Bank squarely last in the pack, ranking it 23rd. Then, in March 2006, United Bank presented a clean balance sheet to a packed press conference in Kolkata. Business had crossed Rs 45,000 crore {Rs 450 billion (up from Rs 37,187 crore (Rs 371.87 billion) in 2004-05)} and the bank's gross non-performing assets had dropped to 4.66 per cent from 6.14 per cent. The credit-deposit ratio improved from 46.5 per cent to 54.6 per cent. And, for the first time in 14 years, the bank paid a dividend of Rs 46 crore (Rs 460 million) to the government. As performance improved, United Bank climbed the ladder in Business Standard Research Bureau's ranking as well - it was in10th place in 2005. Last month, announcing the results for April-December 2005-06 - business stood at Rs 54,190 crore (Rs 541.9 billion) - P K Gupta, chairman and managing director, United Bank of India, announced that the bank is targeting a business of Rs 100,000 crore (Rs 1000 billion) by March 2009. Getting rid of the losses was the easy part. As mentioned above, sales of government securities ensured that the bank registered profits, but the money was being used to balance earlier losses: accumulated losses of Rs 14,200 crore (Rs 142 billion) in 1997 came down to Rs 278 crore (Rs 2.78 billion) by March 2005. That's when the bank requested the government to set off the losses against its capital. The government agreed - this escape route of nationalized banks has been used in the past by Dena Bank and UCO Bank as well. "One could wish the bank had exercised this option back in 1997 itself," rues Gupta now. Room for growth The real challenge for United Bank, though, was with its people. With over 18,000 people and 1,310 branches, it is one of the most overstaffed banks in the country. The issue wasn't one of laying them off or even downsizing - not really an option in trade union West Bengal, in any case. Rather, it was to energise them to go seeking fresh business. The track record hadn't been too encouraging, after all: from Rs 22,300 crore (Rs 223 billion) in 2000, business had grown just Rs 5,000 crore (Rs 50 billion) over the next two years, when the bank mobilised Rs 27,100 crore (Rs 271 billion). Compare that with State Bank of India: deposits grew from Rs 196,821 crore (RS 1968.21 billion) to Rs 270,560 crore (Rs 2705.6 billion) over the same period. Things clearly needed to change. And fast. "United Bank employees needed a change of attitude. From being tight-fisted bankers waiting for customers, they needed to switch to a feet-on-street mindset," says Prashant Mishra, professor of marketing, Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta, who was involved with training the bank's staff. Mission Million or Mission Impossible? When Gupta took over as CMD of United Bank in May 2005, he made it clear at his first meetings with regional managers itself that he would be going after the growth. "To increase our business, we need more customers," he would emphasise. Remember, United Bank isn't - or rather, wasn't - a bank used to the fast life. Known as the "tea bank", it had gotten used to the slow pace of business in East India, as generated by the tea estates and managing agency houses. And then came Mission One Million. In June 2005, Gupta and his team announced the bank's new goal: one million new savings accounts to be mobilised in the next 12 months. As officers across the bank's 1,300-odd branches threw up their arms in despair, the managing team broke the seemingly-unattainable goal into more manageable targets. In 2005, United Bank had opened 300,000 new accounts - that meant less than one account a day for each branch. A million accounts, then, would translate into just three or four new accounts everyday for each bank (making allowances for holidays and the like). Now, that seemed more do-able. Getting started Even as Mission One Million kicked off, the bank decided to revitalise its tie-ups with Tata AIG and Bajaj Allianz. Although the associations had been created a couple of years earlier to distribute the insurance companies' products through the bank, little had really been accomplished. United Bank's board then put forward a proposal to the insurance companies - would they train 1,000 bank employees in the finer details of marketing financial products? Tata AIG and Bajaj Allianz agreed to conduct week-long sessions each, and the bank created a marketing division - a first - under a general manager, to focus on the new products in its portfolio. Meanwhile, the bank seemed to have acquired a taste for training - after all, points out Gupta, bank employees were reacting to it very favourably. This time, the bank turned to academia. Two hundred high-performing managers were identified from the most efficient branches (the ones generating the most business). They were then sent to the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta, to brush up on market planning, identifying segments, invigorating sales teams and customer relationship management. "The bank realised that it was time for it to realign practices with current demands," points out Mishra. Which meant bank employees also needed to go back to school for lessons on customer interaction. This time, United Bank turned to rather more unconventional sources. It brought in trainers from leading hotel management institutes to educate its frontline staff on the correct way of greeting customers, dealing discreetly with trouble-makers, and being pro-active with addressing complains. In addition, the Ramakrishna Mission sent over instructors for introductory lessons on yoga and meditation. "You have to maintain adequate pressure on your people to get them to perform. But never forget that the devil lies in the details," says Gupta. The CMD realised that first-hand when he read the results of a National Institute of Bank Management study, which had been underway at the time he took charge. According to the report, most employees of United Bank did not have even basic knowledge about the bank, its management or the products it offered. Of course, this isn't an issue confronting only United Bank - "all public sector bank employees need to be reskilled and retrained," points out Ananda Bhoumik, senior director, Fitch Securities. Still, it was a problem that needed to be addressed and solved immediately. The result was a "know your bank" test, which has now become a regular twice-yearly exercise. As a form of recognition - and to drive participation - those who scored more than 60 per cent were given a cash prize of Rs 2,000, as well as a signed certificate from the CMD. Gupta claims that what started, as competition has now become "a natural exercise in staying abreast of changes in the organisation". There was another welcome fallout of the NIBM study results: it drove home to United Bank the need for constant communication with its people. The bank, therefore, launched more than five intra-department newsletters, which not only tell the employees what is happening in their department at other branches, but also is a medium of communication for top management. The regular newsletters mark a distinct change in communication style at United Bank - earlier, interaction was limited to announcements of changes in management. Reaching out How did all these initiatives help Mission One Million? Gupta and Mishra both point out that United Bank employees now have a distinct bias towards customers - and are more welcoming of new business than before. The results of the training programmes, enhanced communication and empowering initiatives were visible almost immediately. While the Hooghly region organised 100 customer meets and 12 road shows, apart from local advertising, the Ernakulam branch in Kerala celebrated the bank's nationalisation day by organising a deposit mobilisation camp. Door-to-door campaigns and camps during important festivals such as Chhath and Sankranti were held in Bihar, while the Kolkata (north) region invited local footballers such as Biswajit Bhattacharjee and Bikas Panji as guests of honour at deposit camps. Next came a new accounts monitoring system for the head office to get daily reports from each branch, something that was not done earlier. The reports were shared among regional heads and monthly "report cards" were printed and distributed to all employees, which showed everything from the number of new accounts, the regions and branches that fared the best, down to star performers of the month. "It was a way of recognising excellence and making the process transparent," says Gupta. Here too, United Bank took note of the need for recognition - each month, the five top branches were awarded Rs 5,000 each, to be spent by consensus (choices varied from music systems to family picnics). Customer management experts point out that the biggest danger in acquiring new customers is to forget existing ones. With a nationalised bank, the challenge of retaining customers is even greater. Accordingly, United Bank made this a priority area within the Mission One Million goal - it has devised 17 programmes for clerks and six for peons and messengers, all of which focus on customer management. Among the areas covered were issues like communication, team work and customer service. Six batches of 200 people each have already completed the training and management consultant and trainer S M Devdason claims the difference in attitude is already being noticed in several branches. Perhaps the most noteworthy change is in the role of the office boy: new uniforms, new attitude (thanks to the training) and now, new designation. The lowly peon is now a United Mitra (friend). The office "boys" (some of whom have been with the bank for decades) are being educated on the importance of their role: as frontline staff, they are often the first point of contact with the customer and may well help define the customer's entire experience and opinion of the bank and its services. "We are trying to make them look beyond their job profile and realise how important their role is," points out Gupta. Of course, it's not been too easy. There has been some resistance from employees and breaking established practices has been tough at times. Devadason points out, for instance, that many managers are still reluctant to conduct feedback meetings with the staff after a training session - although it is mandatory to do so. "Attitudes take time to change," he says. Still, the results made the effort worthwhile. In July 2006, United Bank had a million new savings accounts - it had generated Rs 500 crore (Rs 5 billion) worth of low-cost deposits. Of course, it was three months past the deadline, but Gupta isn't complaining. "This was Mission Impossible to begin with. So making it happen in an extra 90 days is good enough." Quickbite Miles to go. . . Where financial institutions are into the next phases of IT upgradation, United Bank lags behind in basic facilities such as tele-banking, ATMs, debit cards and mobile banking. While its branches are computerised, they aren't networked. Now, core-banking solutions are planned, with Ernst & Young being roped in as consultant for the project. Also, the bank will have to step into geographies that have been neglected. Although Gupta is positive United Bank will further penetrate parts of India other than the east and the north-east - where it has 75 per cent of its branches - not much is being done in terms of visibility. Although there are ads in newspapers in the Hindi-speaking belt, the effort is miniscule. Even in East India, the bank has just the odd ad on Bangla TV channels, which fail to grab attention.

Changing my Twitter bio to “a six at best” in order to save Trump trolls some time. Deeply considering the lessons of all the Off Broadway plays I have seen about nineteen-thirties Berlin, and of the first four Harry Potter books before they kill Cedric Diggory and we realize things are really serious. Reënacting the entire plot of “Legally Blonde” but, instead of attending law school at the last minute to win back a guy, doing it to bring down the totalitarian government through a series of court cases. Going to Trump protests, to voice my anger and to meet hot guys who don’t do comedy. Looking in the mirror every morning and saying, “In Trump’s America, I am worth nothing.” Looking in a second, smaller mirror and saying, “I am secretly going to burn this thing down from the inside.” Dyeing my hair blond so that Trump supporters won’t immediately know that I am not one of theirs. Finding a boyfriend, so that if Trump builds a Mexican-border wall I can use it in a performance-art piece about breaking up with my boyfriend. Printing stickers that say “Congratulations, you’re a latent misogynist,” and giving them to people who argue that Bernie would have won in a landslide. Printing stickers that say “Congratulations, you’re a latent Republican,” and giving them to twenty-five-year-old white men who “love to play devil’s advocate.” Donating to the A.C.L.U. and Planned Parenthood, and not in the Trumpian sense where I actually use the money to buy a six-foot-tall painting of myself. Inventing a male birth control whose side effects include weight gain, breakouts, cramps, and depression, and forcing men to stock up on it while it’s still covered by Obamacare. Fostering relationships with mentors and older relatives, so that when abortion is illegal I’ll have people on whom to pawn off unwanted children. Reaching out to my friends who are P.O.C. or L.G.B.T.Q. or Muslim or Jewish or female or otherwise vulnerable and telling them that I will fight with and for them. Reaching out to Donald Trump by mailing him my used tampons.

Meet the Men Who Want to Take Away Your Reproductive Rights UPDATE: The House bill described below has passed. Though the White House has already threatened to veto the legislation. The strictest abortion bill in a decade will come to a vote on the floor of the House of Representatives today—the "Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act," which would ban abortion after 20 weeks. Its supporters include men like Republican Rep. Michael Burgess, who argued that male babies masturbate in utero, and can thus feel both pleasure and pain, and Republican Rep. Trent Franks, who declared last week that "the incidence of rape resulting in pregnancy are very low."

Contrary to gossips saying long-running action series “FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano” (FPJAP) is about to end and will be replaced by Judy Ann Santos’ upcoming series “Starla,” ABS-CBN sets it straight that such rumors are not true and that FPJAP will still be extended. ADVERTISEMENT In a message sent to the media by ABS-CBN’s Head of Corporate Communication Kane Errol Choa, he belied such rumors and further revealed that the production is on a roll with for more creative inputs and that the hit series still enjoys sky-high ratings. “There is no truth to the rumor that FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano is scheduled to end soon. Coco Martin and the show’s writers are enjoying the process of coming up with creative ideas to make the story more compelling, as well as collaborating with the cast and the production team,” he said. “FPJAP continues to enjoy high viewership every night, and our Kapamilyas can expect new twists and characters as it goes into its third year,” he added. Martin’s manager Biboy Arboleda also slammed reports from two news outfits who confirmed the news. /muf Subscribe to INQUIRER PLUS to get access to The Philippine Daily Inquirer & other 70+ titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to the news, download as early as 4am & share articles on social media. Call 896 6000.

Developing a High-Throughput Assay for the Integral Membrane Glycerol 3-Phosphate Acyltransferase. Phospholipid biosynthesis begins with the acylation of glycerol 3-phosphate (G3P). In most Gram-positive bacteria including many pathogens, a membrane protein called PlsY is the only acyltransferase that catalyzes this essential step, making it a potential target for the development of antibiotics. A convenient enzymatic assay should facilitate such drug discovery activities. Previously, we developed a continuous assay by monitoring phosphate, one of the enzymatic product, using a fluorescently labeled phosphate binding protein in a bilayer environment called lipid cubic phase (LCP). However, some intrinsic characteristics of LCP, such as high viscosity, make the assay incompatible with common high-throughput liquid-handling platforms. Here, we adapted the assay by hosting PlsY in detergent micelles, enabling us to conduct the assay using standard multi-channel pipets in a high-throughput manner. With optimal enzyme loading, the reaction velocity was linear up to 30 min. PlsY showed Michaelis-Menten kinetics behavior in micelles with a Vmax of 57.5 μmol min-1 mg-1, and Km of 1.14 mM G3P and 6.2 μM acyl phosphate. The inhibitory product lysophosphatidic acid inhibited PlsY with the IC50 of 19 μM. The results principally demonstrated the feasibility of using the assay for high-throughput screening, and the protocol provided an encouraging starting point for further optimization and validation of the assay for automated platforms.

Methamphetamine (MA) Use Induces Specific Changes in LINE-1 Partial Methylation Patterns, Which Are Associated with MA-Induced Paranoia: a Multivariate and Neuronal Network Study. The use of psychoactive substances, including methamphetamine (MA) may cause changes in DNA methylation. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of MA use on long interspersed element-1 (LINE-1) methylation patterns in association with MA-induced paranoia. This study recruited 123 normal controls and 974 MA users, 302 with and 672 without MA-induced paranoia. The Semi-Structured Assessment for Drug Dependence and Alcoholism was used to assess demographic and substance use variables. Patterns of LINE-1 methylation were assessed in peripheral blood mononuclear cells and a combined bisulfite restriction analysis (COBRA) was used to estimate overall LINE-1 methylation (mC) while COBRA classified LINE-alleles into four patterns based on the methylation status of two CpG dinucleotides on each strand from 5' to 3', namely two methylated (mCmC) and two unmethylated (uCuC) CpGs and two types of partially methylated loci (mCuC that is 5'm with 3'u and uCmC that is 5'u with 3'm CpGs). MA users showed higher % mCuC and % mCuC + uCmC levels than controls. Use of solvents and opioids, but not cannabis and alcohol dependence, significantly lowered % uCmC levels, while current smoking significantly increased % uCuC levels. MA-induced paranoia was strongly associated with changes in LINE-1 partial methylation patterns (lowered % uCmC), heavy MA use, lower age at onset of MA use, and alcohol dependence. Women who took contraceptives showed significantly lower LINE-1 % mC and % mCmC and higher % uCuC levels than women without contraceptive use and men. The results show that MA-induced changes in LINE-1 partial methylation patterns are associated with MA-induced paranoia and could explain in part the pathophysiology of this type of psychosis. It is argued that MA-induced neuro-oxidative pathways may have altered LINE-1 partial methylation patterns, which in turn may regulate neuro-oxidative and immune pathways, which may increase risk to develop MA-induced paranoia.

VIA| After months of listening to Hillary Clinton plead ignorance as part of her defense for mishandling her emails as Secretary of State, what appears to be a smoking gun has just emerged. The former Secretary of State herself signed a non-disclosure agreement acknowledging her responsibility to ascertain whether information shared by her was, in fact, classified. Moreover, the document Clinton signed clearly lays out stiff criminal penalties for “any unauthorized disclosure” of classified information. As the nation’s chief diplomat, Hillary Clinton was responsible for ascertaining whether information in her possession was classified and acknowledged that “negligent handling” of that information could jeopardize national security, according to a copy of an agreement she signed upon taking the job. Experts have guessed that Clinton signed such an agreement, but a copy of her specific contract, obtained by the Competitive Enterprise Institute through an open records request and shared with the Washington Free Beacon, reveals for the first time the exact language of the NDA. “I have been advised that the unauthorized disclosure, unauthorized retention, or negligent handling of SCI by me could cause irreparable injury to the United States or be used to advantage by a foreign nation,” the agreement states. Clinton received at least two emails while secretary of state on her personal email server since marked “TS/SCI”—top secret/sensitive compartmented information—according to the U.S. intelligence community’s inspector general. The State Department said in September that Clinton’s private email system, set up at her Chappaqua, N.Y., home, was not authorized to handle SCI. The Democratic presidential frontrunner defended her unauthorized possession of SCI and her sending of emails containing classified information by claiming that the information was not marked as classified when it was sent or received. The language of her NDA suggests it was Clinton’s responsibility to ascertain whether information shared through her private email server was, in fact, classified. “I understand that it is my responsibility to consult with appropriate management authorities in the Department … in order to ensure that I know whether information or material within my knowledge or control that I have reason to believe might be SCI,” the agreement says. According to government security experts, the type of information that receives a TS/SCI designation is sensitive enough that most senior government officials would immediately recognize it as such. “TS/SCI is very serious and specific information that jumps out at you and screams ‘classified,’” Larry Mrozinski, a former U.S. counterterrorism official, told the New York Post in August. “It’s hard to imagine that in her position she would fail to recognize the obvious.” Right — so once again, either Clinton is lying or she’s entirely incompetent to handle national security information. Or both (yeah, sounds about right to me). Additional emails on Clinton’s server contained information that was “born classified,” according to J. William Leonard, who directed the U.S. Information Security Oversight Office from 2002 to 2008. “If a foreign minister just told the secretary of state something in confidence, by U.S. rules that is classified at the moment it’s in U.S. channels and U.S. possession,” Leonard told Reuters in August. In addition to her SCI agreement, Clinton signed a separate NDA for all other classified information. It contains similar language, including prohibiting “negligent handling of classified information,” requiring her to ascertain whether information is classified and laying out criminal penalties. It adds, “I will never divulge classified information to anyone unless: (a) I have officially verified that the recipient has been properly authorized to receive it; or (b) I have been given prior written notice of authorization” from the proper authorizes. Of course, the Clinton campaign has not responded to a request for comment. And it’s unlikely this will get much play with the lamestream media — Clinton’s own Super PAC. Not surprising that this bombshell was dropped on a Friday. While this new disclosure is just the latest atop a mounting pile of evidence against her, its nature — in black-and-white, in Clinton’s own handwriting — is particularly damning. Clinton and her minions want us to believe this is over following her “performance” at the Benghazi hearings next month, but the FBI — and the conservative media — continue to probe this very serious matter. As we must. No, this is not about tearing Clinton down for political gain, as she and her minions will claim. This is about protecting our national security and holding those who compromise it accountable. Moreover, it is about protecting our right as citizens to know when our leadership has failed us. And to choose accordingly whom we want to represent us moving forward. Hillary Clinton’s signing — and subsequent blatant and knowing violation of — the NDA gives us a strong clue as to how closely she will hold an oath were she to become President of the United States. If we allow this woman to take office, this oath — and the presidency — becomes a sad joke. ELDER PATRIOT – Last week President Trump appeared to be distancing himself from his Attorney General Jeff Session when he told the New York Times: “Sessions should have never recused himself and if he was […] VIA| IT’S TOUGH TIMES FOR REPUBLICANS WHO ARE EASILY DISCOURAGED BY ALL THE NEGATIVE COVERAGE ON THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION. But one supporter in Michigan had a message for the President this week—and it was a […] During the months since Former President Barack Obama left office the truth about his corrupt reign has come pouring out from many different sources. The latest news comes from the Inspector General who is claiming […] Trump certainly is hammering the Democrats down. This bumper sticker is certainly one to make the Left absolutely crazy. In fact, they just can’t seem to help but constantly attack Trump supporters, especially ones that […] KIRSTERS BAISH| It seems as though Former President Barack Obama may have some regrets after supporting Black Lives Matter. He was so adamant about pushing the cop-hating and white-hating mentality that was the catalyst in […] KIRSTERS BAISH| One of the promises that President Donald Trump made to Americans was to use tax-payer money judiciously. By promising this, President Trump promised economic government responsibility. Would we really expect anything other than […] KIRSTERS BAIASH| It’s not news to us that the Clinton family has blood on their hands. They’ve had blood on their hands for years. The family’s “charity organization” now has some major problems arising after […] KIRSTERS BAISH| The 2016 election was one of the most highly publicized elections in the history of the United States. Perhaps it had something to do with how involved people are on social media, or […] ELDER PATRIOT – There have been at least three-dozen deaths of Clinton associates that have never been properly explained. There is at least that many more that don’t pass the smell test either. We’re still […] KIRSTERS BAISH| The Department of Homeland Security in New Jersey has just dubbed Antifa a domestic terror organization and a threat to society. The Antifa group is guilty of brutally attacking Trump supporters on numerous […]

We vernieuwen het stationsgebied aan de centrumzijde van Amsterdam Centraal. Het hele gebied tussen de Schreierstoren en de Droogbak is over zo’n vijf jaar overzichtelijker en aantrekkelijker. Er komt meer water, meer groen en meer ruimte voor voetgangers en fietsers. Onder het water komt een fietsenstalling voor maar liefst 7.000 fietsen. Knelpunten in het verkeer zijn aangepakt. Sinds 2018 rijden er geen auto’s meer voor het station; bussen en doorgaand autoverkeer zijn verhuisd naar de IJ-zijde. De Westertoegang is verdiept. Er komt een nieuwe tramspoor, nieuwe tramhaltes, nieuwe steigers en kades en het Stationsplein wordt van natuursteen. De Entree sluit qua uitstraling aan op de Rode Loper. Meer water, lage kades en steigers Ter hoogte van het Victoria hotel wordt een groot deel van het Prins Hendrikplantsoen uitgegraven. Zo wordt het middelste deel van het Open Havenfront groter en wordt deels de lijn van oude, historische kade weer zichtbaar. Aan het water komen verlaagde kades met enkele steigers. Fietsenstalling onder water Onder het water van het Open Havenfront (ter hoogte van het Victoria hotel) komt een grote fietsenstalling. De ingang is ter hoogte van de kruising Prins Hendrikkade / Martelaarsgracht. De fietsenstalling biedt plaats aan 7.000 fietsen en het water erboven blijft diep genoeg voor de passagiersvaart. Naast deze fietsenstalling wordt er ook gewerkt aan fietsparkeerplekken elders in het stationsgebied. Hierdoor kunnen er in 2020 17.500 fietsen gemakkelijk en uit het zicht geparkeerd worden en in 2030 maar liefst 21.500 fietsen. Prins Hendrikkade en Westertoegang De meest ingrijpende verandering vond plaats op de Prins Hendrikkade tussen het Damrak en de Martelaarsgracht. Dit deel is afgesloten voor gemotoriseerd verkeer. Voetgangers en fietsers hebben op deze manier maximaal de ruimte. Auto’s die vanaf de Dam naar west willen, gaan via het Damrak rechtsaf naar de nieuwe Odebrug, onder het spoor linksaf door de Michiel de Ruyter autotunnel, weer linksaf door de Westertoegang. Om deze route ook voor hoge voertuigen geschikt te maken, is de Westertoegang verdiept. Op de hele Prins Hendrikkade komen de fietspaden verder van de gevels af te liggen. Zo komt er nog meer ruimte en zicht voor voetgangers. Stationsplein Het hele Stationsplein wordt opnieuw betegeld met duurzaam natuursteen, net als de Rode Loper en de voetgangersgebieden aan de IJ-zijde. De bruggen die het stationseiland met de stad verbinden, worden bestraat met grote donkergrijze granieten tegels, om te benadrukken dat de bruggen aparte verbindingselementen zijn tussen het vaste land en het eiland. Vernieuwde tramhaltes Op de Prins Hendrikkade en het Stationsplein worden alle tramsporen en haltes – inclusief wissels en bovenleiding - vernieuwd. Wat er nu ligt is “op”, en wordt vervangen door een robuust systeem dat minder onderhoud nodig heeft. De lay-out van de sporen, bovenleiding en wissels worden geoptimaliseerd en kwetsbare delen van het spoor maken we van slijtvast materiaal. Er komt een extra verbindingsspoor tussen oost en west, zodat trams ook van en naar het station kunnen als het gewone spoor tijdelijk niet beschikbaar is. De perrons en haltes worden hoger en breder en daarmee beter zichtbaar, veiliger en beter geschikt voor gehandicapte reizigers.

Prepare for every stage of your physician assistant career with Physician Assistant: A Guide to Clinical Practice, 5th Edition - the one text that takes you from your PA coursework through clinical practice! Concise, easy to read, and highly visual, this all-in-one resource by Ruth Ballweg, Edward M. Sullivan, Darwin Brown, and Daniel Vetrosky delivers the current, practical guidance you need to know to succeed in any setting. New to this edition Navigate today's professional challenges with new chapters on NCCPA Specialty Recognition; Communication Issues; the Electronic Health Record; Patient Safety and Quality of Care; Population-Based Practice; and Physician Assistants and Supervision. Meet ARC-PA accreditation requirements with coverage of key topics such as Student Safety in Clinical Settings, Health Care Delivery Systems, Population-Based Practice, and Mass Casualties/Disasters. Keep up with the PA competencies that are endorsed by the AAPA, PAEA, NCCPA, and ARC-PA. Master key concepts and clinical applications thanks to a succinct, bulleted writing style; convenient tables; practical case studies; and clinical application questions throughout. Retain what you've learned and easily visualize every aspect of clinical practice with a new full-color design and illustrations throughout. Explore global options with expanded coverage of physician assistants in international medicine.

Chondrocyte-mediated collagenolysis correlates with cartilage destruction grades in osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis (OA) is associated with destruction of type II collagen-rich hyaline articular cartilage. We hypothesized that classical interstitial collagenases cleave collagen type II, leading to the increased expression of the 3/4 native type II collagen fragment (COL2-3/4C) and the corresponding denatured type II collagen fragment (COL2-3/4M), which could correlate with different cartilage destruction grades. In addition, we assessed whether these fragments could be measured in joint fluid and serve as diagnostic markers. Cartilage specimens were obtained from the femoral heads of hip joints from total hip replacement operations. Articular gliding surfaces of the cartilage were categorized into normal (G0), fibrillated (G1), superficiallyfissured (G2) and deeplyfissured (fissures that reach to the subchondral bone) (G3). A histological scoring of the cartilage was also used. COL2-3/4C and COL2-3/4M were detected by immunohistochemical staining. Dot blotting was used to detect these fragments in joint fluid. COL2-3/4C and COL2-3/4M were found in the perichondrocyte matrix around lacunae. Such COL2-3/4C (p < 0.05) and COL2-3/4M (p < 0.05) immunoreactivity was significantly increased in G3 and G2 compared to GO and G1. A positive correlation (n = 35, Spearman rank correlation) was observed between the histological score and the percentage of COL2-3/4C positive lacunae (r = 0.43, p = 0.01) and COL2- 3/4M positive lacunae (r = 0.53, p = 0.001). All 7/7 joint fluid samples contained COL2-3/4C in dot blots whereas only 4/7 contained COL2-3/4M. Collagenase-cleaved collagen--both native and denatured--increases as the severity of OA increases, assessed using a macroscopic clinical and microscopic histological grading system. Collagen degradation was always most apparent around chondrocytes. Furthermore, the native COL2-3/4C fragment has potential as a joint fluid marker for OA.

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A man was fatally stabbed by his co-worker at a Portage Park business Sunday night, Chicago police said.Police said two men, ages 35 and 37, who were employees of a business in the 5000-block of West Irving Park Road got into a verbal altercation at about 6:50 p.m. Witnesses told police they could hear screaming and yelling coming from the kitchen of the business.The 37-year-old man was seen repeatedly stabbing the 35-year-old man with a knife police said. The victim was transported to Illinois Masonic Hospital, where he later died. Authorities have not released his identity.The suspect was taken into custody and Area North detectives are investigating.

[Antibacterial therapy of patients with complicated diabetic foot]. The main reason for hospitalization and lethality of patients with diabetes mellitus are the infectious complications of the lower limbs. In the period 2000-2005, 147 were treated for complications with the diabetic foot in the Surgical Clinic at the Ministry of Interior Medical Institute. 105 of them were men and 42 - women. The average age of the patients was 67 +/- 8.2. Different number of microorganisms, from 2 to 8, was identified in testing the material from the wound secret. Mixed (anaerobic-aerobic) infection was found in 135 patients (91.8%), and only aerobic infection - in 12 patients (8.2%). Staphylococcus aureus (61%) and Staphylococcus epidermidis (21%) were the most often found ones from the facultative-anaerobic microorganisms in the associations. Bacteroides fragilis (23%), Peptococcus spp. (19%) and Fusobacterium spp. (11%) were the most often found ones from the sporogenic anaerobic microorganisms. The empirical and etiotropic antibacterial therapy, the different combinations of antibacterial preparations and the results of their application were discussed.

Attention everyone: Chris Davis has a new mustache. It is a very, very good mustache. It's thick, covers his entire lip and stands out from his face like someone Sharpied it on. It's so good that MLB Central simply had no choice but to bring out Stache-cast, the highly scientific analysis tool and cousin of MLB's Statcast™. Do you think those 17 crumbs are from the same meal, or multiple meals over the course of Davis' day? Well, regardless -- that growth efficiency number is no joke. Here's Davis celebrating a home run on Aug. 9: There's certainly hair there, and the full-face coverage subdues the mustache slightly. But here's Davis, again post-homer, on Aug. 10: WOWZA. What do you think Davis is prouder of: His three straight games with a dinger, or the fact that he can pull of a mustache like that?

(ns io.aviso.repl "Utilities to assist with REPL-oriented development. If you are using Stuart Sierra's component library, you may want to also require [[io.aviso.component]]." (:require [io.aviso.exception :as e] [clojure.pprint :refer [pprint write]] [clojure.main :as main] [clojure.repl :as repl] [clojure.stacktrace :as st] [clojure.edn :as edn]) (:import (clojure.lang RT))) (defn ^:private reset-var! [v override] (alter-var-root v (constantly override))) (defn ^:private print-exception [e options] (print (e/format-exception e options)) (flush)) (defn pretty-repl-caught "A replacement for `clojure.main/repl-caught` that prints the exception to `*err*`, without a stack trace or properties." [e] (print-exception e {:frame-limit 0 :properties false})) (defn uncaught-exception-handler "Returns a reified UncaughtExceptionHandler that prints the formatted exception to `*err*`." {:added "0.1.18"} [] (reify Thread$UncaughtExceptionHandler (uncaughtException [_ _ t] (binding [*out* *err*] (printf "Uncaught exception in thread %s:%n%s%n" (-> (Thread/currentThread) .getName) (e/format-exception t)) (flush))))) (defn pretty-pst "Used as an override of `clojure.repl/pst` but uses pretty formatting." ([] (pretty-pst *e)) ([e-or-depth] (if (instance? Throwable e-or-depth) (print-exception e-or-depth nil) (pretty-pst *e e-or-depth))) ([e depth] (print-exception e {:frame-limit depth}))) (defn pretty-print-stack-trace "Replacement for `clojure.stacktrace/print-stack-trace` and `print-cause-trace`. These functions are used by `clojure.test`." ([tr] (pretty-print-stack-trace tr nil)) ([tr n] (println) (print-exception tr {:frame-limit n}))) (defn install-pretty-exceptions "Installs an override that outputs pretty exceptions when caught by the main REPL loop. Also, overrides `clojure.repl/pst`, `clojure.stacktrace/print-stack-trace`, `clojure.stacktrace/print-cause-trace`. In addition, installs an [[uncaught-exception-handler]] so that uncaught exceptions in non-REPL threads will be printed reasonably. See [[io.aviso.logging]] for a better handler, used when clojure.tools.logging is available. Caught exceptions do not print the stack trace; the pst replacement does." [] ;; TODO: Not exactly sure why this works, because clojure.main/repl should be resolving the var to its contained ;; function, so the override should not be visible. I'm missing something. (reset-var! #'main/repl-caught pretty-repl-caught) (reset-var! #'repl/pst pretty-pst) (reset-var! #'st/print-stack-trace pretty-print-stack-trace) (reset-var! #'st/print-cause-trace pretty-print-stack-trace) ;; This is necessary for Clojure 1.8 and above, due to direct linking ;; (from clojure.test to clojure.stacktrace). (RT/loadResourceScript "clojure/test.clj") (Thread/setDefaultUncaughtExceptionHandler (uncaught-exception-handler)) nil) (defn ^String copy "Copies the current contents of the Clipboard, returning its contents as a string. This makes use of AWT; it will throw java.awt.HeadlessException when AWT is not available, for example, when the JVM is launched with `-Djava.awt.headless=true`." {:added "0.1.32"} [] (require 'io.aviso.clipboard) ((ns-resolve 'io.aviso.clipboard 'copy))) (defn pretty-print "Pretty-prints the supplied object to a returned string. With no arguments, copies from the clipboard, parses as EDN, and prints the EDN data to `*out*`, returning nil." {:added "0.1.32"} ([] (-> (copy) edn/read-string pprint)) ([object] (write object :stream nil :pretty true))) (defn paste "Pastes a string in as the new content of the Clipboard. This can be helpful when, for example, pretty printing some EDN content from a log file before pasting it into some other editor." {:added "0.1.32"} [^String s] (require 'io.aviso.clipboard) ((ns-resolve 'io.aviso.clipboard 'paste) s)) (defn format-exception "Passed the standard exception text and formats it using [[parse-exception]] and [[write-exception]], returning the formatted exception text. With no arguments, parses the clipboard text and prints the formatted exception to `*out*` (returning nil)." {:added "0.1.32"} ([] (-> (copy) (e/parse-exception nil) e/write-exception)) ([text] (-> text (e/parse-exception nil) e/format-exception)))

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website.If you continue without changing your settings, we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on the Ipsos MORI website. However, if you would like to , you can change your cookie settings at any time. Delivering great customer experiences: three steps to business transformation Matthew Chatterton, Research Director 25 March 2015 Britain’s businesses leaders believe it is time to raise their game in delivering a great service experience to their customers. But what should they be doing to make a difference? Giving their employees the stories and tools to really make a difference for customers, says Matthew Chatterton of Ipsos Loyalty. Comments 0 What has the recession done to the British workplace? Jonathan Nicholls, Head of Employee Research 13 November 2014 As we climb out of one of the deepest recessions the country has seen, Jonathan Nicholls, head of Employee Research, has been looking at how the recession has changed the workplace. Comments 0 About this blog Ipsos MORI are passionate about researching the Financial Services sector. Using both traditional and innovative research techniques, we help our clients achieve mutually profitable relationships. More than a blog, The Financial Statement expresses our POV on financial current events and topical issues, with a team of contributors from across our practices providing a well-rounded view. We want our audience to comment on our views and, indeed, to challenge us.

Image copyright iStock Last month SeaWorld announced it was ending its orca breeding programme and said the 29 orcas currently in its parks would be the last. But the company did not step back from its long-held claim that its orcas - also known as killer whales - live long healthy lives. Liz Bonnin was granted unique access to SeaWorld to investigate this claim and weigh the scientific evidence. Just five months prior to this announcement I was at SeaWorld's Orlando theme park to find out what scientific studies SeaWorld carried out on the welfare of its orcas and to ask for a response to the growing body of independent research on cetaceans - an order of marine mammals that includes dolphins and orcas - which indicates that orcas cannot thrive in captivity. I asked Dr Chris Dold, SeaWorld's Vice President of Veterinary Services, if he could envisage a time when SeaWorld would no longer keep orcas. "I don't imagine that future," he replied, "because we know our killer whales are thriving in the habitats where we keep them now." SeaWorld The company runs a number of marine mammal parks and animal theme parks in the US Its three main parks are in San Diego, Orlando and San Antonio Twenty-three of SeaWorld's 29 orcas live in these three parks, the other six are on loan to the Loro Parque zoo in Tenerife So why has SeaWorld now made the decision to stop breeding them? Joel Manby, CEO of SeaWorld, says it's a result of the public's dramatically changing attitudes to orcas since the company started keeping and displaying them in 1964. "They were feared, hated and even hunted," he says. "Half a century later, orcas are among the most popular marine mammals on the planet. One reason: people came to SeaWorld and learned about orcas up close. Now we need to respond to the attitudinal change that we helped to create." But perhaps an additional reason for the public's shifting opinion about SeaWorld's orcas is the 2013 film Blackfish, which documented events leading up to the tragic death of Dawn Brancheau, a SeaWorld trainer killed by a bull orca named Tilikum. Image copyright Alamy Image caption The bull orca, Tilikum, with trainer Jenny Mairot After the film's release, attendances at SeaWorld fell, as did the company's share price. Like many others, I was moved by the footage and interviews I saw in the film and even went so far as to call, on social media, for SeaWorld to close. SeaWorld did not take part in Blackfish, so getting the opportunity to hear their side of the story was a welcome development. I asked Chris Dold why he thought Tilikum attacked and killed Dawn, but he objected to the use of these words. "This was not an attack, this was a terrible accident," he said. Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Liz Bonnin speaks to Dr Chris Dold about Tilikum and Dawn Brancheau So if it wasn't an attack, was it a mistake on Dawn's part? Or was Tilikum behaving somewhat unnaturally? "Neither of those is true," he said. "There is risk, every day working with animals and those risks are implicit in the size and nature of the animal. Rather than speculate about what happened that day we're focused on putting significant efforts to re-evaluate our approach to safely working with whales." Tilikum, who was collected from the wild 33 years ago and has lived at SeaWorld in Orlando for 24 of those years, has a tumultuous history. He had already been involved in the deaths of a trainer in a park in Canada and a member of the public in Orlando before pulling Dawn Brancheau into the pool in 2010. Orca or killer whale? Sailors once referred to orcas as "whale killers" because they attacked larger whales - over time, however, the words were reversed In fact, orcas are not whales, they are members of the dolphin family Nor do they kill humans in the wild Source: Whales.org But Tilikum is not unique. In fact, two months earlier, another orca had killed his trainer in a park in Spain. According to SeaWorld's records, orcas injured trainers 12 times between 1988 and 2009. These statistics raise an important question: could the constraints of captivity contribute to abnormally aggressive behaviour, or compromise an orca's psychological health? I think that orcas are more social than people are Dr Naomi Rose, Animal Welfare Institute "There's no evidence whatsoever that there is any mental aberration that is a result of living in a zoological park or otherwise," Chris Dold told me. When asked if he could show me the research that might support such a statement he said there was "experiential evidence" and that "over time deep empirical evidence will come forward". Dr Naomi Rose, a marine mammal scientist at the Animal Welfare Institute in Washington DC has a different view of the impact of captivity on orcas. She describes orcas as the ants of the mammal world. "I think that orcas are more social than people are. I think their family lives are more important to them than they are for us," she says. "They cannot be isolated from friends and family because it will in fact cause problems for them. Socially, emotionally, psychologically, physically." Image copyright iStock The physical health of SeaWorld's orcas has been brought into question by others too. Images on the internet of orcas' open mouths seem to show broken, worn-down teeth, sometimes with the pulp exposed - a direct route for infection to enter the body. Worn teeth can be found in some wild orca populations that feed on sharks - over a lifetime, abrasive shark skin will cause the teeth to wear out. Some wild orcas that feed by sucking fish into their mouth can also wear out their teeth eventually, as fish scales repeatedly scrape past their teeth. But SeaWorld's orcas are fed fish directly into their gullets, with their mouths wide open. Image copyright Alamy According to Naomi Rose, some break their teeth on the enclosures. "They're chewing the walls, they're chewing on the gates neurotically, persistently, on the concrete walls or metal gates through what we call stereotypic behaviour," she says. Stereotypic behaviour, which includes repetitive swaying, pacing and licking or biting of walls and bars, is an abnormal behaviour carried out by captive animals. It is most common and acute in wide-ranging carnivores, and many scientists believe it is linked to stress. But Chris Dold says that SeaWorld's orcas wear down their teeth by manipulating their environment. "Killer whales off the coast of the Canary Islands move rocks in order to get to the fish at the bottom. SeaWorld's killer whales manipulate devices that are in the habitat and explore parts of their habitat. If there's a free component the whales will examine and move it around," he says, referring to devices placed in the orcas' tanks for them to investigate. Find out more Wild animal biologist and science presenter Liz Bonnin presents Horizon: Should We Close Our Zoos? which airs on BBC2 at 21:00 on Sunday 17 April. Viewers in the UK can catch up afterwards on the iPlayer. To date SeaWorld has not published any research about its orcas' dental health to confirm the cause of damage to their teeth. No studies into the orcas' general welfare have been published either. Dold told me: "It's a box that needs checking, for sure, but we have over the years been publishing the baseline information." Now that SeaWorld has announced the end of its breeding programme, does any of this matter? SeaWorld currently has 29 orcas, half of which are aged 15 or under, and one of which will soon give birth. How long they can be expected to live is disputed. According to a recent SeaWorld paper its captive-born orcas should live to around 47 years, which is comparable to orcas in the wild. But the method used to reach this figure is controversial and independent scientists are preparing papers to contest the claim. Yet even if a more accurate lifespan for captive orcas is 20 to 30 years, as some scientists argue, SeaWorld will have orcas in its parks for some considerable time yet. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption A baby killer whale swimming with its mother in 2004 at SeaWorld in San Diego, California In August 2014, the company announced a plan to double the size of its orca tanks as part of its "Blue World" project. The new tanks were going to be 15m deep and 107m across. Orcas are known to travel 100 miles (160km) a day, and according to Naomi Rose, these marine mammals need to travel such distances not just to feed but to stay healthy. Back in October Chris Dold was enthusiastic about these new tanks. "There are a couple of parts of this habitat that are particularly exciting because of what technology is allowing us to do right now," he said. "What we're referring to as the dynamic enrichment programme. It's largely based on the science that's out there in terms of understanding how animals thrive in zoos, a developing field of environmental enrichment." As it becomes more and more evident that many of the big animals... should not be in captivity, I think that the public will react in similar ways David Hancocks, Ex-director of Woodland Parks Zoo in Seattle Unlike the existing flat-walled tanks, which are devoid of any features, the new pools were set to have objects that could be attached to the bottom - puzzles of sorts, for the orcas to interact with - as well as a giant turbine propelling water so that the orcas could swim against the flow. But now that the breeding programme has come to an end, so it seems have plans for Blue World. The signs are that SeaWorld's remaining orcas will live out their lives in the existing tanks. Naomi Rose wants to see the orcas retired to seaside sanctuaries. "Sanctuaries are models that are out there for elephants, chimpanzees, big cats and we can do it for orcas," she says. But SeaWorld makes it very clear on its website that it is opposed to sea pens. "First and most important, our killer whales are thriving right where they are… These are environments that are home for our animals and that allow us to care for them properly," it says "There are other reasons why sea pens are a poor choice for our whales, including exposure to pollution, ocean debris and life-threatening pathogens." Joel Manby insists the orcas will be well taken care of."For as long as they live, the orcas at SeaWorld will stay in our parks," he says. "They'll continue to receive the highest quality care, based on the latest advances in marine veterinary medicine, science and zoological best practices." Some in the zoo world see the changes at SeaWorld as indicative of what might happen at other zoos. Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The life expectancy of zoo elephants is half that of those working in Burmese timber camps With a substantial body of scientific evidence about the negative effects of captivity on other wide-ranging carnivores like polar bears and big cats, and with recent research showing that the life expectancy of zoo elephants is half that of those working in Burmese timber camps, David Hancocks, ex-director of Woodland Parks Zoo in Seattle, thinks it's just a matter of time before big changes take place in other zoological institutions. "As it becomes more and more evident that many of the big animals that are the standard stars of zoos should not be in captivity, I think that the public will react in similar ways to the way they have reacted to the revelations about what was happening in SeaWorld," he says. He imagines zoos of the future with fewer big charismatic animals, giving attention to small species that do well in captivity, in environments that are stimulating for them, and even with very small life form exhibits that showcase the interdependence and interconnectedness of the natural world. The next question perhaps, is how much and how quickly zoos, and the public, might want to embrace such a change. Subscribe to the BBC News Magazine's email newsletter to get articles sent to your inbox.

[image description: a four paneled, colored comic featuring Team Snakemouth in the middle of a meeting. Kabbu stands in front of a board reading: “How to stop Mothiva”. “Ask nicely” and “Start our own pop group” are crossed out below. Kabbu gestures to the board and asks, “Any other ideas team?” Vi and Leif sit at a table. Vi is munching on a donut while Leif raises a hand saying, “We have an idea.” Kabbu looks excited at this and says, “Good! …. Nothing illedgal, right?” There is a pause as Leif leans back, puffs up a little and replies, “… We no longer have an idea.” Vi raises a hand and says, “I want to hear Leif’s idea!” End id.] Their dynamic is one anime Lawful wrangling two Chaotics

Melissa Marshall Vine Our Fellows Melissa Marshall Vine 1992 Global Fellow Founder of Appalachian Birth Partner Project Melissa Marshall Vine 1992 Global Fellow Experience Melissa Marshall Vine has an incredible passion for Maternal and Child Health, and has worked in the trenches for the under-served in the United States throughout her career. Melissa’s patients are vulnerable, and include the uninsured and new refugees from war-torn countries with poor health literacy. As she has advanced in her career, she has become more involved in her role as a change agent on a broader scale, where resources are limited and the solutions must be more creative. Currently, she is working with local leaders to improve Maternal and Child Health outcomes in her community through her role as the Associate Medical Director at Family Care Health Centers, and through board work at the Maternal Child Family Health Coalition. Melissa has also been tirelessly working to improve maternal and infant mortality in Nepal through the development of a rural hospital in the Manang District. Bold Idea and summary information may only be accurate as of the awarding of the Fellowship. Echoing Green attempts to maintain current Experience information, but for their most recent status it may be best to contact the Fellow directly.

Association between atrial fibrillation and appropriate implantable cardioverter defibrillator therapy: results from a prospective study. Atrial fibrillation (AF) is associated with significant morbidity and mortality that may be related to hemodynamic impairment, thromboembolic events, or enhanced electrical instability of the ventricular myocardium. There is, however, a lack of data concerning the association of AF and ventricular tachyarrhythmias. Consecutive patients with indication for an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) were classified for the presence or absence of persistent AF at the time of device implantation. Incidence of device therapy, stored electrograms, and clinical events during follow-up were evaluated prospectively. Two hundred fifty patients were included. During follow-up (20+/-14 months), patients in AF experienced appropriate device therapy for recurrent ventricular arrhythmias more frequently compared with patients in sinus rhythm (SR) (63% vs 38%, P = 0.01). On multivariate analysis, AF was an independent predictor of appropriate ICD therapy (relative risk 1.8; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.2 to 2.9) and inappropriate device therapy (relative risk 2.3; 95% CI 1.2 to 4.5). Predefined clinical events (cluster endpoint: death, syncope, and hospitalizations) were observed more frequently in AF than in SR patients (55% vs 31%, P = 0.01). Analysis of device-stored electrograms revealed a higher incidence of short-long-short cycles preceding ventricular arrhythmias in AF compared with SR patients (50% vs 16%, P = 0.002). Baseline heart rate preceding ventricular arrhythmias did not differ between the two groups. AF is an independent predictor of recurrent ventricular arrhythmias in ICD recipients. The underlying electrophysiologic mechanism seems to be irregular rather than rapid ventricular activation, with a high incidence of short-long-short sequences preceding ventricular tachyarrhythmias in AF patients.

National Register of Historic Places listings in west Denver __NOTOC__ This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in West Denver, Colorado. This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in western Denver, Colorado, United States. West Denver is defined as being all of the city west of the Platte River. The locations of National Register properties and districts may be seen in an online map. There are 296 properties and districts listed on the National Register in Denver. West Denver includes 45 of these properties and districts, including 2 that extend into other regions; the city's remaining properties and districts are listed elsewhere. Another property was once listed but has been removed. Current listings |} Former listing |} See also List of National Historic Landmarks in Colorado National Register of Historic Places listings in Denver, Colorado References West

Near-field digital holography: a tool for plasmon phase imaging. The knowledge of the phase distribution of the near electromagnetic field has become very important for many applications. However, its experimental observation is still technologically a very demanding task. In this work, we propose a novel method for the measurement of the phase distribution of the near electric field based on the principles of phase-shifting digital holography. In contrast to previous methods the holographic interference occurs already in the near field and the phase distribution can be determined purely from the scanning near-field optical microscopy measurements without the need for additional far-field interferometric methods. This opens a way towards on-chip phase imaging. We demonstrate the capabilities of the proposed method by reconstruction of the phase difference between interfering surface plasmon waves and by imaging the phase of a single surface plasmon wave. We also demonstrate a selectivity of the method towards individual components of the field.

Update: diagnostic concepts in open-angle glaucoma. New advances aided by computerized technology have been made in the detection and quantification of glaucomatous psychophysical and optic-nerve abnormalities. The aim of all these techniques is earlier detection of intraocular pressure-related damage to the optic nerve. In addition, improvements in the sensitivity and specificity of diagnostic modalities offer the possibility to better quantitate and therefore monitor the dynamics of the glaucomatous process. These devices offer great potential for pathophysiologic investigations. However, expanded research needs to be performed prior to the clinical application of the techniques discussed in this review. The future looks promising for improved methods in the diagnosis and management of glaucoma.

Functional PHP Functional PHP Functional programming. Some see that term and think “functions? You mean procedural programming. I’ve been doing that for years.” Others see it and think “you mean that crazy academic nonsense that no one understands? Pfft!” In truth, functional programming is fundamentally an approach to software development, not a particular language or syntax. With PHP 5.3, it is an approach that is now more readily available and powerful than ever before. Even if you’re not writing in Erlang or ML, there is still much to learn from the principles of functional programming to help write better code. This session will discuss the history of functional programming and how it compares to other programming paradigms (procedural and object-oriented). We will then discuss by example how functional concepts and techniques, plus new language capabilities in PHP 5.3 such as anonymous functions can make our code more robust, maintainable, and bug-free. Even without a truly functional language, there is much we can learn from functional programming as a technique.

Apparently monetary theory is not sexy – or at least when I write about something else than monetary issues then I get more comments and activity on my blog than when I focus on what I really care about (monetary policy as you know…) Recently I wrote a piece on why I think the best immigration policy is “Open Borders” and that got a bit of attention and interestingly enough some of my readers who normally tend to agree with me – disagreed with me. I do not exactly seek controversy (some would say I do), but I simply have to write another post on immigration. Bloomberg chief economist Mike McDonough yesterday shared some very interesting graphs on Twitter on the demographic outlook for Japan, China and the US. The graphs are extremely telling – while Japan and China are facing sharply declining work age populations in the coming decades the US is likely to more or less maintain its present demographic structure. Joe Weisenthal at the Businessinsider explains how this is possible: The best looking, really, is the US, which has a nice evenly distributed population. The shape of the pyramid isn’t changing much, in part because our immigration policy keeps the population from getting too old. Joe is of course right – the US is still attracting people from all around the world to come to the US to work and live and my bet (and hope) is that that will continue to be the case in the future. Immigration is part of the American success story and will continue to be so for decades to come. PS I am in London today speaking at the CAMP Alphaville. I am on a panel on “Central banks and their jedi mind tricks” (they stole that title from Matt O’Brien) with Lorcan Roche Kelly, Josh Ryan-Collins and Paul Woolley. The Session starts at 12.30pm London time (so I better get moving…) HT Niels Westy

On 3. 4. 2001 the community trademark application no. 002161800 was filed for IMMUNOFECT (Word mark) by Immunoporation Limited before the OAMI.The goods and services in respect of which registration of the trademark was sought are in class 1. The current status of the trademark is registration expired. Status is 'Registration expired' The Community Trade Mark has not been renewed by the trademark owner and has therefore expired. Nice classes 1 Chemicals and reagents for use in science and industry, for research purposes; chemical and biological products, reagents and molecules for treating cells other than for medical or veterinary use and for research purposes only; chemicals and biological materials for transfection, transformation or trans-membrane transfer, for research purposes; and kits for transfection of cells.

Changes in lipid composition and lipogenic enzyme activities in liver of lambs fed omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Twenty-four lambs (Ovis aries) were used in a 45-day finishing study to evaluate the effects of feeding diets high in linoleic acid (C(18:2), omega-6) on liver lipid composition and on lipogenic enzyme activities in subcellular fractions of liver. Lambs were fed either a 5% safflower oil (SO, high linoleic acid) supplemented diet or a control diet without added oil. SO feeding caused a reduction in the amount of serum and liver triacylglycerols and cholesterol, whereas the level of phospholipids in both tissues was hardly affected. In liver of SO-treated lambs an increase in the levels of C(18:2) and arachidonic acid (C(20:4), omega-6), together with a simultaneous decrease of saturated fatty acids, was observed. In comparison to rat liver, rather low activities of enzymes in the pathway for de novo fatty acid synthesis, i.e. acetyl-CoA carboxylase and fatty acid synthase, were found in lamb-liver cytosol. Both enzyme activities, as well as those of the NADPH-furnishing enzymes, were significantly reduced by SO feeding. In contrast, microsomal and especially mitochondrial fatty acid chain elongation activity, the latter being much higher than that of rat liver, were significantly increased in SO-treated lambs. In these animals, a stimulation of triangle up(9)-desaturase activity was observed in liver microsomes.

An immunotherapy drug delivery system created at Yale that can carry multiple drugs inside a tiny particle is heading toward its first phase of clinical trials for a possible new treatment for cancer. The delivery system, a nanogel developed in the lab of associate professor Tarek Fahmy, can be used for multiple combinations of drugs for many different cancers and some immune disorders. The platform is designed to deliver multiple drugs with different chemical properties. A single particle can carry hundreds of drug molecules that concentrate in the tumor, increasing the efficacy of the drug combination while decreasing its toxicity. Fahmy describes the delivery system as a kind of “rational” therapy, in that it fuses established biological and clinical findings to the emerging field of nanotechnology. “It creates a new solution that could potentially deal a significant blow to cancer and even autoimmune disease in future applications,” said Fahmy, who teaches biomedical engineering and immunobiology. The first use of this delivery system will be a drug known as IMM-01. A multi-pronged treatment for metastatic cancer, it contains two agents: Interleukin-2 (IL-2) and an inhibitor of tissue growth factor (TGF beta). IL-2 amplifies the body’s immune system, while the TGF-beta inhibitor dampens the cancer cells’ ability to hide from the immune system. Because their size and makeup differ greatly, the two agents would normally be incompatible. Fahmy, however, developed a novel biodegradable gel that can contain both drugs and then release them in the tumor. TVM Life Science Ventures VII is providing funding to Modulate Therapeutics Inc. to develop the drug to clinical proof of concept. Modulate secured the rights to IMM-01 from Yale and the Yale start-up company Immunova L.L.C., which was co-founded by Fahmy, Johns Hopkins University professor of oncology Ephraim Fuchs, and entrepreneur Bernard Friedman. Friedman noted that the complexity of disease biology often hinders treatments. “Successful therapies must strike multiple targets,” he said. “The technology developed by Dr. Fahmy provides an elegant solution.” “It’s about leveraging the biology of the system, not fighting it,” added Brian Horsburgh, CEO of Immunova and Modulate. “You want to wake up the immune system and harness that.” Yale’s Office of Cooperative Research (OCR) helped launch Immunova in 2012 and develop Fahmy’s drug delivery technology. Fahmy is a member of the Yale Cancer Center. “It’s great to see this technology moving forward to the clinic, and we’re hopeful that this will be the first of many life-saving drugs to use this technology,” said Dr. John Puziss, director of technology licensing in OCR.

Simple search Jesus Christ Bearing His Cross. After Raphael - [Illustration to] Fragment Fourth, Of the Exterior of Man, and of Some Other Analogous Indications. Additions to Chapters I. II. III. Addition Z. [in Volume III of] Essays on physiognomy designed to promote the knowledge and the love of mankind. Resource tools Original TIF File Original Size JPG Note: For private use only (not for publication). For other purposes, file a request in Request Item page. Resource details Resource ID 11433 Access Open Title Jesus Christ Bearing His Cross. After Raphael - [Illustration to] Fragment Fourth, Of the Exterior of Man, and of Some Other Analogous Indications. Additions to Chapters I. II. III. Addition Z. [in Volume III of] Essays on physiognomy designed to promote the knowledge and the love of mankind.

What determines permissions within an app in Appy Pie? When you create an App with Appy Pie the permissions within the app could vary between 2 and 20. Applications use a lot of permissions including those needed to access the SD card, use the Internet and so on. Google & Apple do a great job of displaying what permissions an app uses before installing. Now while creating an app, you decide to use the One touch call so your users can call you that will mean Phone/ SMS permissions would need to be added to your app, similarly if you decide to add your office location to your app so that your clients can get turn by turn directions to your office, this will mean that location permissions would need to be added to your app and so on, the point we are trying to make here is that each feature within your app might needs specific permissions. To make the process simpler for our users, we have added a standard set of permissions on all apps so you are not at risk of getting your account suspended because of permission issues. Update: Now Android gives you the ability to control your app permissions on Android 6.0 and up for details refer to https://support.google.com/googleplay/answer/6270602?hl=en Share this : Was this article helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Thank you for letting us know! We’d love to hear how we can improve this article.

While Mitt Romney and Paul D. Ryan are campaigning on a promise to “preserve and protect” Medicare, their proposal to revamp the popular government health insurance program would be the plan’s biggest gamble since it was created nearly half a century ago. The members of the Republican presidential ticket argue that giving seniors vouchers to shop for a private insurance plan would spark competition among health insurers, holding down costs and ensuring the long-term viability of Medicare. But several previous experiments with privatizing Medicare insurance coverage have ended up raising costs to taxpayers. And on the other side, there is little evidence that moving millions of elderly and disabled patients into commercial health plans will protect their coverage or tame the nation’s skyrocketing healthcare tab. “Doubling down on private insurers is a risky proposition,” said University of North Carolina health policy professor Jonathan Oberlander, a leading Medicare historian. “Medicare has lost money on private plans for a long time.” In recent days, the campaign debate has focused on one element of the Medicare puzzle: President Obama’s effort to reduce Medicare spending by about $716 billion over the next decade as part of his healthcare overhaul. Romney, accusing Obama of “raiding” the program, says he would restore that money. Ryan, who once proposed the same cuts, now says he agrees with his running mate. By restoring the spending that was cut, Romney and Ryan would open a large deficit in Medicare, pushing the program’s main trust fund into the red in just four years, rather than 12 under Obama’s plan. The former Massachusetts governor hasn’t said how he would address that. The sniping over those cuts, however, obscures bigger questions about what Medicare will look like for the roughly 50 million elderly and disabled Americans who rely on it. In the face of unsustainable costs, Obama is pursuing a Medicare strategy, enacted in his 2010 healthcare law, that relies heavily on federal administration of the insurance program to force doctors and hospitals to improve their quality and efficiency. That is designed to preserve the program largely in its current form. Romney, Ryan and other Republicans say that approach won’t work. “The future of Medicare should be marked by competition, choice, and by innovation, rather than bureaucracy, stagnation and bankruptcy,” Romney said last fall when he unveiled his Medicare plan. “Tomorrow’s seniors should have the freedom to choose what their health coverage looks like.” If Romney and Ryan are wrong, however, seniors would end up paying much more for medical coverage. The Congressional Budget Office, a nonpartisan federal agency, estimates that Ryan’s latest plan -- which closely parallels Romney’s -- would increase the average cost for a senior entering the program in 2030 by as much as $2,200 a year. To be sure, there is no guarantee Obama’s strategy will preserve Medicare. Previous efforts to squeeze payments to medical providers have a mixed record. The government’s own actuaries suggest the deep cuts contemplated in the Affordable Care Act could drive some hospitals and doctors out of business. Under the president’s plan, Medicare’s main trust fund is still projected to begin running in the red in 2024 as baby boomers flood the program and their medical bills outpace the payroll taxes that finance benefits. This year, the trustees overseeing Medicare urged lawmakers to act “as soon as possible” to shore up the program’s finances. Republicans have long tried to enlist insurance companies to do this, by replacing Medicare’s current structure of standardized benefits and premiums. In a privatized system, individual insurance companies could offer varied benefits and premiums as they compete to attract seniors. Seniors, in turn, would use a voucher with a value linked to the cost of available insurance plans. Seniors who want a more expensive plan would have to pay the difference. Romney and Ryan, while providing little detail about their plan, say they would preserve the current Medicare program as an option -- although the voucher would not necessarily cover the cost of enrolling. They would delay implementation of the plan for 10 years, allowing all Americans now 55 or older to get into the current system. Critically, many premium support plans, including Ryan’s, limit how quickly the value of the voucher would increase over time. That means that if insurance premiums rise more quickly than the value of the voucher, seniors -- and not the federal government -- would have to pay more. That would ensure Medicare spending remains in check while shifting risk to individual seniors. The additional options in such a system should be welcome to retirees, said the Heritage Foundation’s Robert A. Moffit, a former Reagan administration healthcare official. “Seniors are making all kinds of choices all the time,” he said. “It’s probably more challenging to find the right doctor or the right specialist.” It remains unclear whether private insurance companies, which typically have higher administrative costs and pay more to hospitals and other providers, would do better than the current Medicare program at holding down costs. Over the last decade, costs grew more quickly in the commercial insurance market than they did in Medicare. Between 2006 and 2010, Medicare spending per person increased 4.2% a year, while per capita spending by commercial plans grew 4.5%. Insurance companies haven’t done much better insuring Medicare beneficiaries. The federal government for years has given seniors the option to select a commercial insurer to administer benefits through the Medicare Advantage program. Today, about a quarter of Medicare beneficiaries participate in the program. Some private insurers have been able to reduce costs and better manage care for seniors. But independent assessments of the Medicare Advantage program have found that on average, these private plans are more expensive than traditional Medicare, costing taxpayers 7% more per person, according to the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission. Since 2006, Medicare has also relied exclusively on private health plans to provide seniors with the Part D prescription drug benefit. That program is often cited as a success because costs have been lower than projected. It is not clear that private insurance plans deserve the credit, however. Nationwide, spending on pharmaceuticals has slowed dramatically in recent years as cheaper, generic drugs became available and few new blockbusters entered the market. While commercial health plans may have secured some savings for Medicare, the government Medicaid program for the poor, which negotiates drug prices with manufacturers, saved more than twice as much on top brand-name drugs in 2009, according to the Department of Health and Human Services inspector general. That suggests the private plans may actually have increased costs to the federal government, said Edwin Park, a former Clinton administration health analyst now at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. “There is just very little in the Part D experience that suggests that private-sector competition will be able to produce huge savings for Medicare without just shifting costs to beneficiaries,” he said. -- [email protected]

Introduction ============ In this study we created a database to analyse the incidence and types of critical incidents that occurred during the interhospital transfer of critically ill patients. The transfer of critically ill patients presents important risks and the safety of patients has been shown to be facilitated by the development of standard equipment and specialist teams \[[@B1]\]. The West of Scotland Shock team is a designated regional transfer service based in Glasgow. We are involved in the interhospital transfer of patients and not primary retrieval. A recent study looking at critical incidents during the intrahospital transport of the critically ill highlighted the risks posed, and recommended the monitoring of incidents in order to aid the continuous improvement in patient safety \[[@B2]\]. No similar study has been carried out looking at the interhospital transport of the critically ill patient. Methods ======= The study was a cross-sectional analysis of critical incidents occurring during interhospital transport that were reported to the West of Scotland Shock Team critical incident database set up in September 2005. The information obtained was categorised into: (a) where the incident took place, (b) type of incident, (c) written description of events, (d) outcome (potential or actual harm to the patient) and (e) designation of the staff member reporting the incident. Results ======= A total of 199 transfers were performed over the 6-month period. Thirty-four critical incidents were reported. Twenty-four (70%) incidents took place before, seven (21%) during and three (9%) after transfer. No patients sustained actual harm, 29 (85%) were perceived by the reporter to have suffered potential harm and the most common cause of this were delays in the transfer. No potential or actual harm was perceived in five (15%) of the incidents. Fifty-three per cent of events were reported by senior house officer grade and 47% of incidents were reported by a specialist registrar. Only one incident was reported by a nurse on the team. Conclusion ========== Interhospital transport of critically ill patients can pose important risks. In our study no actual patient harm occurred although most incidents had the potential to cause harm. The majority of incidents were caused by system-based factors. This database has allowed us to perform continuous service development and education of staff. ###### Causes of all incidents (irrespective of patient outcome) ----------------------------- ---------- Communication problem 10 (29%) Organisational delay 7 (21%) Lack of staff 2 (6%) Equipment failure 9 (26%) Poor preparation of patient 5 (15%) Staff injury 1 (3%) ----------------------------- ----------

Foxie herself was born in August of 1976 into a lonely life. Subjected to laboratory research on hepatitis vaccines, Foxie was compelled to produce more chimpanzees for research. But she never got to raise them. "When she arrived at the sanctuary she was aloof for a time around humans and cautious about her surroundings," Diana Goodrich, of Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest, told The Dodo. "She would not play with or even touch any of the toys and other items we gave the chimps."

Extraordinary Changes in the Electronic Structure and Properties of CdS and ZnS by Anionic Substitution: Cosubstitution of P and Cl in Place of S. Unlike cation substitution, anion substitution in inorganic materials such as metal oxides and sulfides would be expected to bring about major changes in the electronic structure and properties. In order to explore this important aspect, we have carried out first-principles DFT calculations to determine the effects of substitution of P and Cl on the properties of CdS and ZnS in hexagonal and cubic structures and show that a sub-band of the trivalent phosphorus with strong bonding with the cation appears in the gap just above the valence band, causing a reduction in the gap and enhancement of dielectric properties. Experimentally, it has been possible to substitute P and Cl in hexagonal CdS and ZnS. The doping reduces the band gap significantly as predicted by theory. A similar decrease in the band gap is observed in N and F co-substituted in cubic ZnS. Such anionic substitution helps to improve hydrogen evolution from CdS semiconductor structures and may give rise to other applications as well.

The past week has seen a surge of claims on social media that arson is to blame for most of Australia's massive bushfires. But these have mostly been based on inaccurate reporting of police figures, as BBC Outside Source's Ros Atkins explains. Read more: Australia fires: Misleading maps and pictures go viral

Helms-Man Transformers Since 1976 Helms-Man Transformers have been serving the world’s electronic and electric industries by designing and manufacturing world class certified adaptors, power transformers and switching mode power supplies for our global customers on ODM or OEM basis. Nowadays at Helms-Man Transformers ISO 9001 – accredited factory in south China, the company producing 100K plus pieces of various standards of power supplies everyday to help customers to distribute their products to the global market not only with the lowest possible cost but also in the shortest possible lead time.

“It's not a question of if, just when,” Daley told UK daily The Sun. “I've always said I'll keep diving as long as my body lets me. But the beauty of being an athlete is you retire young and you've got your whole life ahead of you.” Daley and fiance Dustin Lance Black are planning to marry in August. “Once I've finished with diving there are gong to be other avenues I'd like to explore,” Daley added. “Family has always been a massive thing.”

Friday marks the 36th anniversary of the Seitz decision, a ruling by arbitrator Peter Seitz that stated that any major league player who played one year for a team without a contract became a free agent. The ruling wiped out baseball’s cherished reserve clause, setting the stage for players to earn more money than they ever imagined. From that moment on, one team has been more generous in bestowing those riches than any other: the New York Yankees. The Yankees are the team that’s synonymous with big spending, so eager to spend big bucks for top talent that they made Catfish Hunter the first big-ticket free agent in baseball history a year before free agency was a thing. They’re the team that has pulled off a big free-agent signing or traded for a big-money player more or less every year, for 36 years in a row. That New York’s streak might come to an end this year tells us a little about the current crop of free agents, and a lot about how the Yankees do business now. It’s a shallow group of free agents by historical standards. Only three players will end up with nine-figure contracts, with seven players likely to rake in $50 million or more. The positions those few elite free agents play mostly ran up against the Yankees’ biggest strengths and areas of depth: Mark Teixeira’s got five years left on his $180 million deal and Jesus Montero is poised to become the next star in the Bronx, so there was no room for Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder. Derek Jeter’s nearing the end, but signing Jose Reyes or Jimmy Rollins was still a practical impossibility. A loaded class of closers is irrelevant when you’ve got Mariano Rivera, not to mention nasty setup man David Robertson waiting in the wings. But the fact that the Yankees were so well covered at these and nearly every other position speaks volumes about the job Brian Cashman has done the past few years. The Yankees have become more adept at recognizing talent, deciding who stays and who goes, and resisting the urge to break the bank or ditch a premium prospect for no good reason than at any other time in years — maybe decades. From 1982 through 1994, the Yankees missed the playoffs 13 years in a row, the team’s longest stretch of futility since Babe Ruth’s arrival. Each failure made George Steinbrenner progressively angrier, more frustrated, and more eager to do something rash. Though the Yankees signed their share of free agents in those days, Steinbrenner’s signature move was to strip-mine the farm system, ordering good prospects to be traded even when the return wasn’t anything special. Trading Doug Drabek and two other players for an aging Rick Rhoden and two relievers was bad. Shipping Jay Buhner to Seattle for Ken Phelps was, as Frank Costanza would tell you, grounds for prosecution. Then came the dynasty. The Yankees won four World Series in five years, and looked poised to win a fifth in 2001 until they got Womacked. Losing for years can make a team increasingly antsy to make a big move. But tasting success over and over, then falling just short in heartbreaking fashion, can foster similar levels of angst. The Yankees had brought in plenty of outside help during their four-title run, but acquiring players like Tino Martinez, Paul O’Neill, and Scott Brosius didn’t require massive expenditures of money or talent. After the 2001 loss, Steinbrenner and Cashman started to raise the stakes. The strategy mostly worked, at first. Homegrown players like Derek Jeter, Andy Pettitte, Bernie Williams, Jorge Posada, and Rivera had grown from up-and-comers to veteran fixtures through the World Series years. But the team’s complementary players started to grow old and increasingly ineffective. Spotting that trend, the Yankees signed Hideki Matsui from Japan, and reaped major benefits. Short-term contracts for still-solid veterans worked out even better than hoped, with Roger Clemens pitching well even as he passed age 40. Less heralded players like Robin Ventura also worked out in pinstripes. The biggest deal of the post-dynasty era also looked like a winner at first. In the first two years of his seven-year, $120 million megacontract, Jason Giambi blasted 82 homers and racked up 12 Wins Above Replacement, giving the Yankees reasonable bang for their copious bucks. Trouble was, the Yankees weren’t winning; or, at least, they weren’t winning. In 2003, the Yanks notched their sixth straight division title, banked their second straight 100-win season, and made the playoffs for the ninth year in a row. But in the twisted world of Yankeedom, this wasn’t quite enough. Not when one of the greatest moments in franchise history was followed by Josh Beckett serving up a warm plate of STFD. So Cashman started getting even more aggressive. He traded for Kevin Brown in the 2003-04 offseason, absorbing the $31.5 million Brown was due to make for the next two seasons in the hopes that he had something left at age 39 and 40. Brown wasn’t as bad as his 6.50 ERA in 2005 might suggest, yielding a .385 batting average on balls in play that year that was likely due partly to eroding skills, but also to bad luck. Gary Sheffield got a three-year deal extending into his late 30s; Year 1 was a success, Year 2 a disappointment, Year 3 a gigantic disaster. Expecting too much of old players became a damaging theme for the Yankees. But the team overreached in other ways, too. In the offseason of 2004-05, desperately needing capable starting pitchers to patch the rotation, the Yanks spent a combined $61 million on free agents Carl Pavano and Jaret Wright. Wright was terribly injury-prone; Pavano’s health issues were further in his past, but he brought the added risk of being a finesse pitcher coming off success in pitcher-friendly Miami, now going to the Bronx. The two pitchers teamed up to deliver 3.7 WAR over the seven years of their combined contracts. Maybe it was the trauma of watching Carl Pavano spend four years doing everything other than actually pitch. But the types of deals Cashman made and the types of players he targeted thereafter were dramatically different from what he’d done before. The biggest change was to avoid paying up for old veterans. Cashman may have been learning along with the rest of baseball that players producing at high levels into their late 30s and early 40s wasn’t sustainable. Maybe he was specifically reacting to his own errors. Either way, he came to realize that having more spending power than everyone else only helps if you devote your resources to signing elite players in or near their prime, not older players or those with mediocre talent. When the Rangers soured on Alex Rodriguez and his huge contract, the Yankees happily flipped Alfonso Soriano for him and got multiple MVP-caliber years for their trouble. When CC Sabathia hit the open market as one of the top pitchers in baseball with youth and unmatched durability on his side, they (smartly) didn’t blink at his $161 million asking price. When Rivera’s deals kept expiring, the Yankees kept re-signing him, because when Mariano Rivera had to pick out the correct Holy Grail he chose wisely. Like any other GM, Cashman still made mistakes. The same offseason he signed Sabathia, he also gifted $82.5 million to A.J. Burnett, a move that looks awful now. He’s also overpaid several incumbent Yankees to stay in town. In those cases, though, other factions may have intervened: We know that Randy Levine insisted on tossing a few extra million into a Jeter three-year deal that had little to no chance of paying off, and that Cashman wanted nothing to do with the $35 million the Yankees foolishly chucked at Rafael Soriano. Perhaps the biggest change in Cashman’s approach has been the way he values the team’s own prospects. Three years ago, he dealt Jose Tabata and three other young players to Pittsburgh for Damaso Marte and Xavier Nady. Two years ago, he forgot the cardinal rule: Never trade anything of value to bring Javier Vazquez to New York. But Cashman has grown increasingly stingy in his willingness to give up homegrown potential stars. He held on to Robinson Cano for years amid swirling trade speculation and concerns about his young second baseman’s unrefined approach, and got an MVP candidate for his patience. He’s resisted all overtures for phenom Jesus Montero, preferring to let the 22-year-old slugger swing for the fences in Yankee Stadium next year, not somewhere else. Though they might still get dealt at some point, Cashman’s refusal to sell too quickly on pitching prospects Manny Banuelos and Dellin Betances has resulted in both pitchers maturing into hot commodities with big value to both the Yankees and potential suitors. When the team does decide to part with a top prospect, it can only be if an excellent player offering multiple years of team control is available, the way Curtis Granderson was after the 2009 season. Hanging on to top prospects doesn’t only allow those players time to ripen and potentially become useful players on the big league club. It can also allow the Yankees to save money at select positions, paying half a million to a rookie where they might’ve once paid $10 million to a 38-year-old. If a thrifty approach seems puzzling given the Yankees’ massive revenue streams, consider the new luxury tax codified in the recently ratified collective bargaining agreement. Cashman has his eye squarely on the $189 million luxury tax threshold to avoid paying big penalties; if Montero’s whacking 30 homers a year in New York and making the league minimum, you’ve solved two potential problems at once. But here’s the real $189 million question: Are prudence and austerity the right ways to run baseball’s marquee franchise? The Yankees have won just one World Series in the past 11 seasons. In 2010, they had a chance to trade for Cliff Lee, the best pitcher in baseball that year. As with all trade rumors, we can never exactly know what was discussed, and who may have turned down which offer. But the Yankees had Montero and other enticing prospects at their disposal to trade for Lee and Lee instead went to the Rangers, who rode the lefty’s dominant performance in the ALDS and ALCS to the World Series that year, knocking off the Yanks in the process. When Lee spurned New York’s advances that offseason, the Yankees went bottom-fishing instead, taking flyers on Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia. Amazingly, both panned out. Still, there was a sense that last season’s team needed another front-line starter to make a title run. The Yankees never got that arm, watching the trade deadline pass without any major activity, then bowing out of the playoffs for a second straight year. You can now make it three straight years that the Yankees could really use a strong no. 2 starter to slot in behind Sabathia. But the team’s lowball bid on Yu Darvish and lack of strong interest in C.J. Wilson and Mark Buehrle point to a GM who either didn’t want to spend a ton of money on free-agent pitchers this winter, didn’t like the names that were out there, or both. Of all the lessons Cashman has learned in the past decade, none resonate more than this: The playoffs can be random, capricious, and cruel. He might still pursue a starting pitcher via trade, sign someone like Hiroki Kuroda as a solid tier-two option, or upgrade the roster in other ways. But if he doesn’t, he can look at a team built with true stars, not retreads, one with rare upside for a Yankees club with Montero poised to improve over a 162-game season. If the Yankees do nothing else this offseason, they’d be a strong bet to get back to the playoffs, where they’d have about as good a chance as anyone of going all the way. The New York Yankees have become more frugal than they have in years, with enough patience to make them baseball’s most unlikely story of Zen. Wonder what George would say if he could see them now. Jonah Keri’s new book, The Extra 2%: How Wall Street Strategies Took a Major League Baseball Team from Worst to First, is a national best-seller. Follow him on Twitter at @JonahKeri. Previously from Jonah Keri: Will Yu Darvish End The AL East’s Grip On The Wild Card? Who Do ‘Yu’ Think Your Are? Who Should Sign Prince Fielder? What Do We Really Know About Ryan Braun? To comment on this story through Facebook, click here.

Q: SQL statement to count corresponding entries while having a strict sequence (logical) I want to aggregate the number of (identical) parts in my production plan while preserving the sequence. My table looks like this: ------------------------------------------------- |Part Number | Production Sequence Number | .... | ------------------------------------------------- | 1| 1| .... | -------------------------------------------------- | 1| 2| .... | -------------------------------------------------- | 2| 3| .... | -------------------------------------------------- | 2| 4| .... | -------------------------------------------------- | 1| 5| .... | -------------------------------------------------- And I need to count the amount of same parts in a row: Expected result: ------------------------------------------------- |Part Number | Nr of pieces in a row | .... | ------------------------------------------------- | 1| 2| .... | ------------------------------------------------- | 2| 2| .... | ------------------------------------------------- | 1| 1| .... | ------------------------------------------------- Can this be done by only unsing SQL (MySQL)? A: You may use variable to emulate numbers and then perform GROUP BY SELECT id, COUNT(*) FROM ( SELECT @row_number:=CASE WHEN @seq_num = id THEN @row_number ELSE @row_number + 1 END AS num, @seq_num:=id as id, seq_num FROM tab, (SELECT @row_number:=0, @seq_num := 1) t ORDER BY seq_num ) t GROUP BY num, id demo

Q: Extract value demited by delimiter after a particular word Suppose a have a main string something like: "The last prices are Samsung(100.59), Nokia(35.23), Apple(199.34)". Is there any method to extract the value from this String by sending the names? public Double getValue(String name); So the getValue("Nokia") will return 35.23 and getValue(Apple) will return 199.34. A: You can do this with regex public Double getValue(String name){ Pattern p = Pattern.compile("(?<=" + name + "\\()\\d+\\.\\d+(?=\\))"); Matcher m = p.matcher("<your matcher string>"); m.find(); return Double.parseDouble(m.group()); }

Tuesday, February 22, 2005 No Soccer Moms in Saudi Richard Cohen wrote about the absurd plight of women in Saudi Arabia in the Washington Post today. His reactions are the same as mine when I lived there in late 1990, in the period leading up to the Gulf War. When asked about the time difference in phone calls to Washington, I often responded, "We're eight hours ahead of you and eight centuries behind you." Cohen refers to a rare 1990 protest in this primitive country, when about 50 women took to the streets behind the wheels of cars, protesting because they weren't (and still aren't) allowed to drive cars. I was meeting daily with a Saudi major general who was sort of my counterpart and had become a friend. I asked him the next day what he would have done if one of his wives had been arrested for driving a car in the protest. The general responded that he would have left her in jail to teach her a lesson.

1. Field of Invention The invention relates to a control apparatus/method for an internal combustion engine having a supercharger connected to an intake passage and driven by a motor. 2. Description of Related Art An attempt to provide an intake passage of an engine (internal combustion engine) with a motor-driven supercharger and to achieve a high output (or low fuel consumption) through supercharging performed by the supercharger has generally been made. Such an internal combustion engine is disclosed also in Published Japanese translation of a PCT application JP-T-2001-518590. In the internal combustion engine disclosed in Published Japanese translation of a PCT application JP-T-2001-518590, an intake passage is bifurcated into two branch flow passages, which are combined into one flow passage again. A supercharger driven by a motor is connected to one of the branch flow passages. A combined portion of the branch flow passages is provided with a switching valve that changes the branch flow passage from which intake air flows toward the downstream side. When the supercharger is operated, the switching valve opens the branch flow passage that is provided with the supercharger, and closes the branch flow passage that is not provided with the supercharger. On the contrary, when the supercharger is not operated, the switching valve closes the branch flow passage that is provided with the supercharger, and opens the branch flow passage that is not provided with the supercharger. In this manner, while the supercharger is prevented from causing a loss in intake air, the backflow of intake air is prevented. The state of switching valve in the internal combustion engine disclosed in Published Japanese translation of a PCT application JP-T-2001-518590 mentioned above is changed in accordance with a difference between a pressure in each of branch pipes on the upstream side and a pressure in an intake pipe on the downstream side. If the switching valve is designed to make use of a differential pressure as described above, the state of the switching valve may be inappropriately changed and the flow of the intake air may pause for a moment. For example, if the supercharger is stopped from performing supercharging, the state of the switching valve is changed after stoppage of the supercharger, and the flow of air is created in the branch pipe that is not provided with the supercharger. At this moment, the flow of intake air pauses, and the internal combustion engine may be operated discontinuously.

Destination Disneyland finished up last weekend. A three day adventure filled crazy weekend to the Magic Kingdom. We (Sherry, Mike, the four kids and me) left on Friday right after work (I don’t have a girl to go on vacations with, so Mike and Sher are cool to let me tag along on theirs so I don’t have to sit home and stare at the wall. Plus we were meeting a bunch of other friends there, so it wasn’t just a family vacation but a friends and family vacation) The trip was a surprise for the kids, so for the entire ride to the airport and the airplane ride down, they kept asking where we were going. I kept telling them that we were going to visit a broccoli farm, When we got the airplane tickets they looked and saw the destination as being “Orange County”… So then they got “county” and “country” confused and they started asking, “Orange Country where’s that?” And we started telling them that it was an orange orchard and farm that we were visiting and that they let you do a bunch of cool stuff there like, pick oranges from the tree and squeeze your own orange juice and stuff, it’ll be fun!” When we finally reached the airport down south, the airport let the cat out of the bag with all the Disneyland 50th anniversary banners everywhere. We still insisted that yeah, Disneyland is down here, but we scheduled our three days to see the orange farm, if we had more days, we could see Disneyland, but, oh well, not this time. They weren’t buying it though. We made it to the hotel which was just a few blocks from Disneyland, and got checked in, Deb and Andrew were already checked in at the place and Deb met us, but Andrew was working a convention around the corner from the hotel, so he wasn’t there. Vince, a long time friend of Sherry’s and ours, who now lives in LA, was on his way to meet us there and was joining in on the whole weekend adventure. Sherry, Mike and the kids got a family suite, and I got a suite next door to them where Vince and I were going to crash. Vince is way cool dude, easy going, mellow, down to Earth, and 100% completely gay. So, when Mike and I got into mine and Vince’s room, we both at the same time immediately zeroed in on the one King bed, Mike just gave me a pat on the shoulder and said, “Have fun with that.” Then Sherry came and joined in and started saying, “Why didn’t you get two beds?!?” and I said, “I didn’t know there were choices! You were the one who was checking us all in, all you did was scream for my credit card to pay for the room… I didn’t know what was going on!!” Luckily, we found that the couch had a pull out bed, so I was okay. Vince finally showed up and I told him he could have the bed, and that I’ll take the couch-bed, he said we could share the big bed if I wanted to and that he wouldn’t do anything, which I’m sure was the truth because he’s very respectful, he’s more like a brother, we’ve known each other so long… I was more worried that I might start dreaming about Jolene Blalock (Sub-Commander T’Pol on Star Trek, yummy) and while, in my dreams, snuggling with Jolene, I’d be the one grabbing for something in the middle of the night and wake up all spooning Vince!… “uh, nah, that’s alright, I’ll take the couch-bed… Thanks anyway” (God! how come no single girls ever come on these trips!!! Grrr. Of course, if a single girl did show up, I’m sure she’d be all, “I’ll take the bed, and, Sean, you can sleep in the bathtub, or actually, out in the hall would be better.”) Vince also brought with him a trip to the grocery store… he had bags and bags of fruit, snacks, booze, wine, bottled water, chips, everything. It was awesome. I mentioned, “Gay dudes should always do the shopping, because if it was me who was sent to the store, I’d have returned with just a six pack of beer, some beef jerky, and a Maxim magazine.” We all went next door to listen to the kids get yelled at because they were playing around and hadn’t put away their clothes like they were told. Then all of a sudden Matt, Janet, and Matt’s son, Tyler all busted into the room wearing balloon animals on their heads, waving around balloon swords and looking like total dorks. The kids immediately grabbed the balloon swords and started swashbuckling around the room which ended up with a double yell for not finishing putting away their clothes AND for swashbuckling in the room. That evening, the kids got parked in front of the TV and the grown ups went next door to my room for drinks and yapping… We started hearing booms and ran out on the balcony to find the Disneyland fireworks show in progress. It was really cool, we got the kids and all went out to watch them… Since I was alone, I started getting jealous of the couples that were there,… with the fireworks going off and standing out there on the balcony, I was thinking how cool it would be to have my own girl there in front of me so I could wrap my arms around her and cuddle and sway with her, smell her hair and rub the boner in my pants on her ass while we gaze up at the exploding fireworks… Wow! talk about romantic!… Currently you have JavaScript disabled. 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2018 Allocation to GiveWell Top Charities We believe that every life has equal value — and that philanthropic dollars can go particularly far by helping those who are living in poverty by global standards. Currently, the best giving opportunities we’ve found in the Global Health and Development focus area are recommended by GiveWell. (Read more about our relationship to GiveWell here.) Throughout the course of this year, we have recommended GiveWell Incubation Grants to support the development of potential future top charities, as well as general support funding for GiveWell’s operations (capped at 20% of operating expenses for reasons described here). GiveWell recently announced its updated list of top charities that focus on programs with a strong track record and excellent cost-effectiveness, can use additional funding to expand their core programs, and are exceptionally transparent. As we have in the past, we coordinated with GiveWell on how to recommend grants from Good Ventures — both in terms of the total amount donated and in terms of the distribution between recipient charities. GiveWell recommended, and we plan to approve, an allocation of $64 million for top charities in 2018. For setting the total amount, our methodology was the same as last year’s. In brief, we started from the assumption that 10% of total available capital will eventually go to a "straightforward charity" bucket that is reasonably likely to line up fairly well with GiveWell’s work and recommendations. This 10% allocation includes a fixed percentage of total giving each year of 5% and another flexible bucket of 5%, which can be spent down quickly or slowly, based in part on GiveWell’s expectations of when funds can accomplish the most good. (For more detail, please see our blog post on our 2017 allocation.) Based on these considerations, GiveWell set a target of spending down the flexible bucket within the next 15 years, and recommended that Good Ventures grant $64 million this year. GiveWell recommended that the $64 million be allocated to its top charities as follows: More detail on GiveWell’s reasoning in setting this allocation (and in providing its input into the total figure) is available here. Three of these top charities whose work primarily focuses on reducing deaths, while five implement programs that aim to increase recipients' incomes and consumption. Though some of these recommendations are still working their way through our full grantmaking process, we expect the funds will be distributed in coming weeks, and we are excited to support these cost-effective organizations.

The history of the Castra System might be as close of a mirror to Humanity’s relationship with the Xi’An as you can find. Discovered in 2544, only 14 years after our first encounter with the Xi’An, Castra was terraformed for military use. As tensions with the Xi’An relaxed, so did the military’s presence in the system. Today, Castra is primarily a trading hub, though certain areas have stayed under military control and ready for action at a moment’s notice. Castra is a simple system containing two planets orbiting a stunning blue-white star. It was discovered by UPE military pathfinders probing systems near the Perry Line for undiscovered jump points. After the initial exploration, early reports noted the system as “unremarkable” from an astronomical perspective, yet the military brass immediately grasped its strategic importance as a staging post for the brewing Xi’An conflict. The system was named Castra, after the ancient Roman term for land used by the military as a defensive position, and terraforming of its second planet began immediately. Decades later the system was thrust into the front lines of the conflict when a jump point from Castra to Oya with its burgeoning Xi’An colony was discovered. As government funding flooded the system to improve its defensive fortifications and military infrastructure, it quickly changed from a mere staging post into a focal point of the Xi’An cold war. A large orbital platform was even built to support capital ships and long-range bombers, which were ever ready to attack Xi’An space should the order be given. The station has since been decommissioned and bought by Crusader to become a part of their commercial starliner network in the system. In 2789, the UEE reduced their military footprint in Castra. After two centuries of strict control, the public was permitted to move into the system. The decision was, and still is for some, a controversial one. A hawkish minority of military bureaucrats and political elites believe the system best serves the Empire as a dedicated (and solitary) military outpost. Upon Castra’s conversion, businesses arrived in droves to take advantage of the system’s exceptional infrastructure and affordable real estate. At this point, that makes Castra a prime destination for haulers looking to offload raw materials and leave with goods. Recently, Castra’s government has pushed to increase tourism to the system in an attempt to diversify their industries. Castra I Castra’s first planet lacks an atmosphere or any raw materials worth mining. Still, Humans realized that Castra I was good for one thing — target practice. Designated “Bulls-eye” by the UEE Navy, this dead world was used for bombing runs during the cold war. Today, the way the system’s star reflects off Castra I’s pockmarked surface is probably the most interesting thing about it. Castra II (Cascom) Only Castra II is suitable for habitation. The UEE military designated the planet as Castra Command, which was shortened to Cascom — an unofficial name that has stuck, much to the dismay of some current politicians. The military terraformed the planet as fast as possible. Some scientist today even say possibly too fast, suggesting that the escalated speed at which Cascom was made ready is to blame for its pronounced cloud layer. The military wanted to construct an ideal defensive position, so they dug into the top of Mount Ulysses to build the city of Sherman, making it both superbly secure and breathtakingly beautiful. This fortress city, situated above the clouds, has earned the nickname “Island in the Sky.” Upon seeing Sherman for the first time, Admiral Kumasi Klein famously said, “It’s the city of my dreams. Picturesque and protected by big guns.” Since Sherman was under government control for centuries, it remains a sterling example of state-sponsored architecture. When Monumentalism was championed by Imperator Messer V, Sherman’s skyline was updated to reflect the style. Today, Sherman’s historic architecture remains as one of the primary reasons to visit the city. Ever since the military opened the system to Citizens and civilians, Sherman has searched to define its own cultural identity. For centuries, living on Castra II was an assignment, not a choice. People from every corner of the Empire spent time there, but few put down roots. When the system opened up, industry became the planet’s most obvious new resident. Although companies like Kruger Intergalactic injected new life into the planet, they did little to give it a new identity among the masses of other imperial worlds. That changed in 2833 when the planet elected Andre Novoselov president. President Novoselov worked closely with the business community to attract more residents to Sherman. For years, businesses had struggled to find enough employees to fill available positions. Together, they launched pro-Sherman promotional campaigns on planets around the Empire. One of those campaigns resurrected the “Island in the Sky” motif and featured the iconic image of the mountaintop city sitting above cloud cover sparkling from the light pollution of cities below. For the first time, the Empire saw Sherman as more than a military outpost or industrial park. It was President Novoselov’s hope that he would see Castra II earn representation in his lifetime, but sadly his transition from President to planetary Governor never came to pass, and the planet has yet to earn its senatorial seat. President Novoselov’s push to populate the planet worked. As more people arrived, so did a wide variety of service industries to meet the increasing demand. Sherman became a melting pot of high-end stores, restaurants and hotels, intermixed with businesses geared toward middle-class and blue-collar workers. In many parts of the city, people in designer suits and those in graphene-toed boots shop, dine and live in the same part of town. Recently, Cascom’s cheap real estate and scenic views have become a popular home for retirees. In an effort to attract a younger crowd, Sherman has promoted its beautiful, mountaintop location as the ’verse’s premiere extreme sports destination. For a while, paragliding above the clouds was extremely popular until numerous amateur paragliders landed on military installations and forced the city to impose a ban on the practice. Even if paragliding has been prohibited around Mount Ulysses, there is more than enough awe and adventure awaiting anyone who visits Castra II. Heard in the Wind “The Xi’An conflict, when it does occur — and note I say when, not if — will ultimately be determined by our strength in one system alone, Castra. I implore all of you to appropriate funds swiftly and accordingly.” – Admiral Connelly Reeves, excerpt from a speech given to High-Command, 2716 “The strength of the lines and the unforgiving audacity of the edifice as it pierces the firmament leaves no doubt to what the intent of the structure was, nor any room to debate that the establishment of Sherman embodied the spirit of the era as much as it helped define it.” – Reggie Chapolt, Brick by Brick, 2880

Wilderness Endeavors Esy School About This School Wilderness Endeavors Esy School is located in Togo, MN and is one of 17 schools in Grand Rapids Public School District. It is a sp-ed school that serves students in grades 6-12. Special Education schools are public schools that provide special services for children with disabilities (special physical, mental, or learning needs). Many special education schools also provide vocational training, adapted physical education, and assistive technology for their students. See Wilderness Endeavors Esy School's test results to learn more about school performance.

Have You Checked Out the WSO2 Machine Learner Yet? WSO2 Machine Learner is the latest addition to the WSO2 product stack. Or, to be precise, one of the latest additions: Machine Learner only held the crown for a few weeks before WSO2 Data Analytics Server become the new kid on the block. Nevertheless, Machine Learner is something we’re particularly proud of. As you no doubt guessed, it’s a product meant for predictive business analytics: by building models and running data through them, it allows one to quite literally peek into possible futures. Why is this important? Well, machine learning is rapidly becoming the new frontier for businesses. We’ve gone from educated guesses to dedicated analytics: now we’re trying to predict the future. “I keep saying the sexy job in the next ten years will be statisticians. People think I'm joking, but who would've guessed that computer engineers would've been the sexy job of the 1990s?” - Hal Varian, Chief Economist at Google Hal Varian expects statisticians to be the next sexy job because of the sheer amounts of data and intelligence that companies need to chew through these days. At WSO2, we expect machine learning to be an integral part of what makes that job sexy. And useful. Done right, machine learning can easily replace a small army of statisticians - especially when it comes to enterprise big data. The world isn’t (yet) at the level where we can recreate a Minority Report for businesses, but there’s a lot of work that’s gone into this space. If you don’t know the field, you should: we’d recommend this short and beautifully designed Visual Introduction to Machine Learning, courtesy of R2D3. If you know the field, you can skip the above and go directly to what Nirmal Fernando has to say. Nirmal leads the team working on the project, and his blogpost on ML gives a quick, concise breakdown of what WSO2 Machine Learner is capable of. Part of the challenge of predictive analytics is presenting the data intelligently, something we’ve paid careful attention to with WSO2 ML. After that, you should probably check out what Srinath Perera, our Vice President of Research, has to say: he’s written a post called “WSO2 Machine Learner: Why Would You Care?” on his personal blog. This talks about how ML is built, and the uses you can put it to. As you can see, ML completes our analytics offerings - we now offer batch, real-time, interactive and predictive analytics, and all of these components tie into each other beautifully for creating end-to-end analytics solutions for your business. Of course, we have plans for making Machine Learner more powerful: we plan to add neural networks, algorithmic recommendation, anomaly detection, and more - as the product evolves, we’ll keep pushing out updates. Download Machine Learner here, and you’re good to go. Set up your models right and you can peek into the future without actually having to go at 88 miles an hour in an old DeLorean. What’s not to like? PS: If you’d like to call for support, or suggest features, don’t hesitate to contact us. We welcome bug reports, too!

Outstanding maneuverability and turnability, based on comparatively large steering angles and small turning radii, have helped to establish pivot steering as a type of steering in vehicles with at least two vehicle frames each having at least one rigid axle. In particular construction vehicles, such as for example vibratory rollers with two vehicle frames in each of which a tire is mounted, are often controlled with the aid of pivot steering. Conventional pivot-steered vehicles frequently use a central pivot joint which connects the two vehicle frames on the axis of symmetry in the longitudinal direction, that is to say the longitudinal centre axis. The steering drive used is in this case usually a double-acting hydraulic cylinder which is articulated at its ends to the two vehicle frames. Depending on the desired change in the direction of travel, the piston rod of the hydraulic cylinder is extended or retracted by actuation of a pressure medium so that, viewed in the direction of travel, either the left or the right lateral edges of the vehicle frames are swiveled relative to one another. The maximum settable pivot or steering angle of a central pivot joint of this type results from the geometrical context. The smaller the spacing between the front frame and the rear frame becomes, the smaller the maximum settable steering angle becomes, as otherwise the edges of the vehicle frames will abut one another. If a larger steering angle is striven for in order to improve maneuverability, this inevitably increases the size of the free space between the frame edges in which the pivot joint is located, giving rise to a broad range of drawbacks. On the one hand, the total length of the vehicle is increased in size; this can present difficulties during transportation, etc. Furthermore, the increase in the size of the free space between the frame edges in the longitudinal direction increases the axial spacing, as a result of which the size of the turning radius is increased while the steering turn remains the same. Furthermore, the increase in the size of the spacing between the vehicle frames is also associated with increased consumption of materials. Alternatively, in order to increase the steering turn, instead of increasing the size of the spacing between the vehicle frames, the critical frame outer edge regions, in particular corner regions, which delimit the steering turn by abutment, can be recessed and provided with a radius. Although this does not increase the size of the overall length, the recessed regions are nevertheless lost, so that the space in or on the vehicle frames for arranging machine components is reduced. In relatively small construction machines, such as for example trench rollers, an overall length which is as short as possible is striven for, wherein there must still be sufficient space for arranging machine components. At the same time, it is necessary for the trench roller to be able to perform a steering angle which is as large as possible in order to be able to turn even in narrow and curvy trenches. A pivot-steered agricultural vehicle with two swivel axes spaced apart from one another is known. A disadvantage of the principle applied in the pivot steering of this vehicle is that the adjustment apparatus for steering the vehicle necessarily entails a relatively large amount of construction room in the longitudinal direction of the vehicle. It is also disadvantageous that a separate adjustment device, for example a hydraulic cylinder, is required for creating a pivoting movement about each swivel axis, which increases the cost and decreases the effectiveness of the steering apparatus.

The impact of 3 strategies for incorporating polled genetics into a dairy cattle breeding program on the overall herd genetic merit. Dehorning in cattle has been associated with behavioral, physiological, and neuroendocrine responses indicative of pain. Unaddressed, the pain associated with a routine production procedure could contribute to a negative public perception of livestock production practices. Alternative considerations of dehorning include the selection of polled cattle within herds, thereby avoiding pain and production loss. As polledness results from an autosomal dominant pattern of inheritance, genetic selection for polled cattle could reduce the prevalence of the horned trait. Herein we discuss 3 strategies to incorporate polled genetics into a cow herd and the estimated impact on the overall genetic merit of the herd. Furthermore, the availability and genetic merit of polled artificial insemination bulls in the United States is summarized. Both Holstein and Jersey dairy bulls registered with the National Association of Animal Breeders from December 2010 through April 2013 were queried. Polled bulls were identified as either being homozygous (PP) or heterozygous (Pp) and the average net merit (NM) predicted transmitting ability (PTA) of each sire group was calculated. The percentage of polled calves born each year over a 10-yr period was calculated for the following 3 scenarios: (A) various percentages of horned cows were randomly mated to Pp bulls, (B) various percentages of horned cows were preferentially mated to Pp bulls, and (C) horned cows were selectively mated to PP bulls, heterozygous cows to Pp bulls, and homozygous polled cows to horned bulls. Additionally, the change in NM PTA of the cow herd was calculated over the same period. The highest percentage of polled animals (87%) was achieved in scenario C. An evaluation of the herd NM PTA highlights the trade-offs associated with increasing polled genetics. Given the current genetic merit of horned and polled bulls, increasing the percentage of polled calves will decrease the NM PTA in Holstein, but may have minimal impact in Jersey herds. Decisions regarding selective breeding to increase polled genetics will need to be evaluated in the context of production objectives, cost of dehorning, and impact on overall genetic merit.

Application of infrared spectroscopy (attenuated total reflection) for monitoring enzymatic activity on substrate films. Infrared film analysis, a method based on infrared spectroscopy in the mode of attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), is demonstrated as a novel analytical method for monitoring enzymatic activity on surface-attached substrate films in the mid infrared range (400-4000 cm(-1)). The ATR-FTIR technique is sensitive to molecules within a distance of approximately 1 microm from the ATR sampling unit surface (a 7 cm(2) hydrophobic ZnSe crystal). Applying a 0.2-0.3 microm thick film on the ATR unit surface, any chemical changes within this film as well as at the interface can be continuously monitored, even having an aqueous phase on top of the film. Infrared film analysis is considered especially useful for studying detergent enzymes, which act on surface bound films consisting of food component like vegetable oils (triacylglycerols) and carbohydrates (e.g. starch). Experimental data are presented for hydrolysis of a triacylglycerol film (triolein) by use of a triacylglycerol lipase (cutinase), and starch film degradation by use of an alpha-amylase.

The city of Leander will become the new home for the nationu2019s first state-administered gold depository. The nation’s first state-administered gold depository will be located in the city of Leander.Gov. Greg Abbott signed the existence of the Texas Bullion Depository into law after the 2015 legislative session. At the time, Abbott said having the depository would help keep Texas gold reserves secure, as well as keep taxpayer funds from leaving the state. Previously, the state paid storage fees to facilities outside of Texas.The Leander site was selected by Austin-based Lone Star Tangible Assets, the vendor hired by the State Comptroller’s office to build and operate the depository. The exact location of the site is being withheld for security reasons, but Matt Ferris, chair of Lone Star Tangible Assets, said the facility would be located near the Capital Metro railroad tracks in north Leander.Leander City Council approved an economic development agreement with Lone Star Tangible Assets for the depository during a Thursday night meeting. According to a press release from the Texas State Comptroller’s office set to be released Nov. 3, construction on the site is expected to begin in early 2018. Lone Star Tangible Assets expects the facility to be completed in late 2018 or early 2019.The depository will provide services nationwide in 2018, with international services to be offered in the future phases, according to the release.“This state-of-the-art facility will provide tremendous benefits to the citizens of Leander and will give Texans a secure facility right here in the Lone Star State where their gold and precious metals will be kept safe and close at hand,” Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar said in the press release.Ferris said Lone Star Tangible Assets is making room for more than 300 employees at the new location. He said the company will relocate its 100 current employees and add jobs as needed. He said nearly all of the company's positions are hired locally within a 50-mile radius.Leander Mayor Chris Fielder said the city is thrilled to build the depository in Leander.“As one of the safest and fastest growing communities in the nation, I can’t imagine a better place for companies in the precious metals industry to operate,” he said in the release. “We believe Leander is a growing destination for business, and I am proud to have us represent the state of Texas in this joint enterprise.”

I did have a go at your attempt, however if I want to be able to use this on a monthly basis i would have to do the manual insert statement every time?? James Not sure what you mean by the manual insert as mine doesn't do any inserts. I took your original code and embedded it in the first CTE. You should uncomment that and use it instead of the SELECT/UNION ALL SELECT query inside that CTE (you said that's what your query produced). My advice:INDEXing a poor-performing query is like putting sugar on cat food. Yeah, it probably tastes better but are you sure you want to eat it?The path of least resistance can be a slippery slope. Take care that fixing your fixes of fixes doesn't snowball and end up costing you more than fixing the root cause would have in the first place. My advice:INDEXing a poor-performing query is like putting sugar on cat food. Yeah, it probably tastes better but are you sure you want to eat it?The path of least resistance can be a slippery slope. Take care that fixing your fixes of fixes doesn't snowball and end up costing you more than fixing the root cause would have in the first place.

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Governor Brian Schweitzer of Montana signed into law SB 317, which regulates the conversion of nonprofit health insurers into for-profit businesses. The bill was passed by overwhelming majorities in both houses of the Montana Legislature and is being hailed by consumer advocates as a model for other states to emulate. “This bill protects consumers by establishing clear directions for regulators and clear rules for nonprofit health organizations planning to convert to for-profit corporations,” stated Schweitzer. “It is among the strongest in the nation; it's good for consumers and good for business." Senators Greg Lind (D-Missoula) and John Cobb (R-Augusta) and Representative Tom Facey (D-Missoula) sponsored the bill. “My colleagues in the Legislature and I have learned from the problems faced by regulators in states without clear nonprofit conversion laws,” said Senator Lind. “This new law will provide consumers and regulators with the tools they need to evaluate a health insurer’s proposal to convert to a for-profit business. And the health insurer itself will be aware from the outset of the roadmap it must follow if it embarks upon a conversion.” Because of tax advantages bestowed upon nonprofit organizations, their assets are essentially owned by the public. Montana common law already requires such assets to continue to be used for a charitable health purpose if a nonprofit converts to a for-profit business. As a result of health conversions nationwide, over $18 billion has been preserved in more than 170 independent foundations that carry on the charitable mission of addressing community health needs. According to Scott Benbow, staff attorney in Consumers Union’s West Coast Office, “Montana’s bill provides strong protections for consumers in Montana, reduces the likelihood of litigation against the state, speeds up the conversion proposal review process, and prevents the depletion of the charitable assets. We applaud Governor Schweitzer and Montana lawmakers for protecting consumers and preserving nonprofit charitable assets.” • requires public notice, the opportunity for the public to submit comments, public hearings across the state, clear discovery powers of regulators, and unfettered public access to conversion proposals and all accompanying documents; • creates a transparent system for distributing the assets to a foundation or another nonprofit organization, if the regulators authorize a nonprofit health insurer to become for-profit companies; and • is revenue neutral because it requires a company proposing a conversion to pay reasonable costs by state regulators reviewing the proposal. According to Claudia Clifford of the AARP Montana, “This law will strengthen and clarify common law protections of nonprofit dollars. In the event of a health insurer conversion, the legislation will prevent nonprofit assets from slipping into private pockets and will preserve dollars for critical health care needs. Our membership and all Montana consumers will benefit from this protection.” While Montana nonprofit health plans maintain that they have no intention of converting, legislators acted to protect consumers and preserve health assets in advance. Rumors that one of the health plans might have been preparing to convert several years ago may have prompted lawmakers to act in the current legislative session. In so doing, they have provided clear guidance for nonprofit health insurers who might eventually consider converting to for-profit companies as well as clear criteria by which regulators must examine a proposal.

139 F.Supp.2d 1071 (2001) SCHALLER TELEPHONE COMPANY, Plaintiff, v. GOLDEN SKY SYSTEMS, INC., Rodney A. Weary, and Jo Ellen Linn, Defendants. No. C 99-4101-MWB. United States District Court, N.D. Iowa, Western Division. April 23, 2001. *1072 *1073 Alan E. Fredregill and Jeff W. Wright of Heidman, Redmond, Fredregill, Patterson, Plaza, Dykstra & Prahl, L.L.P., Sioux City, IA, for Plaintiff. William D. Beil (argued), Brooks A. Richardson of Rouse, Hendricks, German, May, P.C., Kansas City, MO, G. Daniel Gildemeister of Gildemeister & Keane, L.L.P., Sioux, IA, for Defendants. MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER REGARDING DEFENDANTS' MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT BENNETT, Chief Judge. TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION .................................................................. 1074 A. Factual Background ......................................................... 1074 B. Procedural Background ...................................................... 1076 II. LEGAL ANALYSIS ............................................................... 1078 A. Standards For Summary Judgment ............................................ 1078 B. Schaller's Breach-Of-Contract Claim ....................................... 1079 1. Applicable principles of Iowa contract law ............................. 1080 a. Existence and terms of an oral contract ............................. 1080 b. Negotiations and reduction to writing ............................... 1081 i. The Faught decision ............................................. 1081 ii. Faught's precursors ............................................. 1083 2. Did these negotiations ripen into an oral contract? .................... 1085 a. Golden Sky's intent not to be bound except by a written agreement ............................................................... 1085 b. Manifestations of assent to an oral contract ........................ 1086 i. Agreement to the "essential term" of price .................... 1087 ii. Agreement on all terms ........................................ 1089 iii. Representations that the only contingency was board approval ........................................................... 1089 iv. Other conduct suggesting an agreement had been reached ............................................................ 1090 v. Weary's statements ............................................ 1091 vi. Agreement to agree ............................................ 1092 vii. Scope of Golden's Sky's disclaimers ........................... 1092 c. Consideration of other factors ...................................... 1093 C. Fraudulent Misrepresentation .............................................. 1096 1. The claim as pleaded and clarified in response to interrogatories ...... 1098 2. Merits of summary judgment on the claim as formulated .................. 1104 a. Fraudulent misrepresentation under Iowa law ......................... 1104 b. Misrepresentations of intention to perform .......................... 1106 c. Other "misrepresentations" .......................................... 1106 D. Golden Sky's Counterclaim ................................................. 1108 III. CONCLUSION .................................................................. 1108 *1074 In Greek mythology, Pegasus, the winged horse, was the mount of the hero Bellerophon when he rescued the kingdom of Lycia from the fire-breathing monster ChimÆra.[1] In this commercial litigation, plaintiff Schaller Telephone Company, disappointed by failure to close a deal to sell its satellite television assets to defendant Golden Sky Systems, Inc., was rescued from the full extent of any loss when Pegasus Communications Corporation bought Schaller's satellite television assets for over ten million dollars. Nevertheless, Schaller filed this suit against Golden Sky and two of its employees, alleging breach of an oral contract and asserting that Golden Sky's offer to buy its assets was a "chimera" of a different sort, because Golden Sky fraudulently misrepresented its intent and ability to perform the transaction. For its part, Golden Sky asserts a counterclaim of unjust enrichment arising from Schaller's failure to pay for satellite dishes that Golden Sky provided during the negotiation of the asset purchase agreement. Golden Sky now seeks summary judgment on both Schaller's claims and its own counterclaim. Following submission of a voluminous record and extensive arguments, written and oral, the court's task is to rule on Golden Sky's motion. I. INTRODUCTION A. Factual Background This dispute arises from the parties' failure to close a deal for defendant Golden Sky Systems, Inc., to purchase plaintiff Schaller Telephone Company's exclusive rights to provide DIRECTV satellite service to homes in Schaller's service territory. For the sake of convenience, the court will refer to the failed transaction between the parties as the purchase of Schaller's DBS ("direct broadcast satellite") assets. This summary of the factual background to the parties' dispute is by no means complete or detailed; rather, it is intended to provide only the background essential to put in context the parties' claims and counterclaims and Golden Sky's motion for summary judgment. Where necessary, the court will examine pertinent undisputed and disputed facts in more detail in the course of its legal analysis. Schaller entered the DBS business in August of 1992, when it acquired from the National Rural Telecommunications Cooperative (NTRC) the rights to provide DBS programming services from DIRECTV to cabled and non-cabled homes in Woodbury, Monona, Plymouth, and Ida Counties in Iowa. Golden Sky was formed in 1996 for the purpose of acquiring and owning distribution rights to DIRECTV, and operating DIRECTV programming services and equipment. Golden Sky's business strategy has been to expand its market through the acquisition of additional territories and the rapid increase of subscribers in those territories. In the fall of 1998, Golden Sky first expressed an interest in purchasing Schaller's DBS assets. The parties' negotiations of a possible purchase of Schaller's DBS assets by Golden Sky were long and complex. For background purposes, the court will touch only upon the principal landmarks in those negotiations. *1075 The principal players in this drama are Steven Reimers, the President of Schaller Telephone Company, Steven R. Jensen, Schaller's attorney and principal negotiator on Schaller's behalf with regard to the Golden Sky transaction, Rodney A. Weary, the President and CEO of Golden Sky, Jo Ellen Linn, Golden Sky's General Counsel, LaQuita Jones, Golden Sky's Vice President for Acquisitions, and Ed Foster, outside counsel hired by Golden Sky to negotiate the transaction with Schaller. The parties agree that only Reimers and Weary had the authority to bind their respective parties by entering into a written agreement for the sale and purchase of Schaller's DBS assets. After preliminary inquiries and the exchange of some information, on March 9, 1999, Golden Sky sent Schaller its first formal letter of interest making a conditional offer to purchase Schaller's DBS assets for $6,400,000 for a minimum of 3,200 subscribers, plus an additional $300 per subscriber in excess of 3,200. As a per subscriber deal, this offer was for a base price of $2,000 per subscriber. At about the same time, Golden Sky's main rival, Pegasus Communications Corporation, also made a somewhat better offer to purchase Schaller's DBS assets. Therefore, on May 26, 1999, Golden Sky sent Schaller a second letter of interest upping its offer. The May 26, 1999, letter made Schaller a conditional offer of $11,070,000 for a minimum of 4,100 subscribers, or $2,700 per subscriber, plus an additional $300 per subscriber in excess of 4,100. Although negotiation of numerous other issues began in earnest after this second letter of interest, the per subscriber price Golden Sky offered for Schaller's DBS assets remained at $2,700. The parties' representatives held a meeting in Council Bluffs, Iowa, on June 30, 1999, to see if they could put together various details of a deal for the sale of Schaller's DBS assets to Golden Sky. Prior to that meeting, Steven Jensen, Schaller's attorney, requested and received a copy of a "standard form" of written asset purchase agreement typically used by Golden Sky from Golden Sky's outside counsel, Ed Foster. Jensen requested the "standard form" agreement so that he could get some indication of the terms that Golden Sky normally put in such agreements and to identify issues or concerns for Schaller. One thing of interest to Schaller at this time was increasing its subscriber total to 5,000 or more to increase the purchase price for its DBS assets. Therefore, during the course of the meeting on June 30, 1999, in addition to other terms, the parties discussed a purchase price of $2,700 per subscriber for up to 5,000 subscribers, for a maximum total price of $13,500,000, with a reduction in purchase price of $2,700 per subscriber for every subscriber short of 5000. During the course of the negotiations that followed, the parties exchanged several "blacklined" draft agreements, which need not be detailed here. However, after further negotiations, on July 23, 1999, Golden Sky sent Schaller a "Letter of Intent" to "confir[m] proposed terms under which Golden Sky Systems, Inc., ... will acquire all of the assets, business and property from Schaller Telephone Company ... for the provision of DIRECTV ® programming services pursuant to NRTC/Member Agreement For Marketing and Distribution of DBS Services" in Schaller's service area. The Letter of Intent also expressed "the intention of the parties to begin immediate, good-faith negotiation between them of an `Asset Purchase Agreement,'" subject to various terms and conditions as might be customary in the industry or agreed between the parties. The Letter of Intent indicated a "Base Purchase Price" of $13,500,000 for *1076 not less than 5,000 active subscribers, with a reduction of $2,700 for each non-qualifying subscriber less than 5,000, and no increase for any subscribers over 5,000. Although Golden Sky's President, Rodney A. Weary, signed this Letter of Intent, no representative of Schaller ever signed or returned this letter as requested. The negotiators for the parties met again in Kansas City, Missouri, on August 25, 1999, and made substantial progress in their negotiations. Golden Sky's Board of Directors approved the transaction on August 26, 1999, and authorized officers of the company to negotiate, execute, and deliver all necessary agreements to effect the deal. Schaller's Board of Directors took similar action on August 27, 1999. On September 3, 1999, the principal negotiators for the parties participated in a conference call. During that call, Golden Sky's President, Rodney Weary, purportedly reiterated that Golden Sky intended to pay the price the parties had agreed upon. After that conference call, Golden Sky sent Schaller a draft letter memorializing what Golden Sky believed had been agreed to in principle. The draft letter includes reference to the parties' agreement that Golden Sky would provide Schaller with 288 Single LNB DBS systems on September 6, 1999, which the parties agree were intended to assist Schaller in its attempts to increase its number of subscribers. Schaller did indeed pick up these DBS systems from Golden Sky. Although Golden Sky requested that Schaller approve the statement of the agreement in principle, after which the letter would be signed by Golden Sky's President, Rodney Weary, Schaller did not respond and the letter was never signed. Instead, shortly after the September 3, 1999, meeting, Schaller contacted Pegasus Communications Corporation to see if Pegasus was interested in entering into negotiations to purchase Schaller's DBS assets for $14 million. No deal between Schaller and Pegasus was consummated at that time. The exchanges of "blacklined" drafts of an Asset Purchase Agreement, which began during the summer, culminated in a "blacklined" draft dated September 21, 1999. Schaller contends that this draft embodies the parties' agreement on all essential terms of the transaction. However, neither the "blacklined" draft nor a "clean" copy of the September 21, 1999, agreement was ever signed by any representative of either of the parties and there is no record that either Weary or Reimers was ever presented with the September 21, 1999, agreement, in either a "blacklined" or "clean" form. Instead, on September 23, 1999, by letter from Foster to Jensen, Golden Sky notified Schaller that it would not go forward with the transaction. Specifically, the letter stated that Golden Sky's "Board has decided to discontinue negotiations with Schaller under the proposed terms and conditions" after "consider[ing] the impact of recent changes in the credit and financial markets on the DBS industry." Pegasus Communications Corporation, Golden Sky's primary rival, ultimately bought Golden Sky for just over $1 billion in a deal that was announced on January 5, 2000, and closed in May 2000. On March 14, 2000, Pegasus also acquired Schaller's DBS assets for $10,096,000, or approximately $2,000 per subscriber for 5,050 subscribers. Before either of those transactions took place, however, Schaller commenced this litigation against Golden Sky. B. Procedural Background On October 15, 1999, Schaller filed suit against Golden Sky, its President, Rodney Weary, and its General Counsel, Jo Ellen Linn, in the Iowa District Court for Woodbury *1077 County, asserting claims of fraudulent misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation, fraudulent nondisclosure, and breach of contract arising from collapse of the deal for Golden Sky to purchase Schaller's DBS assets. Golden Sky removed the action to this federal court on November 10, 1999. On December 17, 1999, Golden Sky simultaneously filed an Answer and Counterclaim to Schaller's Petition and a motion to dismiss. Golden Sky's counterclaim alleges unjust enrichment and seeks to recover $75,095 for satellite dishes it provided to Schaller for which Schaller has not paid. Golden Sky's motion to dismiss asserted, inter alia, that Schaller had not pleaded fraud with the particularity required by Rule 9(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. By order dated January 18, 2000, this court denied Golden Sky's motion to dismiss without prejudice, on the ground that Schaller's original state-court petition had not been subject to federal pleading rules and Iowa has no correlate to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 9(b). The court's ruling on Golden Sky's motion to dismiss also noted that Schaller had filed a First Amended Complaint, which Golden Sky remained free to challenge. Schaller's First Amended Complaint, filed January 3, 2000, again alleged fraudulent misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation, fraudulent nondisclosure, and breach of contract. Schaller also filed a reply to Golden Sky's counterclaim on January 3, 2000. On January 18, 2000, Golden Sky again simultaneously filed an Answer and a motion to dismiss Counts II through IV of Schaller's First Amended Complaint.[2] Golden Sky did not, however, renew its challenge to the fraudulent misrepresentation claim as repleaded in the First Amended Complaint. On July 18, 2000, this court entered an Order Regarding Defendants' Motion To Dismiss First Amended Complaint dismissing Counts II (negligent misrepresentation) and III (fraudulent nondisclosure) in their entirety and dismissing Count IV, Schaller's breach-of-contract claim, as to individual defendants Rodney Weary and Jo Ellen Linn. Following this ruling, Schaller's remaining claims are a claim of fraudulent misrepresentation, in Count I of Schaller's First Amended Complaint, and a claim of breach of contract against Golden Sky itself, in Count IV. Also still before the court is Golden Sky's counterclaim of unjust enrichment. Following discovery, Golden Sky moved for summary judgment on January 5, 2001, seeking judgment in its favor on Schaller's remaining claims and its own counterclaim. On February 1, 2001, Schaller resisted Golden Sky's motion for summary judgment and, on February 15, 2001, filed an amended and substituted resistance. Schaller resists summary judgment on its claims of breach of contract and fraudulent misrepresentation, asserting that there are various genuine issues of material fact on these claims that must be resolved by a jury. Although Schaller acknowledges that it owes Golden Sky payment for the satellite dishes, Schaller contends that judgment on Golden Sky's counterclaim should be deferred as a set off against any damages Schaller may recover on its fraud and contract claims. Golden Sky filed a reply brief on February 12, 2001, and Schaller filed a surreply brief on March 12, 2001. The briefing of the parties on the issues presented was both excellent and extensive and was supported on each side by voluminous appendices of exhibits and transcripts of deposition excerpts. *1078 The court heard oral arguments on Golden Sky's motion for summary judgment on April 16, 2001. At those arguments, plaintiff Schaller Telephone Company was represented by Alan E. Fredregill and Jeff W. Wright of Heidman, Redmond, Fredregill, Patterson, Plaza, Dykstra & Prahl, L.L.P., in Sioux City, Iowa. Defendant Golden Sky Systems, Inc., was represented by William D. Beil, who argued the motion, and Brooks A. Richardson of Rouse, Hendricks, German, May, P.C., in Kansas City, Missouri, and G. Daniel Gildemeister of Gildemeister & Keane, L.L.P., in Sioux City, Iowa. Like the briefing, the parties' oral arguments were excellent. Following the oral arguments, the court took the unusual step of forecasting its ruling, in light of the short time remaining until trial is scheduled to begin on May 7, 2001. This opinion now provides the court's written ruling and rationale. II. LEGAL ANALYSIS A. Standards For Summary Judgment This court has considered in some detail the standards applicable to motions for summary judgment pursuant to FED. R.CIV.P. 56 in a number of prior decisions. See, e.g., Swanson v. Van Otterloo, 993 F.Supp. 1224, 1230-31 (N.D.Iowa 1998); Dirks v. J.C. Robinson Seed Co., 980 F.Supp. 1303, 1305-07 (N.D.Iowa 1997); Laird v. Stilwill, 969 F.Supp. 1167, 1172-74 (N.D.Iowa 1997); Rural Water Sys. # 1 v. City of Sioux Ctr., 967 F.Supp. 1483, 1499-1501 (N.D.Iowa 1997), aff'd in pertinent part, 202 F.3d 1035 (8th Cir.2000), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 121 S.Ct. 61, 148 L.Ed.2d 28 (2000); Tralon Corp. v. Cedarapids, Inc., 966 F.Supp. 812, 817-18 (N.D.Iowa 1997), aff'd, 205 F.3d 1347 (8th Cir.2000) (Table op.); Security State Bank v. Firstar Bank Milwaukee, N.A., 965 F.Supp. 1237, 1239-40 (N.D.Iowa 1997); Lockhart v. Cedar Rapids Community Sch. Dist., 963 F.Supp. 805 (N.D.Iowa 1997). Thus, the court will not consider those standards in detail here. Suffice it to say that Rule 56 itself provides, in pertinent part, as follows: Rule 56. Summary Judgment (a) For Claimant. A party seeking to recover upon a claim, counterclaim, or cross-claim or to obtain a declaratory judgment may, at any time after the expiration of 20 days from the commencement of the action or after service of a motion for summary judgment by the adverse party, move with or without supporting affidavits for a summary judgment in the party's favor upon all or any part thereof. (b) For Defending Party. A party against whom a claim ... is asserted ... may, at any time, move for summary judgment in the party's favor as to all or any part thereof. (c) Motions and Proceedings Thereon.... The judgment sought shall be rendered forthwith if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. FED.R.CIV.P. 56(a)-(c) (emphasis added). Applying these standards, the trial judge's function at the summary judgment stage of the proceedings is not to weigh the evidence and determine the truth of the matter, but to determine whether there are genuine issues for trial. Quick v. Donaldson Co., 90 F.3d 1372, 1376-77 (8th Cir.1996); Johnson v. Enron Corp., 906 F.2d 1234, 1237 (8th Cir.1990). An issue of material fact is genuine if it has a real basis in the record. Hartnagel v. Norman, 953 F.2d 394 (8th Cir.1992) (citing Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith *1079 Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 586-87, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986)). As to whether a factual dispute is "material," the Supreme Court has explained, "Only disputes over facts that might affect the outcome of the suit under the governing law will properly preclude the entry of summary judgment." Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986); Rouse v. Benson, 193 F.3d 936, 939 (8th Cir.1999); Beyerbach v. Sears, 49 F.3d 1324, 1326 (8th Cir.1995); Hartnagel, 953 F.2d at 394. Procedurally, the moving party, here Golden Sky, bears "the initial responsibility of informing the district court of the basis for its motion and identifying those portions of the record which show lack of a genuine issue." Hartnagel, 953 F.2d at 395 (citing Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986)); see also Rose-Maston, 133 F.3d at 1107; Reed v. Woodruff County, Ark., 7 F.3d 808, 810 (8th Cir.1993). "When a moving party has carried its burden under Rule 56(c), its opponent must do more than simply show there is some metaphysical doubt as to the material facts." Matsushita, 475 U.S. at 586, 106 S.Ct. 1348. Rather, the party opposing summary judgment, here Schaller, is required under Rule 56(e) to go beyond the pleadings, and by affidavits, or by the "depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file," designate "specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial." FED.R.CIV.P. 56(e); Celotex, 477 U.S. at 324, 106 S.Ct. 2548; Rabushka ex. rel. United States v. Crane Co., 122 F.3d 559, 562 (8th Cir.1997), cert. denied, 523 U.S. 1040, 118 S.Ct. 1336, 140 L.Ed.2d 498 (1998); McLaughlin v. Esselte Pendaflex Corp., 50 F.3d 507, 511 (8th Cir.1995); Beyerbach, 49 F.3d at 1325. If a party fails to make a sufficient showing of an essential element of a claim with respect to which that party has the burden of proof, then the opposing party is "entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Celotex Corp., 477 U.S. at 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548; In re Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) Implants Prod. Liab. Litig., 113 F.3d 1484, 1492 (8th Cir.1997). In reviewing the record, the court must view all the facts in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party and give that party the benefit of all reasonable inferences that can be drawn from the facts. See Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co., 475 U.S. at 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348; Quick, 90 F.3d at 1377 (same). With these standards in mind, the court turns to consideration of Golden Sky's motion for summary judgment on Schaller's claims of breach of contract and fraudulent misrepresentation and Golden Sky's own counterclaim of unjust enrichment. B. Schaller's Breach-Of-Contract Claim Golden Sky first seeks summary judgment on Schaller's breach-of-contract claim. In Count IV of its First Amended Complaint, Schaller contends that Golden Sky agreed to purchase Schaller's rights to provide satellite television service to homes in Schaller's exclusive service area for the sum of $13,500,000, but that Golden Sky breached the parties' contract. First Amended Complaint, Count IV, ¶¶ 23-24. In its motion for summary judgment, Golden Sky contends that it is entitled to summary judgment on this claim, for the following reasons: (1) no oral agreement was formed, because the parties did not intend to be bound in the absence of a signed writing, and no such writing was ever executed; (2) the statute of frauds bars Schaller from establishing the existence of its alleged oral contract; and (3) the parties never gave mutual assent to definite terms of any contract. In response, Schaller contends that various fact questions preclude summary judgment on this claim, including whether or not mutual assent to all definitive terms was given by the parties, *1080 and consequently whether all that remained to be done was to sign the agreement the parties had reached orally; whether or not the parties intended to be bound only by a final written and signed agreement; and whether or not promissory estoppel prevents the application of the statute of frauds to this contract. The court will consider these arguments for and against summary judgment on this claim, to the extent required, in more detail below. 1. Applicable principles of Iowa contract law The court's consideration of the propriety of summary judgment on Schaller's breach-of-contract claim begins with a consideration of applicable principles of Iowa contract law concerning when an enforceable oral contract is formed.[3] The existence and terms of an oral contract, as well as whether the oral contract was breached, are ordinarily questions for the trier of fact. See Audus v. Sabre Communications Corp., 554 N.W.2d 868, 871 (Iowa 1996); Dallenbach v. Mapco Gas Prod., Inc., 459 N.W.2d 483, 486 (Iowa 1990); Warfield v. Norwest Bank of Iowa, N.A., 2001 WL 246386, *2 (Iowa Ct.App. March 14, 2001); Gallagher, Langlas & Gallagher v. Burco, 587 N.W.2d 615, 617 (Iowa Ct. App.1998). However, the party asserting an oral contract must still generate a genuine issue of material fact on these issues to preclude summary judgment in the opposing party's favor. See Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548 (if a party fails to make a sufficient showing of an essential element of a claim with respect to which that party has the burden of proof, then the opposing party is "entitled to judgment as a matter of law"); In re Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) Implants Prod. Liab. Litig., 113 F.3d at 1492. a. Existence and terms of an oral contract "In order to be bound, the contracting parties must manifest a mutual assent to the terms of the contract, and this assent usually is given through the offer and acceptance." Kristerin Dev. Co. v. Granson Inv., 394 N.W.2d 325, 331 (Iowa 1996) (citing Hayne v. Cook, 252 Iowa 1012, 1021, 109 N.W.2d 188, 192 (1961)); see also In re: Guardianship and Conservatorship of Price, 571 N.W.2d 214, 216 (Iowa Ct.App.1997) ("The only required elements [sic] of a binding contract are [sic] mutual assent to the contractual terms manifested by an offer and acceptance."). However, in order for a trier of fact to find that an oral contract existed, there must also be sufficient evidence of its terms to ascertain the duties and conditions established by the contract. See Audus, 554 N.W.2d at 871; Burke v. Hawkeye Nat'l Life Ins. Co., 474 N.W.2d 110, 113 (Iowa 1991); Warfield, 2001 WL 246386 at *2; Burco, 587 N.W.2d at 617. In other words, for an oral contract to be found and to be held enforceable, the terms must be so definitely fixed that nothing remained except to reduce the terms to writing. Price, 571 N.W.2d at 216. Courts cannot find a contract where *1081 none exists. Audus, 554 N.W.2d at 872; In re Estate of Ohrt, 516 N.W.2d 896, 901 (Iowa 1994); Warfield, 2001 WL 246386 at *2. Indeed, when the terms are not definite, courts are reluctant to impose even reasonable terms on contracting parties. Burco, 587 N.W.2d at 617 (citing Bowser v. PMX Indus., Inc., 545 N.W.2d 898, 900 (Iowa Ct.App.1996)). However, where a contract does exist, courts are reluctant to hold that it is too uncertain to be enforceable. Audus, 554 N.W.2d at 872; Ohrt, 516 N.W.2d at 901; Warfield, 2001 WL 246386 at *2; Burco, 587 N.W.2d at 617. b. Negotiations and reduction to writing An oral agreement may be enforceable, even if the parties intended to reduce it to writing, but never did so, if two conditions are met: (1) the agreement is complete as to its terms; and (2) the agreement is finally agreed to. See Elkader Coop. Co. v. Matt, 204 N.W.2d 873, 875 (Iowa 1973); see also Severson v. Elberon Elevator, Inc., 250 N.W.2d 417, 420 (Iowa 1977); Purina Mills, Inc. v. Bushman, 2000 WL 1157836, *5 (Iowa Ct.App. Aug.16, 2000); Davis v. Roberts, 563 N.W.2d 16, 22 (Iowa Ct.App.1997); Employee Benefits Plus, Inc. v. Des Moines Gen. Hosp., 535 N.W.2d 149, 153-54 (Iowa Ct.App.1995). This is so, the Iowa Court of Appeals has explained, because in such circumstances, "[a]ny written version of the agreement would have merely served as an expression of an agreement already made." Davis, 563 N.W.2d at 22; Employee Benefits Plus, Inc., 535 N.W.2d at 154. On the other hand, as the Iowa Supreme Court explained in Faught v. Budlong, 540 N.W.2d 33 (Iowa 1995), and several prior decisions, there are circumstances in which no obligation will exist until the whole agreement of the parties has been reduced to written form. See Faught, 540 N.W.2d at 35-36. These apparently contradictory possibilities frame the dispute in this case. Schaller contends that the terms for the purchase of its DBS assets were complete and finally agreed to orally, so that "[a]ny written version of the agreement would have merely served as an expression of an agreement already made." Davis, 563 N.W.2d at 22; Employee Benefits Plus, Inc., 535 N.W.2d at 154. On the other hand, Golden Sky contends that the undisputed facts in the record demonstrate that, in the circumstances of this case, no obligation could exist until the whole agreement of the parties had been reduced to written form and the written agreement had been signed by the parties, which never happened. See Faught, 540 N.W.2d at 35-36. Therefore, the court must first focus on the question of when negotiations can ripen into an oral contract, even where a written agreement is contemplated, but never executed. i. The Faught decision. In Faught, the Iowa Supreme Court examined this question in a case involving extensive negotiations to settle a mortgage dispute. Faught, 540 N.W.2d at 33. A jury returned a verdict finding an enforceable oral contract and breach of that contract, but the district court granted judgment notwithstanding the verdict. Id. at 35. The Iowa Supreme Court looked to comments to Section 27 of the RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS for guidance on the question of whether negotiations had ripened into an oral contract:[4] *1082 Comments a and b to section 27 of the Restatement (Second) of Contracts pertinently provide: a. Parties who plan to make a final written instrument as the expression of their contract necessarily discuss the proposed terms of the contract before they enter into it and often, before the final writing is made, agree upon all the terms which they plan to incorporate therein. This they may do orally or by exchange of several writings. It is possible thus to make a contract the terms of which include an obligation to execute subsequently a final writing which shall contain certain provisions. If parties have definitely agreed that they will do so, and that the final writing shall contain these provisions and no others, they have then concluded the contract. b. On the other hand, if either party knows or has reason to know that the other party regards the agreement as incomplete and intends that no obligation shall exist until other terms are assented to or until the whole has been reduced to another written form, the preliminary negotiations and agreements do not constitute a contract. See also Continental Labs., Inc. v. Scott Paper Co., 759 F.Supp. 538, 540 (S.D.Iowa 1990) (citing with approval comment b). This court has embraced the principles enunciated in both comments: It is generally held an oral agreement may be enforceable, even though the parties contemplate that it be reduced to writing and signed, if it is complete as to its terms and has been finally agreed to. Under such circumstances the writing is merely an expression of a contract already made. On the other hand, the parties may intend that obligation should arise only upon the signing of a written instrument embodying the terms they have tentatively agreed to. Elkader Coop. Co. v. Matt, 204 N.W.2d 873, 875 (Iowa 1973) (citations omitted). The Restatement also sets out the factors considered in determining whether a binding agreement has been reached: Among the circumstances which may be helpful in determining whether a contract has been concluded are the following: the extent to which express agreement has been reached on all the terms to be included, whether the contract is of a type usually put in writing, whether it needs a formal writing for its full expression, whether it has few or many details, whether the amount involved is large or small, whether it is a common or unusual contract, whether a standard form of contract is widely used in similar transactions, and whether either party takes any action in preparation for performance during the negotiations. *1083 Such circumstances may be shown by oral testimony or by correspondence or other preliminary or partially complete writings. Restatement (Second) of Contracts § 27 cmt. c (1979). See also Continental Labs., Inc., 759 F.Supp. at 541-42 (citing factors in comment c and finding as a matter of law based on these factors that defendant intended to be bound only by a written agreement signed by both parties; court therefore concluded no binding agreement ever existed and sustained defendant's motion for summary judgment); Severson v. Elberon Elevator, Inc., 250 N.W.2d 417, 421 (Iowa 1977) (citing most of the same factors). Faught, 540 N.W.2d at 35-36. ii. Faught's precursors. As the Iowa Supreme Court indicated in Faught, the Iowa Supreme Court had applied principles drawn from Comments a and b to Section 27 of the RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS in some of its prior cases, specifically, Severson v. Elberon Elevator, Inc., 250 N.W.2d 417 (Iowa 1977), and Elkader Coop. Co. v. Matt, 204 N.W.2d 873 (Iowa 1973). Additionally, this court finds that the Iowa Court of Appeals applied related principles, drawn from Section 26 of the RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS, in Desy v. Rhue, 462 N.W.2d 742 (Iowa Ct.App.1990). These decisions therefore warrant some further consideration. In Matt, the earliest of these decisions, the Iowa Supreme Court considered whether an enforceable oral agreement for the sale and purchase of corn had been reached. See Matt, 204 N.W.2d at 874. Although the Iowa Supreme Court held that the appellant was entitled to a new trial, on the ground that the jury had not been properly instructed, the court rejected the appellant's argument for a directed verdict that no enforceable oral agreement had been made, reasoning as follows: It is generally held an oral agreement may be enforceable, even though the parties contemplate that it be reduced to writing and signed, if it is complete as to its terms and has been finally agreed to. Under such circumstances the writing is merely an expression of a contract already made. On the other hand, the parties may intend that obligation should arise only upon the signing of a written instrument embodying the terms they have tentatively agreed to. Alpen v. Chapman, 179 N.W.2d 585, 588, 589 (Iowa 1970); Luse v. Waco Community School District, 258 Iowa 1087, 1092, 141 N.W.2d 607, 610 (1966); Restatement, Contracts, section 26 (1932); 17 Am. Jur.2d, Contracts, sections 28, 29 (1964); 17 C.J.S. Contracts § 49 (1963). Matt, 204 N.W.2d at 875.[5] Finding that "[t]he intention of the parties is decisive on this issue," and that "[t]his fact question is dependent upon all the circumstances present in the particular case," the court held that a jury question was presented on whether an oral agreement was to bind the parties. Id. In Severson, a case which, like the one presently before this court, involved the purchase of assets of a business, the Iowa Supreme Court stated the rule in similar terms: When the terms of an agreement are definitely fixed so that nothing remains except to reduce them to writing, an oral contract will be upheld unless the parties intended not to be bound until the agreement was reduced to writing. *1084 Marti v. Ludeking, 193 Iowa 500, 503-504, 185 N.W. 476, 477-478 (1921). The terms are sufficiently definite if the court can determine with reasonable certainty the duty of each party and the conditions relative to performance. Janssen v. North Iowa Conference Pensions, Inc., 166 N.W.2d 901, 907 (Iowa 1969). * * * * * * Factors to be considered in seeking to ascertain whether the parties intended to be bound prior to execution of a written document include whether the contract is of a class usually found to be in writing, whether it is of a type needing a formal writing for its full expression, whether it has few or many details, whether the amount is large or small, whether the contract is common or unusual, whether all details have been agreed upon or some remain unresolved, and whether the negotiations show a writing was discussed or contemplated. Emmons v. Ingebretson, 279 F.Supp. 558, 572 (N.D.Iowa 1968). Severson, 250 N.W.2d at 420-21 (emphasis added); see also Bradley v. West Sioux Bd. of Educ., 510 N.W.2d 881, 884 (Iowa 1994) (citing Severson for the statement of the rule and pertinent factors); Employee Benefits Plus, Inc., 535 N.W.2d at 154 (citing comparable factors for determining whether the parties intended an oral agreement to be binding prior to the execution of a written document drawn from Severson, 250 N.W.2d at 421); H & W Motor Express v. Christ, 516 N.W.2d 912, 914 (Iowa Ct.App.1994) (citing Severson, 250 N.W.2d at 420, for the statement of the rule). The factors identified by the court in Severson match those now stated in Comment c to RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS § 27. Applying these factors, the court in Severson concluded that the parties had reached an oral contract for the sale and purchase of the grain elevator in question. Id. The Iowa Court of Appeals recognized a related principle drawn from present Section 26 of the RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS: Restatement (Second) of Contracts § 26 (1979), states a principle that we believe is well recognized in Iowa law: A manifestation of willingness to enter into a bargain is not an offer if the person to whom it is addressed knows or has reason to know that the person does not intend to conclude a bargain until he has made a further manifestation of assent. In this case, it could not be clearer than is expressed in the proposed purchase agreement and by the conduct of the parties to the proposed contract that the parties did not intend to, or believe that they would, be bound until appellant had signed and the dealer had accepted. Desy v. Rhue, 462 N.W.2d 742, 746 (Iowa Ct.App.1990) (emphasis added). The facts making such a conclusion so clear included language in the purchase agreement stating "in bold capital letters that `THIS AGREEMENT IS NOT BINDING UNTIL ACCEPTED BY THE SELLING DEALER OR HIS AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE.'" Id. In a footnote, the Iowa Court of Appeals added the following observation: Were we to find that there had been agreement and that title had passed under these facts, we would be imposing much too heavy a burden on anyone who proposes to be bound by a contract. It is one thing for an agreement between two equally informed parties working together on preliminary matters to ripen into an enforceable contract, for which Appellees cite Severson v. Elberon Elevator, Inc., 250 N.W.2d 417, 420 (Iowa 1977); it is quite another to impose a *1085 contract when the supposed offeror has not seen the offer and both parties and the agreement itself indicate that there will be no binding contract until it is signed and finally accepted. Desy, 462 N.W.2d at 746 n. 2 (emphasis added). Thus, these Iowa decisions considering the principles articulated in sections 26 and 27 of the RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS demonstrate that "[w]hether preliminary negotiations actually ripened into an oral contract depends on the intention of the parties as gleaned from the facts of the case." H & W Motor Express, 516 N.W.2d at 914 (citing Severson, 250 N.W.2d at 421); Desy, 462 N.W.2d at 746 (examining the language of the purchase agreement and the conduct of the parties). 2. Did these negotiations ripen into an oral contract? Not surprisingly, in this case, Schaller contends that negotiations had ripened into an enforceable oral contract, as contemplated in comment a to RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS § 27, while Golden Sky contends that the undisputed facts demonstrate that a writing was required to conclude a contract for the purchase and sale of Schaller's DBS assets, as contemplated in comment b to § 27. To determine whether or not summary judgment is appropriate, or a fact question is instead presented, on the issue of whether this is a "Comment a case" or a "Comment b case," the court turns to an examination of the record. a. Golden Sky's intent not to be bound except by a written agreement The circumstances here are similar to those presented in Desy v. Rhue, 462 N.W.2d 742 (Iowa Ct.App.1990), in that "it could not be clearer than is expressed in [Golden Sky's written offers] and the conduct of the parties to the proposed contract that the parties did not intend to, or believe that they would, be bound until [Golden Sky] signed and [Schaller] accepted." Desy, 462 N.W.2d at 746. Indeed, Golden Sky's express statements that it would not be bound in the absence of a written agreement are even more categorical than the language of the purchase agreement in Desy. In Desy, the purchase agreement provided that "THIS AGREEMENT IS NOT BINDING UNTIL ACCEPTED BY THE SELLING DEALER OR HIS AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE." Id. Here, more than written "acceptance" was required. Instead, Golden Sky's two letters of interest, the first dated March 9, 1999, and the second dated May 26, 1999, both expressly state that the price offered is "conditional upon [a specified number of subscribers at closing] and that the parties negotiate and execute a mutually acceptable purchase agreement which would contain representations and warranties standard in the industry, and is subject to and conditioned upon obtaining the necessary required consents to a transaction, including but not limited to approval of NRTC, DIRECTV, and GSS' Board of Directors." See Appendix II — Document Exhibits In Support Of Defendants' Summary Judgment Motion (Defendants' Appendix II), Exhibits 5 (March 9, 1999, Initial Letter of Interest) at 1 (Bates 0001382) (emphasis added) & 8 (May 26, Second Letter of Interest) at 1 (Bates 00180); see also Defendants' Statement of Undisputed Facts, ¶ 19 & ¶ 24. Both also expressly state that "[t]here are many terms and conditions for sale which need to be agreed upon to finalize an agreement" and that "[y]ou should understand that this letter is not and is not intended to be, construed or relied upon as a commitment on the part of GSS. Any commitment which we may subsequently determine to extend would be pursuant to the definitive documentation *1086 referred to above." See Defendants' Appendix, Exhibits 5 (March 9, 1999, Initial Letter of Interest) at 2 (Bates 0001383) (emphasis added) & 8 (May 26, Second Letter of Interest) at 2 (Bates 001581). Also, ¶ 2 of the Golden Sky's July 23, 1999, Letter of Intent indicates the parties' intention to "begin immediate, good faith negotiation between them of an `Asset Purchase Agreement,' which will embody the terms and conditions contained herein and such other conditions, covenants, representations and warranties which may be agreed upon between the parties and as are customary in acquisitions of this type." See Defendants' Appendix II, Exhibit 16 (emphasis added); see also Defendants' Statement of Undisputed Facts, ¶ 91. Finally, the draft letter of September 3, 1999, which was intended to state Golden Sky's understanding of the agreement in principle reached during the telephone conference that day, stated that the letter was "not to be construed as an offer from GSS but is instead intended to be a nonbinding expression of the parties' intentions with respect to entering into an asset purchase agreement memorializing the above-referenced transaction." Defendants' Appendix II, Exhibit 84 (Draft Letter of September 3, 1999) at 2 (emphasis added); see also Defendants' Statement of Undisputed Facts, ¶ 165. These disclaimers make it abundantly clear that Golden Sky had no intention to be bound in the absence of a written agreement. Moreover, Golden Sky contends that Schaller's representatives also understood that a written, executed agreement was required to complete a contract between the parties. Paragraphs 54 through 56 of Defendants' Statement of Undisputed Facts, which Schaller has admitted, see Plaintiff's Response To Defendants' Statement of Undisputed Facts, ¶¶ 54-56, state the following: 54. Jensen [who was counsel for Schaller during negotiations] thinks that he asked for a standard form written purchase agreement from Golden Sky [which he received June 28, 1999] "to get some indication of what Golden Sky typically puts into its agreements so we had some indication beforehand whether there was some things that were going to present problems for Schaller, or issues, and I felt that the easiest way to get to that was to, since they do a lot of these transactions, to get a standard type agreement, understanding that, obviously, it was going to be negotiated. ..." Ex. H, Jensen [Deposition] [p.] 43 [l.] 9[to][p.] 44 [l.] 23. 55. Jensen anticipated that the standard form agreement would be the beginning point of negotiations over the contract documents that would effect the sale, and then he would have discussions with Golden Sky concerning the nitty gritty details of those written documents. Ex. H, Jensen [Deposition] [p.] 44 [l.] 24[to] [p.] 45 [l.] 7. 56. After receiving Ex. 9, Jensen understood that from that point forward, he would be negotiating with someone from Golden Sky about terms of a written asset purchase agreement. Ex. H, Jensen [Deposition] [p.] 40 [ll.] 22-25. Defendants' Statement of Undisputed Facts, ¶¶ 54-56 (emphasis added). Thus, there is no genuine issue of material fact that Schaller itself understood that Golden Sky expected to be bound only upon the signing of a written asset purchase agreement. b. Manifestations of assent to an oral contract Schaller nevertheless argues that there are genuine issues of material fact as to Golden Sky's intent to be bound only by a written agreement that are generated by evidence that Golden Sky's representatives manifested assent to an oral agreement for the purchase of Schaller's DBS assets. *1087 The court will consider whether any such "manifestations of assent" generate genuine issues of material fact on the question of Golden Sky's intent. i. Agreement to the "essential term" of price. First, recognizing that a condition of a "Comment a case" is that the parties "agree upon all the terms which they plan to incorporate" in their agreement, see RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS § 27, cmt. a, Schaller contends that the parties had agreed to the "essential term" of the contract, which Schaller contends was the price per subscriber. Schaller acknowledges that "[n]egotiations were initiated in earnest after Golden Sky submitted an offer to buy Schaller's DBS territory on May 26, 1999 at a rate of $2,700 per subscriber for 4,100 subscribers," citing the May 26, 1999, Second Letter of Interest, cited above. See Plaintiff's Amended And Substituted Resistance To Motion For Summary Judgment (Plaintiff's Amended Resistance) at 7 (citing Plaintiff's Exhibits In Support Of Resistance To Motion For Summary Judgment (Plaintiffs Exhibits), Exhibit 8, which is identical to Defendant's Appendix II, Exhibit 8).[6] However, Schaller contends that, on June 30, 1999, the parties agreed on the essential pricing structure for the deal as requiring Schaller to provide 5,000 subscribers to Golden Sky at the time of closing at $2,700 per subscriber, for a total purchase price of $13.5 million, with reductions in the purchase price of $2,700 for each subscriber short of 5,000 provided at closing. Schaller asserts further that these pricing terms never changed subsequently. *1088 In support of its contention that the price term remained as agreed in June, Schaller cites deposition testimony by Steven Reimers, its President, see Plaintiff's Exhibits at 567 (Reimers Deposition, p. 82, ll. 3-72); deposition testimony of Steven Jensen, who negotiated on Schaller's behalf, see Plaintiff's Exhibits at 547-58 (p. 73, l. 9 to p. 74, l. 8); the September 3, 1999, draft letter by Golden Sky outlining the agreement in principle, as Golden Sky understood it, following the September 3, 1999, telephone conference, see Plaintiff's Exhibits at 20-21; see also Defendants' Appendix II, Exhibit 84 (Draft Letter of September 3, 1999); and the September 21, 1999, Draft Asset Purchase Agreement, see Plaintiff's Exhibits at 22-55. Schaller relies heavily on the decision of the Iowa Court of Appeals in In re Guardianship and Conservatorship of Price, 571 N.W.2d 214 (Iowa Ct.App.1997), for the proposition that the oral agreement it contends existed was sufficiently definite to be enforceable, because the "essential" contract term, the price Golden Sky was to pay Schaller per subscriber, did not vary over the last several months of the negotiations. In Price, the court concluded that the parties had agreed to the "essential term" of the agreement where the evidence was uncontroverted that one party accepted payment of $400 per week to provide care and services for his parents, notwithstanding that party's contention that many terms of the caretaking agreement were left undecided. See Price, 571 N.W.2d at 216. The court reasoned as follows: While Steve argues many terms of the caretaking arrangement were left undecided, such as whether he would work as an independent contractor, the level of care needed, whether there would an be offset for rent, compensation for maintenance work, or determination of vacation time, "[a]n agreement need not contain definitely and specifically every fact in detail to which the parties may be agreeing." 17A Am.Jur.2d Contracts § 197 (1991). The agreement need only be "certain and unequivocal in its essential terms" and "absolute certainty is not required; only reasonable certainty is necessary." Id. § 196 (emphasis added). The essential terms of $400 per week, in exchange for caretaking services, comprised the definite and essential term of the agreement. Steve cannot argue the level of care warranted by his parents was a term so vague that it could defeat the contract. From the onset, as evidenced by Colleen Eflin's September 1993 letter, the health care needs of the parents should have been apparent. Steve could have refused to begin or could have at any time discontinued the care by terminating the agreement. The parties' respective duties could be determined by a court with reasonable certainty. See id. § 196 ("[T]he subject matter of the agreement must be expressed in such terms that it can be ascertained with reasonable certainty ... an agreement to be binding must be sufficiently definite to enable the court to determine its exact meaning and fix definitely the legal liability of the parties."). Price, 571 N.W.2d at 216-17 (emphasis added). Although Price may suggest a principle favorable to Schaller — that price may be the only essential term of a contract — the decision is inapplicable here for at least two reasons. First, Price involved a services contract, where the terms could be reasonably determined, and could be clarified during the course of performance, see id. (if the terms of the contract were unclear, "Steve could have refused to begin or could have at any time discontinued the care by terminating the agreement"), not a complex contract for the one-time sale and *1089 purchase of assets of a going business. Second, in Price, a separate document, the prior caregiver's letter about the health care needs of the parents, should have made the duties of the party challenging the contract for indefiniteness readily apparent, see id., but there is no such document in this case making it readily apparent what was involved in the transfer of Schaller's DBS assets. Moreover, each of Golden Sky's disclaimers identified myriad other terms that Golden Sky regarded as essential to the deal and required reduction of a deal incorporating agreement on all of these terms to writing. Thus, no reasonable jury could find that the oral agreement on which Schaller relies came into being on the basis that the only "essential term" of the contract was price, which had been agreed upon between the parties. ii. Agreement on all terms. Similarly unavailing is Schaller's contention that the parties had agreed orally to all terms of the agreement, as embodied in the September 21, 1999, Draft Asset Purchase Agreement. See RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS § 27, cmt. a (the parties may reach an enforceable oral agreement, notwithstanding their intent to reduce the agreement to writing, if they "agree upon all the terms which they plan to incorporate" into their agreement) (emphasis added). Even if the September 21, 1999, Draft Asset Purchase Agreement included all of the terms of the transaction and the parties had agreed that all of those terms were acceptable — which Golden Sky disputes —there is no indication that Golden Sky's President, Rodney Weary, had seen that version of the Asset Purchase Agreement, and the record is undisputed that only Weary had the authority to bind Golden Sky to the transaction. Cf. Desy, 462 N.W.2d at 746 n. 2 (the offeror had not seen the offer). Thus, it would be inappropriate to impose a contract when the supposed offeror has not seen the version of the agreement that the other party asserts embodies all terms of the agreement and the letters making initial offers and expressing intent to enter into the deal expressly state that there will be no deal until a written agreement is executed. Cf. id. (it would be wrong to "impose a contract when the supposed offeror has not seen the offer and both parties and the agreement itself indicate that there will be no binding contract until it is signed and finally accepted"); see also Flanagan v. Consolidated Nutrition, L.C., 627 N.W.2d 573 (Iowa Ct.App.2001) (holding that the conduct of the parties demonstrated that they intended that they would not have a binding contract — for the sale and purchase of weaned pigs — until both had signed a written agreement that had been processed and approved by the defendant's personnel, because, after the plaintiff signed a proposed agreement, the parties exchanged further drafts with different terms). iii. Representations that the only contingency was board approval. Schaller contends that on several occasions, Golden Sky's representatives suggested to Schaller that the only contingency in the transaction was that Golden Sky's board approve the deal, and that the board gave such approval on August 26, 1999. Jensen testified in deposition that Jo Ellen Linn, Golden Sky's General Counsel, who participated in the negotiations on Golden Sky's behalf, stated during a June 30, 1999, meeting that the "transaction" was "subject to board of director's approval," see Plaintiff's Exhibits at 552 (Jensen Deposition at 140, ll. 12-20); that Linn represented during the August 25, 1999, meeting in Kansas City that "Once the board approves it, we're ready to go," see Plaintiff's Exhibits at 553 (Jensen Deposition at p. 143, ll. 13-23 & p. 144, ll. 9-18); and that after board approval was obtained, Linn or *1090 Foster left Jensen a voice mail congratulating him on the board's approval, see Plaintiff's Exhibit at 554 (Jensen Deposition at p. 148, ll. 10-20), which Schaller asserts indicates Golden Sky's recognition that the only contingency on the deal had been satisfied. However, the court concludes that no reasonable inference arises that board approval was the only contingency for an enforceable agreement, when, pursuant to ¶ 13 of the July 23, 1999, Letter of Intent that Golden Sky sent Schaller, lack of board approval was only one of three contingencies that could lead to failure of the deal — the other two being "written consent" by the parties to terminate the transaction and failure to enter into "the Asset Purchase Agreement contemplated" by the parties by the deadline specified or by some agreed, extended deadline. See Defendants' Appendix II, Exhibit 16.[7] Also, as explained above, pursuant to ¶ 2 of that same Letter of Intent, the parties agreed to "begin immediate, good faith negotiation between them of an `Asset Purchase Agreement,' which will embody the terms and conditions contained herein" and additional terms, see id., thus expressly stating that there were other "contingencies" besides board approval. Moreover, the March 9, 1999, and May 26, 1999, letters of interest identified numerous contingencies in addition to board approval, including "obtaining the necessary required consents to a transaction, including but not limited to approval of NRTC, DIRECTV, and GSS' Board of Directors." See Defendants' Appendix II, Exhibits 5 & 8. No reasonable jury could conclude, in light of this evidence, that the only contingency for the transaction was approval by Golden Sky's board of directors. iv. Other conduct suggesting an agreement had been reached. Similarly unavailing are Schaller's attempts to generate a genuine issue of material fact that Golden Sky manifested assent to be bound by an oral agreement based on various conduct of Golden Sky's representatives. Schaller relies on Ed Foster's statements, following board approval of the transaction, that no signed, written agreement was required for purposes of securing bank financing, only a draft agreement setting forth the basic elements of the parties' agreement, as suggesting that Golden Sky had assented to an oral agreement in the absence of a writing. See Plaintiff's Exhibits at 554-55 (Jensen Deposition at p. 149, l. 1 to p. 150 l. 5). Simply put, however, no reasonable inference about what Golden Sky required to consummate the transaction arises from what a third party, such as a bank financing the transaction, required as documentation on which to prepare financing. Moreover, Schaller has pointed to nothing in the record indicating that the bank would ultimately have provided financing in the absence of a signed written agreement *1091 closing the transaction. Banks routinely prepare financing documents in advance of "closing" on the underlying transaction. Nor do internal documents, prepared by Golden Sky in August of 1999, indicating that the transaction with Schaller was categorized under "BIDS ACCEPTED" and that the transaction was rated as a "100% Probability," manifest assent to be bound by an oral agreement or indicate, as Schaller argues, that Golden Sky believed a deal had already been reached. See Plaintiff's Exhibits at 619. Rather, the only reasonable inference arising from such documents is an inference that Golden Sky understood Schaller had accepted its "bid" at $2,700 per subscriber and that Golden Sky anticipated successful negotiations of all terms of the transaction to close the deal, as specified in its letters of interest and Letter of Intent. Similarly, email exchanges between Jo Ellen Linn and LaQuita Allen dated August 12, 1999, indicating that these two representatives of Golden Sky were making hotel and plane reservations for a trip to Hawaii to close the Schaller transaction, see Plaintiff's Exhibits at 621-22, support no reasonable inference beyond a high degree of belief by these persons that the Schaller transaction would ultimately close, not an inference that these persons believed that Golden Sky had reached or assented to an enforceable oral contract. v. Weary's statements. Finally, Schaller relies on representations attributed to Rodney Weary, President and CEO of Golden Sky, during the September 3, 1999, conference call to the effect that "We're going to keep this agreement," "We're going to buy your assets," and "I'm a man of my word and we will pay the price agreed. We intend to go forward with your transaction." See Plaintiff's Exhibits at 555 (Jensen Deposition at p. 152, ll. 2-8).[8] Schaller contends that Weary's statements manifest — if not expressly state — an intention to be bound to the terms agreed upon. Assuming that Weary made the statements — and Golden Sky disputes that he did, compare Plaintiff's Statement Of Additional Material Facts In Opposition To Motion For Summary Judgment, ¶ 15, with Defendants' Supplemental Reply To Plaintiff's Supplemental Statement Of Additional Facts, ¶ 15 — the statements still do not give rise to a genuine issue of material fact that Golden Sky intended to be bound in the absence of a signed written agreement, again even assuming that all terms had been agreed to during the course of the September 3, 1999, meeting, which Golden Sky also disputes. This is so, because, as explained above, the statements were made in the context of express statements in the first and second letters of interest and the Letter of Intent that Golden Sky would not be bound in the absence of a written agreement. Nothing in Weary's statement indicates an intent to waive the requirement of a written agreement previously expressly imposed upon Golden Sky's offers and negotiations. *1092 The present circumstances are also distinguishable from those in Severson in which the Iowa Supreme Court held that an enforceable oral contract had been reached for the purchase of the assets of a business, even though Severson also involved statements by the principal of one of the parties to the transaction that were described as manifesting assent to the transaction. See Severson, 250 N.W.2d at 421. In Severson, the defendant seller of the business told the plaintiff, "Well, you have just bought an elevator." Id. In the case of Weary's purported statements, however, the statements are cast in terms of an intention to complete the transaction, not in terms of the other party having already or just done so — even as characterized by Schaller's representative, Weary's statement was that Golden Sky was going to or would buy Schaller's DBS assets, not that Golden Sky had done so. See Plaintiff's Exhibits at 555 (Jensen Deposition at p. 152, ll. 2-8) (Weary purportedly said, "We're going to keep this agreement," "We're going to buy your assets," and "I'm a man of my word and we will pay the price agreed. We intend to go forward with your transaction.") (emphasis added). Also, in Severson, there is no indication that the party asserting that no oral agreement existed could point to evidence, like that presented here, in the form of language of the initial offers and the Letter of Intent, that specified that a written agreement was required to close the deal. See Defendants' Appendix, Exhibits 5 (March 9, 1999, Initial Letter of Interest) at 1-2 & 8 (May 26, Second Letter of Interest) at 1-2; Defendants' Appendix II, Exhibit 16 (Golden Sky's July 23, 1999, Letter of Intent) at ¶ 2. While the court in Severson "recognize[d] a prudent businessman might have demanded additional terms and that the terms be spelled out with more precision," before a deal was made, but did not, see Severson, 250 N.W.2d at 421, Golden Sky specified with its initial letter of interest, as well as in its second letter of interest and Letter of Intent, numerous matters that were essential to the transaction. See Defendants' Appendix, Exhibits 5 (March 9, 1999, Initial Letter of Interest) & 8 (May 26, Second Letter of Interest); Defendants' Appendix II, Exhibit 16 (Golden Sky's July 23, 1999, Letter of Intent). vi. Agreement to agree. To put it another way, Schaller's evidence gives rise to a reasonable inference of no more than "an agreement to agree," which "is not a contract." Whalen v. Connelly, 545 N.W.2d 284, 293 (Iowa 1996); H & W Motor Express, 516 N.W.2d at 914 ("An agreement to agree at some point in the future is not binding.") (citing Linn County v. Kindred, 373 N.W.2d 147, 150 (Iowa Ct.App.1985)). As the Iowa Supreme Court explained in Whalen, A contract is ... generally not found to exist when the parties agree to a contract on a basis to be settled in the future. Air Host Cedar Rapids v. Airport Comm'n, 464 N.W.2d 450, 453 (Iowa 1990). In other words an agreement to agree is not a contract. Whalen, 545 N.W.2d at 293. Here, the record of the negotiations of the asset purchase, which indicates agreement on price and agreement to the incorporation of various terms into a final agreement, shows only that the parties "agree[d] to a contract on a basis to be settled in the future." Id. As in Whalen, therefore, judgment as a matter of law is appropriate on the issue of breach of an oral contract. Id. (the trial court properly granted a directed verdict on the issue of breach of an oral contract). vii. Scope of Golden Sky's disclaimers. As a last ditch effort to overcome the impact of Golden Sky's disclaimers, Schaller contends that the disclaimers refer only to the letters themselves and *1093 not to the oral representations made by Golden Sky indicating an intention to be bound prior to execution of a signed writing. This argument misconstrues the language of the disclaimers, which, as a matter of law, applies to the entirety of the negotiation process. Cf. Desy, 462 N.W.2d at 746 (concluding that directed verdict should be entered that no oral agreement had been reached, on the basis of the written disclaimer of intent to be bound in the absence of a writing signed by the buyer and accepted by the seller). In both the March 9, 1999, initial letter of interest and the May 26, 1999, second letter of interest, Golden Sky made clear that the price offered was "conditional upon [a specified number of subscribers] at closing and that the parties negotiate and execute a mutually acceptable purchase agreement...." and both letters specify that "[a]ny commitment which we may subsequently determine to extend would be pursuant to the definitive documentation referred to above." Defendants' Appendix II, Exhibits 5 & 8 (emphasis added). Similarly, the language of the July 23, 1999, Letter of Interest expressly states "the intention of the parties to begin immediate, good faith negotiation between them of an `Asset Purchase Agreement,'" with certain conditions, and specifies that the Letter of Intent, i.e., the parties' intention to enter into any agreement for the sale of Schaller's DBS assets, would be terminated "by Buyer or Seller if the Asset Purchase Agreement contemplated herein is not entered into between the parties" by the deadline specified or as extended. Defendant's Appendix II, Exhibit 16, ¶¶ 2 & 13. Furthermore, the draft letter of September 3, 1999, memorializing the agreement in principle, states that it must "not to be construed as an offer from GSS but is instead intended to be a nonbinding expression of the parties' intentions with respect to entering into an asset purchase agreement memorializing the above-referenced transaction." Defendants' Appendix II, Exhibit 84 (Draft Letter of September 3, 1999) at 2. Thus, the language of the disclaimers expressly encompasses the entire negotiation process, creating an "umbrella" requirement of a signed writing to make a contract, thereby making clear that any agreement on individual terms or even all of the terms of the agreement would not result in a binding contract in the absence of an executed writing. The effect of such disclaimers is that summary judgment in favor of Golden Sky must be granted on Schaller's claim of breach of an oral contract, because, as a matter of law, no oral contract could exist in the circumstances presented. c. Consideration of other factors Although the court concludes that effective disclaimers of any intent to be bound in the absence of a written agreement dictate summary judgment in favor of Golden Sky on Schaller's claim of breach of contract, the court will nevertheless consider the other factors identified by Iowa courts as pertinent to the determination of whether negotiations have ripened into an oral contract, even where the parties contemplate a written agreement. See Faught, 540 N.W.2d at 36; Severson, 250 N.W.2d at 421; see also Bradley, 510 N.W.2d at 884 (citing Severson for the statement of the rule and pertinent factors); Employee Benefits Plus, Inc., 535 N.W.2d at 154 (citing comparable factors for determining whether the parties intended an oral agreement to be binding prior to the execution of a written document drawn from Severson, 250 N.W.2d at 421); RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS § 27, cmt. c. In Faught, the Iowa Supreme Court concluded that, as a matter of law, the parties never reached a binding agreement over the course of their extensive negotiations *1094 to settle a mortgage dispute. See Faught, 540 N.W.2d at 38. First, the Iowa Supreme Court found that the plaintiffs "knew the bank never intended an obligation would exist until terms other than the ones mentioned in the various proposals and counterproposals were agreed to." Id. Second, an unsigned agreement contemplated additional material terms. Id. For example, although not mentioned in the various proposals and counterproposals, the court concluded that a "marketable title requirement would be an expected provision in any agreement to sell and convey land," and that the plaintiffs' attorney had negotiated similar transactions involving a marketable title requirement. Id. at 39. The court also found that the plaintiffs could reasonably expect a general release running to the bank and a homestead waiver as part of any formal agreement. Id. at 39-40. Here, in light of Golden Sky's written disclaimers in its letters of interest and Letter of Intent, Schaller also knew that Golden Sky never intended that an obligation would exist until various terms besides price were negotiated and agreed and the entire agreement was reduced to an executed, written agreement. See id. at 38. Golden Sky's letters of interest and Letters of Intent and all of the draft agreements exchanged between the parties contemplated additional material terms besides price. See id. In addition to terms expressly identified by Golden Sky, the parties should reasonably have expected additional terms, such as agreement on the definition of qualifying "subscribers" for the determination of the final purchase price, based on price per subscriber, and indeed the parties conducted extensive negotiations on this specific issue. See id. at 39-40. Moreover, in Faught, the court concluded that "[o]ther factors" — some recognizable as factors drawn from RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS § 27, Comment c, although not so cited by the court—supported the conclusion that no binding agreement was ever reached: The issues the parties were dealing with were complex. The amount of money involved — $130,000 — was relatively large. The bank used a settlement agreement that was a standard document with several boiler plate provisions. The agreement dealt with a number of matters. Any reasonable person would expect that such an agreement would usually be put in writing. The parties negotiated from June until September and exchanged several letters, telephone calls, written proposals and counterproposals. The status of the bank, the regulations it was subject to, and good banking practices dictated that all significant business agreements be in writing. It is significant that the parties continued to correspond in writing and by telephone well beyond the date the Faughts claim an agreement was reached. These continued negotiations belie the prior existence of a final binding agreement as the Faughts contend. Nelsen's unsigned agreement and the bank's final draft contain a similar provision: all modifications, alterations, or amendments would require a writing signed by the parties. Certainly, the parties would not insist on such a requirement without first contemplating that no binding obligation would arise until both parties signed a written agreement. On September 17 — about a week after the parties reached an impasse — Gary Faught wrote his congressman complaining about the bank's treatment of him. In that letter Faught described how the parties came to the impasse: "We had just turned down their counteroffer that morning and canceled our request for CRP participation that afternoon." *1095 The counteroffer Faught is referring to is the bank's final revised agreement. Later in the letter, Faught wrote: "On September 9 they turned down an offer that increased the equity in this 160-acre farm by $40,000." Gary Faught has a master's degree from Cornell University. He is a businessman and a teacher. His testimony clearly establishes that he is well-versed in such terms as offer, acceptance, and counteroffer in contract parlance. The letter is in close proximity to the September 9 impasse and demonstrates that Gary Faught believed the parties had not reached a binding agreement. Given the length of negotiations, the proposals and counterproposals, and the distrust between the parties, reasonable minds could only conclude that both parties contemplated a written and signed agreement before either would be bound. The parties' prior dealings were simply preliminary negotiations and expressions of terms to be formally memorialized in a written agreement executed by the parties. Faught, 540 N.W.2d at 40 (emphasis added). In these circumstances, the Iowa Supreme Court concluded that, as a matter of law, the parties never reached a binding agreement, and therefore affirmed the district court's grant of judgment notwithstanding the verdict. Id. Schaller contends that the applicable factors considered in light of the circumstances in Faught made that case a "Comment b case," but application of the same factors here make this a "Comment a case." The court does not agree. Schaller contends that express, albeit oral, agreement had been reached on all terms to be included in the agreement, as embodied in the September 21, 1999, Draft Purchase Agreement, and Golden Sky does not plainly dispute that contention. See Faught, 540 N.W.2d at 36 (citing extent of agreement to terms as one factor) (quoting RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS § 27, cmt c.). However, Schaller admits that the type of contract in question here is usually in writing and that the amount of the transaction is large. See Plaintiff's Amended Resistance at 6; see also Faught, 540 N.W.2d at 36 ("The issues the parties were dealing with were complex. The amount of money involved —$130,000 — was relatively large.... Any reasonable person would expect that such an agreement would usually be put in writing."). Moreover, it cannot reasonably be disputed that the transaction involved myriad details, as evidenced both by Golden Sky's disclaimers and the course of the parties' negotiations, however much Schaller would like to focus on price as the "essential term." See Faught, 540 N.W.2d at 36 ("The agreement dealt with a number of matters."). Although the parties both recognized that "standard form" contracts were available, both also recognized that the transaction in question would require extensive negotiation. See Defendants' Appendix II, Exhibits 5 & 8 (Golden Sky's letters of interest indicating that "[t]here are many terms and conditions for sale which would need to be agreed upon to finalize an agreement"); Defendants' Statement of Undisputed Facts, ¶¶ 54-56 (Jensen's recognition that the transaction required extensive negotiation, even if the parties began with Golden Sky's "standard form" of written agreement for such acquisitions); Plaintiff's Response To Defendants' Statement of Undisputed Facts, ¶¶ 54-56 (admitting ¶¶ 54-56 of Defendants' Statement of Undisputed Facts), and compare Faught, 540 N.W.2d at 36 ("The bank used a settlement agreement that was a standard document with several boiler plate provisions [but] continued negotiations belie the prior existence of a final binding agreement...."). Moreover, as determined *1096 above, based on Golden Sky's letters of interest and Letter of Intent, the transaction in question here "`needs a formal writing for its full expression.'" See Faught, 540 N.W.2d at 36 (quoting comment c, and concluding, from various factors, that "[a]ny reasonable person would expect that such an agreement would usually be put in writing"). These factors thus weigh in favor of the conclusion that a writing was required. Faught, 540 N.W.2d at 36. Nor can the court conclude, on the basis of the remaining factor, whether either party took any action in preparation for performance during the negotiations, id. (quoting comment c), that Schaller has generated a genuine issue of material fact as to whether or not a writing was required. Schaller suggests that it took various actions in reliance on a purported agreement, but those actions were in the nature of enhancing its subscriber base, which enured to its own benefit as well, if it retained the assets, not actions indicative only of an agreement to part with control of its DBS assets. Compare Severson, 250 N.W.2d at 420-21 (the defendant notified his elevator manager that he was selling the elevator and that the manager would not be employed by the new owner). Thus, upon consideration of all applicable factors, the court concludes that "reasonable minds could only conclude that both parties contemplated a written and signed agreement before either would be bound." See Faught, 540 N.W.2d at 39-40 (concluding, as a matter of law based on the applicable factors, that a written agreement was required and that "[t]he parties' prior dealings were simply preliminary negotiations and expressions of terms to be formally memorialized in a written agreement executed by the parties"); RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS § 26 & § 27, cmt. b. Summary judgment will therefore be entered in favor of Golden Sky on Schaller's claim of breach of an oral contract. C. Fraudulent Misrepresentation Golden Sky also seeks summary judgment on Schaller's other remaining claim, Schaller's claim of fraudulent misrepresentation. Golden Sky contends that Schaller's fraud claim, as pleaded and clarified in response to pertinent interrogatories, alleges that Golden Sky misrepresented its intention to purchase Schaller's DBS assets. Consequently, Golden Sky contends that the "misrepresentations" on which the claim is based are also the terms of the purported oral contract and that, as a matter of law, breach of contract cannot be cloaked as "fraud" and made a separate cause of action. More specifically, Golden Sky contends that Schaller is attempting to assert that, if the representations at issue did not create a contract, they were fraudulent misrepresentations of intention to enter into a contract, but a plaintiff cannot sue for an alleged fraudulent representation if the representation was at the heart of the alleged contractual agreement, not collateral or extraneous to the terms of the contract. Thus, Golden Sky contends that it is entitled to summary judgment on Schaller's fraud claim on the ground that the claim is duplicative or redundant of Schaller's contract claim. Additionally, Golden Sky contends that there is no evidence showing that the alleged misrepresentations were false at the time they were made, that Golden Sky had any intent to deceive Schaller about its intention to purchase Schaller's DBS assets, or that Schaller justifiably relied to its detriment on any of the misrepresentations alleged. Schaller responds that Golden Sky is relying on a "New York rule," peculiar to the law of that state, when Golden Sky contends that no fraud claim will lie when the representations at issue are at the heart of the contract. Schaller contends *1097 that Iowa law is to the contrary, because Iowa law recognizes that representations about intent to perform future acts are actionable as fraud if there was no intent at the time the representation was made to fulfill the representation. Schaller contends that there are genuine issues of material fact as to the falsity of Golden Sky's representations of its intent to purchase Schaller's DBS assets, Golden Sky's knowledge of the falsity of those representations, and Schaller's reliance on those representations. Moreover, Schaller contends that its fraud claim is not based solely on Golden Sky's misrepresentation of its intention to purchase Schaller's DBS assets, but is also premised on Golden Sky's misrepresentation of its ability to perform the transaction. Schaller contends that there is copious evidence that Golden Sky knew that it could not afford or finance the purchase of Schaller's DBS assets at the time it expressed an intention to do so, because Golden Sky knew that its financial situation was precarious and that it was already in violation of various loan covenants, which would make financing of the deal with Schaller impossible, as well as copious evidence of Schaller's reliance, to its cost, on Golden Sky's ability to perform the purchase of assets. In reply, Golden Sky contends that Schaller's claim of misrepresentation of ability to perform the transaction at issue is "newly minted," because it was never pleaded and was never identified as a basis for Schaller's fraud claim in response to pertinent interrogatories. Furthermore, Golden Sky contends that the claim of misrepresentation of ability to perform the transaction is simply an attempt to redress the fraudulent non-disclosure claim this court has already dismissed. However, assuming, without admitting, that such a fraud claim is allowable, Golden Sky contends that it is still entitled to summary judgment on such a claim, because it made no representations at all of its ability to perform the transaction, and if such representations were made, there is no evidence giving rise to a reasonable inference of the falsity of the representations or Golden Sky's knowledge of such falsity at the time the representations were made, nor is there any evidence of Schaller's reliance on such representations. As to the "original" fraud claim based on misrepresentation of intention to purchase Schaller's DBS assets, Golden Sky contends that it is relying on a general common law rule, not merely a "New York rule," which bars fraud claims that are duplicative of breach-of-contract claims. In a surreply brief, Schaller contends that paragraph 7 of its First Amended Complaint alleges the supposedly "newly minted" claim of fraudulent representation of ability to perform the transaction, because it alleges that "Golden Sky increased its offer to purchase Schaller's properties ... representing to Schaller that it was ready, willing and able to do so." This allegation, Schaller contends, was sufficient to put Golden Sky on notice of its fraud claim based on misrepresentation of ability to perform the transaction. Moreover, Schaller contends that a reasonable jury could, on the record evidence it identifies, find that Golden Sky never intended to purchase Schaller's DBS assets and was never able to do so, because Golden Sky could never pay for them; that Golden Sky knew the representations of intention and ability to perform the transaction were false, because Golden Sky knew it could never pay for the assets; and that Schaller detrimentally relied on the misrepresentations at issue. Therefore, Schaller contends that Golden Sky's motion for summary judgment on this claim should be denied. The court finds that the first issue it must resolve with regard to Schaller's fraudulent misrepresentation claim is not an issue of what reasonable inferences can *1098 be drawn from the record, but exactly what are the alleged misrepresentations upon which the claim is, or can be, based. 1. The claim as pleaded and clarified in response to interrogatories Count I of Schaller's First Amended Complaint contains the following allegations of "representations" on which Schaller's fraudulent misrepresentation claim is based: 7. On May 26, 1999, defendant Golden Sky increased its offer to purchase Schaller's properties to the sum of $11,070,00[0], representing to Schaller that it was ready, willing and able to do so. * * * * * * 12. On or about August 25, 1999, defendant Jo Ellen Linn and others on behalf of Golden Sky again represented that Golden Sky would pay $2700 per subscriber for up to 5000 subscribers for a total of $13,500,000, and that the sale would close on September 10, 1999, on which date the purchase price would be wire-transferred to Schaller; that Golden Sky's board of directors would meet on August 26, 1999 to formally approve the purchase; that all the corporate officials for Golden Sky who were to participate in the closing had made reservations to attend the closing in Hawaii on September 10, and that they were ready to go; that there was no disagreement with the price; that Golden Sky intended to keep its word on the price that it had negotiated with Schaller. 13. On or about August 27, 1999, defendant Jo Ellen Linn represented that the Board of Directors of Golden Sky had, on August 26, 1999, approved the agreement for the purchase of Schaller's properties for the sum of $13,500,000. 14. On or about August 27, 1999, Schaller sought to obtain a signed offer, but outside counsel for Golden Sky Ed Foster rebuffed Schaller's attempts, advising that it was "not a rush today and the parties can sign the agreement next week." 15. On or about September 3, 1999, defendants Jo Ellen Linn and Rodney Weary, along with outside counsel Ed Foster, represented to Schaller that the agreement was complete. Defendant Weary said, "Done, it's a deal. I am a man of my word and we intend to pay the price agreed." On or about the same date, Defendant Jo Ellen Linn again represented that the sale had been agreed to and approved by Golden Sky's board of directors on August 26, that the purchase had been approved, and that Golden Sky Systems would consummate the deal on or before October 1, 1999. First Amended Complaint, ¶¶ 7, 12-15 (emphasis added). The allegations that follow in this count of the First Amended Complaint allege, in entirely conclusory terms, that the "representations" were false and that Schaller was deceived; that the representations were material; that the defendants knew the representations were false; that the defendants intended to deceive Schaller; that Schaller justifiably relied on the truth of the representations; and that the representations were the proximate cause of Schaller's damage, specifically, loss of benefit of the bargain, costs incurred in increasing its subscriber base at defendant's request, attorney's fees, and other costs, fees, and expenses incurred to effect the sale and in foregoing other sale opportunities. Id. at ¶¶ 16-22.[9] *1099 In an attempt to clarify Schaller's fraud claim, on May 30, 2000, Golden Sky propounded the following interrogatory to Schaller: 6. Identify all false representations on which you base your claims of misrepresentation. For each such representation, identify the person who made the representation, the date and place of the representation, the person to whom the representation was made, all other persons who were present at the time of the representation, and how the representation was false. See Appendix I — Deposition Testimony And Other Lettered Exhibits In Support Of Defendants' Summary Judgment Motion (Defendants' Appendix I), Exhibit K (Plaintiff's Answers To Interrogatories), No. 6. Thus, it is readily apparent that Golden Sky attempted to obtain by propounding an interrogatory the degree of particularity ordinarily required in the pleading of fraud in federal court pursuant to Rule 9(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. See FED.R.CIV.P. 9(b) ("In all averments of fraud or mistake, the circumstances constituting fraud or mistake shall be stated with particularity. Malice, intent, knowledge, and other condition of the mind of a person may be averred generally."); see also, e.g., Wright v. Brooke Group Ltd., 114 F.Supp.2d 797, 832 (N.D.Iowa 2000) (reiterating that pleading the "circumstances constituting fraud" includes pleading "`such matters as the time, place and content of false representations, as well as the identity of the person making the misrepresentation and what was obtained or given up thereby'") (quoting Commercial Property Inv., Inc. v. Quality Inns Int'l, Inc., 61 F.3d 639, 644 (8th Cir.1995), in turn quoting Bennett v. Berg, 685 F.2d 1053, 1062 (8th Cir.1982), adhered to on reh'g, 710 F.2d 1361 (8th Cir.), cert. denied, 464 U.S. 1008, 104 S.Ct. 527, 78 L.Ed.2d 710 (1983)). Such an inquiry is to be applauded, for two reasons. First, it could eliminate the potential prejudice or surprise to the party responding to the fraud claim that might arise from the insertion at some point in the litigation of unexpected and unpleaded allegations of misrepresentations. Second, it could eliminate the delays that might be incurred by a challenge to the adequacy of the plaintiff's pleading of fraud and the plaintiff's *1100 attempt to replead the claim with the requisite particularity. However, neither of these potential benefits of Golden Sky's attempt to clarify Schaller's fraud claim was realized here. Schaller's answer to this interrogatory concerning the representations on which its fraud claim was based consisted of the following: ANSWER: On or about June 30, 1999, Golden Sky, by and through defendant Jo Ellen Linn and Laquita Allen, Vice President of Acquisitions for Golden Sky, increased its offer for Schaller's properties to $2700 per subscriber for up to 5000 subscribers for a total of $13,500,000. On or about August 25, 1999, defendant Jo Ellen Linn and others on behalf of Golden Sky represented that Golden Sky would pay $2700 per subscriber for up to 5000 subscribers for a total of $13,500,000, and that the sale would close on September 10, 1999, on which date the purchase price would be wire-transferred to Schaller; that Golden Sky's board of directors would meet on the [sic] August 26, 1999 to formally approve the purchase; that all the corporate officials for Golden Sky who were to participate in the closing had made reservations to attend the closing in Hawaii on September 10, and that they were ready to go; that there was no disagreement with the price; that Golden Sky intended to keep its word on the price that it had negotiated with Schaller. On or about August 27, 1999, Schaller sought to obtain a signed offer, but outside counsel for Golden Sky Ed Foster rebuffed Schaller's attempts, advising that it was "not a rush today and the parties can sign the agreement next week." On or about September 3, 1999, defendants Jo Ellen Linn and Rodney Weary, along with outside counsel Ed Foster, represented to Schaller that the agreement was complete. Defendant Weary said, "Done, it's a deal. I am a man of my word and we intend to pay the price agreed." On or about that same date, Defendant Jo Ellen Linn again represented that the sale had been agreed to and approved by Golden Sky's board of directors on August 26, that the purchase had been approved, and that Golden Sky Systems would consummate the deal on or before October 1, 1999. Defendants' Appendix I, Exhibit K (Plaintiff's Answers To Interrogatories), No. 6. Thus, Golden Sky's attempt to obtain a degree of specificity for Schaller's fraud claim approaching what is ordinarily required by Rule 9(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure was defeated, because Schaller's answer to the interrogatory is substantially unresponsive to Golden Sky's request for details constituting the circumstances of the alleged fraud. See Interrogatory No. 6, quoted supra; and compare FED.R.CIV.P. 9(b); Wright, 114 F.Supp.2d at 832. Moreover, Schaller's response apparently failed to eliminate any surprise to Golden Sky about the nature of Schaller's fraud claims as based on fraudulent misrepresentation of both intention and ability to perform the transaction. However, Golden Sky never moved to compel a more responsive answer to this interrogatory. Therefore, the court must consider whether the First Amended Complaint and Schaller's answer to Golden Sky's interrogatory provided adequate notice that Schaller's fraud claim was based on fraudulent misrepresentation of ability to perform the transaction, or whether this specification of fraud is "newly minted," as Golden Sky contends. As mentioned above, the interrogatory answer provides very little detail in addition *1101 to the pleading of misrepresentations in the First Amended Complaint. See First Amended Complaint, ¶¶ 7, 12-15, also quoted supra, and compare Defendants' Appendix I, Exhibit K (Plaintiff's Answers To Interrogatories), No. 6, also quoted supra. Indeed, the answer to the interrogatory is an almost verbatim restatement of the allegations of the complaint. See id. What this answer does reveal is that Schaller, unlike the court, also perceived paragraph 11 of the First Amended Complaint to constitute an allegation of a misrepresentation, because the first paragraph of the answer to the interrogatory repeats that paragraph of the First Amended Complaint verbatim. Giving paragraph 11 a very liberal reading, the court can acknowledge that an offer to buy assets at some price may, at least implicitly, constitute a representation of intention to pay that price. See Hinkle v. Cargill, Inc., 613 So.2d 1216, 1220 (Ala. 1992) ("`When a promise is made the promisor expressly or by necessary implication states that he then has a present intention to perform, and if such intention does not actually exist at that time, a false statement of fact has been made upon which fraud may be predicated.'") (quoting Walker v. Woodall, 288 Ala. 510, 513, 262 So.2d 756, 759 (1972), in turn quoting Turner v. Biscoe, 141 Tex. 197, 171 S.W.2d 118, 119 (1943)); Mid Plains Reeves, Inc. v. Farmland Indus., Inc., 768 S.W.2d 318, 322 (Tex.App. — El Paso 1989) ("When a promise is made, the promisor, at least by necessary implication, states that he then has a present intention to perform, and if such intention does not actually exist at that time, a false statement has been made.") (citing Turner); see also Robinson v. Perpetual Servs. Corp., 412 N.W.2d 562, 565-66 (Iowa 1987) ("Under Iowa law, a statement of intent to perform a future act is actionable if when made the speaker had an existing intention not to perform.").[10] The court observes, however, that relying on such marginal implications of an offer as constituting a representation of intention to perform the transaction flies in the face of the purposes of the particularity pleading requirements for fraud imposed by Rule 9(b) and applicable case law. *1102 Another notable facet of the interrogatory response, however, is that it is silent with respect to the allegation in the First Amended Complaint on which Schaller hangs its hat as having given notice that it was asserting a claim of misrepresentation of Golden Sky's ability to perform the transaction. See Plaintiff's Sur-Reply Brief In Resistance To Motion For Summary Judgment (Plaintiff's Surreply) at 13 ("While defendants claim these fraud claims [based on misrepresentation of ability to perform the transaction] were not pled with sufficient particularity, paragraph 7 of the [First Amended] Complaint clearly states that Golden Sky increased its offer to purchase Schaller's properties ... representing to Schaller that it was ready, willing and able to do so.") (emphasis in the original). However, Schaller's statement of paragraph 7 of the First Amended Complaint is not complete. That paragraph, in its entirety, states the following: On May 26, 1999, defendant Golden Sky increased its offer to purchase Schaller's properties to the sum of $11,070,00[0], representing to Schaller that it was ready, willing and able to do so. First Amended Complaint, ¶ 7 (emphasis added). Thus, the misrepresentation of ability to perform in paragraph 7 is specifically restricted to an allegation that the misrepresentation was made on May 26, 1999. Although Schaller has otherwise failed to plead fraud with the particularity required by Rule 9(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure in its First Amended Complaint offered pursuant to federal rules of pleading, where Schaller has pleaded details of the "circumstances constituting fraud," see FED.R.CIV.P. 9(b), Schaller "is `limited to the specific allegations pleaded in [its] complaint.'" Gunderson v. ADM Investor Servs., Inc., 85 F.Supp.2d 892, 905 (N.D.Iowa 2000) (quoting McAnally v. Gildersleeve, 16 F.3d 1493, 1496 (8th Cir.1994), which in turn cites Rule 9(b) and Greenwood v. Dittmer, 776 F.2d 785, 789 (8th Cir.1985)); North Central F.S., Inc. v. Brown, 951 F.Supp. 1383, 1408 (N.D.Iowa 1996) (same). Thus, Schaller is limited by its pleadings to an assertion of fraudulent misrepresentation of ability to perform the transaction made on May 26, 1999. The interrogatory response, on the other hand, identifies alleged misrepresentations "on or about" June 30, August 25, August 27, and September 3, 1999, but none on May 26, 1999. See Defendants' Appendix I, Exhibit K (Plaintiff's Answers To Interrogatories), No. 6, quoted supra. Schaller has never supplemented its response to the interrogatory to amend this omission. Thus, the court concludes that Schaller has waived any assertion of misrepresentations of either intention or ability to perform the transaction based on the offer made May 26, 1999, or has effectively narrowed its allegations of fraud to exclude allegations arising from the May 26, 1999, offer. See Bridgeman Art Library, Ltd. v. Corel Corp., 25 F.Supp.2d 421, 429 (S.D.N.Y. 1998) ("Bridgeman's answers to defendant's interrogatories substantially narrowed its claims. It specifically asserted that the only basis for its claims of unfair competition and deceptive trade practices was Corel's alleged copying of Bridgeman's images and sales of the copies at lower prices."); Primes v. Reno, 999 F.Supp. 1007, 1008 n. 3 (N.D.Ohio 1998) (where the defendants asked the plaintiff to "identify and describe each and every act" of race discrimination and reprisal, the "[p]laintiff's supplemental responses effectively limit[ed] his claims to his 1994 performance appraisal"), aff'd, 190 F.3d 765 (6th Cir.1999). But see Donovan v. Crisostomo, 689 F.2d 869, 875 (9th Cir. 1982) ("Interrogatories do not supersede or supplement pleadings, nor do they bind parties as an allegation or admission in a *1103 pleading or pre-trial order").[11] Were the court to conclude otherwise, a litigant could "hide the ball" about the nature of his claims or theory of recovery until the summary judgment phase of the proceedings, then produce an entirely new theory of the case, or one the litigant had apparently specifically eschewed — as is the case here — as a basis for denying summary judgment, without affording the opposing party the opportunity to pursue discovery concerning that theory or its factual basis. Permitting such conduct is particularly inappropriate when the claim is fraud-based and the federal rules otherwise require a heightened standard of pleading and limit a party to the specific allegations of fraud the party has pleaded. See Gunderson, 85 F.Supp.2d at 905 (citing McAnally, 16 F.3d at 1496 (8th Cir.1994), in turn citing Rule 9(b) and Greenwood, 776 F.2d at 789); North Central F.S., Inc., 951 F.Supp. at 1408 (same). Similarly unhelpful to Schaller is its contention that, during the June 30, 1999, meeting, Golden Sky misrepresented its ability to perform the transaction by assuring Schaller, in response to an inquiry from Steven Jensen, that bank financing and compliance with loan covenants was "not an issue." See Plaintiffs Amended Resistance at 43-44. This supposed misrepresentation of ability to perform was not mentioned in either the First Amended Complaint or Schaller's answer to Golden Sky's interrogatory, and therefore is doubly waived. Nor can this alleged misrepresentation on June 30, 1999, reasonably relate to the pleaded misrepresentation that Golden Sky was "ready, willing, and able" to perform the transaction, because the "ready, willing, and able" misrepresentation was allegedly made on or about May 26, 1999, a full month earlier, with Golden Sky's renewed offer to purchase the assets. Thus, this representation concerning financial ability, made on June 30, 1999, has not been pleaded at all and is not before the court. Nor can Schaller rely on a "phony" board resolution as presenting the claim that Golden Sky misrepresented its ability to perform the transaction, even though Schaller contends that the "phony" board resolution was "[o]ne of the most blatant frauds committed by Golden Sky." See Plaintiff's Amended Resistance at 32. The "phony" board resolution, as characterized by Schaller, consisted of the insertion in the version of the board resolution sent to Schaller of language making board approval of the transaction contingent on financing, when no such contingency is reflected in the minutes of the meeting at which the board passed the resolution. Schaller contends that this "fraud" left Golden Sky a backdoor out of the transaction, because Golden Sky already knew it could not finance the purchase of Schaller's DBS assets at the time Golden Sky's board approved the transaction. See id. at 32-36. However, the court reads Schaller's contentions concerning a "phony" board resolution to be arguments that the "phony" resolution is evidence demonstrating Golden Sky's knowledge of its inability to perform the transaction and not as a contention that the "phony" resolution is a separate — again, unpleaded — misrepresentation. As support for a claim based on misrepresentation of ability to perform that has been waived, evidence of the "phony" resolution is irrelevant, and as a *1104 separate instance of misrepresentation, it is not before the court, because it was never pleaded nor identified in Schaller's response to Golden Sky's interrogatory. Thus, the court concludes that Schaller's fraudulent misrepresentation claim can be based only on the misrepresentations identified in both its pleadings and its interrogatory response, which limits Schaller's fraudulent misrepresentation claim primarily to a contention that Golden Sky misrepresented its intention to perform the transaction. See Defendants' Appendix I, Exhibit K (Plaintiff's Answers To Interrogatories), No. 6, quoted supra. 2. Merits of summary judgment on the claim as formulated Having determined what fraudulent misrepresentations are before the court, the court turns next to the question of whether Golden Sky is entitled to summary judgment on Schaller's allegations of fraud based on those representations. Analysis of that question begins with an examination of the applicable principles of Iowa law. a. Fraudulent misrepresentation under Iowa law As this court has explained on a number of occasions, "[t]he required elements of fraudulent misrepresentation under Iowa law are: (1) a material (2) false (3) representation coupled with (4) scienter and (5) intent to deceive, which the other party (6) relies upon with (7) resulting damages to the relying party." Wright, 114 F.Supp.2d at 819 (citing Doe v. Hartz, 52 F.Supp.2d 1027, 1055 (N.D.Iowa 1999) (internal quotations and citations omitted)); Gunderson, 85 F.Supp.2d at 922 (same); Tralon Corp. v. Cedarapids, Inc., 966 F.Supp. 812 (N.D.Iowa 1997) (same); Jones Distrib. Co., Inc. v. White Consol. Indus., Inc., 943 F.Supp. 1445, 1473 (N.D.Iowa 1996) (same); accord Gibson v. ITT Hartford Ins. Co., 621 N.W.2d 388, 400 (Iowa 2001) ("To establish a claim of fraudulent misrepresentation, a plaintiff must prove (1) defendant made a representation to the plaintiff, (2) the representation was false; (3) the representation was material, (4) the defendant knew the representation was false, (5) the defendant intended to deceive the plaintiff, (6) the plaintiff acted in reliance on the truth of the representation and was justified in relying on the representation, (7) the representation was a proximate cause of plaintiff's damages, and (8) the amount of damages."); In re Marriage of Cutler, 588 N.W.2d 425, 430 (Iowa 1999) (defining the elements of fraud as including (1) misrepresentation or failure to disclose when under a legal duty to do so, (2) materiality, (3) scienter, (4) intent to deceive, (5) justifiable reliance, and (6) resulting injury or damage). The plaintiff must prove the elements of fraudulent misrepresentation by clear and convincing evidence. Id. at 820; Cutler, 588 N.W.2d at 430; see also Ralfs v. Mowry, 586 N.W.2d 369, 373 (Iowa 1998) (describing the burden as proving the existence of fraud "by clear, satisfactory, and convincing evidence") (citing Benson v. Richardson, 537 N.W.2d 748, 756 (Iowa 1995)). Although Golden Sky admits that it has found no Iowa authority specifically on point, it contends that the general common law rule is that a fraud claim cannot be based on representations that are at the heart of the contract, but instead must be based on "extraneous" promises or representations. Schaller contends, however, that Golden Sky is relying on a "New York rule" with no applicability to a fraudulent misrepresentation claim under Iowa law. This court has previously addressed a similar question, whether Iowa law recognizes a cause of action for fraudulent misrepresentation based on "broken promises": Iowa has also adopted the rule that broken promises do not generally give rise *1105 to any inference of fraudulent intent at the time the promises were made. See Magnusson Agency v. Public Entity Nat'l Company-Midwest, 560 N.W.2d 20, 28-29 (Iowa 1997); Robinson v. Perpetual Servs. Corp., 412 N.W.2d 562, 565-66 (Iowa 1987); Irons v. Community State Bank, 461 N.W.2d 849, 854 (Iowa Ct.App.1990). In Robinson, which the Producers cite, the Iowa Supreme Court wrote, Under Iowa law, a statement of intent to perform a future act is actionable if when made the speaker had an existing intention not to perform. Hagarty v. Dysart-Geneseo Community School Dist., 282 N.W.2d 92, 95 (Iowa 1979); Grefe v. Ross, 231 N.W.2d 863, 867 (Iowa 1975). However, in establishing the present intent not to perform, "[t]he fact the agreement was not performed does not alone prove the promissor did not intend keeping it when it was made." Lamasters v. Springer, 251 Iowa 69, 74, 99 N.W.2d 300, 303 (1959); see also Hagarty, 282 N.W.2d at 95. Robinson, 412 N.W.2d at 565. See also Magnusson Agency, 560 N.W.2d at 28-29 ("However, in establishing intent, the fact that an agreement was not performed does not alone prove that the promisor did not intend to keep the promise when it was made," citing Robinson, 412 N.W.2d at 565); Irons, 461 N.W.2d at 854 ("[W]hen a promise is made by one individual in good faith with the expectation of carrying that promise out, the mere fact the promise was not fulfilled does not, alone, constitute actionable fraud. For the breaking of such a promise to be actionable as fraud, the speaker must have had an existing intent not to perform at the time the promise was made," citing PROSSER, THE LAW OF TORTS § 109, pp. 730-31 (4th ed.1971), and Robinson, 412 N.W.2d at 565-66). Again, there is an exception to this rule, which provides that a claim of promissory fraud may lie if, when the promise was made, the promisor had no intention to perform it. See Northwest Airlines, Inc., 111 F.3d at 1393; International Travel Arrangers, 991 F.2d at 1402; Coenco, Inc., 940 F.2d at 1178. Accord Robinson, 412 N.W.2d at 565; Magnusson Agency, 560 N.W.2d at 28-29; Irons, 461 N.W.2d at 854. However, to prevail on such a claim, the plaintiff must present "affirmative evidence" that the promisor had no intention to perform when the promise was made. Id.; International Travel Arrangers, 991 F.2d at 1403. Brown v. North Central F.S., Inc., 987 F.Supp. 1150, 1157 (N.D.Iowa 1997); see also IBP, Inc. v. FDL Foods, Inc., 19 F.Supp.2d 944, 951 (N.D.Iowa 1998) (Melloy, then Chief Judge) ("In Iowa, a statement of intent to perform a future act is actionable if, when the statement is made, the speaker had an existing intent not to perform. Robinson v. Perpetual Services Corp., 412 N.W.2d 562, 565 (Iowa 1987). However, in establishing the present intent not to perform, the mere fact that the parties did not complete the agreement does not prove the promissor did not intend to keep the promise. Id.") Thus, Schaller's contention that Iowa law recognizes a fraud claim based on statements of an intention to perform, when the party making the representation in fact has no such intention to perform at the time the statement is made, is at least colorable. However, the court notes that, in Robinson, the representation was extraneous to the terms of the contract, or the fraud claim would have been precluded by an integration clause in the contract. See Robinson, 412 N.W.2d at 567; see also Irons, 461 N.W.2d at 854 (alleged misrepresentation was based on failure to reveal material information, and thus was extraneous to the contract). Here, the alleged *1106 misrepresentation of intent to perform the contract is precisely the intent to enter into the contract itself, not an extraneous promise. Nevertheless, the court finds that it need not become embroiled in the parties' dispute over whether or not Schaller's fraudulent misrepresentation claims are duplicative of its breach-of-contract claim for the simple reason that, assuming Schaller's claims can be pursued independently of its breach-of-contract claims, Golden Sky is entitled to summary judgment on those claims. b. Misrepresentations of intention to perform First, the court concludes that Golden Sky is entitled to summary judgment on Schaller's claim of fraudulent misrepresentation to the extent the claim is based on misrepresentations of Golden Sky's intention to perform the transaction. The claim premised on such misrepresentations fails ab initio, because there was no unilateral "promise" by Golden Sky to enter into the contract. See, e.g., Wright, 114 F.Supp.2d at 819 (proof of fraud requires a material, false representation); Robinson, 412 N.W.2d at 565 ("Under Iowa law, a statement of intent to perform a future act is actionable if when made the speaker had an existing intention not to perform"; thus, there must be such a statement of intent to sustain the claim). Instead, for much the same reason the court concluded that no oral agreement was reached — that is, because Golden Sky's offers included disclaimers that any agreement was contingent upon negotiating a deal involving myriad specified details and reduction of that agreement to a signed writing — the court now concludes that any "promise" or statement of intention to enter into an agreement with Schaller was also conditioned on negotiation and execution of a written agreement. Just as Schaller cannot enforce an "agreement to agree" as a contract, Schaller cannot assert a fraud claim based upon statements of "intention" to enter into an agreement that were expressly conditioned upon execution of a written agreement. The court will not allow Schaller another "bite at the apple" to recover for fraud where Schaller could not recover for breach of contract based on the same representation or "misrepresentation" of intention to enter into an agreement, because the representations at issue on both claims were in the context of and conditioned upon certain requirements that were not fulfilled. To put it another way, there can be no "false promise" to enter into the agreement or false statement of intention to enter into the agreement where no promise at all was made to enter into the agreement, except where certain conditions were met, nor any statement of intention not expressly conditioned upon fulfillment of certain requirements. See Robinson, 412 N.W.2d at 565 ("`Unless the present state of mind is misstated, there is of course no misrepresentation.'") (quoting W. PROSSER, THE LAW OF TORTS § 109, at 730-31 (4th ed.1971)). Thus, the "falsity" element of Schaller's fraudulent misrepresentation claim based on misrepresentation of intention to enter into the agreement cannot be established as a matter of law. See Wright, 114 F.Supp.2d at 819 (proof of fraud requires a material, false representation). c. Other "misrepresentations" The court recognizes that Schaller's response to Golden Sky's interrogatory concerning the representations upon which its fraud claim was based includes some other alleged "misrepresentations." However, Schaller itself admits that some of the representations listed in its First Amended Complaint and interrogatory response are true. Hence, those representations also cannot sustain a fraudulent misrepresentation claim. Id. *1107 The first such representation is that "Jo Ellen Linn represented that the Board of Directors of Golden Sky had, on August 26, 1999, approved the agreement for the purchase of Schaller's properties for the sum of $13,500,000." First Amended Complaint, ¶ 13; Defendants' Appendix I, Exhibit K at 4 (third paragraph of answer to Interrogatory No. 6).[12] Schaller itself acknowledges that Golden Sky's board of directors did approve the agreement to purchase Schaller's DBS assets for the sum of $13,500,000 on August 26, 1999. See Defendants' Statement Of Undisputed Facts, ¶¶ 129-130; see also Plaintiff's Response To Defendants' Statement Of Undisputed Facts, ¶¶ 129-130. Indeed, Schaller relied on statements that board approval had been obtained, in support of its breach-of-contract claim, as demonstrating that the parties had reached an oral agreement, see Plaintiff's Amended Resistance at 16-19, an inference the court concluded above was insupportable. Thus, Schaller itself acknowledges the "truth" of Jo Ellen Linn's alleged representation on August 27, 1999, that the board had approved the transaction. Consequently, there is no genuine issue of material fact on the issue of the "falsity" of this representation, see, e.g., Wright, 114 F.Supp.2d at 819 ("falsity" of the representation is an essential element of fraudulent misrepresentation under Iowa law), and Golden Sky is therefore entitled to summary judgment on the fraudulent misrepresentation claim to the extent it relies on this or similar representation. See Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548 (if a party fails to make a sufficient showing of an essential element of a claim with respect to which that party has the burden of proof, then the opposing party is "entitled to judgment as a matter of law"). Schaller also admits the truth of the representation that "all the corporate officials for Golden Sky who were to participate in the closing had made reservations to attend the closing in Hawaii on September 10, and that they were ready to go." See First Amended Complaint, ¶ 12; Defendants' Appendix I, Exhibit K at 4 (answer to Interrogatory No. 6). Indeed, Schaller also relied on this fact as evidence demonstrating that Golden Sky believed it had already reached an oral agreement with Schaller, see at Plaintiff's Amended Resistance at 20 (citing Plaintiff's Exhibits at 621-22), an inference the court rejected above. Similarly, Golden Sky is entitled to summary judgment on the fraud claim to the extent that the claim relies on the falsity of the representation that "the purchase price [of $13,500,000] would be wire-transferred to Schaller." See First Amended Complaint, ¶ 12; Defendants' Appendix I, Exhibit K at 3 (second paragraph of answer to interrogatory number 6). As a matter of law, this representation was not "false" where, like the representations of intention to perform the transaction, the transfer of funds was expressly conditioned, by the language of the letters of interest and Letter of Intent, upon the execution of a written agreement. Similarly unsupportable is a fraud claim based on misrepresentations that the parties had no disagreement with the price and that Golden Sky intended to keep its word on the price that it had negotiated with Schaller. See First Amended Complaint, ¶ 12; Defendants' Appendix I, Exhibit K at 3 (second paragraph of answer to interrogatory number 6). These representations, again, were not "false," in that they reflected the parties' undisputed agreement on one term of the transaction. However, *1108 they were representations made in the context of disclaimers of any intention to be bound to the transaction as a whole in the absence of an executed, written agreement. For a somewhat different reason, Golden Sky is entitled to summary judgment on any portion of the fraudulent misrepresentation claim that is based on Ed Foster's alleged representation in his "rebuffing" of Schaller's attempts to obtain a signed offer and statement that it was "not a rush today and the parties can sign the agreement next week." See First Amended Complaint, ¶ 14; Defendants' Appendix I, Exhibit K at 4 (fourth paragraph of answer to Interrogatory No. 6). The court can find no argument anywhere in Schaller's resistance to Golden Sky's motion for summary judgment on its fraudulent misrepresentation claim in support of a contention that this representation satisfies any of the elements of a fraudulent misrepresentation claim. See FED.R.CIV.P. 56(e) (the party opposing summary judgment is required to go beyond the pleadings, and by affidavits, or by the "depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file," designate "specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial"); Celotex, 477 U.S. at 324, 106 S.Ct. 2548; Rabushka, 122 F.3d at 562; McLaughlin, 50 F.3d at 511; Beyerbach, 49 F.3d at 1325. Because Schaller has failed to make the necessary showing on any of the essential elements of fraudulent misrepresentation as to this representation, Golden Sky is "entitled to judgment as a matter of law" on the fraud claim to the extent that the claim relies on this representation. Celotex Corp., 477 U.S. at 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548; In re Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) Implants Prod. Liab. Litig., 113 F.3d at 1492. Finding that, as a matter of law, there are no "false" representations upon which Schaller can base its fraudulent misrepresentation claim, the court concludes that summary judgment in favor of Golden Sky must also be entered on this claim. D. Golden Sky's Counterclaim Finally, the court turns to that part of Golden Sky's motion seeking summary judgment on its own counterclaim of unjust enrichment. This counterclaim seeks to recover $75,095 for 288 satellite dishes Golden Sky provided to Schaller during the parties' attempts to negotiate the purchase of Schaller's DBS assets by Golden Sky for which Schaller has never paid. In its response to Golden Sky's motion for summary judgment on this counterclaim, Schaller acknowledged its obligation to pay for the satellite dishes. However, relying on this court's decision in Jones Distributing Company, Inc. v. White Consolidated Industries, Inc., 943 F.Supp. 1445 (N.D.Iowa 1996), Schaller contends that judgment should not be entered until the entire case is resolved, so that any amount due Golden Sky could be set off against any damages Golden Sky owed Schaller on its claims. Because the court will enter summary judgment in favor of Golden Sky on Schaller's claims, and Schaller does not contest Golden Sky's counterclaim, it is also proper to enter summary judgment on the counterclaim in favor of Golden Sky at this time. III. CONCLUSION Summary judgment in favor of Golden Sky is appropriate on Schaller's remaining claims of breach of contract and fraudulent misrepresentation, as well as on Golden Sky's counterclaim of unjust enrichment. As to Schaller's breach-of-contract claim, no reasonable jury could find that an enforceable oral contract was reached in the face of Golden Sky's repeated "umbrella" disclaimers, for example, in Golden Sky's letters of interest and Letter of Intent, that no agreement would be binding in the absence of the execution of a written *1109 agreement. In the parlance of the parties, this is a "Comment b case," in that the undisputed evidence establishes that Schaller "kn[ew] or ha[d] reason to know that [Golden Sky] ... intend[ed] that no obligation shall exist until ... the whole [agreement] ha[d] been reduced to another written form." RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS § 27, cmt. b. Thus, "the preliminary negotiations and agreements" reached by the parties "do not constitute a contract." Id. As to the fraudulent misrepresentation claim, Schaller waived any claim based upon misrepresentation of Golden Sky's ability to perform the transaction by not including such an allegation, however vaguely asserted in the First Amended Complaint, in its response to Golden Sky's interrogatory concerning particulars of Schaller's fraud claim. For much the same reason that the "umbrella" disclaimers in Golden Sky's offers to purchase Schaller's DBS assets bar an enforceable oral contract, those disclaimers also require summary judgment in favor of Golden Sky on Schaller's claim based on misrepresentation of Golden Sky's intention to perform the transaction. No "false promise" to enter into the transaction could be made where any statement of intention to enter into the transaction was subject to disclaimers that no agreement would be binding in the absence of an executed, written agreement. Assertion of the fraudulent misrepresentation claim on the basis of other representations identified in both the First Amended Complaint and response to Golden Sky's interrogatory also founders on the "truth" of those statements. Finally, summary judgment is appropriate on Golden Sky's counterclaim for unjust enrichment, because Schaller acknowledges its obligation to pay for the satellite dishes at issue, and there is no reason to defer entry of judgment where no other claims will proceed to trial. THEREFORE, Golden Sky's motion for summary judgment is granted in its entirety. Judgment shall enter 1. in favor of defendant Golden Sky and against plaintiff Schaller on Schaller's claims of fraudulent misrepresentation and breach of contract, Counts I and IV of the First Amended Complaint, respectively.[13] 2. in favor of defendant Golden Sky and against plaintiff Schaller in the amount of $75,095 on Golden Sky's Counterclaim of unjust enrichment. IT IS SO ORDERED. NOTES [1] See, e.g., BULFINCH'S MYTHOLOGY 112-114 & 715 (Richard Martin, ed., HarperCollins, Inc., 1991). Bulfinch explains that Pegasus was "[t]he winged horse of the Muses, born of the sea foam and the blood of the slaughtered Medusa." Id. at 715. In addition to aiding Bellerophon in his defeat of the ChimÆra, Bulfinch recounts that "when Bellerophon attempted to ascend to heaven, he was thrown from the horse, and Pega[s]us mounted alone to the skies to become the constellation of the same name. When the Muses contended with the daughters of Pieros, Mount Helicon rose heavenward, Pegasus gave it a kick and brought out of the mountain the soul-inspiring waters of the fountain Hippocrene." Id. [2] Golden Sky was subsequently granted leave to amend its Answer to include the inadvertently omitted counterclaim. [3] In its opening brief in support of its motion for summary judgment, Golden Sky raised the question of whether Iowa or Missouri law should apply to the claims in this diversity action, which was removed from Iowa District Court to this federal court. Golden Sky argued that Iowa law should apply, if any true conflict of laws could be identified, as Iowa is the forum with the most significant relationship to the claims at issue. In an abundance of caution, however, Golden Sky also framed much of its argument in terms of identical principles of Iowa and Missouri contract law. In response, Schaller waived any choice-of-laws or conflict-of-laws questions by relying entirely on Iowa law as governing the substantive questions in this case. [4] The text of Section 27 of the RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS, which does not appear in the Faught decision, and consequently was not discussed directly in that decision, provides as follows: § 27. Existence of Contract Where Written Memorial Is Contemplated Manifestations of assent that are in themselves sufficient to conclude a contract will not be prevented from so operating by the fact that the parties also manifest an intention to prepare and adopt a written memorial thereof; but the circumstances may show that the agreements are preliminary negotiations. Thus, while § 27 recognizes the possibility that negotiations may ripen into an oral contract, even where the parties contemplate a written contract as the goal of the negotiations, this section also recognizes that whether or not this happens depends upon the circumstances of the case. Thus, § 27 merely framed the question presented in Faught, and now presented here, without providing an answer as to precisely what circumstances lead to an oral contract notwithstanding the parties' contemplation of a written agreement and what circumstances show that the oral agreements were merely preliminary negotiations. [5] Section 26 of the RESTATEMENT OF CONTRACTS, to which the Iowa Supreme Court pointed in Matt as one of the authorities for the principles articulated, is now Section 27 of the RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS. See RESTATEMENT (SECOND) OF CONTRACTS § 27, Reporter's Note. [6] Neither party has complied precisely with N.D. IA. L.R. 56.1(e), which explains the requirements for the parties' appendices in support of and resistance to summary judgment. The court is able to overcome some deficiencies, such as the absence from the Defendants' Appendix of consecutive numbering "at the bottom center or bottom right-hand corner of each page," as required by the rule, where the defendants have tabbed and identified each exhibit or deposition excerpt, and have referred to supporting documents in a coherent manner, such that the court can readily navigate its way through the copious documents at issue in this case. However, the court is more frustrated by Schaller's submission of a set of Exhibits In Support Of Resistance To Summary Judgment that is largely duplicative of materials already submitted as part of the Defendants' Appendix. The applicable rule specifies that "[t]he resisting party's appendix must include those parts of the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, admissions, exhibits, and affidavits not already included in the moving party's appendix upon which the resisting party relies in resisting the motion." N.D.IA. L.R. 56.1(e) (emphasis added). Because Schaller has consistently referred only to its own appendix when referring to documents that are duplicative of materials included in the Defendants' Appendix, the court must of necessity verify that the parties are in fact referring to the same documents. The court's frustration is somewhat ameliorated by the fact that the parties' duplicative exhibits generally, but not always, appear to be identically numbered. The cost of the parties' presentation of their arguments could have been substantially reduced, and the coherence of their arguments and the convenience of the court's review could have been substantially enhanced, by more careful compliance with the local rule concerning preparation of appendices in support of and resistance to summary judgment. Such rules are not imposed simply because the court feels a need to impose its authority or to dictate trifling requirements in the course of litigation. Instead, the requirements of the local rule are intended to enhance the coherence of the presentation of the parties' case to the court and to facilitate any subsequent review. In the future, the parties are cautioned to give greater care and attention to compliance with the requirements specified in the local rules regarding motion practice and in the Order Setting Trial, Final Pretrial Conference And Requirements For Final Pretrial Conference and the Final Pretrial Order itself, regarding trial preparation, so that presentation of a motion or case to the court or a jury may proceed as smoothly, efficiently, and coherently as possible. [7] Specifically, the Letter of Intent provides as follows: 13. This Letter of Intent may be terminated and the transactions contemplated by this Letter of Intent may be abandoned with no further obligation on the part of either party, at any time prior to Closing: a. by the written consent of Seller and Buyer, or b. by Buyer or Seller if the Asset Purchase Agreement contemplated herein is not entered into between the parties hereto by close of business on August 16, 1999, and no extension of such deadline is agreed to in writing by the Buyer and Seller, or c. by Buyer if the transaction is not approved by its Board of Directors. 14. Except for the obligations stated in Sections 2, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13 and this Section 14, this Letter of Intent is a non-binding expression of the parties' intention and neither party shall have any liability to the other with respect thereto.... Id. at ¶¶ 13-14; see also Defendants' Statement of Undisputed Facts, ¶ 94. [8] As pleaded in Schaller's First Amended Complaint, Weary's statements were "Done, it's a deal. I am a man of my word and we intend to pay the price agreed." See First Amended Complaint, ¶ 15. However, Schaller was apparently unable to find any record evidence supporting such a characterization of Weary's statements. Instead, the statements, as characterized in the testimony of Steven Jensen, appear in the body of this decision. Moreover, Golden Sky contends that the only reasonable inference that arises from Weary's statements, if made either as pleaded or as later characterized in Jensen's testimony, is that Weary was reaffirming agreement to one term of the parties' agreement, the price term, not assenting to an oral contract for the purchase of Schaller's DBS assets. [9] Indeed, were the court presented with a motion to dismiss the fraudulent misrepresentation claim in the First Amended Complaint for failure to state a claim pursuant to Rules 12(b)(6) and 9(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, it is almost inconceivable that the claim would not be dismissed in the face of the utter failure to plead fraud with the particularity required by Rule 9(b). See FED. R.CIV.P. 9(b); see also, e.g., Wright v. Brooke Group Ltd., 114 F.Supp.2d 797, 832 (N.D.Iowa 2000) (reiterating the requirements for pleading fraud pursuant to Rule 9(b)). The First Amended Complaint, unlike the original fraud claim pleaded in the state-court action before removal, was offered as an amendment pursuant to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and therefore is not excused from the requirements for pleading fraud stated in Rule 9(b). Compare Order Regarding Defendant's Joint Motion To Dismiss, January 18, 2000 (denying without prejudice the defendants' motion to dismiss the original fraudulent misrepresentation claim pursuant to Rule 9(b) on the ground that the claim had been originally pleaded in Iowa state court and Iowa law does not require that fraud be pleaded with the particularity required by Rule 9(b)). However, the defendants did not move to block the amended fraud claim pursuant to Rule 15 on the ground that it did not comply with Rule 9(b), and therefore was "futile," nor did they move to dismiss the amended fraud claim pursuant to Rule 9(b) when they subsequently moved to dismiss other counts of the First Amended Complaint. There is something counterintuitive about the court being required to consider, on a motion for summary judgment, a claim that it almost undoubtedly would have found insufficiently pleaded on a motion to dismiss. Nevertheless, the matter is currently presented on a summary judgment procedural footing. Thus, the question is whether genuine issues of material fact preclude summary judgment on the claim or whether the defendants are otherwise entitled to summary judgment on the claim as a matter of law. See FED.R.CIV.P. 56. [10] Similarly, it could be argued that a promise to perform an act at least implicitly is a representation of ability to perform that act. However, Schaller never made such an argument and the court is not required to consider arguments not made by the parties. Although Schaller contends that "[t]he record shows that defendants repeatedly promised that there was a deal with Schaller and that they had the financial ability to fund the Schaller transaction," Plaintiff's Amended Resistance at 36-37 (offering the interrogatory response in support of this contention), Schaller offers no explanation of how its interrogatory response supports this contention, nor does Schaller point to any record evidence supporting a contention that Golden Sky repeatedly represented that it had the financial ability to fund the Schaller transaction. Therefore, the court need not consider whether an offer to purchase assets constitutes a representation of ability to perform the transaction. Also, in the court's view, a statement that more clearly connotes a representation of ability to pay can be found in the portion of the interrogatory response and paragraph 12 of the First Amended Complaint alleging that Golden Sky represented that the deal would close on September 10, 1999, on which date "the purchase price [of $13,500,000] would be wire-transferred to Schaller." See First Amended Complaint, ¶ 12; Defendants' Appendix I, Exhibit K at 3 (second paragraph of answer to interrogatory number 6). Representation that so large and specific a sum of money will be transferred to the other party on a specified date by a specified means necessarily — not just vaguely — implies ability to perform the transfer as specified. However, once again, Schaller did not make any argument that the representation that funds would be wire-transferred on September 10, 1999, was a representation concerning Golden Sky's ability to perform the transaction, and therefore, such an argument is now waived. [11] "It is a well-settled rule that a joint pretrial order signed by both parties supersedes all pleadings and governs the issues and evidence to be presented at trial." McGehee v. Certainteed Corp., 101 F.3d 1078, 1080 (5th Cir.1996). The court does not see why a response to an interrogatory should be less binding, where "[e]ach interrogatory shall be answered separately and fully in writing under oath" and "signed by the person making them." FED.R.CIV.P. 33(b)(1) & (2). [12] Similar allegations of misrepresentation by Jo Ellen Linn concerning board approval are also stated in paragraphs 12 and 15 of the First Amended Complaint and are parroted in Schaller's answer to Interrogatory No. 6. [13] Counts II and III of the First Amended Complaint were previously dismissed for failure to state claims upon which relief can be granted and Count IV was previously dismissed as to individual defendants Rodney A. Weary and Jo Ellen Linn.

US Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in the UK for forthcoming talks with his British counterpart on the Syrian conflict and the refugee crisis. Kerry arrived in London on Friday and is expected to hold talks with British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond. The ministers will discuss various “bilateral and global issues” on Saturday according to US State Department spokesperson John Kirby. Syria will be high on the agenda as the US is considering the Russian offer to hold military-to-military talks on the situation in the war-torn country, Kerry told reporters on Wednesday. Kerry noted that the US seeks to better understand Russia’s intentions amidst concerns of a recent alleged military build-up. The US has been aiding rebels fighting against President Bashar Assad throughout the conflict, while Russia has been backed the Syrian leader. However, the possibility of direct military talks between the two nations may signal the beginning of cooperation in dealing with the terrorist threat. Kerry and Hammond are also slated to discuss the deepening refugee crisis. Hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers have fled from Syria and neighboring countries into Europe since the start of the conflict. UK Prime Minister David Cameron has pledged to accept 20,000 refugees over the next five years, though the Labour opposition claims this figure doesn’t go nearly far enough. The White House has vowed to take in at least 10,000 Syrian refugees next year. Since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011, the US has granted 1,500 Syrians asylum. During his London visit, Kerry will also meet with United Arab Emirates Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayad, before flying to Berlin on Sunday.

Coffee has been cool for years now. Coffee liqueur, not so much. Your relative might have a bottle of Tia Maria on hand around the holidays, and Kahlúa is indispensable should you hold a “Big Lebowski”-themed party. (The main character, the Dude, favors White Russians.) But to discerning drinkers, such liqueurs have a reputation as sweet and syrupy, something best left to the Mudslide fanciers of the world. A few new coffee-flavored liquors have come on the market recently, though you’ll have to squint to find the word “coffee” on the label. It’s there, but far easier to spot are the words “cold brew” — one of the most embraced terms in modern coffee culture. “The neck tags on the bottles say ‘cold brew’ really, really big,” said Tom Baker, a founder of Mr. Black, the Australian liqueur that is arguably the leader in a new breed of spirits that make a big deal about being made with cold brew, not plain old coffee. Among the new products are two recognizable names: Jameson Cold Brew and Jägermeister Cold Brew Coffee, both introduced in the last few months.

In 2017, President Michael Higgins signed a Bill to ban fracking in Ireland into law after a Bill from Sligo-Leitrim TD Tony McLoughlin received support from across the political spectrum TheFracking Endgame report states that U.S. gas exporters are promoting the export of LNG to Europe in order to reduce the domestic supply and raise prices. Natural gas pipeline USA Photo: Bilfinger Fossil fuel lock in Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food and Water Europe, said that the mass investment in fracking could see the “lock-in” of fossil fuel use in the future. “EU officials are working with the Trump administration to enrich energy cronies for something Europeans don’t need, and that will commit us to climate and plastic pollution,” she said. “On top of that, they are diverting EU public money to build these import facilities. It won’t be the people of the U.S. or Europe that benefit; it will be the fossil fuel and plastic industry” she said. In Ireland, there are plans for the construction of a €500 million Liquified Natural Gas terminal on the River Shannon. However, the plans could be on hold for up to two years after Friends of the Irish Environment brought a case against the developers that has now been referred to the European Court of Justice. Microplastics in the Azores Photo: Raceforwater Plastic pollution side-effect The increase in fracking, the report state, has also resulted in an oversupply of cheap ethane, a hydrocarbon that is present in natural gas and is used to make plastic products. Once ethane is isolated, it is sent to a petrochemical facility called a ‘cracker’ plant where it is broken down into ethylene and then into polyethylene – the most common type of plastic. In 2018, the petrochemical industry stated it will invest $202 billion to create 333 new facilities and expansions related to fracked gas – including 20 ethylene cracker facilities that will be used in plastic manufacturing, the report states. This investment is expected to drive a massive 40 per cent increase in global plastic production in the next 10 years. The news comes as a worrying development, the report states, as a percentage of the plastic produced will end up in the marine environment. When this plastic waste ends up in the sea, it not only breaks down to release potent gases such as methane and ethylene, but also endangers marine life that may consume or be choked by plastic.

Developing Effective Teams 281 Institutions have accepted or given pre-approval for credit transfer. * The American Council on Education's College Credit Recommendation Service (ACE Credit®) has evaluated and recommended college credit for 25 of Sophia’s online courses. Many different colleges and universities consider ACE CREDIT recommendations in determining the applicability to their course and degree programs. Tutorial This lesson is going to cover the type theory of personality by examining: Type A and Type B Personalities Criticism 1. Type A and Type B Personalities Personality type theories try to put people into sort of fixed categories that are based on aspects of personality that group together. This particular theory of Type A and Type B personalities was first developed in the 1950s. Surprisingly, this theory was not developed by a psychologists but rather two cardiologists, Meyer Friedman and Ray Rosenman. Friedman and Rosenman were looking at what types of people were at higher risk of developing heart disease and having heart attacks. They came up with were two categories: those which are the types of people that were at high risk of developing heart disease, and those who are at low risk. Type A Group of individuals who are driven, responsible, competitive, timely, ambitious, tough, and hostile if their goals are blocked; run a high risk developing cardiovascular disease. Type B Group of individuals who are relaxed, resilient, adapt well to new situations, and do things at their own speed; run a lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Friedman and Rosenman identified the characteristic and patterns of behavior for each type. Type A personality is: Very competitive Driven to try to achieve things they want to succeed in Generally have a sense of urgency and impatience Proactive, as opposed to being reactive Tends to multitask and take on more tasks than they might be able to do They are highly organized and efficient with time management Research shows that oftentimes the driving force behind these Type A personalities is a sort of anger or hostility, which isn't necessarily directed at anyone or anything, but it helps to motivate them to achieve. However, this sort of anger or hostility can also lead to hypertension and high blood pressure, that can lead to an increased risk of heart disease due to the stress that's being caused by this. Type A personalities were twice as likely to develop heart diseases and to have heart attacks. A lot of Type A personalities need to learn strategies to deal with stress to help out with these physiological issues. 2. Criticism It's important to realize that the descriptions here of Type A and Type B are extreme types of personalities. They're on the far end of the spectrum. Ideally, a person could use a little bit of both: a drive to achieve, but not be stressed out. There is a lot of criticism about type theories like Type A and Type B personality theory. One is that the categories tend to be overly simplistic. It's trying to put people into one category or the other, when sometimes the traits that are being talked about don't necessarily fit into either one of them. Other variables could also have an effect on these sorts of things. A person's diet might affect the way that they behave. Another criticism is that these type personalities don't necessarily distinguish between fixed sorts of personality and variable or situational. A person could be a Type A personality in one situation and a Type B personality in the other. The type of job an individual has might influence them and make them feel very stressed out in trying to achieve or get things done. In general life, however, they might be a very relaxed person. Two cardiologists, Mayer Friedman and Ray Rosenman, developed the theory after looking at what personality traits lead people to be at risk for heart disease. Type A personalities have a strong drive to achieve coupled with anxiety, while Type B personalities tend to be more relaxed but apathetic. Therefore, Type A personalities are more prone to heart Attacks, but for this theory to say that it is too simplistic. However, there has been a lot of criticism about this theory as it does not take other factors that can affect personality into account, and doesn’t address people who may be a different type depending on a situation. Good luck! Source: This work is adapted from Sophia Author Erick Taggart Terms to Know Type A Group of individuals who are driven, responsible, competitive, timely, ambitious, tough, and hostile if their goals are blocked; run a high risk developing cardiovascular disease. Type B Group of individuals who are relaxed, resilient, adapt well to new situations, and do things at their own speed; run a lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

New HEVC Patent Pool Brings Flood of Confusion A new patent pool for a bandwidth-saving codec is creating some confusion in the video-technology marketplace, threatening to curb the development of products that deliver and present video in the pixel-packed 4K format. Last week, HEVC Advance, an independent license-administration company, announced the formation of a new pool for intellectual property tied to High Efficiency Video Coding/H.265, a next-generation codec that is about 50% more bandwidth-efficient than MPEG-4/H.264. HEVC and its bandwidth-saving approach are poised to play a big role in 4K and mobile video. HEVC Advance represents a second patent pool for HEVC, adding to the pool run by MPEG LA. The concern is that HEVC Advance is shedding little light on what will go into its patent pool and how it will price licenses. It said it expects to attract a “critical mass of intellectual property (IP) holders, with more than 500 essential patents expected to be available for license at launch,” expected to occur in the third quarter. The initial list of HEVC Advance licensors is expected to include General Electric, Technicolor, Dolby, Philips and Mitsubishi Electric. By comparison, MPEG LA’s HEVC patent pool already includes contributions from more than two dozen companies, including Apple, Humax, Fujitsu Ltd., NEC and Samsung Electronics. MPEG LA doesn’t charge license fees for companies that produce less than 100,000 units, but does charge 20 cents per unit per year after than amount, with a maximum annual royalty payment of $25 million. While it’s not uncommon for there to be multiple patent pools for a technology, the lack of concrete information about HEVC Advance is what’s troubling, Dan Rayburn, executive vice president of Streaming-Media. com and principal analyst at Frost & Sullivan, said. “Why make it sound like this is good for content owners, and then provide no details and create a lot of uncertainty?” Rayburn said. The group did tell him that the patents they have will be “core” to HEVC and how it’s applied, he said, adding that they expect to file more pertinent information within the next 30 to 60 days. Elemental Technologies, a maker of HEVC-capable video-processing systems, said it believes it will be largely insulated from the patent uncertainty, compared to companies that make consumer products in large volumes, but it’s keeping a close eye on these developments nonetheless. “For us … we’ll do what it takes to stay compliant with the patent world in general,” Mike Callahan, Elemental’s senior director of product marketing, said. This temporary cloud of uncertainty hanging over HEVC could cause some to give a closer look at VP9, Google’s royalty-free codec that claims to provide a similar level of bandwidth savings. Some companies are taking both routes. Chipmaker Broadcom announced in March that its next-gen Ultra HD/4K silicon for set-tops, gateways and video clients will support both HEVC and VP9.

1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a target position detecting device for detecting a target position on a TV screen or a video projector screen. The device of the present invention is typically used in a computer-controlled gun shooting game machine or a video projector, wherein a target position aimed at by a gun or a position pointed out by a pointer is detected. 2. Description of Prior Art Shown in FIG. 1 is a computer-controlled gun shooting game machine disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 52(1977)-36900. In this game machine, a gun 2 is pivotally movable in both X-direction (leftward and rightward) and Y-direction (upward and downward) so that a target displayed on a screen 1a of a monitor 1 can be aimed at. The position of the gun 2 aiming at the target is detected by X- and Y-volumes 3, 4 having variable resistors in the interior thereof. Specifically, the X-directional pivotal motion of the gun 2 is transmitted via rods 9a, 9b to a sector gear 5 with which a pinion gear 7 is meshingly engaged. The rotation of the pinion gear 7 is transmitted via a rod 3a to the X-volume 3. The resistance of the X-volume 3 is varied in accordance with a rotational angle of the rod 3a. On the other hand, the Y-directional pivotal motion of the gun 2 is transmitted via the rod 9a to a sector gear 6 with which a pinion gear 8 is meshingly engaged. The rotation of the pinion gear 8 is transmitted via a rod 4a to the Y-volume 4. The resistance of the Y-volume 4 is varied in accordance with a rotational angle of the rod 4a. With the detection of resistances of or voltages developed across the variable resistors in the X-and Y-volumes, the position of the gun 2 can be identified. In the above-described game machine, there is a difficulty in performing a positional adjustment of the gun 2 relative to the monitor screen 1a. The positional setting of the sector gear 5 is performed in such a manner that when the gun 1 is in a position aiming at a target displayed at the center of the monitor screen 1a, the X-volume 3 is in the middle of the resistance of the variable resistor. The positional setting of the sector gear 6 is performed in a similar fashion. After such positional settings, the sector gear 6 is fixedly secured to the rod 9a with a nut 10, and the sector gear 5 to the rod 9b with a fastening screw (not shown). However, with only the above-described procedure, the resistance of the X-volume 3 is usually symmetrically imbalanced when the gun 2 is moved to the leftmost and rightmost positions from the center of the screen 1a. Specifically, the decreased value of the resistance of the X-volume 3 when the gun 2 is moved to aim at the leftmost position on the screen 1a is usually not equal to the increased value of the resistance of the X-volume when the gun is moved to aim at the rightmost position on the screen 1a. This is also true with respect to the resistance of the Y-volume 4. To correct such imbalances, the positional settings are carried out for several times while moving the gun 2 to aim at different positions on the monitor screen 1a. The attachment positions of the sector gears 5, 6 are finally determined when all the conditions are compromised. In addition to the above-described difficulty, there is another problem in that the target position cannot be detected with high accuracy due to variations in accuracy of the mechanism and in the resistances of the variable resistors used in X- and Y-volumes 3, 4.

Opinions of the United 2005 Decisions States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit 4-26-2005 Valentin v. Phila Gas Works Precedential or Non-Precedential: Non-Precedential Docket No. 04-2229 Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.law.villanova.edu/thirdcircuit_2005 Recommended Citation "Valentin v. Phila Gas Works" (2005). 2005 Decisions. Paper 1312. http://digitalcommons.law.villanova.edu/thirdcircuit_2005/1312 This decision is brought to you for free and open access by the Opinions of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit at Villanova University School of Law Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in 2005 Decisions by an authorized administrator of Villanova University School of Law Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected].  NOT PRECEDENTIAL UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEAL FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT No. 04-2229 KENNY R. VALENTIN, Appellant v. PHILADELPHIA GAS WORKS; JOE SULLIVAN, INDIVIDUALLY AND IN HIS CAPACITY AS A SUPERVISOR OF PHILADELPHIA GAS WORKS On Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (D.C. Civil No. 03-cv-03833) District Judge: Hon. John R. Padova Submitted Pursuant to Third Circuit LAR 34.1(a) April 5, 2005 BEFORE: BARRY, AMBRO and COWEN, Circuit Judges (Filed: April 26, 2005) OPINION COWEN, Circuit Judge. Kenny Valentin appeals the District Court’s order granting Philadelphia Gas Works’ (“PGW”) motion for summary judgement on the basis that there was no genuine issue of material fact with respect to Valentin’s claim that he was subjected to racial discrimination, in accordance with a policy, custom or practice of PGW, and denying Valentin’s motion for leave to amend his complaint. Valentin contends that there were genuine issues of material fact in dispute concerning: (1) whether certain high ranking employees of PGW were policymakers with respect to actions they took against him, and (2) whether he established a claim of racial discrimination. He further argues that the Court abused its discretion in denying his request for leave to amend his complaint to assert post-termination discrimination and retaliation. The District Court had jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1331.1 We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 and will affirm. As we write solely for the parties, we only provide a brief recitation of the facts. Valentin, who is Hispanic, began working for PGW in the Distribution Department as a Laborer and then became a Junior Pipe Mechanic. After sustaining an injury at work, he transferred to a series of light duty positions. He was terminated in February 2002 for working a second job at Today’s Man on three days when he had received sick leave pay from PGW. On June 26, 2003, Valentin filed a complaint against PGW and Joseph Sullivan, the supervisor of Valentin’s department. The Court dismissed all counts of the complaint 1 Valentin’s complaint alleges discrimination under 42 U.S.C. § 1981. However, the District Court properly converted his claims into §1983 claims because PGW is considered a municipal agency. Valentin does not appeal this conversion. 2 except for Valentin’s racial discrimination claim against PGW. On January 29, 2004, the Court granted PGW’s motion for summary judgment on the racial discrimination claims and denied Valentin’s motion for leave to amend the complaint, and this appeal ensued. I. Section 1983 Claims We exercise plenary review over a District Court’s order granting summary judgment. See Morton Int’l, Inc. v. A.E. Staley Mfg. Co., 343 F.3d 669, 679 (3d Cir. 2003). Summary judgment is appropriate if there is no issue of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c). In evaluating the evidence, we “take the facts in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party . . . and draw all reasonable inferences in [its] favor.” Doe v. County of Centre, 242 F.3d 437, 446 (3d Cir. 2001). To establish a cause of action under § 1983, Valentin needed to show the existence of a policy, practice or custom of discrimination. See Monell v. Dep’t of Soc. Servs., 436 U.S. 658 (1978). Other than a formal policy or standard operating procedure, discrimination by a municipality can be shown through the affirmative conduct of a person who has been identified as the ultimate policymaker. See Pembaur v. City of Cincinnati, 475 U.S. 469, 481-83 (1986) (“Municipal liability attaches only where the decisionmaker possesses final authority to establish municipal policy with respect to the action ordered.”) For liability to attach, “the official must . . . be responsible for establishing government policy respecting such activity.” Id. at 482-83 (“We hold that 3 municipal liability under § 1983 attaches where—and only where—a deliberate choice to follow a course of action is made from among various alternatives by the official or officials responsible for establishing final policy with respect to the subject matter in question.”). The question of whether an official has final policymaking authority must be determined under state law. Id. The necessary involvement of the policymaker can be demonstrated either through “allegations of personal direction or of actual knowledge and acquiescence.” Andrews v. City of Philadelphia, 895 F.2d 1469, 1478 (3d Cir. 1990) (quoting Rode v. Dellarciprete, 845 F.2d 1195, 1207 (3d Cir. 1988) (internal quotation marks omitted). Valentin alleges that summary judgement was improperly granted because there were facts in dispute concerning whether, for purposes of § 1983, Jane Lewis (who supervised the risk management department), Joseph Sullivan (who supervised the department within PGW to which Valentin was assigned), and Albert D’Attilio (who was the director of PGW Labor Relations) were policymakers with respect to the actions they took against him. He does not claim, and has not shown, that PGW had a policy, practice or custom of discrimination. Rather, Valentin claims that the individual managers abused their discretion in the administration of neutral work force rules. Specifically, Valentin argues that the following acts depict the policymaking authority of managers to support a § 1983 claim for racial discrimination: (1) Sullivan exercising his complete discretion to request Valentin’s medical records following his 4 placement on light duty; (2) Lewis exercising her complete discretion to subject Valentin to investigations of his residency; (3) Lewis exercising her final authority to deny Valentin’s claim for workers’ compensation; (4) D’Attilio exercising his final authority to make the final decision to terminate Valentin for sick leave fraud; (5) Sullivan exercising his final authority not to notify Valentin of his termination within 20 working days; and (6) D’Attilio exercising his final authority to refuse reinstatement after Valentin’s termination. As the District Court concluded in its thorough and well-reasoned opinion, Valentin has not established that any of these members of management was a policymaker with respect to actions taken vis a vis his employment. Valentin has set forth sufficient evidence that Sullivan, D’Attilio and Lewis had discretion to enforce PGW policies within their respective departments and make decisions regarding the appropriate methods for handling situations in accordance with PGW policies. However, he has not demonstrated that any of them had unfettered authority to make decisions or had authority to enact ultimate policies for PGW. We further conclude that Valentin has not established a disparate treatment claim against PGW. He concedes that PGW offered a legitimate non-discriminatory reason for firing him—working at Today’s Man while collecting pay from PGW for sick leave. However, he has failed to show that the reasons stated for his termination and the other allegedly adverse actions were pretext for discrimination. After reviewing the record and 5 arguments, we conclude that Valentin has not set forth sufficient evidence to establish pretext—he has not demonstrated that similarly situated white employees were treated differently than him. II. Leave To Amend Complaint We review a District Court’s order denying a motion for leave to amend a complaint for abuse of discretion. Lake v. Arnold, 232 F.3d 360, 373 (3d Cir. 2000). Valentin argues that the District Court abused its discretion when it denied his motion for leave to amend his complaint to assert claims for post-termination discrimination and retaliation. The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provide that, after a responsive pleading has been filed, “a party may amend the party’s pleading only by leave of court or by written consent of the adverse party.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 15(a). The Rule further states that “leave shall be freely given when justice so requires.” Id. It is clearly established that leave shall be granted unless there is an apparent reason for the denial—“such as undue delay, bad faith or dilatory motive on the part of the movant, repeated failure to cure deficiencies by amendments previously allowed, undue prejudice to the opposing party by virtue of the allowance of the amendment, or futility of amendment, etc.“ Foman v. Davis, 371 U.S. 178, 182 (1962). Here, Valentin’s request to file an amended complaint to assert a new cause of action under a new legal theory was made “after the close of discovery, after Defendants’ 6 Motion for Summary Judgment was fully briefed, after the parties submitted their pre-trial memoranda, and a mere twelve days prior to the scheduled trial.” (App. at 39a.) The facts underlying the new legal theory are based on facts Valentin was aware of well before the close of discovery. Under these circumstances, the District Court’s denial of leave to amend on the basis of undue delay and prejudice to PGW was not an abuse of discretion. For the foregoing reasons, the judgment of the District Court entered on March 30, 2004, will be affirmed. 7 

Worldwide epidemiological patterns of lung cancer in nonsmokers. A review of published reports on lung cancer was done to describe its worldwide epidemiological pattern and to elucidate the contribution of smoking and nonsmoking risk factors in its aetiology. Among lung cancer patients, roughly 98% of males worldwide, and 70-90% of European and American females, reported a history of smoking. Asian women had much lower (6-57%) rates of smoking. Mortality rates among female nonsmokers showed about a four-fold difference, being lowest in India and Japan, intermediate in the USA, and highest among the Chinese. There was some indication that incidence rates among nonsmokers may have increased in some societies in this century. The usefulness of histological comparisons among nonsmokers seemed limited since its distribution did not vary by place or ethnicity; about 70% were adenocarcinomas. In Western populations, younger lung cancer patients were more likely to have been smokers, whereas the opposite was true in Asian populations. Thus the epidemiological patterns of lung cancer in Western and non-Western societies are likely to be different, with nonsmoking risk factors being more important among women in general, and Asian women in particular.

‘Fox & Friends’ Does Saturday Night Live’s Cold Open It’s not Jon Stewart or Stephen Colbert but there are some good laughs in SNL’s “Fox & Friends” from last night. In this sketch, "Fox & Friends" interviews "Jason Chaffetz" about Planned Parenthood and his hope to become Speaker of the House. You can almost hear some NBC suit telling the cast they have to give equal time to lampooning Democrats, as if they are somehow just as irrational about Planned Parenthood and also imploding against their own party. After all, it's Republicans who want to shut down the entire government in order to withhold funds from a service providing health care to women and it's the GOP who are using misleading, selectively edited videos to make their case. Nevertheless, an irrationally angry “Debbie Wasserman Schultz” followed "Chaffetz," with fulminations and rants. Missing altogether was how Fox hosts routinelytry to trip up Wasserman Schultz when she appears on the "fair and balanced" network. Watch it below, from the October 10 Saturday Night Live, and let me know what you think.

TORONTO — I think I preferred this movie when it was called “Speed Racer” and directed by the Wachowskis. At least there were psychedelic colors to spice things up. Even if you’re Christian Bale, there’s only so much acting you can do from behind the wheel as your racing vehicle rounds a hairpin turn for the umpteenth time. And “Logan” director James Mangold’s “Ford v Ferrari,” clocking in at a ponderous two and a half hours, spends an awful lot of time on those turns. Car lovers, though, will likely find this piece of Americana a real treat. In the mid-1960s, the Ford Motor Company got the notion that it was going to build a race car to beat the undisputed champion, Ferrari. It enlisted charismatic car designer and racer Carroll Shelby (Matt Damon), who in turn brought on prickly speed demon Ken Miles (Bale), a driver and engineer who’d served in the British Army before coming to America to race. Mangold’s film has the polished sheen (and dearth of female characters) of a “Mad Men” episode; it’s at its best when Damon’s innovative Shelby is going toe to toe with Ford execs or trying to keep Miles from shooting his mouth off in front of them. Damon and Bale have so much fun together onscreen — at one point their characters kinda-amicably fistfight in a park, scattering Miles’ groceries everywhere — it’s a pity the driving keeps them apart for most of the movie. In the film’s best sequence, Shelby takes a harrumphing Henry Ford Jr. (the inimitable Tracy Letts) — who seems like he must have been a real bastard to work for — out in the latest model. He’s white as a sheet when they hit a turn, and sobbing openly by the time Shelby hits the brakes. Jon Bernthal is here as an unrecognizably young Lee Iacocca, Ford’s right-hand man, and Josh Lucas is likably slimy as Leo Beebe, a company man who takes an instant dislike to Miles’ independent spirit. Catriona Balfe, as Miles’ wife Mollie, spends much of the film worrying beside the radio or the telephone, but she manages to wrest some personality out of her brief scenes — especially one in which she exacts promises from her husband by driving their station wagon like she’s on a racetrack. But this is all leading up to the races, the very, very long races in which Miles first tests a prototype of Ford’s GT40 in the 24 Hours of Daytona, then the real deal in the storied 24 Hours of Le Mans in Paris — while Enzo Ferrari (Remo Girone) and his cohorts look on with increasing trepidation. Damon enlivens the proceedings every time there’s a pit stop — Shelby’s not above bending the rules or pranking the Italians — but ultimately I think Mangold could have benefitted from losing a lap or five in the editing room. Then again, 24 Hours of Le Mans is still so popular — to say nothing of our own enduring NASCAR mania — that I imagine many viewers will be more than happy to be whisked away by “Ford v Ferrari.”

Factors associated with outcome of cognitive-behavioural therapy for complicated grief: a preliminary study. Complicated grief (CG), also called prolonged grief disorder, is a debilitating condition that can develop following a loss. There is growing evidence that cognitive-behavioural interventions are efficacious in the treatment of CG. The present preliminary study used data from 43 patients with CG who were randomly assigned to cognitive-behavioural therapy in an earlier treatment trial to explore (a) predictors of outcome of cognitive-behavioural therapy for CG and (b) the relationship between symptom improvement and changes in loss-related negative cognitions and avoidance behaviours. Analyses showed that worse treatment outcome was associated with lower education attainment, loss of a partner/child (instead of some other relative), early treatment discontinuation, less patient motivation and more severe CG symptoms at pre-treatment. As predicted, stronger reduction in CG severity was significantly associated with stronger reductions in negative cognitions and avoidance. Implications of these findings are discussed.

The world has been waiting two years for the Bugatti Chiron to post a top speed run. We’ve been teased about it before, but now it looks all that teasing will be for naught. Bugatti has now closed the door on a top speed run for the Chiron. Word of the company’s decision on the issue comes straight from the mouth of CEO Stephen Winkelmann, who said that a top speed run isn’t in any of Bugatti’s priorities at the moment. Whether that position holds true or changes remains to be seen, but if you’re looking for a threat to the Koenigsegg Agera RS’ world record top speed of 277.8 mph, that conversation, at least for now, starts and ends with the Hennessey Venom F5. Bugatti’s not joining that party, much to the dismay of everyone.

Most wanted Italian drug barons arrested in Malindi Some of the drug suspects at the Police Headquarters in Mombasa County on Friday 31st March 2017. The suspects were arrested at different areas. Photo/Kelvin Karani A drug trafficking suspect, Bosire Nyaigoti Makori, who police claim is a leading supplier between Tanzania and Kenya is among scores of people arrested with narcotics and cash totaling Sh21 million. Heroin sachets and packages worth Sh10 million and different genuine and fake currencies totaling Sh5.4 million was recovered from the suspects at their hide outs in Kwale and Mombasa, according to the police who paraded them last evening. Also arrested are two Italians and a Kenyan said to be international fugitives are facing possible extradition after they were arrested by police in dramatic scenes early this week. Mario Mele, a Malindi based tycoon, has been missing since Wednesday after he was arrested by armed policemen from Nairobi. He is being held alongside Leone Alberto Fulvio, an Italian fugitive who has been on Interpol’s list of most wanted since 1997, and fellow countryman Stephano Poli. Leone fled to Kenya in 1993 to escape an eight year conviction in Torini, Italy. He acquired Kenyan nationality in 2009 and is a licenced gun holder. Two pistols, 25 rounds of ammunition and two cars were also recovered in a sting operation that netted the three. “This will send a strong message that the Coastal region and Kenya at large can no longer be used a safe haven for criminals,” said Coast Regional Police Coordinator Philip Tuimur. A Mauritius national, Rogers Alberty, was also arrested from his home in Likoni Mombasa. Police say Alberty has been masquerading as a musician but has been recruiting young Kenyans to ferry drugs to Mauritius, Seychelles and Madagascar. He is believed to be responsible for the arrests of a number of drug couriers and works in close cooperation with Juma Makayamba, who also sources for narcotics and helps recruit Kenyan drug mules. Tuimur described Makori as a repeat offered who escaped from police custody in hand-cuffs. “Bosire is the supplier of heroin sourced from Tanzania to South Coast. We were able to arrest him with the complete syndicate of narcotic drug supply that spreads to Mombasa,” said Tuimur. Other members of his syndicate include his brother Mwaniki Nyaigoti Makori and Ruwa Mwaruwa who police say store and distribute drugs and money for the syndicate. Maimuna Juma Shabaan alias Muna Ali, a woman the authorities suspect is used by the syndicate to cohabit, source and rent safe houses was also arrested. Fredric Oriema Kumba alias Kipara, who Tuimur said has been operating the narcotics trade in the North Coast was also arrested. He identified Mombasa’s Kisauni, Bamburi, Shanzu and Kilifi’s Mtwapa as the main areas supplied with the Tanzanian sourced heroin by the said syndicate. A Tanzanian national Masuo Bakari Tajiri police said is an ally of Kumba was also picked up at his home in Mwembe Tayari Mombasa. Yesterday, police threatened to deport Mele, Leone and Poli to Italy, exactly two months after the Akasha brothers -- Baktash and Ibrahim -- and their accomplices, Indian fugitive Vijaygiri Goswami and Pakistani national Gulam Hussein of Pakistani, were shipped to New York to face drug trafficking charges. Tuimur told journalists that the three are wanted in Italy to face “organised crime” charges and have been detained on the basis of an Interpol Red Notice. “The three Italians have been on the Interpol Red Notice for their involvement in various forms of organised crime. We intend to deport them to taly,” Tuimur said.

Introduction {#Sec1} ============ Globally, 6.6 million children aged under five years died in 2012 \[[@CR1]\]. Their leading causes of death in sub Saharan Africa included pneumonia, diarrhea, malaria and health problems during the first month of life \[[@CR2]\]. Over two-thirds of these early childhood deaths could be prevented or treated with access to simple and affordable interventions \[[@CR2]\]. Although the mortality rate among children aged under five years in Uganda declined from 178 per 1,000 live births in 1990 to 90 per 1,000 live births in 2011, it remains high compared to the average rate of 51 per 1,000 live births globally \[[@CR3], [@CR4]\]. Cross-country comparisons show that health outcomes improved and coverage of cost-effective interventions increased with more health workers. Mortality among infants and children under five years of age were inversely related to the total number of doctors, nurses, and midwives per 10,000 population, and vaccination coverage was positively related to it \[[@CR5], [@CR6]\]. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends task shifting as one method of strengthening and expanding the health workforce to rapidly increase access to health services \[[@CR7], [@CR8]\]. Task shifting is a process of delegation of tasks, where appropriate, to less specialized health workers and is a strategy to address health worker shortage and improve health care coverage \[[@CR7], [@CR9]\]. In countries with an inadequate healthcare work force, some clinical responsibilities have been transferred from doctors to mid-level healthcare providers such as clinical officers and registered nurses \[[@CR8], [@CR10], [@CR11]\]. Policy discussions about task shifting or sharing have moved from whether or not clinical officers and registered nurses can effectively perform clinical tasks traditionally reserved for doctors to what are the most effective methods for improving their capacity to perform those tasks \[[@CR12], [@CR13]\]. Evidence from the Integrated Management of Childhood Illness (IMCI) Multi-Country Evaluation showed that training improved the quality of care, but there was room for further improvement \[[@CR14]--[@CR18]\]. Among health workers with IMCI training, the quality of care was better with at least one supervision visit every six months in Uganda \[[@CR14]), and with study supports including supervision in Benin ([@CR19]\]. Horwood et al. (2009) recommended further research on the role of supervision to maintain IMCI skills and on different models of supervision \[[@CR20]\]. The Joint Uganda Malaria Training Program (JUMP) combined classroom sessions, practice and supervision visits, and was effective at improving case management of fever among children \[[@CR21]\]. Several of these facilities achieved high levels of performance after four years of ongoing site visits with data surveillance and feedback \[[@CR22]\]. The objectives of the Integrated Infectious Disease Capacity Building Evaluation (IDCAP) were to design two integrated training interventions for mid-level practitioners (MLP), evaluate their effectiveness, and estimate their cost-effectiveness at 36 facilities in Uganda. The two interventions were an Integrated Management of Infectious Diseases (IMID) training program, and on-site support (OSS). The effects of the interventions on the clinical competence and clinical practice of individual MLP, 23 facility performance indicators, and mortality among children under five years of age were tested. Clinical competence measured by vignettes, which are sometimes referred to as case scenarios, increased significantly after the 3-week core IMID course and persisted for 24 weeks; no incremental effect of OSS was observed \[[@CR23]\]. Similarly IMID was associated with statistically significant improvements in two facility performance indicators, and the combination of IMID and OSS were associated with statistically significant improvements in five \[[@CR24], [@CR25]\]. Despite large incremental effects of OSS on 10 indicators, none were statistically significant. The results for clinical practice in management of common childhood illnesses are reported below. Methods {#Sec2} ======= Trial design {#Sec3} ------------ The evaluation of clinical practice was conducted between January 2010 and February 2011, and had a mixed design with pre/post and cluster-randomized trial components.. Thirty-six eligible health facilities were selected from all major regions of Uganda \[[@CR26]\] and randomized as clusters, because many of the facility performance indicators depended on a team of clinicians, laboratory professionals and other staff rather than individuals. Each facility selected two MLP, who were clinical officers, registered nurses, or registered midwives to participate in the IMID training program. The clinical officers had a secondary school education, three years of pre-service training, and two years of internship. The registered nurses and registered midwives had a secondary school education, and three years of pre-service training. Eighteen health facilities were then randomly assigned to receive OSS (arm A) in 2010 while the other 18 facilities received it in 2011 and served as a control for OSS during the trial (arm B). The full protocol is available as a supplementary file for Mbonye et al. \[[@CR24]\] and Weaver et al. \[[@CR25]\]. The CONSORT Checklist for the trial is in Additional file [1](#MOESM1){ref-type="media"}. Facilities {#Sec4} ---------- The health facilities comprised of 31 Health Centers IV and five general hospitals. These facilities served a subdistrict population of 1.39 million or 4.5 % of the 30.66 million projected population in 2009 \[[@CR24], [@CR25], [@CR27]\]. Two key inclusion criteria were: 1) facilities were accredited to provide anti-retroviral therapy (ART) to patients with HIV, and 2) facilities with a functional laboratory defined as performing six tests: malaria blood smear, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) rapid test, tuberculosis (TB) sputum smear, urinalysis, stool analysis, and haemoglobin estimation. For more details on inclusion criteria for health facilities see Miceli et al. \[[@CR28]\] and Naikoba et al. \[[@CR26]\]. Trainees {#Sec5} -------- The MLP trainees were clinical officers (CO) and registered nurses (RN) who managed patients in the outpatient clinics, devoted at least 80 % of their time to patient care, and were available to participate in the evaluation for 21 months \[[@CR26], [@CR28]\]. The district agreed not to transfer the trainee, and the trainee did not foresee a need to change his/her assignment. If a facility did not have two COs who met these criteria, an RN was selected and if an RN was not available, one trainee could be a registered midwife. Two desirable criteria for trainees were: 1) leadership role such as in-charge of ward or clinic, or focal person for malaria, TB, HIV, prevention of mother-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT), and 2) previous training and experience in counseling or IMCI or Integrated Management of Adult Illness (IMAI). For the clinical assessments, trainees were excluded from the analysis if they were observed managing only patients 14 years of more of age. Patient selection {#Sec6} ----------------- Patients were a convenience sample who reported to the clinic on the day of the assessment was conducted by the clinical faculty. Patients under five years of age were preferred, but older children were selected when there were no younger patients at the facility on the day of the assessment. Interventions {#Sec7} ------------- IMID training program was a three-week core course, followed over a nine-month period by distance learning and two one-week boost courses at 12 and 24 weeks after the initial training. The aim of IMID was to improve diagnosis and management of malaria, TB and HIV/AIDS and related infectious diseases in children, pregnant women, and other adults. The course content was guided by learning need assessments, such as Lutalo et al. \[[@CR29]\]. It built on content from WHO's IMAI \[[@CR30]\] and IMCI \[[@CR31]\] courses; IDI's Comprehensive HIV Care including ART \[[@CR32]\] and Joint Uganda Malaria Training Program (JUMP) \[[@CR21]\] courses, and updated national and WHO guidelines on treatment of malaria, TB and HIV/AIDS. It also included sessions on continuous quality improvement \[[@CR33]\], with adaptations for low and middle income countries. Detailed description of the development and content of the IMID course is in Miceli et al. \[[@CR28]\]. Between courses, trainees continued the learning process by reviewing and documenting 10 case write-ups from a menu linked to material covered in the core course. Technical experts based at IDI provided distance support on request for all trainees. Trainees in arm A attended the IMID core course in March and April 2010 while those in arm B attended in May and June 2010. The OSS intervention combined educational outreach and continuous quality improvement (CQI). A mobile faculty team visited each facility in arm A for two days, once a month for a period of nine months. Each mobile faculty team was comprised of a medical officer with CQI expertise, a clinical officer, a nursing officer, and a laboratory technologist. OSS sought to improve individual practice through clinical mentoring. At each of the facilities in arm A, eight clinicians spending 80 % of their time on patient care were selected for one-to-one mentoring by two clinical faculty (medical officer and clinical officer) while the laboratory staff were mentored by the laboratory technologist. OSS also sought to build and foster team work, improve facility performance, and support the use of data to monitor facility performance through multidisciplinary team (MDT) training, cadre-specific clinical breakout sessions, and CQI activities. All clinical staff were invited to participate in the MDT training sessions and their respective cadre specific break-out sessions. The break-out session for clinicians may have also contributed to improving clinical practice. IMID trainees in arm A were required to attend seven of nine OSS sessions to receive a certificate. During each OSS visit, the MDT and cadre-specific sessions were focused on a selected topic from a predefined list of priority areas. A new topic was addressed each visit, and follow-up support on topics covered in the previous visits was also provided. OSS is described in more detail in Miceli et al. \[[@CR28]\] Naikoba et al. \[[@CR26]\] and Mbonye et al. \[[@CR24]\]. The mobile faculty team acted as role models of how an MDT could function. The team was centrally based to avoid contamination of non-intervention facilities, which could have occurred if the Ministry of Health (MoH) mentors from the district offices who had other responsibilities at facilities in both arms were used. However, for sustainability purposes and to address health system issues at the district level, the nursing officer was selected from the district in which the facility was located. There were five mobile faculty teams, each responsible for 3--4 study facilities located in the same or neighboring geographical region. The medical officers and clinical officers on the mobile faculty team also conducted the clinical assessments. They underwent extensive training prior to the baseline assessments and delivering the OSS sessions. They attended IDI's three-week Comprehensive HIV Care including ART therapy course, a Trainer of Trainers course, and a customized two-week course on mentoring. All members of the mobile faculty team, including representatives of the districts, attended a pilot session of IMID. Pre-and post-intervention assessment {#Sec8} ------------------------------------ A "baseline" assessment was conducted between January and March 2010 prior to any of the interventions and is referred to as time 0. An "endline" clinical assessment was conducted from December 2010 to February 2011, beginning during the ninth OSS visit in arm A, and is referred to as time 1. At both time 0 and time 1, trainees were assessed on a single day on at least five patients at each facility in each time period. Outcomes {#Sec9} -------- The clinical practice outcomes were six sets of tasks: 1) Appropriate patient history questions asked given the patient's presenting symptoms; 2) Physical systems examined correctly during examination; 3) Appropriate laboratory tests; 4) Correct diagnosis; 5) Correct treatment (anti-malarials, antibiotics, or other drugs), and 6) Appropriate education regarding the illness and medication prescribed provided to the patient or caregiver. A pretested standardized assessment tool was used to record trainees' clinical practice and anonymous patient information on these six sets of tasks. The tool was based on previous IMCI and JUMP evaluation tools with two important innovations from the work of Brentlinger et al. \[[@CR34]--[@CR37]\]. The clinical faculty teams: 1) recorded information on patients as well as trainee practice so accurate patient information was available, and 2) interrupted the assessment after the trainee completed the patient history and physical examination. This was done to ask additional history questions and conduct additional physical examination to complete missing information or correct erroneous information. Then the assessment of the trainee continued. History questions included follow-up questions for patients who presented with fever, ear discharge, cough, and diarrhea to establish duration and extent of illness. Consequently the required number of history questions varied across patients according to their symptoms. To distinguish patient information obtained by the trainee from that obtained by the faculty on the same form, trainees' clinical findings were recorded in blue or black ink and the faculty members' were recorded in red ink. Construction of outcome variables {#Sec10} --------------------------------- ### History {#Sec11} Trainees were expected to ask patients or caregivers questions and record correct responses for at least nine main questions about: danger signs, fever, ear discharge, cough, diarrhea, immunization status, HIV status of the child or mother if child's status was not known, and other symptoms. Table [1](#Tab1){ref-type="table"} shows the main questions and respective follow up questions. The number of appropriate questions depended on the patient's symptoms and ranged from eight to 19. The number of appropriate questions comprised the denominator while the numerator was the number of actual questions the trainee asked. In the analysis, we modelled the proportion of appropriate questions asked for any given patient.Table 1Patient history fields on which trainees were assessedMain history questionsFollow up questions1Checked for danger sign2Checked for feverIf fever is present2a. Asked about duration2b. Asked about prior antimalarial use2c. Asked about history of measles within last 3 months2d. Asked about history of ear pain3Checked for ear dischargeIf ear discharge is present3a. Duration4Asked about HIV status5Checked for coughIf cough is present5a. Asked about durationIf cough duration \>14 days5b. Asked for history of night sweats5c. Asked for history of weight loss5d. Asked for history of contact with patient with TB6Checked for diarrheaIf diarrhea is present6a. Asked about duration6b. Asked about presence of blood in stool7Checked for immunization (children \< 5y)8Checked for other problems ### Physical examination {#Sec12} For each patient assessed, trainees were expected to perform a physical examination consisting of eight systems: a general examination, check for danger signs, and examination of the respiratory system, abdomen, ears, skin, basic neurological assessment, and check for any other clinical signs. These eight systems comprised the denominator for the physical examination. Growth assessment was not included because of missing data, and other systems were only included when data were not missing. The numerator was the number of systems examined correctly by the trainee, where correct meant both conducting the examination and identifying the physical symptom or its absence. In the analysis, we modelled the proportion of physical systems examined correctly for any given patient. ### Laboratory tests, diagnosis, treatment and patient/caregiver education {#Sec13} Laboratory tests were measured as a single task meaning that all appropriate tests were ordered, and diagnosis measured as a single task meaning that all diagnoses were correct. Treatment was measured as the proportion of three types of treatment prescribed correctly: malaria, antibiotic, and other treatment. Similarly, patient/caregiver education was measured as the proportion of three types of information provided correctly: diagnosis, treatment, and instructions for completing treatment. Incorrect treatment included both errors of omission (e.g. a malaria test was not ordered for a patient with fever) and errors of commission (e.g. an anti-malarial was prescribed for a patient with a negative malaria test result). ### Changes after trial commencement {#Sec14} The patient sample and the assessment tool changed. When some facilities did not have five patients under five years of age on assessment days, a few trainees were assessed on children over five years. The assessment tool was also revised prior to conducting the endline assessment to address problems with the patient history and physical examination sections identified at baseline. The patient history questions about HIV status and immunization were revised. At baseline, it was unclear whether "yes", meant that the child or mother was positive or that the HIV status was known. Immunization status of the child was similarly unclear as to whether "yes" meant that the immunization status of the child was up-to-date or that the child's immunization card was presented. For both tasks, a "yes" at baseline was interpreted to mean that the trainee spoke with the caregiver about the topic. At endline there were three distinct tasks for asking about mother's HIV status, PMTCT, and child's HIV status. A "yes" for the child's status meant that the child was HIV-positive. For immunization status at endline, there were two distinct tasks for asking: 1) Whether or not the child's immunization status was up to date, and 2) Whether or not the immunization status was verified with an immunization card. Physical examination questions about the mouth were added to the form. The endline version of the assessment form is available for researchers as Additional file [2](#MOESM2){ref-type="media"}. Data on HIV status, immunization and examination of the mouth were only included in the sensitivity analysis performed with the endline sample. (See Sensitivity analysis section below). ### Sample size {#Sec15} The sample size calculations for IDCAP were based on testing the effect of OSS on facility performance where the unit of analysis was the health facility. The calculations were reported in Naikoba et al. \[[@CR26]\]. Feasibility rather than sample size calculations guided the number of IMID trainees per facility and number of patients observed per trainee. The initial proposal was to train all the MLP at each facility, based on evidence of the effect of other IDI training programs on clinical practice \[[@CR21], [@CR32]\]. Funding was only available however, to train two MLP per facility. Similarly, clinical faculty teams could only spend one day per facility on the clinical assessments of pediatric care, and early experience at baseline showed that each faculty member could observe five patients per trainee per day. Given 36 trainees per arm and five observations per trainee, we planned to have a sample of 180 observations per arm each time period. In a simple comparison of proportions at time 1, a sample size of 180 would detect an increase from 60 % to 75 % of tasks performed correctly with a power of 0.84 and an increase from 70 % to 85 % of tasks performed correctly with a power of 0.91. ### Randomization---sequence generation {#Sec16} Health facilities were assigned to arms by stratified random allocation \[[@CR23], [@CR26]\]. Facilities were stratified by two characteristics: 1) prior experience with the Health Care Improvement program, a national CQI program for HIV prevention and treatment vs. CQI naïve, and 2) current or prior participation in the Baylor International Pediatric AIDS Initiative (BIPAI) on-site intervention, vs. no BIPAI presence \[[@CR38]\]. Facilities were then randomly assigned to arm A or B (1:1 balance) within those strata. Randomization of health facilities to arm was implemented using random number generation in Stata 10.1. We retained a log of the Stata run stream that led to the randomization and set the "seed" from which the randomization started so that it could be replicated if the need arose. ### Randomization---allocation concealment {#Sec17} Randomization occurred on February 23, 2010 after the majority of trainees completed baseline clinical assessments in January and February 2010. Within 2 weeks of the first session of the IMID course, arm A trainees were notified of their upcoming course dates and arm assignment. Allocation was not concealed during the interventions and endline assessment. Clinical faculty member who conducted baseline assessment at a facility may have subsequently been assigned to provide OSS at that facility. To minimize observer bias in favor of mentees, endline assessments were conducted by a clinical faculty member who did not provide OSS at the facility \[[@CR39]\]. However, observer bias to favor arm A trainees may have existed. ### Randomization---implementation {#Sec18} Trainees were assigned to interventions based on the allocation of their facility to arm*.* ### Blinding {#Sec19} This study was not blinded after randomization in February 2010. ### Data management and statistical methods {#Sec20} Data were coded by a Ugandan medical doctor (PI), entered in Epiinfo3.2® (U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta GA), cleaned and validated. Baseline data were entered once and proofread by PI. Endline data were double entered. All analyses were performed with Stata 11 (StataCorp, 2009 College Station, TX). Trainee and patient characteristics at baseline were summarized. To test the effect of the intervention on each outcome, the pre/post (endline vs. baseline) difference in arm B measured the effect of IMID, and the difference in the pre/post difference between arm A and B measured the incremental effect of OSS. The patient was the unit of analysis. For each outcome, patient and time point, we observed a binomial count of the number of tasks performed correctly, where the total number of appropriate tasks varied across patients for patient history and physical examination. We used a generalized linear model, specifically a Poisson family and log link, with main effects for arm, time period and their interaction to estimate relative risks (RR) and ratio of relative risks (RRR). Although patients were observed with random effects for trainee nested within health facility, preliminary analyses suggested that the random effect for facility did not affect the results, and was not included in the primary model reported below. All regression analyses were clustered on the trainee with robust variance estimation to adjust for using the Poisson rather than the binomial family and for over-dispersion. The results for the interventions were presented as adjusted RR (aRR) for the effect of IMID, and adjusted RRR (aRRR) for the incremental effect of OSS, with 95 % confidence intervals (95 % CI). A 5 % level of significance was used with the caveat that there were multiple comparisons, which increased the chance of a Type I error, i.e. the probability of erroneously concluding that there was an effect of the IDCAP interventions. To address any residual confounding after randomization, we adjusted for several covariates: trainee profession, the two strata (CQI experienced and presence of BIPAI at the facility), and learning during the assessment, which was measured using a categorical variable taking on values of one to five for the sequence of the particular patient being observed for each trainee. We also adjusted for case complexity with two variables: 1) two or more diagnoses, and 2) patient less than one year of age. We intended to include a fixed effect for observer, but it was not possible for the primary model, because of the imbalance of clinical faculty across facilities and time periods (see Sensitivity analysis section below). Two alternative variables to adjust for observer were used: 1) the profession of faculty member (medical officer or clinical officer), and 2) whether or not the faculty member attended the assessment training session for the time period during which the assessment was conducted. Several sensitivity analyses were performed with different subsamples and models. Analyses were repeated with the subsample of patients with clinical faculty members balanced across facilities and time periods including a fixed effect for observer instead of the alternate variables described above. This subsample only included observations of trainees by the clinical faculty members who conducted assessments at baseline (time 0) and endline (time 1), and with trainees in both arm A and arm B during each time period. This is referred to as the balanced sample in the results below while analysis of all clinical assessments is referred to as the full sample. Given the comparable practice across arms A and B at baseline, analyses were repeated with endline data only to take advantage of improvements in the assessment form with experience. Finally, regression diagnostics were performed to identify outliers and influential observations and estimates were obtained excluding these observations. The primary model was estimated with complete cases for each set of tasks, meaning that information was reported on each task within a set. For patient history, two tasks were not included in the full and balanced sample comparisons, because data were missing for 30 or more patients: checked for danger signs, and measles within last three months. (See Additional file [3](#MOESM3){ref-type="media"}.) For physical examination, examination of growth was not included in the full and balanced sample comparisons for the same reason. (See Additional file [4](#MOESM4){ref-type="media"}.) In addition, "other" system was not included in the numerator or the denominator when data about it were missing. Sensitivity analyses were performed with two alternative assumptions about missing values for the remaining sets of tasks: 1) all missing values were interpreted as the task not performed by the trainee, i.e. missing values were equal to zero, and 2) all missing values were interpreted as performed by the trainee, i.e. missing values were equal to one. ### Human subjects' approval {#Sec21} IDCAP was reviewed and approved by the School of Medicine Research and Ethics Committee of Makerere University (Reference number 2009--175) and the Uganda National Committee on Science and Technology (Reference number HS-722). The University of Washington Human Subjects Division determined that the study did not meet the regulatory definition of research under 45 CFR 46.102(d). IMID trainees were asked to provide written informed consent for secondary analysis of their training program data for the evaluation. Patients and their caregivers were introduced to the assessments in the waiting area on the day of the assessment and asked to provide verbal informed assent/consent at the beginning of the consultation. The patient data were anonymous, and the verbal consent process preserved their anonymity. ### Recruitment of facilities and trainees {#Sec22} The facilities were recruited between March and September 2009. The registration and consent process for the IMID training trainees took place between December 2009 and March 2010. Results {#Sec23} ======= Facility and trainee flow {#Sec24} ------------------------- Thirty-six health facilities (five hospitals and 31 health centers) enrolled in this evaluation and participated throughout. Four of the five hospitals were randomized to arm B. A total of 72 MLP were selected to participate in IMID. The MLP comprised of 48 clinical officers, 20 registered nurses and 4 registered midwives. All four registered midwives were based at facilities randomized to arm B. Seventy-two percent and 61 % of MLP were Clinical Officers in arm A and arm B respectively. As noted above, we controlled for trainee cadre in the analysis to adjust for potential residual confounding. A baseline clinical assessment was conducted at 35 facilities with 69 MLP. Assessments forms for one of the facilities were unavailable, and one MLP was recruited after the baseline clinical assessments were completed. One MLP who only assessed children aged more than 14 years was excluded from the analysis, and one was excluded for a reason that was not documented. Randomization was followed by the three-week IMID core course for all 72 MLP and follow up boost courses (Fig. [1](#Fig1){ref-type="fig"}). Four MLP, one from arm A and three from arm B were not available to participate in at least one booster course. An endline clinical assessment was conducted at all 36 facilities with 70 MLP. A total of 687 (337 baseline and 350 endline) patients were included in the analysis. There were some incomplete data for the patient history, physical examination, and laboratory tests as shown by the sample sizes in Table [3](#Tab3){ref-type="table"}. Details of the missing data are in Additional files [3](#MOESM3){ref-type="media"} and [4](#MOESM4){ref-type="media"}.Fig. 1Flow diagram of facilities and trainees Baseline data {#Sec25} ------------- Arm A and B facilities were distributed relatively evenly across geographic regions, with the exception that arm A included disproportionately more facilities in the southwest region and arm B included disproportionately more facilities in the central region. Seventeen of the 36 facilities had previously participated in a national CQI program for HIV care and 10 were previous or current participants in a BIPAI on-site intervention; eight and five, respectively in arm A, nine and five, respectively in arm B. The characteristics of the patient sample are described in Table [2](#Tab2){ref-type="table"}. The most common presenting complaints were fever and cough, while the most frequent diagnoses were uncomplicated malaria and cough (no pneumonia). Three percent and 2 % of the patients were classified as emergencies at baseline and endline, respectively, even though clinical faculty were instructed not to use them in the assessment of trainees.Table 2Descriptive characteristics of patients by time and armBaselineEndlineArm AArm BTotalArm AArm BTotal*N* = 161*N* = 176*N* = 337*N* = 177*N* = 173*N* = 350CharacteristicN (%)N (%)N (%)N (%)N (%)N (%)Age\<5130 (81)153 (87)283(84)174 (98)166 (96)340 (97)5-1430 (19)22 (13)53 (16)3 (2)7 (4)10 (3)Triage StatusEmergency3 (2)6 (4)9 (3)1 (1)4 (3)3 (2)Priority^b^22 (14)3 (2)25 (8)Not emergency150 (98)157 (96)307 (97)132 (85)152 (96)284 (90)Febrile or AT \> 37.5 °C82 (55)89 (54)171 (54)65 (37)49 (28)114 (33)Type of visitNew attendance144 (94)155 (95)299 (94)172 (99)166 (97)338 (98)Re-attendance10 (6)9 (5)19 (6)2 (1)6 (3)8 (2)Patient symptomsFever131 (82)154 (88)285 (85)151 (86)143 (84)294 (85)HIV exposed3 (2)1 (1)4 (1)3 (2)2 (1)5 (1)HIV-status^a^27 (20)35 (22)62 (21)6 (4)4 (3)10 (3)Cough91 (57)130 (74)221 (66)122 (69)114 (67)236 (68)Diarrhea48 (30)52 (30)100 (30)44 (25)48 (28)92 (26)Vomiting29 (18)32 (18)61 (18)24 (14)36 (21)60 (17)Ear pain11 (7)6 (4)17 (5)11 (7)6 (4)17 (5)Ear discharge9 (6)4 (2)13 (4)8 (5)3 (2)11 (3)DiagnosesOne or more danger signs0 (0)2 (1)2 (1)3 (2)2 (1)5 (1)Anemia10 (6)19 (11)29 (9)20 (11)22 (13)42 (12)Cough (no pneumonia)58 (36)65 (37)123 (36)72 (41)66 (38)138 (39)Pneumonia29 (18)37 (21)66 (20)33 (19)23 (13)55 (16)Diarrhea -- acute24 (15)30 (17)54 (16)19 (11)26 (15)42 (13)Ear infection12 (7)4 (2)16 (5)9 (5)8 (5)17 (5)Malaria (uncomplicated)74 (46)83 (49)160 (47)61 (34)62 (36)123 (35)Malaria (complicated)21 (13)33 (19)54 (16)15 (8)19 (11)34 (10)Malnutrition (LWA)10 (6)25 (14)35 (10)18 (10)9 (5)27 (8)Severe malnutrition3 (2)1 (1)4 (1)4 (2)3 (2)7 (2)UTI6 (4)10 (6)16 (5)3 (2)8 (5)11 (3)Number of diagnoses162 (39)54 (31)116 (35)72 (41)72 (41)147 (42)264 (40)62 (35)126 (38)69 (39)66 (38)135 (39)\>233 (21)60 (34)93 (28)36 (20)32 (19)68 (19)^a^ At baseline, reflects children and mothers (of children less than 5 years) whose HIV status was known regardless of results while at endline, it reflects those who were HIV positive. For trainee assessment, of interest was whether the trainee made an effort to ask or not. AT = axillary temperature, LWA = low weight for age^b^ Not included on the baseline assessment tool Outcomes and estimation {#Sec26} ----------------------- Figure [2](#Fig2){ref-type="fig"} shows the unadjusted average proportion of appropriate tasks performed correctly comparing arms A and B at baseline (time 0) and at endline (time 1). Baseline clinical practice between arms A and B was comparable. Arm A had higher scores at endline than arm B although these average proportions were not adjusted for confounding variables.Fig. 2Unadjusted average proportion of appropriate tasks performed correctly by arm and time period Regression results for the full sample are shown in Table [3](#Tab3){ref-type="table"}. There was no statistically significant difference in the practice of MLP in arm A compared to arm B at baseline (time 0), but the percentage of appropriate laboratory tests ordered was lower (aRR = 0.85 (95 % CI = 0.72--1.01)) and the percentage of correct diagnoses was higher (aRR 1.14 (95 % CI = 0.98-1.33)) in arm A than arm B. For the primary model, the multivariate analysis controls for differences across arms at baseline. Clinical practice of MLP improved after IMID in arm B. Adjusted for covariates, there was a 12 % increase in the proportion of appropriate history questions asked (aRR = 1.12 (95 % CI = 1.04--1.21)) and a 40 % increase in the proportion of physical systems examined correctly (aRR = 1.40 (95 % CI = 1.16--1.68)). The aRRs within arm B for laboratory tests, diagnosis, treatment, and patient/caregiver education were close to one and not statistically significant.Table 3Primary analysis: Adjusted relative risks (95 % confidence intervals) for performing tasks correctly for the full sample across arms and time periodsSets of clinical tasksEffectsPatient historyPhysical examinationLaboratory testsDiagnosisTreatmentPatient/caregiver educationSample Size*N* = 573*N* = 639*N* = 621*N* = 674*N* = 683*N* = 667Arm A vs. Arm B at time 01.02 (0.93-1.11)0.97 (0.80-1.18)0.85 (0.72-1.01)1.14 (0.98-1.33)1.00 (0.92-1.09)1.07 (0.95-1.19)Time 1 vs. time 0 in Arm B (IMID)1.12 (1.04-1.21)1.40 (1.16-1.68)0.95 (0.82-1.09)1.05 (0.91-1.21)1.01 (0.93-1.10)1.03 (0.92-1.16)Change Arm A vs. Arm B (IMID and OSS), RRR1.18 (1.06-1.31)1.27 (1.02-1.59)1.21 (0.97-1.49)0.92 (0.77-1.10)1.07 (0.96-1.19)1.07 (0.94-1.23)Estimates were adjusted for: sequence of clinical assessment, cadre of trainee, complexity of patient determined by number of diagnoses and age of patient less than one year, whether the health facility received support from the Health Care Improvement project or not, whether the facility received the on-site intervention from Baylor International Pediatric AIDS Initiative or not, and the clinical faculty determined by cadre of faculty and whether s/he attended relevant assessment training session or notRRR = Ratio of relative risks comparing change in practice at time 1 to practice at time 0 across arms The incremental effect of OSS was measured by the ratio of the relative risks of outcomes at baseline to endline by trainees in arm A compared to the corresponding relative risks in arm B. As shown in the last row of Table [3](#Tab3){ref-type="table"}, adjusted for covariates, OSS was associated with an additional 18 % (aRRR = 1.18 (95 % CI = 1.06--1.31)) improvement in patient history and 27 % (aRRR = 1.27 (95 % CI = 1.02-1.59)) improvement in physical examination. The percentage of patients with appropriate laboratory tests increased by 21 % (aRRR = 1.21 (95 % CI = 0.97--1.49)), but the effect was not statistically significant. Estimated effects for diagnosis, treatment, and patient/caregiver education were smaller and not statistically significant. Sensitivity analyses {#Sec27} -------------------- Two clinical faculty members at baseline who were not able to participate in the endline assessment were replaced by two new members. Two additional clinical faculty present at baseline were only available to conduct half of their endline assessments and were replaced with two additional members for a total of four new clinical faculty members at endline. Sensitivity analyses were conducted using a balanced sample that consisted of assessments by the eight clinical faculty who were present both at baseline and at endline and who conducted roughly the same number of assessments in each arm at each time period. The balanced sample comprised a total of 58 trainees (29 in arm A and 29 in arm B) and 440 clinical assessments (206 from arm A and 234 from arm B). There were 215 and 225 clinical assessments at baseline and at endline respectively. As shown in Table [4](#Tab4){ref-type="table"}, baseline practice was comparable across arm A and arm B. Adjusted for covariates, IMID was not associated with improvements. OSS was associated with an additional 31 % (aRRR = 1.31 (95 % CI = 1.13--1.53)) improvement in patient history. The improvements in physical examination (aRRR = 1.27 (95 % CI = 0.99--1.63)) and laboratory tests (aRRR = 1.24 (95 % CI = 0.99--1.54)) were large, but not statistically significant.Table 4Sensitivity analysis: Adjusted relative risks (95 % confidence intervals) of performing task correctly for the balanced sample\* across arms and time periodsSets of clinical tasksEffectsPatient historyPhysical examinationLaboratory testsDiagnosisTreatmentPatient/caregiver educationSample Size*N* = 344*N* = 404*N* = 397*N* = 435*N* = 438*N* = 425Arm A vs. Arm B at time 00.96 (0.86-1.08)1.05 (0.87-1.26)0.87 (0.74-1.02)1.06 (0.90-1.24)1.05 (0.97-1.15)1.04 (0.92-1.18)Time 1 vs. time 0 in Arm B (IMID)1.00 (0.92-1.10)1.15 (0.93-1.43)0.86 (0.74-1.01)0.86 (0.73-1.00)0.96 (0.87-1.06)1.03 (0.91-1.17)Change Arm A vs. Arm B (IMID and OSS), RRR1.31 (1.13-1.53)1.27 (0.99-1.63)1.24 (0.99-1.54)1.17 (0.96-1.44)1.08 (0.96-1.21)1.06 (0.91-1.24)\*Balanced consists of observations for whom the clinical faculty at baseline and endline were the same, with a fixed effect for the observerEstimates were adjusted for: sequence of clinical assessment, cadre of trainee, complexity of patient determined by number of diagnoses and age of patient less than one year, whether the health facility received support from the Health Care Improvement project or not, whether the facility received on-site intervention from Baylor International Pediatric AIDS Initiative or notRRR = Ratio of relative risks comparing change in practice at time 1 to practice at time 0 across arms Given there were no statistically significant differences in clinical practice across arms at baseline, we conducted an analysis using only the endline sample, comparing arm A to arm B to take advantage of additional variables that were available only at endline. Using the full sample at endline, OSS was associated with improved clinical practice across all sets of tasks assessed, but improvement was not statistically significant for laboratory tests and diagnoses (See Table [5](#Tab5){ref-type="table"}). In addition to improvement in patient history (aRR = 1.24 (95 % CI = 1.14--1.35)) and physical examination (aRR = 1.26 (95 % CI = 1.12--1.41)), there were effects of OSS on prescribing of appropriate treatment (aRR = 1.08 (95 % CI = 1.01--1.16)) and patient/caregiver education (aRR = 1.13 (95 % CI = 1.02--1.25)).Table 5Sensitivity analysis: Adjusted relative risks (95 % confidence intervals) of performing task correctly for the endline sample across armsSets of clinical tasksEffectsPatient historyPhysical examinationLaboratory testsDiagnosisTreatmentPatient/caregiver educationSample Size*N* = 312*N* = 350*N* = 323*N* = 345*N* = 350*N* = 346Arm A vs Arm B at time 11.24 (1.14-1.35)1.26 (1.12-1.41)1.02 (0.91-1.15)1.10 (0.95-1.28)1.08 (1.01-1.16)1.13 (1.02-1.25)Two additional patient history tasks were asking for presence of danger signs and measles status. Two additional physical systems examined were mouth and growth assessmentEstimates were adjusted for: sequence of clinical assessment, cadre of trainee, complexity of patient determined by number of diagnoses and age of patient less than one year, whether the health facility received support from the Health Care Improvement project or not, whether the facility received on-site intervention from Baylor International Pediatric AIDS Initiative or not, and the clinical faculty determined by cadre of faculty and whether s/he attended relevant assessment training session or not Sensitivity analyses were conducted with imputation of missing data on the clinical tasks. In estimates of the full sample, the direction and significance of the results for the full sample did not change with either assumption (missing equal to zero or missing equal to one). The one exception was for laboratory tests, where the incremental effect of OSS was statistically significant, when missing data on the task was assumed to mean that it wasn't performed (aRRR = 1.27, (95 % CI = 1.00--1.60)). Discussion {#Sec28} ========== The trial demonstrated an incremental effect of OSS at improving patient history and physical examination, but not laboratory tests, diagnosis, treatment, or patients/caregiver education. These results for patient history were robust in sensitivity analyses with a balanced sample. Results for both patient history and physical examination were robust in an endline only comparison, and under alternative assumptions about missing values. There was also evidence that the IMID training program improved patient history and physical examination, but by the nature of the study design, we were unable to adjust for other changes that occurred at the facilities across time periods such as improved infrastructure, diagnostic capability etc. The effects of IMID were smaller and not statistically significant in the balanced sample. During OSS, a MLP was mentored one-on-one and what they previously learned in IMID was translated into their work environment. Regular reminders and applying principles to different patients resulted in better clinical practice. Our results that IMID and OSS improved patient history and physical examination are consistent with the results from the IMCI Multi-Country Evaluation \[[@CR14]--[@CR16], [@CR40]\]. We did not find strong evidence that IMID and OSS improved laboratory tests, diagnosis, treatment, and patient/caregiver education, whereas several evaluations of IMCI have shown effects on treatment and patient/caregiver education \[[@CR15], [@CR16], [@CR40]\] \[[@CR19]\]. There are three potential explanations for the absence of effects on these sets of tasks: 1) the intervention was not effective, 2) trainee practice on these tasks was higher at baseline than on patient history and physical examination, and had less room for improvement, and 3) the full effects were not measured because of the structure of the clinical assessment. Concerning the third explanation, the IDCAP clinical assessment was structured with an interruption after the patient history and physical examination when the clinical faculty completed or corrected them. From this point forward, the trainee had the results of a complete patient history and physical examination and may have been able to prescribe correct treatment and provide appropriate information to patients and caregivers. The intervention may have had larger and significant effects on these tasks if the clinical faculty did not intervene to complete the patient history and physical examination. Horwood et al., in South Africa \[[@CR41]\] conducted focus group discussions to establish whether skills gained after IMCI training were sufficient or whether additional follow up visits were required to maintain adequate skills. Findings from this South African study suggested that IMCI training course was an effective way to learn skills but follow-up was needed to improve implementation and retention of the skills. Facility based training as implemented in IMCI evaluations provided an opportunity to mentor health workers and is good value for money \[[@CR40], [@CR42]\]. Two strengths of the IDCAP clinical assessments were the relatively large number of observations per trainee, and the accurate patient information recorded by the clinical faculty member. Each trainee was observed an average of five times in each time period. The IDCAP clinical assessment was designed to observe the broad variety of children who present in a primary care facility. The patient history section was designed with follow-up questions as well as key questions, and the analysis accommodated differences in the number of appropriate questions across patients. The interruption after the patient history and physical examination ensured that emergency and complex cases benefited from the expertise of the clinical faculty, albeit having drawbacks as noted above. Limitations of this study {#Sec29} ------------------------- Firstly, two of the clinical faculty members at baseline did not conduct endline assessments and four new clinical faculty members conducted only endline assessments. To address this instability in measurement, we also analyzed the samples for whom the clinical faculty members were present both at baseline and endline and balanced across arms. The balanced sample however, no longer represented the full, randomized sample. Secondly, the missing information at baseline, especially for patient history and physical examination, could have an impact on the results. For the pre/post analysis, we may not be able to distinguish the effects of IMID in arm B from the more complete sample of patients in time 1. The sensitivity analyses however, showed that the results for patient history and physical examination were robust under two alternate assumptions about the missing values. The missing data analysis demonstrated the range of results with extreme values for the tasks that were used to construct each dependent variable. Multiple imputation of missing values would have been challenging, because the number of appropriate tasks varied across patients for four of the dependent variables. Thirdly, given that a 5 % level of significance was used despite multiple comparisons, it is possible that we erroneously concluded that the effects of the interventions were statistically significant. Fourthly, MLP were observed managing a convenience sample of patients rather than a random sample. It would be difficult to select patients at random in the absence of an appointment system. It's unclear however, what how the selection process may have biased the results. Fifthly, trainees and observers did not know the allocation of facilities to arm during most of the baseline data collection, but they knew during the intervention and endline data collection. The clinical faculty did not observe their mentees at endline, but it's possible that the observers were biased in favor of intervention arm. Finally, the clinical assessment data were limited to two time points at each facility, and don't provide details of the monthly progress in clinical practice. To the extent that there were temporal trends in clinical practice, arm B controlled for them, so that the effect of OSS is measured accurately. The pre/post change in arm B however, could reflect these trends as well as the effects of IMID. Implications {#Sec30} ------------ Our results underscore the importance of continued on-site support or mentorship in addition to continuous medical education as a means to improve health worker practice. Task-shifting is a potentially cost-effective approach to addressing the human resource shortages in resource-limited settings. Programs that have embraced this approach should consider incorporating mentorship activities to improve the clinical practice of health workers and scaling up of health care services. Conclusions {#Sec31} =========== On-site training and continuous quality improvement activities were associated with incremental improvements in patient history and physical examination among the MLP. This approach to capacity development may be more beneficial for developing countries especially as we move towards task shifting beyond HIV and AIDS care to management of common childhood infections. Companion articles will address the effects on clinical practice of HIV care, mortality among children less than five years of age and cost-effectiveness. Additional files {#Sec32} ================ Additional file 1:**Consort checklist for cluster randomised trials.** (DOCX 26 kb)Additional file 2:**IDCAP outpatient clinical observation--child less than 5 years.** (PDF 151 kb)Additional file 3:**Frequency of missing data on patient history.** (DOCX 17 kb)Additional file 4:**Frequency of missing data in physical examination.** (DOCX 13 kb) ART : Antiretroviral therapy BIPAI : Baylor International Pediatric AIDS Initiative CQI : Continuous quality improvement HCI : Health Care Improvement Project HIV : Human immunodeficiency virus IDCAP : Integrated Infectious Disease Capacity-Building Evaluation IDI : Infectious Diseases Institute IMAI : Integrated Management of Adult Illness IMCI : Integrated Management of Childhood Illness IMID : Integrated management of infectious diseases JUMP : Joint Uganda Malaria Program MLP : Mid-level practitioner OSS : On-site support PMTCT : Prevention of mother-to-child transmission RR : Relative risk RRR : Ratio of relative risks RTI : Respiratory tract infections TB : Tuberculosis **Competing interests** The authors declare that they have no competing interests. **Authors' contributions** Conception and design: IK, SN, MRW, KW. Design of assessment tool: IK, MRW. Data collection: IK, MM, SN. Data analysis and interpretation: BJ, PI, MM, MRW. Drafting of the manuscript: PI, MRW. Revision and approval of final draft: All authors. Accordia Global Health Foundation led IDCAP in partnerships with four organizations:, Ugandan Ministry of Health, Infectious Diseases Institute, International Training and Education Center for Health, and University Research Co. LLC. The authors would like to thank the IDCAP Steering Committee for guidance: Drs. Geoffrey Bisoborwa, Alex Coutinho, Beatrice Crahay, Warner Greene, King Holmes, Stephen Kinoti, Nigel Livesley, Fred Wabwire-Mangen, M. Rachad Massoud, Alex Opio, Allan Ronald, W. Michael Scheld, and Gisela Schneider. The authors would also like to thank colleagues at the Ministry of Health including Drs. Zainab Akol, Francis Adatu-Engwau, Jacinto Amandua, Augustin Muhwezi, Richard Ndyomugyenyi, and Norah Namuwenge. The authors would like to acknowledge Dr. Paula Brentlinger for her substantial contributions to the design of the assessment tools, the IDCAP clinical faculty for conducting the assessments, and the IDCAP trainees for their enthusiastic participation. Funding {#FPar1} ======= The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The funding agency and their role in study {#FPar2} ========================================== This work was supported through grant number 94298 to Accordia Global Health Foundation from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. <http://www.gatesfoundation.org/How-We-Work/Quick-Links/Grants-Database/Grants/2008/11/OPP49298>. The funders had no role in study design, choice of study subjects, data collection, analysis and interpretation, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

[Characteristics of negative pressure inspiration effect on the cardiorespiratory system of humans in the conditions of 5-day dry immersion]. Changes in external respiration and central hemodynamics induced by negative (relative to atmospheric) inspiration pressure were studied in supine subjects before and on day-4 of a dry immersion (DI) experiment. Changes in the cardiorespiratory system as a result of negative inspiration pressure included rise of the amplitude of breathing motions and reduction of their frequency, and distinct breathing-related HR fluctuations. Combination of immersion and altered pressure in the mask caused breathing-related variations of systolic pressure and plethysmogram signal, and improved arterial blood oxygenation. These results can be useful for developing pressure-gradient methods of counteracting the adverse effects of blood redistribution toward the cranial-end.

neilcicierega: I’m making a retro point and click adventure game. Follow @IconArchitect10 on twitter for updates and tidbits.

Trojans athletic director Pat Haden announced Wednesday that Cruz has been dismissed and that the school has self-imposed a reduction in the number of practice hours for the baseball team this season and next. “Adhering to all NCAA rules is paramount for each one of our coaches, student-athletes and staff members,” Haden said. “Those who knowingly break NCAA rules are subject to termination.” USC has alerted the NCAA and Pac-12 of the infraction and the university-imposed actions. Associate head coach Dan Hubbs, a former Trojans pitcher in his second season as a coach with USC, has been promoted to head coach. “I’m confident that Dan Hubbs and his staff will lead our team to a successful season,” Haden said. “Dan is a good coach, he is highly-regarded in the baseball community and he has strong Trojan roots.” Last Thursday), USC announced it had suspended Cruz from all coaching duties pending an investigation by Vice President for Athletic Compliance Dave Roberts and his staff to determine whether the baseball program exceeded the allowed Countable Athletically-Related Activities hours.

COLUMBIA — With an office containing a concrete statue of Uga, the University of Georgia's bulldog mascot, and a framed picture of Georgia's Sanford Stadium circa 1929, it's not hard to tell Charles Davis is a "Dawgs" fan. "I'm a Georgia boy through and through and through and through," said Davis, an MU journalism professor and facilitator of Mizzou Advantage's Media of the Future initiative. Davis grew up about five miles from Georgia's campus and graduated from Clarke Central High School in 1982. After receiving a bachelor's degree in criminology from North Georgia College and State University, he returned to Athens, where he worked for the Athens Banner-Herald and received his master's degree in journalism from Georgia in 1992. As dean, Davis first plans to look at external development and affairs and create more partnerships with local news media and other journalism and mass communications entities, he said. He will also begin planning Grady's centennial, which will occur in 2015. "(The centennial)'s happy news, but it's something we've got to get right and capitalize upon," he said. Loading... Davis said he thinks journalism and mass communication schools need to balance emerging technology with solid foundations in areas including writing, verifying facts and making sure the right message is being sent to the right audience. He thinks students in these schools should learn to be agile. "What students are acquiring in (journalism) school are tangible skill sets that plug into workplaces: to think, move and write fast and maintain professional standards and do well," he said. Davis, his wife, Julie, and their two children — 14-year-old Mamie and MU freshman Charlie — will be reunited with family in Athens. Davis' mother, father and older sister live there, and his younger sister might be moving back soon, he said. "I'll get to have my 50th (birthday) in Athens and have a lot of my friends and family there," he said. The family moved to Columbia 14 years ago. "This is home, and Athens is home, and they always will be," Davis said. Davis' family is active in the Missouri United Methodist Church. Davis also works with Columbia Second Chance and has coached his children's sports teams. At MU, Davis has been a mentor and leader in his work with undergraduate students and the Society of Professional Journalists, associate professor of journalism Earnest Perry said. Davis also is the former executive director of the National Freedom of Information Coalition, which is housed in the Reynolds Journalism Institute. "He's going to be missed," Perry said. "He's going to be an outstanding dean. He's going to bring vision and a new sense of what the program can be."

Impatiens hawkeri cultivar Fisimp 172. The present Invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of New Guinea Impatiens plant, botanically known as Impatiens hawkeri, and hereinafter referred to by the name xe2x80x98Fisimp 172xe2x80x99. The new Impatiens is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Hillscheid, Germany. The objective of the breeding program is to develop new moderately compact Impatiens cultivars that flower relatively early with large rounded flowers and attractive flower colors. The new Impatiens originated from a cross made by the Inventor in July, 1999 of the Impatiens hawkeri cultivar Alexis, disclosed in U.S. Plant patent application Ser. No. 09/765,324, abandoned, as the female, or seed, parent with the Impatiens hawkeri cultivar Kispix, disclosed in U.S. Plant patent application Ser. No. 08/797,866, abandoned, as the male, or pollen, parent. The cultivar Fisimp 172 was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross in a controlled environment in Moncarapacho, Portugal in March, 2000. Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by terminal cuttings taken in Moncarapacho, Portugal, since March, 2000, has shown that the unique features of this new Impatiens are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations. The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of xe2x80x98Fisimp 172xe2x80x99. These characteristics in combination distinguish xe2x80x98Fisimp 172xe2x80x99 as a new and distinct Impatiens cultivar: 1. Outwardly spreading, rounded and uniformly mounded plant habit. 2. Freely branching and freely flowering habit. 3. Large rounded purple and red purple bi-colored flowers that are positioned above and beyond the foliage. 4. Dark green-colored leaves. Plants of the new Impatiens can be compared to plants of the female parent, the cultivar Alexis. In side-by-side comparisons conducted by the Inventor in Hillscheid, Germany, plants of the new Impatiens differed from plants of the cultivar Alexis in the following characteristics: 1. Plants of the new Impatiens had larger and lighter green-colored leaves than plants of the cultivar Alexis. 2. Flowers of plants of the new Impatiens were purple and red purple bi-colored whereas flowers of plants of the cultivar Alexis were light pink and red bi-colored. Plants of the new Impatiens can be compared to plants of the male parent, the cultivar Kispix. In side-by-side comparisons conducted by the Inventor in Hillscheid, Germany, plants of the new Impatiens differed from plants of the cultivar Kispix in the following characteristics: 1. Plants of the new Impatiens were taller and not as compact as plants of the cultivar Kispix. 2. Plants of the new Impatiens had darker green-colored leaves than plants of the cultivar Kispix. 3. Flowers of plants of the new Impatiens were purple and red purple bi-colored whereas flowers of plants of the cultivar Kispix were lavender and red purple bi-colored. Plants of the new Impatiens can also be compared to plants of the cultivar Kimpgua, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 10,429. In side-by-side comparisons conducted by the Inventor in Hillscheid, Germany, plants of the new Impatiens differed from plants of the cultivar Kimpgua in the following characteristics: 1. Plants of the new Impatiens were more upright than plants of the cultivar Kimpgua. 2. Plants of the new Impatiens were more densely foliated and fuller than plants of the cultivar Kimpgua. 3. Flowers of plants of the new Impatiens were larger than flowers of plants of the cultivar Kimpgua. 4. Flowers of plants of the new Impatiens were purple and red purple bi-colored whereas flowers of plants of the cultivar Kimpgua were light purple and red purple bi-colored.

HomeAmericas Download e-book for kindle: America: a narrative history (brief edition) by David E. Shi, George Brown Tindall Download e-book for kindle: America: a narrative history (brief edition) by David E. Shi, George Brown Tindall February 3, 2018 , admin , Comments Off on Download e-book for kindle: America: a narrative history (brief edition) by David E. Shi, George Brown Tindall By David E. Shi, George Brown Tindall ISBN-10: 0393903672 ISBN-13: 9780393903676 ISBN-10: 0393912671 ISBN-13: 9780393912678 A e-book scholars love, in a extra concise format.America has bought greater than 1.8 million copies during the last 8 variations simply because it’s a publication that scholars get pleasure from interpreting. potent storytelling, colourful anecdotes, and biographical sketches make the narrative soaking up and the cloth extra memorable. The short 9th variation is 20% shorter, and comprises refreshed and up-to-date assurance of African American historical past, and has been streamlined from 37 to 34 chapters. This moment quantity in "The american citizens" trilogy bargains with the an important interval of yankee background from the Revolution to the Civil battle. the following we meet the folk who formed, and have been formed through, the yank experience—the flexible New Englanders, the Transients and the Boosters. Winner of the Francis Parkman Prize. On marshy islands on the west side of Lake Tetzcoco, the site of present-day Mexico City, they built Tenochtitlán, a dazzling capital city dominated by towering stone temples, broad paved avenues, thriving markets, and some 70,000 adobe huts. By 1519, when the Spanish landed on the Mexican coast, the Aztecs were one of the most powerful civilizations in the world. Their arts were flourishing; their architecture was magnificent. THE AZTECS Like most agricultural peoples, the Aztecs centered their spiritual beliefs on the cosmic forces of nature.

Former President Barack Obama Barack Hussein ObamaDemocrats ramp up pressure on Lieberman to drop out of Georgia Senate race The Hill's Campaign Report: Biden on Trump: 'He'll leave' l GOP laywers brush off Trump's election remarks l Obama's endorsements Trump pledges to make Juneteenth a federal holiday, designate KKK a terrorist group in pitch to Black voters MORE on Thursday blasted Senate Republican leaders' plan to overhaul large parts of his signature healthcare legislation, ObamaCare. "The Senate bill, unveiled today, is not a health care bill," he wrote in a Facebook post. "It’s a massive transfer of wealth from middle-class and poor families to the richest people in America. "Simply put, if there’s a chance you might get sick, get old, or start a family – this bill will do you harm," Obama wrote. "And small tweaks over the course of the next couple weeks, under the guise of making these bills easier to stomach, cannot change the fundamental meanness at the core of this legislation." In the scathing post, the former president warned Republican lawmakers against acting too quickly to repeal the Affordable Care Act, also known as ObamaCare. ADVERTISEMENT "I recognize that repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act has become a core tenet of the Republican Party," Obama wrote. "Still, I hope that our senators, many of whom I know well, step back and measure what’s really at stake, and consider that the rationale for action, on health care or any other issue, must be something more than simply undoing something that Democrats did." Obama's comments came hours after Senate GOP leaders unveiled their version of bill to repeal and replace large parts of the ACA. House Republicans passed their version of the bill early last month. The Senate plan calls for deep cuts to Medicaid, ends ObamaCare's individual mandate to purchase health insurance and defunds Planned Parenthood for a year. Obama’s assertion of the bill’s “meanness” echoes remarks from President Trump, who reportedly told GOP senators at a meeting last week that the House measure was “mean” and that the Senate bill should be more generous. In public, Trump has praised the House bill and touted its passage. Speaking at the White House Thursday shortly after the Senate bill was released, Trump said it needed to be “negotiated” in order to pass a healthcare plan “with heart.” “ObamaCare is dead and we're putting a plan out today that is going to be negotiated,” Trump said. “We will hopefully get something done, and it will be something with heart and very meaningful.” The Affordable Care Act was among Obama’s most significant accomplishments during his eight years in office. Republicans have long vowed to repeal the measure, which they argue has caused insurance premiums to skyrocket and has deprived Americans of coverage in large swaths of the country. Republican efforts to overhaul the healthcare system have faced scrutiny of their own. A Congressional Budget Office assessment last month estimated that under the House bill — the American Health Care Act — 23 million more people would become uninsured over the next decade. A Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll released Tuesday put support for the House measure at only 16 percent. Senate GOP leaders have come under fire for largely crafting the bill behind closed doors. - This story was updated at 4:35 p.m.

People or goods that enter or exit an elevator car create undesirable vertical vibrations because of the elasticity of the support means. Such vertical vibrations arise particularly in elevators using carrying straps as carrying means, which have been growing in popularity recently. Since straps have an unfortunate vibration behavior compared to steel cables, the vertical vibrations adversely affect the comfort of the passengers. The problem otherwise worsens as elevator height increases. For reduction of such vertical vibrations, the use is known of separate damper units that act upon the guide rails with a small braking force, compared to, for example, catch brakes or other safety-related braking devices. A comparable generic damper unit is known, for example, from EP 1 424 302 A1. It shows an elevator car having a damper unit with a braking element, wherein the braking element is pressed against a side guide surface of the guide rail during a standstill of the car. To activate the damper unit, it is mechanically coupled to a door-opening unit of the elevator car. The braking element causes an abrasive, frictional contact on the guide rail in the active position. In practice, it has been shown that it is difficult and requires a comparatively large effort to reduce the vertical vibrations using a damper unit of this sort. WO 2010/065041 A1 shows a further unit, wherein the damper unit has a friction member acting on the guide rail for damping.

Banc Du Banc Du is a prominent, fairly flat-topped southwards-projecting promontory of Foel Eryr, at about 334m OD at the west end of the Preseli Hills in north Pembrokeshire, Wales. First spotted during an aerial photographic survey of the region in 1990, this hilltop enclosure consists of two non-concentric and incomplete earthworks that define a roughly oval area around the hilltop, amidst a series of cultivation features and abandoned trackways. There is a crag-line on the south-east side and steep slopes to the south and west. It overlooks the source of the Afon Syfynwy to the south-east, and afford extensive views to the south and west. Neither upland not lowland, Banc Du occupies a curious position between enclosed fields and open moor, clearly cultivated in the past, but now maintained as improved pasture for grazing sheep. Phases of occupation Surveys suggest three main periods of activity across the hill. The most recent comprises extensive ridge and furrow cultivation probably associated with a now-abandoned, putatively medieval or later, long house settlement or small hamlet downslope to the north-west. Earlier than this are two curved trackways that seem to provide access to a single long-house dwelling or structure. It is currently unclear whether these are contemporary or successive. The earthworks of the earliest visible phase show an inner boundary defining an oval space that is perhaps open against the cragline on the east side. Outside is an outer boundary that appears to start on the cragline, cross the neck of the promontory on the north side, and then curve around the west side to run close and parallel to the inner boundary to the south. A single evaluation trench was opened in August 2005. This demonstrated that the bank, about 3.8m wide, was preserved to c. 40 cm, and had been apparently set onto an old, deturfed land surface. Postholes towards the front and rear were suggestive of a timber lacing within the bank. The ditch was 2.8m wide and a maximum of 1m deep with a U-shaped profile. Radiocarbon dates obtained through the AHRC-funded Neolithic Enclosure Dating Project show that the initial silt accumulated at around 3650 BC, whilst the middle fills contained material from the period 3000-2600 BC. Examination of pollen evidence concludes that the enclosure was built in a heath-dominated landscape with some local scrubby woodland including oak and hazel. Significance Although small scale, Banc Du has profound implications for the understanding of occupation of the area in the fourth and third millennia BC. The first confirmed neolithic enclosure in Wales and the mid west of Britain, it is also notable for the fact that visible earthworks survive at ground level. When first built, it would have been contemporary with the great megalithic tombs such as the long barrow at Pentre Ifan just 7.5 km to the north, and the passage grave at Bedd yr Afanc 6 km to the north-east. References Darvill, T., Wainwright, G., and Driver, T. 2007. Among tombs and stone circles on Banc Du. British Archaeology 92: 27-29 Category:Populated places established in the 4th millennium BC Category:Archaeological sites in Pembrokeshire Category:Prehistoric sites in Pembrokeshire Category:Neolithic settlements Category:Former populated places in Wales Category:4th-millennium BC establishments

Inhibitory effects of human neutrophil granules and oxygen radicals on adherence of Candida albicans. The adherence of Candida albicans to dacron fibre microcolumns was significantly suppressed after interaction with human neutrophils. The adherence-inhibiting properties of neutrophils were shown to reside in their cytoplasmic granules and granular enzymes. Oxygen-derived free radicals produced by the respiratory burst may also be responsible, as shown by experiments in which oxygen radicals were generated by the cell-free hypoxanthine-xanthine oxidase system. Dose-response studies with H2O2 and beta-glucoronidase demonstrated that lower concentrations of these agents inhibited adherence without affecting viability of C. albicans. These results suggest that interference with adherence mechanisms may be an effective means of host defence by neutrophils against the colonisation of mucosal surfaces by C. albicans.

Last mission to repair the Hubble telescopeHubble space telescope discoveries have enriched our understanding of the cosmos. In this special report, you will see facts about the Hubble space telescope, discoveries it has made and what the last mission's goals are. For their own goodFifty years ago, they were screwed-up kids sent to the Florida School for Boys to be straightened out. But now they are screwed-up men, scarred by the whippings they endured. Read the story and see a video and portrait gallery. Her video of camp raid caused uproar On Web sites such as YouTube, St. Petersburg police are seen slashing the tents of the homeless. By ABHI RAGHUNATHAN Published February 1, 2007 Watch the St. Petersburg Police raid a tent encampment, slicing up and carting away the tents belonging to the homeless. ADVERTISEMENT ST. PETERSBURG — Tina May grabbed a $30 disposable plastic video camera when she saw police officers cutting down tents at the homeless camp she called home. The police kept cutting. May kept filming. Just a few hours later, May’s video of the Jan. 19 raid went up on the Web site YouTube. It has logged over 13,000 views in a few weeks, been shared on blogs and Web sites like MySpace, and promoted St. Petersburg as a national poster child for cruelty against the homeless. May’s video shows how new media technologies allow even the most destitute draw attention to their causes. They don’t need expensive digital equipment, just a cheap camera, a compelling image and the Internet. Cassandra Van Buren, an assistant professor at the University of Utah who studies new media issues, said the inexpensive cost of digital cameras, coupled with easy to use sites such as YouTube, now mean that nearly everyone — even the homeless — can become a watchdog. “What we’re seeing now is that regular citizens have access to their own distributions through YouTube and the Web in general,” Van Buren said. “That’s the big shift you’re seeing that enables this type of citizen counter-surveillance.” May, just 14 years old when she first ran away from home, is a tiny 32-year-old woman who wears bulky jackets and fuzzy pink slippers with red hearts. She was arrested six days after she made the famous video, accused of pawning a stolen drill that she said was hers. May is proud that she made the video. “I didn’t think it was right that they were slashing our tents,” May said. “I’m glad I did it. People know all about us.” Since the initial raids, more homeless people have put up tents at two locations: On 15th Street near Fifth Avenue N and on 18th Street near Central Avenue. Mayor Rick Baker has since said the decision to cut the tents “was a mistake.” Police officials — who initially said they took away the tents because of concerns with fire codes — say they don’t anticipate any more raids. Eric Rubin, an advocate for the homeless, said many people in the city’s two tent cities now have disposable cell phones and video cameras. A MySpace page called homelesstentcitystpete offers regular updates and a list of needs (water, toilet paper, portable shower). “The reality is that a picture is worth a million words,” Rubin said. “It’s now being used as a form of protection as well.” May says an advocate for the homeless bought the plastic video camera and gave it to her boyfriend, who later gave it to her before he was arrested. She had just brought her stuff to the tent city at Fifth Avenue N and 15th Street and hadn’t even put up her tent when she saw police pull up. After shooting the video, May went to a CVS drugstore to get some DVDs of the video made for $51.99. She kept one DVD, and several other copies were passed around. One advocate for the homeless — May isn’t sure who — uploaded the video to YouTube on a home computer hours after the raid. The credit reads: “Video by Tina May.” The views and outrage soon followed, as viewers registered their disgust: “Outrageous … This is a terrible act … This is atrocious.” The local music group Meyer Baron & the Spaghetti Band even wrote a song called Walk On By after watching it. The song begins: “In a city known as paradise Under a picture postcard sky folks in uniform came to haul your a-- away They sliced up your tent city and drove you to the streets Where nothing is a heavy price to pay.” Times photographer Cherie Diez and researcher Carolyn Edds contributed to this report. Abhi Raghunathan can be reached at [email protected] or (727) 893-8472.

Google In a bid to make getting distracted by the internet even easier, Google is rolling out a new tool today on its Google Search app (in Android and iOS) and on Google.com. Located under the search bar, the feature is a row of icons that includes relevant tools and news topics. It gives you quick access to look up local business to eat and drink at, nearby ATMs and directions. There are "lifestyle" categories as well, so you can explore the latest trending TV shows, movies that are playing in your neighborhood and sports scores. For now, it's only available in the US. Android users get an extra set of shortcuts, which includes tools and games, such as a currency converter, an internet speed test, a spirit level tool, the card game Solitaire and tic-tac-toe. These one-tap shortcuts are supposed to let you "explore deeper about topics you care about," according to Google. You can already do a lot of these things within Google Search, but now you won't have to type the whole query out (for example, manually searching "nearby ATMs" or "NBA schedule" in lieu of the tap). If you have Google Assistant in your phone (either through the Allo app or natively like in the Google Pixel phones and the LG G6), it'll save you from having to say your query by voice. Again, the shortcuts are right under Google's search field, so if you want to get started, start tapping on the topics you're curious about. Google will also launch more shortcuts that correspond to major events, such as the NBA Finals, which is coming soon.

Illustration by David Simonds THE great hope of transplant surgeons is that they will, one day, be able to order replacement body parts on demand. At the moment, a patient may wait months, sometimes years, for an organ from a suitable donor. During that time his condition may worsen. He may even die. The ability to make organs as they are needed would not only relieve suffering but also save lives. And that possibility may be closer with the arrival of the first commercial 3D bio-printer for manufacturing human tissue and organs. The new machine, which costs around $200,000, has been developed by Organovo, a company in San Diego that specialises in regenerative medicine, and Invetech, an engineering and automation firm in Melbourne, Australia. One of Organovo's founders, Gabor Forgacs of the University of Missouri, developed the prototype on which the new 3D bio-printer is based. The first production models will soon be delivered to research groups which, like Dr Forgacs's, are studying ways to produce tissue and organs for repair and replacement. At present much of this work is done by hand or by adapting existing instruments and devices. To start with, only simple tissues, such as skin, muscle and short stretches of blood vessels, will be made, says Keith Murphy, Organovo's chief executive, and these will be for research purposes. Mr Murphy says, however, that the company expects that within five years, once clinical trials are complete, the printers will produce blood vessels for use as grafts in bypass surgery. With more research it should be possible to produce bigger, more complex body parts. Because the machines have the ability to make branched tubes, the technology could, for example, be used to create the networks of blood vessels needed to sustain larger printed organs, like kidneys, livers and hearts. Printing history Organovo's 3D bio-printer works in a similar way to some rapid-prototyping machines used in industry to make parts and mechanically functioning models. These work like inkjet printers, but with a third dimension. Such printers deposit droplets of polymer which fuse together to form a structure. With each pass of the printing heads, the base on which the object is being made moves down a notch. In this way, little by little, the object takes shape. Voids in the structure and complex shapes are supported by printing a “scaffold” of water-soluble material. Once the object is complete, the scaffold is washed away. Researchers have found that something similar can be done with biological materials. When small clusters of cells are placed next to each other they flow together, fuse and organise themselves. Various techniques are being explored to condition the cells to mature into functioning body parts—for example, “exercising” incipient muscles using small machines. Though printing organs is new, growing them from scratch on scaffolds has already been done successfully. In 2006 Anthony Atala and his colleagues at the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine in North Carolina made new bladders for seven patients. These are still working. Dr Atala's process starts by taking a tiny sample of tissue from the patient's own bladder (so that the organ that is grown from it will not be rejected by his immune system). From this he extracts precursor cells that can go on to form the muscle on the outside of the bladder and the specialised cells within it. When more of these cells have been cultured in the laboratory, they are painted onto a biodegradable bladder-shaped scaffold which is warmed to body temperature. The cells then mature and multiply. Six to eight weeks later, the bladder is ready to be put into the patient. The advantage of using a bioprinter is that it eliminates the need for a scaffold, so Dr Atala, too, is experimenting with inkjet technology. The Organovo machine uses stem cells extracted from adult bone marrow and fat as the precursors. These cells can be coaxed into differentiating into many other types of cells by the application of appropriate growth factors. The cells are formed into droplets 100-500 microns in diameter and containing 10,000-30,000 cells each. The droplets retain their shape well and pass easily through the inkjet printing process. A second printing head is used to deposit scaffolding—a sugar-based hydrogel. This does not interfere with the cells or stick to them. Once the printing is complete, the structure is left for a day or two, to allow the droplets to fuse together. For tubular structures, such as blood vessels, the hydrogel is printed in the centre and around the outside of the ring of each cross-section before the cells are added. When the part has matured, the hydrogel is peeled away from the outside and pulled from the centre like a piece of string. The bio-printers are also capable of using other types of cells and support materials. They could be employed, Mr Murphy suggests, to place liver cells on a pre-built, liver-shaped scaffold or to form layers of lining and connective tissue that would grow into a tooth. The printer fits inside a standard laboratory biosafety cabinet, for sterile operation. Invetech has developed a laser-based calibration system to ensure that both print heads deposit their materials accurately, and a computer-graphics system allows cross-sections of body parts to be designed. Some researchers think machines like this may one day be capable of printing tissues and organs directly into the body. Indeed, Dr Atala is working on one that would scan the contours of the part of a body where a skin graft was needed and then print skin onto it. As for bigger body parts, Dr Forgacs thinks they may take many different forms, at least initially. A man-made biological substitute for a kidney, for instance, need not look like a real one or contain all its features in order to clean waste products from the bloodstream. Those waiting for transplants are unlikely to worry too much about what replacement body parts look like, so long as they work and make them better.

Buy the Ebook: About No Angel Here, from Jay Dobyns, the first federal agent to infiltrate the inner circle of the outlaw Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, is the inside story of the twenty-one-month operation that almost cost him his family, his sanity, and his life. Getting shot in the chest as a rookie agent, bartering for machine guns, throttling down the highway at 100 mph, and responding to a full-scale, bloody riot between the Hells Angels and their rivals, the Mongols–these are just a few of the high-adrenaline experiences Dobyns recounts in this action-packed, hard-to-imagine-but-true story. Dobyns leaves no stone of his harrowing journey unturned. At runs and clubhouses, between rides and riots, Dobyns befriends bad-ass bikers, meth-fueled “old ladies,” gun fetishists, psycho-killer ex-cons, and even some of the “Filthy Few”–the elite of the Hells Angels who’ve committed extreme violence on behalf of their club. Eventually, at parties staged behind heavily armed security, he meets legendary club members such as Chuck Zito, Johnny Angel, and the godfather of all bikers, Ralph “Sonny” Barger. To blend in with them, he gets full-arm ink; to win their respect, he vows to prove himself a stone-cold killer. Hardest of all is leading a double life, which has him torn between his devotion to his wife and children, and his pledge to become the first federal agent ever to be “fully patched” into the Angels’ near-impregnable ranks. His act is so convincing that he comes within a hairsbreadth of losing himself. Eventually, he realizes that just as he’s been infiltrating the Hells Angels, they’ ve been infiltrating him. And just as they’re not all bad, he’s not all good. Reminiscent of Donnie Brasco’s uncovering of the true Mafia, this is an eye-opening portrait of the world of bikers–the most in-depth since Hunter Thompson’s seminal work–one that fully describes the seductive lure criminal camaraderie has for men who would otherwise be powerless outsiders. Here is all the nihilism, hate, and intimidation, but also the freedom–and, yes, brotherhood–of the only truly American form of organized crime. About No Angel Here, from Jay Dobyns, the first federal agent to infiltrate the inner circle of the outlaw Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, is the inside story of the twenty-one-month operation that almost cost him his family, his sanity, and his life. Getting shot in the chest as a rookie agent, bartering for machine guns, throttling down the highway at 100 mph, and responding to a full-scale, bloody riot between the Hells Angels and their rivals, the Mongols–these are just a few of the high-adrenaline experiences Dobyns recounts in this action-packed, hard-to-imagine-but-true story. Dobyns leaves no stone of his harrowing journey unturned. At runs and clubhouses, between rides and riots, Dobyns befriends bad-ass bikers, meth-fueled “old ladies,” gun fetishists, psycho-killer ex-cons, and even some of the “Filthy Few”–the elite of the Hells Angels who’ve committed extreme violence on behalf of their club. Eventually, at parties staged behind heavily armed security, he meets legendary club members such as Chuck Zito, Johnny Angel, and the godfather of all bikers, Ralph “Sonny” Barger. To blend in with them, he gets full-arm ink; to win their respect, he vows to prove himself a stone-cold killer. Hardest of all is leading a double life, which has him torn between his devotion to his wife and children, and his pledge to become the first federal agent ever to be “fully patched” into the Angels’ near-impregnable ranks. His act is so convincing that he comes within a hairsbreadth of losing himself. Eventually, he realizes that just as he’s been infiltrating the Hells Angels, they’ve been infiltrating him. And just as they’re not all bad, he’s not all good. Reminiscent of Donnie Brasco’s uncovering of the true Mafia, this is an eye-opening portrait of the world of bikers–the most in-depth since Hunter Thompson’s seminal work–one that fully describes the seductive lure criminal camaraderie has for men who would otherwise be powerless outsiders. Here is all the nihilism, hate, and intimidation, but also the freedom–and, yes, brotherhood–of the only truly American form of organized crime. From the Hardcover edition. Praise “Compulsively page-turning. The true story of Jay Dobyns, all-American dad and undercover cop running and gunning with the most dangerous outlaws in the USA. A high-velocity trip into a frightening American underworld told in rapid-fire, hard-boiled prose.” —Evan Wright, author of the national bestseller Generation Kill “No Angel pushes narrative nonfiction to new limits…If you wondered whether the bravura writing of Truman Capote and Hunter S. Thompson has a legacy, look no further. Dobyns leads us into the wacky, white world of the Hell’s Angels, and with empathy and precision forces us to admit that bikers are all-too human.”—Sudhir Venkatesh, author of Gang Leader for a Day: A Rogue Sociologist Takes to the Streets “Jay Dobyns is a hero. Out of a sense of duty, he closed his eyes and made a journey into Hell. For two years he walked through the valley of the shadow of death, but thankfully, he lived to tell this riveting story. Highly recommended!” —William “Billy” Queen, Special Agent ATF, Ret. and New York Times bestselling author of Under and Alone “A wild ride to the dark side. Jay Dobyns roars through the gritty underworld of organized crime that you never see in TV cop shows or read in the newspaper. He reveals the true, violent face of outlaw bikers — but also the tortured souls of the undercover cops who dare to infiltrate them.”—Julian Sher, co-author Angels of Death: Inside the Bikers’ Global Crime Empire “No Angel is an absolutely amazing account of one man’s willingness to go above and beyond. Jay Dobyns, his team and those like them live life on the edge in an environment most can only imagine. This book provides a rare opportunity to share in the intensity, feel the adrenaline rush, smell the fear, and admire true courage and dedication.”—Michael Durant, author of the New York Times bestseller In theCompany of Heroes “Unprecedented and unputdownable…Most people reading this book would assume that it must be a novel since no human being could possibly be involved in so much action. However, this is the true story of a very special covert ATF agent who over decades immersed himself in the most violent and criminal culture known to law enforcement. Even as a former US Army Special Forces Operator and Police SWAT team leader, I found myself in awe of his death-defying exploits.”—Dr.Richard Carmona, 17th Surgeon General of the United States “Ask yourself this question: would you put your life on the line for a cause? Jay Dobyns did. This book lets you experience some of the most dangerous activities of the best known biker gang in the world. Jay Dobyns brought honor to the ATF and is a true American hero.”—T.J. Leyden, author of Skinhead Confessions About Nils Johnson-Shelton NILS JOHNSON-SHELTON, unlike Jay Dobyns, has never been a cop and can’t even ride a motorcycle. This is his first book. About Jay Dobyns JAY DOBYNS is a highly decorated agent who’s worked for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) for more than twenty years. For his work on Operation Black Biscuit, he was awarded the ATF Distinguished Service Medal and also… More about Jay Dobyns About Nils Johnson-Shelton NILS JOHNSON-SHELTON, unlike Jay Dobyns, has never been a cop and can’t even ride a motorcycle. This is his first book. About Jay Dobyns JAY DOBYNS is a highly decorated agent who’s worked for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) for more than twenty years. For his work on Operation Black Biscuit, he was awarded the ATF Distinguished Service Medal and also… More about Jay Dobyns

<?php /* Prototype : array array_udiff_uassoc(array arr1, array arr2 [, array ...], callback data_comp_func, callback key_comp_func) * Description: Returns the entries of arr1 that have values which are not present in any of the others arguments but do additional checks whether the keys are equal. Keys and elements are compared by user supplied functions. * Source code: ext/standard/array.c * Alias to functions: */ echo "*** Testing array_udiff_uassoc() : usage variation ***\n"; // Initialise function arguments not being substituted (if any) $arr1 = array(1, 2); include('compare_function.inc'); $data_comp_func = 'compare_function'; $key_comp_func = 'compare_function'; //get an unset variable $unset_var = 10; unset ($unset_var); // define some classes class classWithToString { public function __toString() { return "Class A object"; } } class classWithoutToString { } // heredoc string $heredoc = <<<EOT hello world EOT; // add arrays $index_array = array (1, 2, 3); $assoc_array = array ('one' => 1, 'two' => 2); //array of values to iterate over $inputs = array( // int data 'int 0' => 0, 'int 1' => 1, 'int 12345' => 12345, 'int -12345' => -2345, // float data 'float 10.5' => 10.5, 'float -10.5' => -10.5, 'float 12.3456789000e10' => 12.3456789000e10, 'float -12.3456789000e10' => -12.3456789000e10, 'float .5' => .5, // null data 'uppercase NULL' => NULL, 'lowercase null' => null, // boolean data 'lowercase true' => true, 'lowercase false' =>false, 'uppercase TRUE' =>TRUE, 'uppercase FALSE' =>FALSE, // empty data 'empty string DQ' => "", 'empty string SQ' => '', // string data 'string DQ' => "string", 'string SQ' => 'string', 'mixed case string' => "sTrInG", 'heredoc' => $heredoc, // object data 'instance of classWithToString' => new classWithToString(), 'instance of classWithoutToString' => new classWithoutToString(), // undefined data 'undefined var' => @$undefined_var, // unset data 'unset var' => @$unset_var, ); // loop through each element of the array for arr2 foreach($inputs as $key =>$value) { echo "\n--$key--\n"; var_dump( array_udiff_uassoc($arr1, $value, $data_comp_func, $key_comp_func) ); }; ?> ===DONE===

THIS is the moment an e-cigarette exploded, engulfing a teenage barmaid in a ball of flame. Laura Baty, 18, was serving a customer when she heard a massive bang. “I was about to give somebody their change,” she said. “I could see the fire coming at me and I felt the heat as I ran away. My arm was all black and my dress caught fire as I ran away. I just didn’t know what was happening.” News_Rich_Media: E-cigarette explodes Laura Baty narrowly missed being engulfed in flames. Customers watched on in shock. The e-cigarette, which burnt itself out on the floor, was being charged by another member of staff using an iPad charger. Following a number of similar incidents, fire safety officers have warned that great care should be taken to charge e-cigarettes correctly. The burned dress Laura was wearing at the time. Stewart Paterson must have felt terrible after his e-cigarette almost wiped out his colleague.

Word of the Day Karva Chauth Fast Rituals Women begin preparing for Karva Chauth a few days in advance, by buying cosmetics (shringar), traditional adornments or jewelry, and puja items, such as the Karva lamps, matthi, henna and the decorated puja thali (plate). Local bazaars take on a festive look as shopkeepers put their Karva Chauth related products on display. On the day of the fast, women from Punjab awake to eat and drink just before sunrise. In Uttar Pradesh, celebrants eat soot feni with milk in sugar on the eve of the festival. It is said that this helps them go without water the next day. In Punjab, sargi is an important part of this predawn meal and always includes fenia. It is traditional for the sargi to be sent or given to the woman by her motherinlaw. If the motherinlaw lives with the woman, the predawn meal is prepared by the motherinlaw.

News Releases Assessing China’s efforts on climate change Article that appeared in The Dominion Post, 8 February 2011 A lot is said about China’s response to climate change. China is often portrayed as leading action on climate change as spokesperson for developing countries while developed countries like Australia and the US dither. Its low per capita emissions are contrasted with high emissions per person in those same countries and in New Zealand. Its investment of many billions of dollars in renewable energy is cited as evidence that China is pulling its weight. Indeed, both the US and Europe are concerned that China’s investment in solar and wind power will eventually see that country become the international leader in such technology (Reuters, 23 September 2010 for the US; Climate Spectator, 5 October 2010 for Europe). We have also been told that while developed countries have failed to put a price on carbon, China is planning to start an emissions trading scheme (Point Carbon, 2 August 2010). Headlines have also talked about the Asian giant shutting coal-powered factories to cut pollution (see New York Times, 9 August 2010). China’s government has set a 2020 target of cutting carbon emissions per unit of GDP to 40-45% from 2005 levels. Beijing’s view is that it is doing more than enough. This image is misleading. In truth, China’s emissions are growing quickly and the country will continue to burn coal as fast as it can dig it out of the ground or import it. The International Energy Agency (IEA) says China is now the world’s biggest consumer of energy, having passed the US in 2009 (Wall Street Journal, 18 July 2010). It had already passed the US the previous year to become the world’s biggest carbon emitter, and now pumps out 7.5 billion tonnes of greenhouse gases annually from oil and coal (Reuters, 10 June 2010). This is just under a quarter of the global total of a little over 31 billion tonnes. China’s emissions have risen sharply in recent years as the country has built more coal-fired plants to drive its extraordinary economic growth. The IEA has suggested that if the UN’s target of holding the average global temperature rise to 2 degrees C is to be achieved, China’s emissions should peak at 8.4 billion tonnes per year by 2020. However, China looked set to hit this limit before the end of 2010 (Reuters, 1 October 2010). The Chinese Academy of Sciences suggests that even with the efficiency gains from China’s 2020 emission reduction target, economic growth will push its emissions to between 9.6 and 10.1 billion tonnes per year by 2020, compared with 5.2 billion tonnes in 2005. Despite the country’s advances with renewable energy, the lion’s share of its supplies will continue to come from coal, which will still make up 64% of the mix in 2015 (Reuters, 1 October 2010). Total coal output in China was 3.2 billion tonnes in 2010, but this is expected to rise by 60% to over 5 billion tonnes by 2020 (Reuters, 12 January 2011). China is also a coal importer, with imports last year expected to reach 150 million tonnes (see New York Times, 22 November 2010). The bottom line – China’s continued use of coal and its booming economy will make it nearly impossible for the UN to meet its 2 degree target. But what about all those coal-burning factories that were being closed? A Reuters investigation last year found some plants had already been shut or the companies involved were planning new, bigger replacements – still burning coal (11 August). As for the emissions trading scheme China is planning, this is simply down for investigation during the new Five-Year Plan (2011-2015) and precious few details are available about how it would work (see Reuters, 22 July 2010). The picture does not become any more encouraging when one considers how hard it is for China to meet even the modest targets it sets itself. China’s top climate change official, Xie Zhenhua, told media last year that the easiest problems had already been dealt with and achieving the intensity-based 2020 emission reduction target would “need considerable effort” (Reuters, 30 September 2010). China is also committed to asserting what it sees as its right to increase its emissions. A leading Chinese climate change negotiator, Yu Qingtai, said late last year that the country’s first priority was its national interest and economic growth (New York Times, 2 September 2010). To quote Yu: “We cannot blindly accept that protecting the climate is humanity’s common interest – national interests should come first… we have the right to pursue a better life.” China has huge environmental problems that dwarf climate change – air and water pollution. It has to tackle these and also satisfy the needs of an increasingly affluent and demanding populace. In doing this, reliable projections show it will continue to burn fossil fuels until its emissions reach nearly a third of the global total. Its renewable energy efforts will not redress the balance. (NB the text is as submitted to The Dominion Post and may differ slightly from the published version)

Credit counseling Credit counseling (known in the United Kingdom as Debt counselling) is commonly a process that is used to help individual debtors with debt settlement through education, budgeting and the use of a variety of tools with the goal to reduce and ultimately eliminate debt. Credit counseling is most often done by Credit counseling agencies that are empowered by contract to act on behalf of the debtor to negotiate with creditors to resolve debt that is beyond a debtor's ability to pay. Some of the agencies are non-profits that charge at no or non-fee rates, while others can be for-profit and include high fees. Regulations on credit counseling and Credit counseling agencies varies by country and sometimes within regions of the countries themselves. In the United States, individuals filing Chapter 13 bankruptcy are required to receive counseling. Overview In the United States, the National Foundation for Credit Counseling was established in 1951. The modern practice known as ‘‘credit counseling’’ was initiated by creditor banks and credit card companies during the mid-1960s to address the growing volume of personal bankruptcies. Although there is variation from country to country and even in regions within country, consumer debt is primarily made up of home loans, credit card debt and car loans. Credit counseling includes an array of services to address consumer debt that is not within the debtor's ability to pay, such as education about credi personal finance, budgeting and debt management. In addition to education, a popular credit counseling option is the ‘‘Debt management plan’’ (‘‘DMP’’, known in the United Kingdom as the Individual voluntary arrangement or "IVA"). In order to initiate a DMP, a consumer would authorize the credit counselor to contact each of the consumer’s unsecured creditors and negotiate with each creditor to lower the consumer’s monthly payment amount, to lower the interest rate, and to waive any outstanding late fees. The debt was then ‘‘consolidated’’ into a single payment. Credit counselors can sometimes negotiate debt relief, where part or whole of an individual debt is forgiven. Another option is Debt consolidation, in which one new loan replaces multiple unsecured credit debts. The Debt-snowball method is a budgeting approach that addresses debt systematically. Criticism Global criticism of credit counseling comes primarily from predatory practices that take advantage of debtors that are already struggling. These practices include failing to meet required standards, charging unlawful or unreasonable fees, failing to provide affordable solutions for consumers, and neglecting to make customers aware of free debt services available elsewhere. Regulations by country United States In the United States, Credit counseling agencies are loosely regulated by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, which can sue companies that have deceived consumers about the cost, nature, or benefits of their services. Different states may regulate DMPs individually and Attorneys General are empowered to protect state citizens from fraud. Two professional associations represent Credit counselors: the National Foundation for Credit Counseling and the Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counseling Agencies. United Kingdom In the United Kingdom, the Financial Conduct Authority is responsible for the regulation of consumer credit and has established a Debt Management Plan Protocol. It can impose fines for improper conduct. European Union Elsewhere in the European Union, regulation and non-regulation of Credit counseling agencies and their approaches, including DMPs, are widely varied. In Sweden, guidelines for credit counseling are loosely provided by the Swedish Confederation of Professional Employees (TCO) and creditors are encouraged to use them in lieu of the court system. In Ireland, the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) provides debt resolution information directly to debtors. In Latvia, a debt advisory company called LAKRA works with employers to assist indebted employees. Canada The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) advises Canadians to do their research and find a trustworthy organization and a qualified counsellor. They suggest making sure an agency is in good standing with a provincial or national association. They recommend looking carefully at the agency's advertising to see if it sounds too good to be true. Claims or misrepresentations to look out for can include repaying only a fraction of your debt, quickly fixing your credit score, or claiming to be part of a government program. They also suggest consumers inquire about an agency's services, costs, and counsellor qualifications. The FCAC has also warns Canadians to be careful of companies offering to help them pay off their debt or repair their credit. Things to watch out for include guarantees to solve debt problems and using high interest loans to pay off debt. Some of these companies also claim that they can file a consumer proposal on behalf of a consumer. However, the FCAC points out that only a qualified licensed insolvency trustee can help someone with a consumer proposal or bankruptcy. South Africa The National Credit Regulator (NCR) was established as the regulator under the National Credit Act No. 34 of 2005 (The Act) and is responsible for the regulation of the South African credit industry. It is tasked with carrying out education, research, policy development, registration of industry participants, investigation of complaints, and ensuring the enforcement of the Act. The NCR is also tasked with the registration of credit providers, credit bureau and debt counsellors; and with the enforcement of compliance with the Act. Debt Counselling was introduced and enforced in 2007. This enabled over-indebted consumers to seek relief in accordance to the National Credit Act (NCA). The NCA has been amended several times since inception and various new regulations published. See also National Foundation for Debt Management References External links Debt Settlement Advice from US Federal Trade Commission National Foundation for Credit Counseling Category:Debt Category:United States bankruptcy law Category:2005 in law Category:Counseling Category:Personal finance

If you can't beat them, take their coach If you can't beat them, take their coach After watching the Broncos take their roundabout route to the playoffs, Raiders players knew they had their chance to be the AFC West champion. It didnt play out for the Silver and Black this season, but you know all the ol saying, nothing beats actual playoff experience. Well then, enter Dennis Allen, who reportedly was hired as Raiders coach Tuesday. REPORT: Raiders hire Allen as head coach The Broncos' defensive coordinator is no doubt ready to get back into the mix after Denvers AFC Divisional loss to the Patriots, 45-10. And he probably knows a thing or two about the Raiders, after spending the last season with their division foe.The last time the Raiders hired from within their rivaled Rocky Mountain opponent was back in 1988, when Broncos assistant coach Mike Shanahan joined the Silver and Black. And after the Raiders' most glaring struggles this season happened on the defense side of the ball, so it seems like a defensive-minded coach may be the way to go. Although new general manager Reggie McKenzie did say offense, defense it doesnt matter, he just wants the right guy. McKenzie also shared with the media in his introductory press conference on Jan. 10 that he let Hue Jackson go, in favor of bringing in my guy. At that time, McKenzie said there was a short list of candidates he would be focusing on. But as the Packers, Saints, Broncos and others dropped out of the playoff hunt, the short list became seemingly longer and longer with DCs, OCs and former head coaches from coast to coast and all stops in between, surfacing on this rumored short list.And now for the first time, in a long time, the Raiders reportedly are turning to a man with a defensively-sound background to lead their team. It seemed to work out the last time they went this direction -- look back to 1969 when a linebackers coach by the name of John Madden was promoted to head coach. Although, looking back on the Al Davis era with the Silver and Black, the late managing general partner never went to outside the organization to bring in a defensive coordinator or such as head coach, so this would be a new direction for the Raiders.But it could be a step in the right direction. After all, in his inaugural season with the Broncos, Allen helped the team improve from allowing a league-worst in points and yards per game, to climbing the ranks to 20th and 24th, respectively. Throw in an AFC West title, and some impressive number increases when it comes to the Broncos and their individual players stats (ie tackles, sacks, etc) and Allen just might be the guy, McKenzie was looking for. Allen also runs a 4-3 defense, which matches the Raiders' philosophy as of late.As of Tuesday night, the team has yet to confirm the Allen reports. But it appears, as McKenzie and Mark Davis promised last week, a new era is upon the Raider Nation. Raiders cornerback Sean Smith has been charged with assault, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office announced on Thursday. The charge is for assault of his sister's boyfriend in Smith's hometown of Pasadena. Smith allegedly beat and stomped the boyfriend's head on the morning of July 4, 2017 in Old Town Pasadena, the district attorney said. Smith faces formal felony counts of assault by means of force likely to produce great bodily injury and battery with serious bodily injury to the victim. The 30-year old plans to fight the charges levied against him. "Sean maintains his innocence at this time," Smith's attorney, Daniel Rosenberg told NBC Sports Calforinia on Thursday evening. "We are going to be entering a plea of not guilty and fighting these charges." A warrant was filed on Aug. 16. Smith's arriagnment is scheduled for Sept. 29. Smith was not present at Thursday's Raiders practice, the last session of training camp. He surrendered to Los Angeles County authorities, posted an $80,000 bond and has been released from custody. If convicted as charged, Smith could face a maximum sentence of seven years in California prison. A Raiders spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The case is still under investigation by the Pasadena Police Department. This is another blow in a rough summer for Smith. He has struggled on the practice field during training camp and faces an off-field legal issue. Smith is guaranteed $9.5 million for the 2017 season. Two more related questions came down the pike. The first was about Del Rio letting players be themselves. He answered a different question instead. “Yeah, because on ‘doctor-24,’ it’s a designed way that you’re supposed to run it but I have all freedom to go any way that I choose to run it,” Lynch said. “I would say, yes.” The final anthem-esque query was deflected in a similar fashion. “When we run ‘74’ or something like that, where I have to scan and read on both sides, that is pretty difficult. For the most part, I’m a veteran so I can make it work.” Two things were crystal clear after speaking with Lynch. He didn’t miss football one bit during his year in retirement. Lynch said this spring he decided to return after the Raiders were approved to relocate away from his native Oakland. He wants to represent his hometown well and give them something to cheer before the team leaves for Las Vegas. That’s why he’s fired up even for Saturday’s exhibition against the Rams – he’s expected to make a cameo in that game – his first in Oakland wearing silver and black. “It’s truly a blessing and just to have the opportunity to go and do that is a good [expletive] feeling,” Lynch said. “It’s a good [expletive] feeling.” Lynch has always been active in the community, and hopes him playing here will bring more visibility to what’s being done to help kids in Oakland. “I plan on continuing to do what I do in the community,” Lynch said. “It’ll probably be that now that I’m here, more people that are in the community might actually come out and support what it is that we’ve got going on.”

City will soon reopen all four lanes on Diefenbaker Bridge There is good news for commuters in Prince Albert. The city manager says they are almost ready to re-open all four lanes on the Diefenbaker Bridge. Barring any further delays, repairs will be complete and traffic flow will return to normal in mid-December. Drivers can then expect brief lane closures in January while scaffolding is removed from underneath the bridge. The city manager says the bridge still needs about $7 million of general maintenance and upkeep. He says that will happen sometime in the next five years.

Detroit Lions running back Mikel Leshoure is being arraigned today in Berrien County, Mich., court on a marijuana charge. As with many low-stakes weed busts, the details are whimsical: »4/02/12 6:54pm 4/02/12 6:54pm

Wonder why your stomach still sticks out even though you’re hammering the core exercises every day? It's a common myth that bulging belly is due to weak abdominal muscles. The real cause is likely to be tight psoas muscles, the hip flexors, which cause the lower back to curve pushing the belly outwards. Put simply, the psoas is the core of activity in your body. So, when it's out of balance or ...

Conditional Instructions and Writing Functions Abstract In this chapter we explore the ways to create a function and a loop in Python. We may need to create a loop to iterate an action over a list, or to create a function to extract some cases from a dataset. Writing functions is very important to automating data analysis.

The jaw-dropping man who helped make missionary age change viral MR says: An interview with Josh Hanson, the face of President Monson's announcement last week after his look of surprise became a meme. Josh Hanson’s jaw dropped even before President Thomas S. Monson finished making his announcement Saturday. As President Monson, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, lead into the big policy change on missionary ages, Hanson could tell something big was about to happen. As the reality of what he was saying sunk in, Hanson’s jaw unhinged and froze into a face that openly showed the reaction of many who were listening as intently as he was. “I had that expression on my face for a few minutes,” Hanson said. “You knew it was coming, and you’re like ‘oh my gosh, is he actually doing this?’”

Cercar en aquest blog Compte enrere 13 de juny 2019 Quim Forn's Final Plea (12/6/2019) Here is an English translation (by MS) of Quim Forn's final plea to the Supreme Court. He was Catalonia's Interior Minister for under four months in 2017. Click here if need be to access the whole text. Supreme Court. 12 June 2019 My first words are to endorse everything my counsel has said. I am using this intervention to thank my lawyers, Xavier Melero and Judit Gené, and the rest of the defence team for the work they have done during these four intense months of the trial. I will go on to make some considerations in this plea before the Court: 1.- I have been in politics since the age of 17, motivated by the desire to change things, by an ethical and social commitment and by a desire to improve the country and society in which I live. I have taken part in countless cultural, civic and social initiatives driven by the Catalan associative world. I have always based this personal commitment on democratic values and respect for the person, as the central axis of all action. This introduction may surprise you, but I want to make clear the principles that have always inspired my political activity and from which I have never deviated. 2.- I categorically deny that my action as a member of the Catalan government was aimed at liquidating the Spanish Constitution and attacking the constitutional order, using violence. 3.- If today we are before this court, it is due to a failure of politics and as a punishment for the political challenge that the organization of the referendum on October 1 amounted to. This referendum had the endorsement of a very considerable majority of the Parliament of Catalonia and likewise the support of a large majority of Catalan society. In the government, we always believed that there was another way to interpret the law, that it is not fossilized, and that a more flexible interpretation would allow us to reach an accord that would lead to an agreed solution for our demands. This will to reach agreement was manifested repeatedly, before and after the holding of the referendum. 4.- On October 1 voting took place in about two thousand polling stations. During the trial, both the witnesses and the images we have visualized refer to fewer than twenty incidents in the whole of the territory of Catalonia. Wherever they came from we condemn such incidents, but that can in no way cloud the peaceful nature of the vote. 5.- The Mossos d'Esquadra police corps always complied with the orders of the prosecutor and with the court injunctions. They never received, either from me or from any member of the government, any instruction to stop fulfilling their obligations as court police. My statements in favour of the holding of the referendum never interfered with the obligations of the police; they merely expressed my support for the government's political commitment. 6.- The Public Prosecutor's Office began its concluding report affirming that "political ideas are not pursued". Allow me to doubt this claim. You have tried to convince us that this is so but the truth of the facts belies it. In the order of February 2, 2018 the investigating judge justified my detention in prison, even despite having resigned by seat as an MP, due to the maintenance of my pro-sovereignty political ideas. In the resolution, the judge affirmed that this ideology is the expression of my legitimate ideological freedom but that because of the coexistence of my ideas "in a context in which there is no certainty that the intention to achieve independence has disappeared from Catalonia", I should remain in pretrial detention. Today I request freedom once again. 7.- I have given plenty of evidence throughout this trial of my willingness to collaborate. This has been my intention at all times and I refer you to my actions. On November 2, I went to testify before the National Court. At that time the content of the complaint filed by the Office of the Prosecutor was already in circulation. I returned deliberately from Brussels and went to testify. I received the summons on a public holiday, less than 24 hours before having to testify and barely having time to meet with my lawyer. I went to explain my actions, convinced (as I still am) that I have not committed any crime, and accepting, as I have always done, my responsibility for all my acts carried out in the exercise of the post of Interior Minister of the Generalitat de Catalunya. I may have made mistakes, but in no case have I behaved to put at risk the citizens’ safety. 8.- I still believe and fight for democracy, freedom and justice. I continue to believe in, and defend, Catalonia's right to self-determination, dialogue and respect for plurality as the only way for resolving conflicts. I abhor intolerance and any violent attitude or action. After 19 months in prison, these ideals and my political principles remain firm. 9.- Today, I am more convinced than ever that only through dialogue shall we be able to resolve the political conflict that confronts us.

require 'spec_helper' describe DO::Tasks do def cmd; DO::Tasks; end before(:each){ cmd.tasks.clear } it 'should init a basic task' do DO::Commands.load_recipes task = cmd.task(:name){} task[:name].should == 'name' task[:desc].should == '' task[:namespace].should == '' task[:block] == nil cmd.tasks.size.should == 1 end it 'should clear old task' do cmd.tasks.size.should == 0 end it 'should have description' do cmd.desc :desc task = cmd.task(:name){} task[:desc].should == 'desc' end it 'should not confuse desc' do cmd.desc :desc task = cmd.task(:name){} task[:desc].should == 'desc' task = cmd.task(:name_alt){} task[:desc].should == '' end it 'should have namespace' do cmd.tasks.clear @a = 0 cmd.namespace :namespace do cmd.task(:one){ @a+=1 } cmd.task(:two){ @a+=1 } end cmd.task(:three){ @a+=1 } cmd.tasks.should have(3).items @a.should == 0 cmd.tasks.each { |t| t[:block].call } @a.should == 3 cmd.tasks[0][:namespace].should == 'namespace' cmd.tasks[1][:namespace].should == 'namespace' cmd.tasks[2][:namespace].should == '' end it 'should have nested namespaces' do cmd.namespace :foo do cmd.task(:one) cmd.namespace :bar do cmd.task(:two) cmd.namespace :bax do cmd.task(:three) end end cmd.task(:four) end cmd.task(:five) cmd.tasks[0][:namespace].should == 'foo' cmd.tasks[1][:namespace].should == 'foo:bar' cmd.tasks[2][:namespace].should == 'foo:bar:bax' cmd.tasks[3][:namespace].should == 'foo' cmd.tasks[4][:namespace].should == '' end it 'should raise notfound' do expect { cmd.task_run(:foobar) }.to raise_error(DO::Tasks::NotFound) end it 'should have a dependency flag' do cmd.task(:foo) { |o| o[:dependency].should be_true } cmd.task(:bar => :foo) { |o| o.should_not have_key(:dependency) } cmd.task_run(:bar) end context 'when using #task_run' do it 'should run correctly' do cmd.namespace :foo do cmd.task(:one){@a=1} cmd.namespace :bar do cmd.task(:two){@b=2} end cmd.task(:three){@c=3} end cmd.task(:four){@d=4} cmd.task_run('foo:one'); @a.should == 1 cmd.task_run('foo:bar:two'); @b.should == 2 cmd.task_run('foo:three'); @c.should == 3 cmd.task_run('four'); @d.should == 4 end it 'should parse options' do cmd.namespace :foo do cmd.task(:one){ |o| @o=o } cmd.namespace :bar do cmd.task(:two){ |o| @o=o } end cmd.task(:three){ |o| @o=o } end cmd.task(:four){ |o| @o=o } cmd.task_run('foo:one', '--name=mine'); @o[:name].should == 'mine' cmd.task_run('foo:bar:two', '--age=2'); @o[:age].should == 2 cmd.task_run('foo:three', '--yes'); @o[:yes].should == true cmd.task_run('four', '--no-value'); @o[:value].should == false end it 'should run deps' do cmd.task(:dep1){@deps=1} cmd.task(:last => [:dep1]){@deps} cmd.task_run(:last) == 1 end it 'should share with opts with deps' do cmd.task(:dep1){ |d| @value = d[:value] } cmd.task(:dep2){ |d| @value+=1 } cmd.task(:dep3){ |d| @value+=1 } cmd.task(:last => [:dep1, :dep2, :dep3]){ |d| @value+=1 } cmd.task_run(:last, '--value=5') @value.should == 8 end it 'should repeat itself with blocks' do cmd.task(:dep1){ |b| @value=3; b.call } cmd.task(:last, :in => :dep1){ @value+=1 } cmd.task_run(:last) @value.should == 4 end it 'should repeat itself without blocks' do cmd.tasks.clear cmd.task(:dep1) { @value = 5 } cmd.task(:dep2) { @value += 1 } cmd.task(:dep3) { @value += 1 } cmd.task(:dep4) { @value += 1 } cmd.task(:last, :in => [:dep1, :dep2, :dep3, :dep4]) cmd.task_run(:last) @value.should == 8 end it 'should run methods if NotFound raised' do cmd.tasks.clear cmd.send(:define_method, :demos) {} cmd.task(:demo => :demos) expect { cmd.task_run(:demo) }.to_not raise_error end it 'should resolve dependency namespace' do cmd.tasks.clear cmd.namespace :ns do cmd.task(:foo){@a=1} cmd.task(:bar => :foo){ @a.should == 1 } end cmd.run_task('ns:bar') end end end