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Well, I’ve had quite the adventure. Six days, alone, in New York City, my first vacation in several years and my first time in the city since the early 2000s. I visited four museums, attended three operas, and saw just about every major sight in the city. All told, it was a very successful trip with few snags. I love New York!
I imagine the thought of being alone in New York is terrifying to some. Actually, I didn’t feel afraid once. I had no negative encounters. This isn’t to say they don’t happen, but if you’re careful where you wander, no one bothers you. I didn’t see any bad apples anywhere I went (and I covered a lot of turf). There are other tourists and regular folk everywhere, and more cops available than you see at home. There are moms and kids walking the street and riding the subway, even at night.
So did I get to do everything on my list? Almost. In some cases the weather didn’t cooperate, in others, my energy level fizzled. I did a lot of walking. Living here is wonderful exercise, even though public transportation will get you anywhere (except the Metropolitan Museum of Art. For that, you have to wander Central Park for several hours). I didn’t get to the top of Rockefeller Center to see the city at night from above; I didn’t do the night time boat ride around the tip of Manhattan. I didn’t go to the Bronx Zoo.
Standout moments? Seeing the Statue of Liberty’s face up close. Mimi’s death in La Boheme. The memorials to the dead at the 9/11 Museum. Standing on the Brooklyn Bridge, looking out over the city, while listening to Neil Diamond’s poetic reminisces about it in Brooklyn Roads. Seeing my friend Michael again.
I didn’t even spend much money here. Many of the attractions are free, I ate cheaply, and a few things I paid for in advance. The best deals in New York? The Statue of Liberty (boat ride, pedestal and museum access, and Ellis Island museum for $18) and the subway (I rode it all week, and all over, on a 7-day MetroPass for $30. I didnt take a cab once).
So now it’s back to my mundane, everyday life. Jarring as it will be after this magical week of sights and sounds and stimulation, it’s a welcome return. The conveniences of home have their own special attraction, and life becomes stale no matter where you live. That’s why we need to get out of our elements periodically, to get a fresh perspective on life. We return a little bit changed, a little more knowing, a little more open to possibilities. Mind you, I haven’t been taking this advice lately. My life is extremely routine, but I broke free for a week and it was wonderful.
My NYC breakfast spot, and a description of me in the summer?
Tomorrow I start my 39th, and next to last, college course before finishing my degree, which I began almost thirty years ago. I went into business for myself right after high school graduation, then spent about ten years working slowly on college credits while running it. Since I didn’t need a degree being my own boss (and the one I pursued wasn’t even in business), I went solely for personal interest and satisfaction. I like learning and am naturally curious about things. I stopped school after finally getting my associate’s in 1996, but picked up the mantle again three years ago because I was bored (instead of working sixty-hour weeks as I had for many years, I was down to forty). Also, the new availability of online learning appealed greatly to the introvert in me.
Online class is great for introverts. I participate more in online classes, via discussion boards, than I would in live classes, because live classes are dominated by extroverts. That’s where they thrive. Online is where I thrive. It’s not unlike Facebook, where I am more social than I tend to be in real life. So yes, I strongly applaud online school, as it allows those of us who are quieter and more reserved to “chime in” in a way that works for us. Actually, you can’t shut me up on the class discussion boards, and it’s an area of every course I’ve taken where I have gotten very high participation marks. What’s more, classmates tend to appreciate my carefully rendered feedback. None of this is to say that I cannot participate in class discussions in real life, but new people and environments make me uncomfortable and it takes a while to warm up to them. Even once I do, I am always more verbose with the written word than I ever have been with the spoken, so I can really shine online.
I’ve always done well in school, whether live or online, because I am observant of things others don’t notice and am hyper-focused on the written and spoken word, introvert qualities that serve one well in learning. I take things very literally, and am always finding errors in instructions and written texts (I have found many professors’ syllabi to be riddled with errors and lack of clarity – and these people have advanced degrees). A life in academia may have suited me, and I may have pursued it were it not for my hesitance to go to college after high school, which was a little intimidating. Running my own business appealed to me more as it gave me lots of control, and if there’s one thing I like it’s the freedom of having control over my life.
But now it has all come full circle. I no longer have that control and work for the Man, and in four months I will have a college degree in English literature and poetry. Yes, I know, not the most marketable of degrees, but it is the subject area that interests me the most. My intent was not to get a marketable degree, but to get a degree period, and to also satisfy personal interest along the way. It has been a nice journey, for the most part (I could have done without the Statistics courses, even though I aced them). If it were not for the expense, I would continue on to a master’s. We’ll see.
Is online school easier than live school? I’ve done both and see little difference. I spend a good twenty hours a week on classwork – three hours a day – which includes reading, writing papers, tests, and the discussion boards, which are very time-consuming (reading the daily posts of twenty other students and responding to many of them in a qualitative way). The coursework is the same as that given in live classes, and the online curriculum is fully accredited by the regional college board. So aside from not having to drag myself to a physical location and being able to do my work at midnight if I so choose, there is little other difference – except that the courses are accelerated. What live classes cover in sixteen weeks, we cover in eight. So it can feel a little rushed (this was never more true than in my recent Western Civ class, where we covered 4000 years in two months).
Now, as for that poetry degree, I am aware that some do not consider it a “real” degree, much as they do not consider online classes “real” college. It seems the discipline of poetry is viewed as requiring no more skill than ruminating in a diary. To them, I would say this: try writing a poem that a respected literary journal would publish. Then come laugh at me. Fact is, professional writing of any kind – fiction, non-fiction, poetry, screenplays – is hard work. While poetry may not be highly valued, or even understood, in today’s world, it is the highest expression of our language. I enjoy the linguistic and creative challenge it poses, the introspection it requires, and the possibility of moving someone else with something I’ve written. That is reward enough for me.
After a long day at work, where I interact with many people and juggle many responsibilities, I am usually exhausted – not so much physically (though this is certainly possible), but mentally. I run out of steam. I lose the social energy that I muster to do my job, and look forward to some peace and quiet. Recharge time. It is a must for most introverts, and lack of it can make me quite irritable and cranky. It is somewhat akin to not getting any sleep. Our introvert brains are wired differently than those of extroverts, studies have shown, and mine often needs down time, STAT.
This need not involve sleep – for me, it rarely does, though occasional naps can be helpful. Recharging for me can involve internet-surfing, reading, writing, working a puzzle, doing something out in the yard or around the house, watching a show, listening to music. None of these activities require me to speak or expend social energy, though they do require my attention (in the case of puzzles, considerable attention). This does not weary me like having to be social does. When I am low-energy, uttering a single sentence can feel like delivering a monologue, and answering a phone call is out of the question – much less making one. Also, having to repeat myself is especially annoying at these times. I know this may not make much sense to many people, but it’s really a matter of energy overwhelm and social tolerance levels . If I’ve had to expend more social energy than usual on a particular day, or for longer periods of time, the overreaction to stimuli can be extreme.
Those who have known me for a long time have certainly seen this effect in me, and it may seem Jeckyll-and-Hydeish if I have been overtaxed on some social occasion. It doesn’t go over well with mates, and I have lost many this way. I reach a point where my social energy drains and I get very quiet and pull inward. This is my cue that it’s time to go, which I sometimes ignore either to be polite or – yes, even still – because I tell myself I should stick it out and hang in there a bit longer for the sake of those around me. This is rarely a good idea, but it is the conditioning I have come to adopt living in an extroverted world. It took me a long while to recognize this and take care of my need for being with my own thoughts after socializing, but it is vital to my peace of mind and quality of life, even if it does mean a life of relative solitude.
I do usually enjoy and value the time I spend with people, and in fact often ruminate on it fondly afterwards. I need time to assimilate social contact into my experience and to reflect on it. It’s all part of the deal. It must have been an introvert who said “absence makes the heart grow fonder.” The Phrase Finder reports that this sentiment originates with the Roman poet Sextus Propertius, about whom little is known. However, poets are certainly good candidates for introversion, and Propertius is a man after my own heart (that phrase originates in the Bible).
I’ve never much cared for the telephone. I’ve always found it rather intrusive and annoying, an interrupter of solitude. It has no consideration for whatever I might be in the middle of. I don’t usually look forward to calls, either making or receiving them. I will frequently let the answering machine or voice mail field a call if I am even mildly occupied, and will definitely never answer if I don’t recognize the number – salesman, ninety percent of the time.
Fact is, I usually consider talking on the phone a waste of time unless there is a particular purpose for the call. I don’t like chit-chat, it does nothing for me but bore me to death. Friends have grumbled at times that I don’t call them. I stopped having a landline several years ago, and reluctantly have a cell phone mainly for emergencies and other absolute necessities (it is hard to function in modern life without a phone number). I am not tethered to my cell phone like most people nowadays – you won’t catch me on it in a store, subjecting everyone around me to the one-sided blathering of my otherwise private conversation, and I would never use it while being cashed out. People don’t like it when clerks do this to them, so what makes them think clerks are any different? It’s rude, on either side of the transaction. It’s treating the other person like they’re not important enough to merit your brief attention.
Is phone-aversion an introvert thing? Do most people perk up at the sound of a ringing telephone, at the mysterious allure and potential of the unknown call? Judging by the smart-phone and texting addiction of the younger generation, I’d have to say “yes,” absolutely. Constant contact is king.
I can understand extroverts loving the telephone, since they crave contact and being social. I see people at work who spend their entire break talking on their cell phones, while I usually spend mine reading. These same people are on the phone the minute their shift is over, and they also usually arrive for work talking on the phone. They surreptitiously whip out their phones during work, checking Facebook or texting.
What did people do before cell phones, I often wonder, since it seems they can’t function or feel secure unless conversing with someone 24/7? Was it only a decade ago that people had to walk around – gasp! – totally disconnected? When they couldn’t call home from the store to recite every flavor of ice cream available to see which one they should buy? Oh, and do we need milk? How much of these conversations have any meaning? Does anyone care that your favorite song just came on the radio?
Granted, cell phones come in very handy at times (like the milk query), but some people take it way too far, providing their unseen cohort with a blow-by-blow accounting of their every move. I’ve noticed that people tend to share more on the phone with the other party than they likely would were they standing right next to them. It must be the fear of silence. Silence during a phone conversation is unacceptable, whereas it is perfectly alright in person.
Why is phone silence not allowed? Might there be an insecurity about whether the other person is still there? Is it because time is money on some calls? Is it because we feel stupid holding a phone and not saying anything? Whatever the reason, I suspect it has a large part to do with my dislike of the telephone – it abhors silence and demands non-stop talking, which is pretty much my idea of hell.
Blogs. Do people actually read them in today’s endlessly busy and distracted world? I will soon find out. But whether anyone reads or not, I have always found writing to be an endeavor that mostly benefits the author. If others benefit as well, then that is an added bonus – and a gratifying one.
This blog will be loosely structured with many topics, all from my particular perspective. Therefore, it would seem prudent to share a little about myself.
I am a 48-year old single gay male living in Eastern Connecticut, where I was born during the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 (the famous “missiles of October”). I was a somewhat troubled, melancholy, lonely child who often felt like I was living in a semi-autistic fog, and those old feeling states have occasionally plagued me into adulthood.
I am a lifelong introvert, something I haven’t really appreciated about myself until recently. It was a bit of a revelation when I read the textbook definition of introversion and almost every trait rang true. I am overwhelmed easily by too much contact or stimulation. I recharge my batteries by being alone, and strongly crave alone time after a few hours of being social. I usually abhor chitchat, cell phones, cocktail parties and interviews. I don’t like being interrupted or put on the spot, because it can take an introvert time to focus and I need time to process my thoughts and form a response. I express myself much better on paper than in person. I have been praised since grade school for my writing skills. I have few friends, and the few relationships I have that I enjoy are the deeper ones. I dislike surface contact. Things have to have meaning and make sense or I have little patience for them. I’m a good listener, provided what I’m hearing has some depth. I am drawn to introspection and reflection.
I am also a lifelong entrepreneur, having started my own business when I was 18 and keeping it for almost 30 years. Working for myself appealed to me greatly as I dislike authority figures and taking orders. I am self-motivated and don’t need someone barking at me. Since I now work for someone else (long story for future post), I have to endure some barking. Hence the bumper sticker on my car: “Wag More. Bark Less.” Praise goes much further than criticism, yet seems seldom used in the average workplace.
Some interests/passions of mine include music (symphonic, esp. Beethoven and Tchaikovsky; opera (Puccini, Gilbert & Sullivan); Neil Diamond, who I have seen in concert a dozen times and whose music I have a deep affinity for; reading (a true introvert passion! Love Shakespeare, Dickens, King, Koontz, Preston/Childs); American history, the presidency, quantum physics and the true nature of “reality,” consciousness studies, metaphysics, and basically the notion that we create our own reality.
I greatly admire those who manage to creatively express themselves in ways that others relate deeply to – especially, those who take their pain and torment and create something divine (Tchaikovsky, Beethoven). I consider Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony to be the greatest work of art I have ever experienced, and have a separate blog posting about it. As Robert Bly observed, “where your wound is, that is where your genius will be.” Tchaikovsky is another hero in this department.
I hope you enjoy my posts and find something that strikes a chord or two in you. To quote a passage from my favorite movie, Shadowlands, “we read to know we’re not alone.” I hope I make you feel less alone.


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industry_corpus2: Computing & Telecommunications


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The mission of the Lew and Lenny Legacy Fund is to inspire, incite and fund progressive union activities and projects within the symphonic and labor communities. The Fund perpetuates the memory of two legendary figures in musicians’ union activism, Lewis Waldeck and Leonard Leibowitz.
Educating our incoming symphonic members (either at the conservatory or symphony orchestra entry level) about subjects such as orchestra labor history and labor in general.
In addition, the Fund may honor Lew and Lenny by adding their names to those of other labor leaders which are displayed on plaques at the Labor Legacy Monument in downtown Detroit.

industry_corpus2: Subject Education


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Presumably over the previous decade, Oakley sunglasses outlet have turned into the most mainstream sunglasses in cycling. Also, this is no mishap. Oakley gives a strong and lightweight structure for its glasses, which will be advantageous for pretty much every client. In any case, it ought to be borne as a main priority that they have an extensive focal point region, so the edges of the focal point may come into contact with the cheekbones on wide faces, the long arms of Oakley sunglasses outlet may meddle with a few protective caps, and the scope of vision in the upper fringe zone might be marginally missed.
The Oakley sunglasses outlet dont smash or rub the face, and a light casing made of a material that is impervious to the impacts of the material backings an agreeable fit. Furthermore, even following a couple of long periods of socks, they remain flawlessly agreeable, which is particularly vital amid long distance races, cycling races, and different games. After serious mountain biking, the Oakley sunglasses outlet will remain precisely where you initially put them on.
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industry_corpus2: Others


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We’ll look after your accounts and tax and make sure you pay no more in tax than you have to, and we wont keep you waiting either. Accounts and tax returns are completed within 14 days of us receiving everything we need.
Quite simply we’re very good at what we do!
We’ll look after your accounts and tax returns, whether you’re a new business or an existing business, and make sure you pay no more in tax than you have to, and we do it well.

industry_corpus2: Finance & Economics


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Taking care of your body includes keeping moisturized. Drinking water is of course the number one way to maintain hydration. But our society’s focus on cleanliness and staying away from fats (good and the bad) also contribute to dryness and dehydration.
In response to this problem, manufacturers of skin care products come to our rescue! Only their help comes with more than one price. Their products wreak further havoc on our systems because of the chemicals they use.
Metro News and the editors of Alive magazine reminded me of this in an article, “Natural, Beautiful Skin ” earlier this week. Rather than thoughtlessly continue slathering on harmful substances, they suggested eating healthy foods and choosing skin care products made with natural ingredients.
Vitamin A helps build new skin cells. It’s found in milk, eggs, cantaloupe, yellow and dark green veggies.
to help slough off the old to make room for the new.
Vitamin C helps build and maintain elastin and collagen. You can find high levels of this one in citrus fruits, yellow and dark green veggies, and strawberries.
Zinc helps regulate the skin’s oil glands. Try munching on peas, nuts, brewer’s yeast and dairy products.
Blends of foods, like maple sugar to avocado, are being used as a base for nourishing skin facials.
Moisturizers that contain sorbitol , honey sugars or fruit acids draw moisture from the air and trap it in the skin.
Exfoliators, like Epsom salts, perform microdermabrasion as they help flake off dead skin, unclog dirt and oil in pores and allow natural oils to lubricate the skin.
Emollients such as coconut, corn, jojoba, or nut oils prevent moisture loss.
Skin conditioners that contain lecithin, vegetable alcohol and vitamin B smooth and soften skin.
Natural sunscreens that contain zinc oxide create a physical barrier to protect skin against the sun’s rays.
Hopefully this article will help us take better care of our bodies while we stay looking as young as we feel.
My question now is: Does anyone know of any good natural product lines?

industry_corpus2: Health & Medicine


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"My sister is pregnant with a Lemon this week, Week 14, and this is amusing. My mother's uterine tumor, the size of a cabbage, is Week 30, and this is terrifying."
When her mother is diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, Karen Babine--a cook, collector of thrifted vintage cast iron, and fiercely devoted daughter, sister, and aunt--can't help but wonder: feed a fever, starve a cold, but what do we do for cancer? And so she commits herself to preparing her mother anything she will eat, a vegetarian diving headfirst into the unfamiliar world of bone broth and pot roast.
In these essays, Babine ponders the intimate connections between food, family, and illness. What draws us toward food metaphors to describe disease? What is the power of language, of naming, in a medical culture where patients are too often made invisible? How do we seek meaning where none is to be found--and can we create it from scratch? And how, Babine asks as she bakes cookies with her small niece and nephew, does a family create its own food culture across generations?
Generous and bittersweet, All the Wild Hungers is an affecting chronicle of one family's experience of illness and of a writer's culinary attempt to make sense of the inexplicable.


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The nitrogen-cycle (N-cycle), discussed in detail in this Issue, is a key to the difference between “organic” and so-called “conventional” farming.
Synthetic N- fertilisers depend for their production upon the Haber process for the fixation of atmospheric N in the form of ammonia by reaction with hydrogen gas.
Despite the fact that 78.1% of the air we breathe is N, this gas is relatively unreactive because the molecule (N2) is held together by a strong triple bond.
Hence, the process requires a considerable amount of energy. In fact, 3–5% of world natural gas production, is consumed in the Haber process; about 1–2% of the world's annual energy supply (Smil 2001). The Haber process now produces 100 million tonnes of N fertiliser per year.
Nevertheless, this production is estimated to be responsible for sustaining one-third of the Earth's population (Hager, 2008).
The limiting factor is food energy, in the form of net energy for maintenance, physical work, growth and reproduction. If all world farming was organic it has been estimated that it could support a population of ca 4 billion (Benton et al., Goulding et al., Smil, all this Issue); but by 2050 the population is expected to exceed 9 billion.
Clearly, the provision of enough food for a population of this size cannot be achieved either by organic farming, or by current conventional production, restricted to the present total agricultural area and current technologies.
To meet their desires, especially for a high meat diet, the developed world imports exotic and other foodstuffs from developing countries, in some cases where many in those countries have insufficient food to sustain a healthy life themselves.
The articles in this issue seem to indicate that meet- ing the needs of an increasing population under an organic system would entail the destruction of forested and other areas of natural habitat.
This would partly compensate for the loss of sequestered carbon caused by the Haber process, but would, in turn, lead not only to a loss of vast forests, a valuable carbon sink, but the loss of biodiversity.
The land made available is still unlikely to meet requirements, partly because most forest soils are of poor quality.
Clearly what is required, is a carefully timed and “titrated” precision use of N-fertilisers in each field of each farm so that optimum amounts are used, spatially and temporally, to maximise output and minimise inputs, taking account of the marginal and expected effects on yield.
Ideally it should incorporate the needs for adequately feeding the world and also the effects on carbon and N balances, though this is impractical at present. These balances were not previously considered in this context for without reliable knowledge of rainfall and growing conditions in each field the objective will be difficult to achieve.
A uniformly higher standard of husbandry, improved technology and precision farming is required worldwide to increase agricultural out- put from approximately the same total area of land, to maintain biodiversity and not to increase greenhouse gas production.
The great virtue of the organic movement is that it has focussed attention on the importance of soil quality and organic matter, features recognised by the entire farming community for more that 150 years.
The importance of this has been known to the internationally famous Rothamsted Research Station since the 1850s (see this Issue).
The challenge is to increase output without further degradation of the farmed land, prevent further loss, or even to enhance, biodiversity and avoid taking more land into cultivation.
This is a significant challenge which will require a comprehensive integration and exploitation of technologies from several disciplines. Perhaps our best chance is the approach adopted by LEAF (Drummond, this Issue) which can provide the intelligent, integrated system needed, offering advantages over both the “Organic” and intensive farming systems for both output and maintaining biodiversity.
The evolution of a farming system should always be based on the most reliable evidence and experience, have a rational basis and the development should be logically argued.
Hager, T. (2008). The Alchemy of Air. Harmony Books, New York. ISBN 9780307351784.

industry_corpus2: Agriculture & Fisheries


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Jonathan B. Wiener is the William R. and Thomas L. Perkins Professor of Law at Duke Law School, Professor of Environmental Policy at the Nicholas School of the Environment, and Professor of Public Policy at the Sanford School of Public Policy, at Duke University. Since 2015 he is the Co-Director of the Rethinking Regulation program at Duke. From 2007-15 he served as the director of the JD-LLM Program in International and Comparative Law at Duke Law School. From 2000-05 he was the founding Faculty Director of the Duke Center for Environmental Solutions, now expanded into the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions, of which he served as chair of the faculty advisory committee from 2007-10.
In 2008, he served as President of the Society for Risk Analysis (SRA) (the first law professor or lawyer to hold this post). In 2003 he received the SRA’s Chauncey Starr Young Risk Analyst Award (for career contributions to the field by age 40). In 2012 he co-chaired the SRA's World Congress on Risk in Sydney Australia. In 2014 he received SRA’s Richard J. Burk Outstanding Service Award.
Since 2002 he has been a University Fellow of Resources for the Future (RFF), the environmental economics think tank. He is a member of the Scientific and Technical Council of the International Risk Governance Council (IRGC), and of the Chaire Economie du Climat (CEC). He was a chapter lead author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), 5th Assessment Report, Working Group III, Chapter 13, “International Cooperation: Agreements and Institutions” (2014). In 2015 he was a member of the Special Policy Study team on “Environmental Risk Management” for the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED). In 2014-16 he was a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Climate Change.
He has been a visiting professor at Harvard Law School (2010 and 1999), the University of Chicago Law School (2007), Université Paris Ouest Nanterre La Défense (2014), Université Paris-Dauphine (2010 and 2011), Sciences Po (2008), and EHESS and CIRED in Paris (2005-06). He has taught courses on Environmental Law, Risk Regulation, Climate Change, Mass Torts, Property Law, Global Property Regimes, International Environmental Law, Law of the Atmosphere, Retrospective Regulatory Review, and Happiness & Decisions.
Professor Wiener has written widely on U.S., European, and international environmental law and risk regulation, including the books Policy Shock: Recalibrating Risk and Regulation after Oil Spills, Nuclear Accidents, and Financial Crises (Cambridge University Press, forthcoming 2017, with others); The Reality of Precaution: Comparing Risk Regulation in the United States and Europe (RFF Press/Earthscan, 2011, with others), Reconstructing Climate Policy (AEI Press 2003, with Richard B. Stewart) and Risk vs. Risk (Harvard University Press 1995, with John D. Graham), and articles in diverse journals in law, policy, economics, risk and science.
Professor Wiener clerked for Judge (now U.S. Supreme Court Justice) Stephen G. Breyer on the U.S. Court of Appeals in Boston in 1988-89, and for Chief Judge Jack B. Weinstein on the U.S. District Court in New York in 1987-88. He received his A.B. in economics (1984) and J.D. (1987) from Harvard University, where he was a research assistant at the NBER , an editor of the Harvard Law Review, and assistant coach of the 1985 intercollegiate debate champions.
Jonathan Wiener also helped organize the Americorps National Service program in 1993, helped start the annual City Year servathon in Boston in 1989 and the D.C. Cares servathon in Washington D.C. in 1991, served on the North Carolina State Commission on National and Community Service from 1994-98, and founded the "Dedicated to Durham" community service day held twice each year at Duke Law School since 1995.

industry_corpus2: Law & Justice


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UPDATE: I wrote and posted a gun holster review on the day before the naval yard shooting in DC. It seemed like a poor time, so I took it down. I then had a great conversation with Kristin Wald—proving that people who might come at Big Issues from different places can have a conversation—about the need for rational, responsible gun owners to speak. So I’m adapting what was a gun holster review to be a post on gun safety and children, with a holster review and resource links. I’m not speaking to the idea of laws and what we should or shouldn’t have over us. As it stands, we have the freedom to carry. As long as we have that freedom and guns are around, we should ALL BE EDUCATED AND RESPONSIBLE, whether or not you own a gun or support or don’t support gun control. Let’s start gun safety in our own homes—EVERY home, whether you are a gun owner or not.
I am about to step into a minefield. An issue that is so charged politically and ideologically that I’m a little terrified. Never bring up politics or religion at a dinner party, the saying goes. Since I talk at least once a week about faith in Jesus, so I’m already committing a party foul. Add politics to the mix and we are in for it.
The thing is? This is my blog, not a dinner party. So buckle up. And I encourage you to sort of pause, if you will, your assumptions and your positions and hard-fought lines for a moment. I know that I did when thinking about and writing this post. Forget how you vote and what paper you read and dive right in here with me, where I am going to attempt to be logical, rational, and also opinionated.
One of my favorite childhood movies was Pee-wee’s Big Adventure. I’m sure I’m not alone, right? Tell ’em Large Marge sent ya! The basement of the Alamo! Tequila! Such a classic. I still have a special place in my heart for Pee-wee.
Moving here for real, some of those stereotypes are true. I have not tried it, but I guarantee you if I went into a crowded mall and sang, “The stars at night are big and bright…” there were be a weird pause where everyone would drop their shopping bags, clap four times, and finish the song for me. Yeehaw! Some people do wear cowboy hats, I met a few boys who literally (and I do actually mean literally) lived in a barn, their rooms converted stalls next to their horses’ stalls. There are also a lot of guns in Texas.
For years now, Rob has had a concealed handgun license. I don’t have one and didn’t grow up with guns, but I learned pretty quickly that if you get your concealed carry license, you are learning an immense amount about guns, their use, the law, and safety. I trusted that Rob knowing was enough. I do trust him and respect his knowledge and ability to handle a gun.
But after having a short dialogue with Kristin Wald via Twitter (of all places), I began doing some reading. We have children. We have guns. Is it enough that I trust my husband to take care of this?
Do not misread my question. I fully trust Rob to handle guns safely and responsibly. At the same time, I myself need to arm myself (no pun intended) with knowledge about guns. In fact, I’m considering a concealed carry myself, just so I can get some literal hands-on training, plus more knowledge about guns, law, and safety.
I read this article in the NY Times and it gave me pause. GREAT pause. If you aren’t a reader (it’s long and disturbing), some of the important points are that many accidental shootings by and of children are listed as homicides, which makes the actual number of accidental shootings higher than they seem on paper. There were many examples in the article of children killed by accidental fire, often by a friend or relative, and these cases spanned all kinds of demographics and even the spectrum of negligence to safety and education.
Bottom line: I don’t know that we can ever be too careful when it comes to guns and our children.
I am like many of the people in the article in that I think this is a complex issue. I want children to be safe, and yet, I also want our family to exercise our right to have firearms. What does that look like in actual life?
I’m not going to get into the legislation side of things, but I will get into the personal side of them. What can YOU do if you want to promote safety for your children? I believe there are two things and they must go together to work effectively.
1. Secure Your Guns. Yes, it may be harder to access a gun if it’s in a safe. But the reality is that maybe we put too much weight on this in terms of our area or demographic. A great question from Project Child Safe is this: Are my safety concerns realistic and consistent with local crime rates? Crazy stuff happens all over the place and in all kinds of areas. That being said, I think it’s a fair and good question to ask for your household. What weighs more heavily—the need to have quick, unsecured access to your gun? Or the fact that quick, unsecured access means your child also might have quick, unsecured access? You may not have guns, but your family members or your child’s friends’ parents might. This might mean that you check to ensure that other people are being secure. Do your other family members have guns? Ask if they are secure. Pass on a brochure from Project Child Safe about safety. Be that weirdo who is overly cautious. I doubt you’ll regret being the weirdo later, but you might regret NOT being the weirdo.
2. Educate Your Family Members. Whether children or adults, if there are guns in the house, be educated. I want to know more about guns and gun safety for the sake of my children. I think it’s important that I take responsibility as well as Rob, not because I don’t trust him, but because I should know. I want my children to have a healthy fear of guns. I want them to understand what to do if they ever see a gun. I also want to remember that they are children and will often do something different than what they are told, which is why gun security is so vastly important. Boys are much more likely to touch or play with a gun if they find one, and as the mother of two boys (who love to pretend fight, whether they are ninjas or transformers), I believe that. I am working to know more myself and for Rob and I to impart knowledge and safety to our children.
I believe in both 1 and 2. I think that they need to go hand in hand for the safety of our children. If you only secure and don’t educate, your child might encounter a gun somewhere outside your home and make a poor choice. If you only educate and don’t secure, your child might find a gun and, being a child, play with it. Possibly with fatal consequences either way.
The Project Child Safe site has great questions, great resources, AND an interactive map that can link you with local places that have a free gun safety kit. Education and safety for your children starts with YOU, even if you don’t have guns in the home. As long as we have the freedom to carry guns, whether you do or not, I believe we should ALL be educated and responsible. I am working toward this. What about you?
For those of you who are concealed carriers, I recently got Rob what I think was a fabulous Father’s Day gift this year: a new holster.
One of my high school friends (of Prom Proclamation fame) has a business called Guardian Concealment, making these great leather holsters. I gave him the model of Rob’s gun and he shipped us a beautiful holster. Rob was super excited at how comfortable it is and how well it fits. I was super excited to finally get a great gift for him (I’ve been a terrible gift-buyer lately) and that I could support one of my dear old friends in the process. I like that this one is very comfortable on his skin because of the soft leather, and is safely tucked inside his pants, out of reach of little hands.
There is something really attractive to me about a man carrying a gun…who knows all about gun safety, regulations, and responsible ownership. And speaking of safety, carrying a gun on your person in a safe holster means that you know where your gun is.
As a special bonus and a bookend back to Pee-wee Herman, click to see a video of Sawyer at 2 dancing to Tequila with Pee Wee.
This is awesome! I am always looking or a good, small-business holster. The one I have is OK, but it is not the most comfortable. Your buddy doesn’t have a holster for my model, but it’s pretty popular so hopefully they will add it soon. I will definitely check them out.
I grew up in a house of guns. My father and brothers all were hunters. My father has always had a concealed carry. I knew from a very early age that there were weapons in my home, and I knew how dangerous they were. My parents never hid them from me or made me afraid of them. I knew where they were kept, and they were always locked. I knew that my father kept an emergency fire arm near his bed in case of an intruder or other potentially dangerous situations. I knew where that weapon was, and I knew very early that I was not to play with it because it was not a toy. I honestly can’t remember ever having toy guns in our home. Maybe that was intentional to teach that they weren’t a play thing. Maybe not. My parents taught me to RESPECT them and their power. Now, married to a man who is just like my dad, I know that my children will be raised the same. We’ve actually had this conversation already, and we’re not even pregnant. I am not a shooter. In fact, I’ve never even shot a gun. My husband would like me to at least try it, but I’m not sure. Regardless of my skill with a gun or lack thereof, I will raise my children then same way. To respect these things, and to use them (when they are of appropriate age) responsbily.
And, thank you for the holster rec. This may be a Christmas present in the making!
I like that you had the experience of learning about them from an early age. I think a lot of times, people that grew up with good gun understanding pass that on. Not that my parents DIDN’T teach me, but I wasn’t really around guns, so it was almost a non-issue. I think even for people that don’t think they’ll be around guns, this should be important! Many of the stories of accidental shootings were not at home but at a friend or relative’s house.
Also, I wanted to hunt so bad growing up, that I would have NEVER done anything to jeopardize that. Just the way my family worked.
OO! I like that option. Thanks!
I also have a concealed carry permit, and often carry. I keep my guns and ammunition in a gun safe with electronic keypad access that ONLY I know the code for. This adds maybe five total seconds to the accessibility of my firearm at home should I ever need to get to it in a hurry. Five seconds in an emergency situation may seem like an eternity, but is a more than acceptable trade-off in my mind for that extra layer of security with kids in the house.
Regarding children and gun safety, My dad had a .22 revolver when I was growing up. He never took it out, never talked about it, and never taught me how to use it, so I was naturally curious. He never kept any ammunition near it, but it was not locked up, so I would often go look at it, handle it, play with it, etc. I was smart enough to know how to look and see it was not loaded, but still a very dangerous situation, and I do not want my son to follow in my footsteps in this regard.
He has his own little Daisy Buck BB gun that is *his* firearm. It is the only one in the house he is allowed to touch (only when an adult is present), and he can recite all the basic safety rules to me at any time (Keep the gun pointed in a safe direction, keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to shoot, know what is behind your target, do not point your gun at anything you don’t intend to destroy, safety on when not in use, etc.). He is expected to treat his BB gun responsibly and with respect, and if I catch him accidentally slipping on any safety areas, there is an immediate correction. He knows if he intentionally misuses it, it’s gone for good. and he has had it over a year now (proud dad). I often shoot my air rifle in the backyard with him, and he is CONSTANTLY calling me out for “safety violations,” namely not putting the safety on when I’m loading a pellet (oops). It drives me crazy, but I always give him an atta-boy for noticing and encourage him to keep an eye out for anything else I might slip on.
Anyway, I’m sure I’m not perfect, but I try to do everything I can to secure my firearms and educate my kids, for not only their safety, but everyone else’s as well.
That’s just how I do it. You may not agree with me, but I just thought I’d share!
I like hearing how people handle things so I appreciate you sharing! I like when people are proactive. Sounds like you are doing a great job.
I was maybe twelve, playing with some other kids from the neighborhood, when one of them grabbed my father’s double-barrel twelve-gauge out of the attic closet, cocked both hammers, stuck it in my neighbor’s chest and pulled both triggers, shouting “BAM! BAM!” He had never even cracked the breech, so he had no idea what was in that gun. That’s my most memorable lesson about kids and guns.
THAT IS SO TERRIFYING. And I love the way your dad taught you about the shotgun. It’s going to stick with me, and I’m just reading about it.
Thank you so much for the great review and for addressing this very important topic.
With small children gun safety is the most important thing.
It is very hard to beat a non-electronic kaba lock like the one used in the Fort Knox pistol box. They make an amazing product that will not fail and is very fast.
I currently use a gunvalut and plan on switching to the fort knox.
Kirsten — thank you for deciding to republish this! It’s an important topic, and sadly it’s something that too many people feel uncomfortable discussing. Asking a friend or neighbor or father-in-law if they keep firearms stored and locked away needs to become part of normal and natural conversation.
And thank you for pointing out the higher likelihood of boys being involved in unintentional shootings. Having worked with children teens for 20+ years, I can tell you that for many, “Don’t touch” isn’t enough. It’s not enough with chocolate, alcohol, cash, make-up…and it’s not enough with firearms.
Thanks! It is a weird topic and I felt weird writing about it. Appreciate your reading and insights.
I think I remember hearing we had a gun in the house, but never saw it, so great job keeping it away from us! 🙂 I don’t know about legislation and can’t really speak to that. Thanks for reading, Dad!
Having moved over to the US just two years ago from Australia I still find the whole guns in society phenomenon quite strange!!
I spent a semester in England and it was really different to be in a culture that had no guns. Columbine happened while I was there, so getting to sort of experience it through my own lens and that also of the English students around me was really eye-opening. I can, because of that, understand how weird this must seem. It was also very strange to be in a different place and get a sense of what it would have been like to grow up in another culture. I feel you, Lehane!
Guns will always make me nervous. However, after listening to Wikinomics, I now know that, statistically, backyard swimming pools are more dangerous to children than guns in the home.
Thanks for sharing this! People have to understand that guns are somewhat necessary for protection and personal safety. I live alone in a not so safe part of town and I feel much more secure knowing that I have a weapon in case anything happened. My father had several guns, and my parents have six children. They always were to sure to make sure that everything was locked up and that guns were not accessible to us as children.
You have provoked a lot of thought Kirsten. I don’t like guns so I definitely believe in gun safety. Great post!
Wow! That looks like a good read!
Thank you for this! Gun safety is so important! I have grown up around guns, pistols, any sort of firearm, you name it, my dad had it locked in his gun shed and my brothers and I knew what they were, what they were for, and we had a sense of respect for what we knew was a very powerful weapon. This is such a great post and I think all families who own a gun should go over these important things with their kids.
I agree, you can never be too careful when it comes to gun safety and children. And its really important to educate the whole family and not only just kids about gun safety. My dad had guns growing up and he tough us at a young age about guns and gun safety, which was very helpful growing up.
Since gun can be dangerous sometimes so I think not only the children but also the whole family needs to know the gun safety things. Thanks a lot for sharing.
These are great points! Knowing where your gun is located, whether in a holster or in a safe, gives you the peace of mind that it’s not being mishandled and that, if self-defense is needed, you have secure access. Thanks for sharing!
Education about guns and gun safety is crucial! Great post, thank you for sharing!
Having a gun takes a lot of responsibility. I agree education is very important.
My father has been thinking about taking my nephew’s deer hunting soon. I think it might be smart for him to have them learn how to shoot a pistol first. It is good to know that it would be smart for them to think about getting them educated well before letting them shoot the gun.
Thanks for your post. Totally what I’m looking for my research about children guns safety.


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The new search engine could assist users looking for subjective information and trusted opinions, Microsoft said in a statement.
Web sites that stream or host pirated material may find it harder to feature on the first pages of two leading search engines, Google and Microsoft.
Internet search mechanisms will need to change to support the Internet of Things (IoT) whereby billions of devices will become connected, say experts.
Could Apple be planning a search engine to outshine Google?
There perhaps isn't anything that a Google search cannot find, but all of us who have only been 'googling' for information and knowledge may soon be "appleing" for them.
A recent survey of over 27,000 people by Edelman has proved that people would rather choose Google as a trusted source over the websites which they aggregate.
Google said it had received 70,000 requests since it put a form online on 30 May as a result of the ruling by the European Court of Justice.
Individuals have a right "to be forgotten," under certain circumstances when their personal data becomes outdated or inaccurate, the European Court of Justice said.
Russia's largest search engine Yandex said it has entered into a partnership with Google Inc that will allow their clients to tap into each others' advertising inventory.


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A truck slammed into a fire hydrant on Western Avenue in San Pedro on Thursday morning, creating a geyser and backing up traffic on the busy thoroughfare.
Lomita sheriff’s Lt. Tony Del Pinto said the agency received a call at about 10:45 a.m. that a green truck had collided with the hydrant near the intersection of Western and Delasonde Drive near the Garden Village Shopping Center. It’s not clear if the driver was injured in the crash.
Cal Water crews shut off water to nearby businesses for about five minutes, Kingman said, as it was working to restore service. Crews also were working Thursday afternoon to repair the hydrant.

industry_corpus2: Safety Management


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One of the reasons Ancient Egyptian civilization is a great one is that it was built by both men and women alike. Women weren’t only responsible for housework and child-rearing, but had other great roles, such as being great warriors, rulers, and diplomats.
Contrary to modern times, ancient Egyptians appreciated women’s role and dealt with them equally. So you can even find that many appreciated and esteemed deities in religious texts and mythology are women, where they are referred to as symbols of power, loyalty, devotion, unconditional giving, mercy and others. Here are many examples in which women were real leaders in ancient Egypt.
According to ancient Egyptian texts, the representation of truth, morality, balance, law and justice was a goddess named Maat or Ma’at, which means “truth,” in Egyptian. She helped balance the universe, end chaos and manage both humans and gods. Maat not only had a great role in creating harmony for the universe, but also had a significant one in the afterlife—weighing hearts, often against feathers; thus deciding the fate of both the virtuous and sinners. The ancients believed that a human being’s heart is weighed against the Feather of Ma’at (a representation of truth and virtue) to decide whether the person was virtuous or not. Drawings show her holding a scepter in one hand, which is the symbol of power in ancient Egypt, while holding an ankh (the key of life) in the other hand.
Isis, the goddess of children and protector of the dead, played a great role in preserving the throne from her vicious brother, Set. According to mythology, Set, also known as Seth, god of storms and the desert, killed his brother Osiris to take over the throne. Isis then collected her husband’s body parts in order to have a son with him. Horus, son of Isis and Osiris, later becomes Set’s competitor and saves the throne from him. She was known as “more powerful than a thousand soldiers,” and is mostly represented as a woman wearing a “throne” over her head, representing the one she helped save. She remained a strong object of worship in the Roman Empire and continues to be venerated by modern-day Pagans.
Queen Tiye, wife of Amenhotep III, mother of Akhenaten, and grandmother of king Tutankhamun; these are three of the greatest men in ancient Egyptian history. Although her name isn’t as known as it should be, she was one of the most prominent women in ancient history. According to historians, Tiye was a great adviser to her husband and son, and had a significant influence in her husband’s court.
Queen Nefertiti, wife of King Akhenaten and partner in his religious revolution. Akhenaten was known for his revolution against ancient Egypt’s traditional religions and creating a new monotheistic religion by worshiping the one God, Aten. According to historians, Nefertiti had both supported and stood behind her husband in cementing his newfound religion. In partnership with him, they had the most prosperous rule in the history of ancient Egypt.
Queen Nefertari, wife of Ramesses the Great, is one of the most well-known queens in ancient Egypt. She was well educated and able to read and write hieroglyphs, a skill that set her apart at the time of her husband’s reign and helped her become a great diplomat. Ramsses built her a stunning tomb in the Valley of the Queens. It still stands and is visited by many admiring eyes up to this day.
Although her reign lasted for only around three years, of which not much is known, Nitocris is believed to be the bravest woman of her time and the last pharaoh of the sixth dynasty. According to Herodotus, as a revenge for her brother’s murder, she killed hundreds of the men who killed him. It’s believed that she avenged her brother, the king, by inviting the murderers to a big reception or a festivity, after which she then opened the Nile’s flood gates and left them all to drown. In order to escape the punishment, she killed herself. This tragic yet powerful story is an indication of the agency women had at the time, taking fate in their own hands, executing vengeance and creating civilizations.


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Gosh, gee, golly. It's me. Writing a blog. Why am I writing? Probably because I keep telling clients they should write and I am REALLY trying hard to listen to my own advice. So there we go. Here's a blog, a place where I can write more than 4 sentences under the assumption people MAY read more. And if they don't, it's ok. It's kinda cathartic to write.
Ok, in all seriousness here are the reasons I tell my clients to write a blog and keep it on their website.
1. It's SUPER easy on squarespace (or tumblr...wherever). It takes very little time at all. And that's what we care about most, right? Time. Wink, wink.
2. It's a place where you can write a lot more info that people are more likely to read. People have incredibly short attention spans and their attention spans are definitely triggered based on where they are reading things. What I mean is, if they are seeing the writing on Instagram, they are less likely to read all your words because Instagram is fundamentally based on images. Catch my drift?
3. It's a nice little storage unit for your thoughts and content. I like to think of a blog as a journal where someone can pick it up and read one entry or read the entire thing - which would be pretty amazing right. What a treat!
4. IT'S CONTENT FOR YOUR INSTAGRAM PAGE - sorry I had to yell that one because I personally like this one the most. There's nothing better than GOOD content for Instagram/Facebook and posting something that has a call to action - like visiting a blog - is the best! Capture them with a compelling topic, then move them with some super solid information they can use!
4. It's cathartic - which is kinda what you need when you are doing business by yourself. It can be overwhelming and uninspiring so...relieve yourself of some tension and inspire yourself!
Full discloser, I am REALLY gonna try to not overthink these blog posts so there may be spelling and grammar errors. That used to stop me from writing cause I feared everyone would judge me, but I'm over that now. Judge away. I'm working for myself. A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.


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2. Decide whether you want to filter the list in place or you want to copy to another location.
2.1 In case, you filter the list in place, duplicate rows will be hidden.
2.2. Recommended method is to copy to another location. If you choose this, Copy to: box gets enabled.
Limitation - You can copy only that column which you selected. You will have to leave out all other columns. And that is the advantage of step 2.1 as here all columns are preserved and then you can manually copy and paste the unique records by selecting the results.
3. In List Range: box, put the range for column A only. By default, it takes both column A and adjacent columns data. Hence, you may choose $A$1:$A20 in case of my example, or you can give even $A:$A also.
4. Check Unique Records Only box and press OK.
Follow the steps given in section A1.1.1. The only change is that your List Range: box now includes both columns.
Follow the steps given in section A1.1.1. The only change is that your List Range: box now includes all 3 columns.
Discretion Advised - This deletes your non unique values. Hence, discretion advised. Also, in case of duplicates, it keeps the first value and deletes remaining values.
2. Data Tab> Remove Duplicates > Uncheck column B & C and press OK.
Another quick and handy way to generate the list is to use Pivot Table. I consider this method to be superior to any other manual method as every other manual method, you will need to do every time data is changed. But, in case of Pivot Table, you just need to refresh it if the Pivot Table is setup for entire column not only for data range.
Limitation - Only that column will be displayed which is criteria. Hence, if column A is criterion, you can't display other columns.
1. Select all columns A, B & C.
3. Drag column A header (in this case Name) to Rows Area.
4. Remove blanks in Pivot Table by applying filter on column 1 header i.e Name here.
5. Filter on this colour and copy and paste the unique list in some other place.
2. Apply filter on Column D = "YES"
For below formula to work, you will need to give exact range. Hence, formula way can't be applied for the range which is extending beyond your data range otherwise it will bring blanks after your data range. Blanks is something which I have promised to handle in a different article.
My value addition has been to convert this array formula to non-array version (and enclose in IFERROR block).
To extract columns B and C, put following formulas in F2 and G2 and drag down.
Here, you will have to use two helper columns.
Next helper column will generate a unique list of first helper column. Hence, below is the formula as in C1.
MS Query is an important tool when the operation is repetitive and needs to be executed by end users. It eliminates the need for other approaches. What an user needs to do is to just run the query and he gets the output. Also, this works on closed file thus eliminating the need for opening the file, a first rate advantage.
3. In the next screen, select the Excel File where data is hosted and named range has been created.
9. In the next screen which is Choose Data Source > Queries tab > Select the Saved query and run.
I don't have Power Pivot on my Laptop as this has to be purchased for MS Office 2013 whereas it was free for MS Office 2010. Hence, I am not an expert here. But since this is a method which should be included as part of this article, hence I am including. The maximum I am able to do is to point towards the Microsoft link which talks about this by using DAX function.
Note - Various options of above Macros / VBA are possible. It all depends upon individual needs and requirements.


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4 HDMI Input Port and 1 HDMI Output Port for HDMI Receiver and HDMI Switcher (With 3D Pass Through).
One Key Switch Function Between HDMI Receiver and HDMI Switcher.
Built-In USB and SD Audio.
2 MIC Input, Treble and Bass of MIC Adjustable, Independent MIC Volume Control.
Over Current Protection, Short Circuit Protection And Over Voltage Protection.
Power Output: 300W for L,R Channel (4 Ohm) 50W for Center, Surround L and Surround R(4 Ohm) ,side Surround L and side Surround R(4 Ohm).
Inout Selector: 4 in 1 out HDMI Selector, 3 Stereo RCA Selector, 1AM/FM Radio, 1 USB/SD, 2 Microphone Input.
Output: 7 Channel Speaker Output Terminal for L, R, Center, SL, SR,RR,RL And 1 line Out for Subwoofer.


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You may be watching this series already but if not, try to catch it this evening - It began on our PBS station Sunday evening at 8 p.m. and there is an episode every night this week. I've linked the title of this post to the PBS website that will give you more information.
The series is aptly titled "National Parks - America's Best Idea," and is true Ken Burns genius. A must see!
We've been enjoying it the last two nights. One of the surprise elements that I found, and it really seems to be intentional on the part of the filmmaker, is that the desire to commercialize/monetize the nation's natural wonders and natural resources is always there. It was there 150 years ago and it is still there today, constantly eroding nature, constantly requiring vigilance and opposition from those who care about nature.
I'm not sure if that is heartening or disheartening! But I have no doubt that Ken Burns intended for viewers to notice it.
I think that's the exact purpose Ken Burns wanted to get across to everyone. Wake up America, we need to be diligent in preventing the consuming need for the all mighty dollar from destroying what we can truly and proudly call our own.
I loved the second episode. This is the first time I've seen a program that really delved into and celebrated President Teddy's foresight for protecting nature. What a great confluence....... Teddy and John. Thank you Lord!

industry_corpus2: Film & Entertainment


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We are a group of people who are lifelong punters (of course, only since 18 years of age) who have got together to give our time for free and in some cases our money to support this educational and campaigning work. At present ‘Justice for Punters‘ has no income at all, except for what we have personally provided.
Until the last decade all of us were quite happy with our gambling ‘lot’; be it, a hobby at the weekend or to be taken a little more seriously, i.e. an often vain attempt of making a profit (a couple of us did though).
From the mid ‘naughties’ onward this has all changed, primarily because off-course bookmakers now have a policy of ‘lose or restrict’, i.e. they will encourage and accept all bets on areas of gambling where you cannot win (online casinos & fixed odds betting terminals), but on sports betting, where study and hard work may give you a 1% chance of winning they will restrict and close accounts very, very quickly: Sometimes within 3-5 bets. Quite simply; they no longer accept winners, however small, unless you have a ‘convenience’ relationship with them, for whatever reason.
Our group would never have bothered with this website if we had received full support from regulators or others in powerful places when we came across injustices. The fact is, despite a number of organisations who have been appointed to support punters, there is little a punter can do if a bookmaker uses unfair terms and conditions to commit an injustice or deny a service. There is more about these injustices in other areas of the website.
Over the last couple of years we have told, both industry bodies and regulators, that unless we get changes in the way punters (consumers) are treated, that we are not going away. They perhaps didn’t believe us, but we’re not. Punters are arguably the most abused consumers in modern society and to be fair most people do not care, but we do, and importantly so should the regulators and all public representatives.

industry_corpus2: Gaming


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If this knife can be had for around $50 it would be a little more appealing just based off the fact of the steel used and the handle material though don't let that steer you away from this knife. Overall it is a great knife but little features are holding it down. Let me contribute to that claim by saying the cutout in the handle for a seatbelt or very small rope has not worked for me the way it's designed or intended for. The handle feel is great along with the jimping on the spine of the blade. makes for great push cuts. The pocket clip functions and works great though over time can wear where it is inserted into the handle and it will slide side to side. Not enough to come out but enough to get on your nerves. Had SOG used a better blade steel, the previous mentioned problems wouldn't bother me as bad. Nothing wrong with AUS8 but I generally prefer better edge retention. The blade shape is great and very useful and the model I had, the coating held up pretty well. I'm not exactly a fan of the lock design on this knife but it does work. I believe between the lock, pivot, and handle material causes the blade to have noticeable movement up and down and also side to side. The assist on this knife is also something else that I could do without but that's just my preference. It hasn't failed me yet though. If you can find this knife for under $55, I can recommend it. Anything above that I say look else where.
My Knife came razor sharp with a tight blade. I've had it over a year and it's still rock solid with zero play in the blade. I've never had an issue with it "locking" closed in my pocket. And it clips into my pocket easy and comes out even easier. SOG knives are well made and with top quality materials. It's true these Trident folders do not have a liner inside the GRN handle. But now that it's been my EDC for over a year and is still like new for solidity I say not having metal liners isn't a drawback. It just makes the knife extremely lightweight! Buy one from Knife Centre. You won't regret it!
I carried mine for a few years for personal protection and general use. It's very light, and the blade came very sharp. Unlike some other reviews, my blade has no play at all. It opens easily and locks securely. One handed closing is also no problem. The knife is very light though, and although I trust it for self defense and cutting steaks at a BBQ, I haven't employed it for any heavy duty work. The clip allows the knife to sit deep in my pocket, making it fairly discreet to carry, but this also means the knife takes a little longer to draw. The only problem I've had is that the safety catch sometimes slips to the locked position while in my pocket, negating the speed of the assisted opening. Imagine having to fumble for the safety when trying to draw in a hurry... All in all though, I love this knife!
Hey, I wanted to share "SOG Trident Folding Knife Assisted 3.75 inch Tigerstripe Combo Blade, Black GRN Handles" with you from KnifeCenter.

industry_corpus2: Manufacturing


text:
I love giving advice. I write blogs, articles and a newsletter. I host a radio show. I tweet, Facebook and share nuggets of advice almost daily. So what is it in all of that, that would make anyone think they can still have the right to "pick my brain"?
I can't tell you how flattering it is to be approached by representatives from major companies seeking my wisdom and advice. It shows they are listening, and like what I have to say.
But often I find the road ends when they are just on a fact finding mission. That mission is to pick my brain to gather as much free intel and knowledge they need to make their jobs easier.
Not gonna happen, sorry. My brain costs money to maintain. There's training, classes to attend, reading (I have to buy books), gaining certifications, costs of memberships so I can network, attending conferences and mastering my skills that all cost me money.
I have to protect my investment. How fair is it to me to give away all the knowledge I have acquired that I use to make my living, pay my bills and eat?
Now, don't get offended. If you do, maybe you deserve to be offended because you're one of those aforementioned brain pickers.
There have been many articles written and discussions formed around this very subject. With the Internet being so widely available loaded with free information, people automatically assume that you too have to provide information for free.
My response to that is go ahead and read the free stuff. But when you still find yourself lacking answers, then apparently the FREE stuff doesn't work. You can't come to a professional and ask them to work for free. In essence, that is what you're doing when you ask to pick someone's brain.
How would you feel if your boss came to you and said, Hey since we can get this done from information from the Internet, I won't be paying you today. Go ahead, let it sink in. Got that visual yet? Good. That's exactly how I feel whenever someone wants to take me to lunch or call me to pick my brain.
If you're like (how I used to be) you've given away tons of valuable information. I never once minded helping people out. It's the ones who keep coming back for more freebies and those who take my ideas, implement them, find success, then never offer to repay me for my time.
And no, a turkey sandwich is not payment for something that helped you overcome an obstacle and either created value or additional revenue for your company. I charge my paying clients very good money for my expertise and results. How would they feel to know that I'm giving out free advice? Not too swell I would imagine. In fact I hope they don't call me demanding refunds!
The most prevalent question I get is how do you draw the line? Deciding the point where you begin to charge is tough, especially if you're just starting out.
But your knowledge has value. You've invested time and money into learning your craft and it's not fair for people to expect you to give it away for free. Even friends need to understand there are boundaries.
For example I will no longer advise my friends or family for free. (Wow, I just made some people mad....they'll get over it!). I have businesses to run, employees to pay, a mortgage to pay, an office rent to pay, college tuition, etc, etc, etc.
I've told this to friends who have promptly replied, "Me too, you know I don't have much money". SO WHAT. That means you either have to delay your plans or come up with the money to fund your dreams. Period. Giving away information is the quickest way to end up evicted or foreclosed on. Put that in proper perspective for a moment.
Believe that what you know is valuable. If it wasn't then why are they coming to you? You're their chance to solve a problem or find a solution. That has value. Charge for it.
Create a fee schedule. Whenever someone wants to pick your brain, make sure you have your fee schedule in front of you. Give them a quote for how much it will cost them. They'll either pay it or move on. If they move on, good riddance. They weren't interested in paying you anyway. Let them figure it out on their own.
Decline lunch/coffee invitations unless they are strictly non-business. If the conversation swings around to business, quickly and politely tell them you're off the clock. If they are interested in a consult they can book an appointment and let them know what the charge is for that.
Keep it light. Some of you will probably cave and throw a few nuggets out there. If you do (I hope you don't), keep it general. Give the why and what but never the how. Anything beyond the why and what comes with a charge. And don't even point them in the direction to obtain the how. That's short changing yourself.
Prominently post that there are no freebies. OK not in those words. But if you have a blog or website, and even on your social media profiles, make sure you mention that consultations are available at a fee.
Exchange for equal value. This puts you in an advantageous bargaining position. If someone requests free information or help, you must feel comfortable in asking for an in kind value service. Assess what they have that can be of equal benefit for you. If they are genuine, they should have no problem in an even exchange of knowledge. Only you will know if what they have is equal to what you're giving.
Refer them to your "free" resources. If you write a blog, have published articles, have archived videos or podcasts or have a show in which you dispense advice, refer them to that information. Explain that those are the only free information sources you offer. Anything specific or beyond what's readily available has a cost.
Don't be afraid to send them to Google. You can recommend they go to Google, or any other search engine or to sites that have articles or information about what they need advice on. You can also recommend a book or magazine that might be helpful. Let them expend that energy they would have used in meeting you at Starbucks and hit the search engines to find their answers. Problem is, they'll be overwhelmed with varying degrees of information. Not fun for them, but when they're ready to put it in proper perspective and implement, they can come to you...for a consult...a paid consult.
Ask them for a paying referral. If they truly want your expertise, they have to be willing to help you out too. It's kind of like the Equal Exchange point I made above crossed with paying it forward. Before you dispense any advice, ask them to provide you with referrals to others who most certainly need (and can afford) your service.
Don't back down. I know it's hard to say "no" sometimes. But you can't back down. People will know how far they can bend or push you. Stand firm, set your boundaries and guard your treasures (your brain and the know how in it). The minute you compromise you devalue yourself and your expertise.
Most people are afraid to draw the hard lines in the sand for fear of angering a friend or losing a potential client or opportunity. Trust me, if they will walk away because they cannot get a freebie, they weren't meant to be a client and there was no real opportunity in it for you.
Many in the marketing circles will tell you the freebie give away is vital. But it doesn't always lead to a sale. Likewise giving away what you would do in a given situation during an interview will not necessarily lead to you being hired. It's up to you to determine what you're willing to give away and how much of it. Know your worth, understand your value. Stop being taken advantage of. No more freebies.
No, you can't pick my brain!


text:
Are you a home owner? Would you like to share your slice of paradise?
If you own a beautiful property on Bonaire and would like to share your home with visitors, we would love to work with you!
Working with Island Time Vacation Rentals will make letting your property in paradise easy. Let us take care of everything from listing your property, making reservations, welcoming guests and providing concierge service! All you have to do is provide the space.
We are open to homes in all areas of the island. Let’s share our paradise!

industry_corpus2: Travel & Geography


text: Taking back our children! Engo Family Care Street Child Project currently has 48 children in their care. They receive hot, balanced meals, clothes, blankets and stationery. There is a 100% successful return into the school system. As seen here, they connect with a father figure at the centre. He offers emotional support and life skills training.They are then placed with a host family.


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PES visited Armourgeddon Tanks to collect scanned data of an M8 Armoured Car as used by Brad Pitt in the 2014 blockbuster movie "Fury". The armoured vehicle is one of many popular historic war exhibitions situated in the museum and for that reason many visitors have requested to buy a scaled down model of the vehicle seen or driven at this unique facility.
Utilising the Leica AT960 and T-Scan 5, PES were able to collect over 210,000 points per second at an accuracy of 0.1mm. Using reference drift nests and an SMR the laser tracker could be moved to positions around the vehicle allowing all areas to be covered in the scan. Once all scanning was complete, a polygonal model was created from the resultant point cloud data.


text:
Call Guatemala for just 8.5¢/min!
Get the mobile country codes for calling Guatemala from Mauritania.
We hope Country Calling Codes has been of help to you in finding the Guatemalan calling code for your international call from Mauritania to Guatemala. Why not bookmark this page and tell a friend about this site for the next time they need to lookup an area code or international dialing code.


text:
U.S. Aerospace is a Federal Aviation Agency (FAA) Certified 145 Repair Station with extensive experience in the testing, repair and overhaul of flight recording equipment, including flight data recorders, cockpit voice recorders, and control units. Our Flight Recording Department provides end-to-end services for diagnostic testing, repair, and overhaul of flight recording equipment, including products manufactured by Honeywell/Sundstrand, L3 Communications/Fairchild, and Teledyne.
Because the safety of our customers, and their customers alike, is our #1 priority, we consider our our work on flight recording equipment to be one of the most important, mission-critical services we provide. Our highly qualified and experienced Flight Recorder Technicians have received extensive training.
For personal assistance with your flight recorder maintenance and repair needs, call us at 731-645-9988 or use our convenient online RFQ form.

industry_corpus2: Aerospace


text:
Earth Alive Clean Technologies Inc. (CSE:EAC)(CSE:EAC.CN)(CNSX:EAC) ("Earth Alive" or the "Corporation") is pleased to announce that it has entered into a subscription agreement with Investissements Influx Anse Inc. (the "Investor") pursuant to which the Investor acquired from Earth Alive, in a first tranche investment on a private placement basis, secured convertible debentures (the "Debentures") in the principal amount of $500,000 and warrants (the "Warrants") to acquire up to 1,924,787 common shares of the Corporation, subject to adjustment in certain events. The subscription agreement also provides for a second tranche investment by the Investor pursuant to which, subject to various conditions precedent including, among others, (a) a satisfactory update on Earth Alive's recovery plan, and (b) the subscription by other qualified investors for Debentures of Earth Alive in an aggregate principal amount of $1,500,000 on or before October 31, 2017, the Investor would purchase additional Debentures in a principal amount of up to $1,000,000 and additional Warrants to acquire up to 3,625,409 common shares, subject to adjustments to be made in accordance with applicable anti-dilution provisions, during the period commencing on March 1 through March 31, 2018.
The Debentures bear interest at a rate of 15% per annum, which will be payable, together with the principal, on the maturity date of October 11, 2019, subject to earlier optional conversion, in whole or in part. The Investor will have the right to convert, in whole or in part and at any time, the principal amount of the Debentures and accrued and unpaid interest thereon into common shares of the Corporation at a conversion price equal to $0.35, subject to adjustments to be made in accordance with applicable anti-dilution provisions. The Warrants have an exercise price of $0.25, subject to adjustments to be made in accordance with applicable anti-dilution provisions, for a term of five (5) years. Moreover, in lieu of exercising the Warrants for cash, they may be, in whole or in part, exercised by means of a "cashless exercise".
All Debentures to be issued under the aggregate $3M offering will be secured by way of a hypothec on all of the Corporation's intellectual property assets and will rank pari passu with the then outstanding Debentures, which hypothec will be removed earlier upon the Corporation completing a third party financing in the amount of $3M.
As part of the offering, Michel Ringuet and Benoit La Salle, directors of the Corporation, as well as Investissement Influx Anse Inc., together representing approximately 24.71% of the issued and outstanding common shares, have agreed to enter into lock-up agreements restricting their ability to transfer their common shares and other securities convertible, exerciseable or exchangeable into common shares of the Corporation until the date that is 12 months following the date hereof.
The Investor, an insider of the Corporation, currently owns 21,228,572 common shares, representing approximately 19.18% of the outstanding common shares of the Corporation. Pursuant to the initial investment of $500,000 aggregate principal amount of Debentures and assuming the immediate conversion of the Debentures into 1,428,571 common shares and the exercise of the Warrants to acquire 1,924,787 common shares, the Investor would hold 24,581,930 common shares, representing 21.56% of the then outstanding common shares on a partially diluted basis. The Investor entered into the transaction for investment purposes. Depending on market and other conditions, the Investor may from time to time in the future increase or decrease its ownership, control or direction over the shares or other securities of the Corporation, through market acquisitions, private agreements, public offerings or otherwise. However, the Investor has no pre-determined intention with respect to any of the foregoing, other than as described herein. A copy of the Investor's related early warning report will be filed with the applicable securities commissions and will be made available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com, a copy of which may be obtained by contacting Catherine Vu, Secretary-Treasurer, Investissements Influx Anse Inc., at (514) 723-7646 x8184.
Pursuant to Regulation 61-101 Respecting protection of minority security holders in special transactions, this investment constitutes a "related party transaction"; however, the Corporation is exempt from obtaining minority shareholder approval and a formal valuation as the fair market value of the consideration for the transaction, insofar as it involves interested parties, does not exceed 25% of Earth Alive's market capitalization. As the participation of the Investor was not finalized 21 days prior to the completion of this first tranche, it was not possible to publicly disclose the extent of the related party participation in such delay.
Any and all securities issued pursuant to the proposed investment will be subject to a statutory hold period of four months and one day from the date of issuance.
The Corporation intends to use the proceeds from the proposed investment for working capital purposes and to continue operations.
For additional company information, please visit: www.earthalivect.com.

industry_corpus2: Technology & Research


text:
After using SMA’s Sunny Portal and Sunny Places web sites to monitor some central inverter PV systems I realized that I wanted more detailed information about system performance than these sites provided.
Specifically, I wanted to know how the individual PV strings in a system were performing so I could get a better idea of the effects of orientation, shading, and other issues. As a result I wrote two custom C# Windows applications to collect data and provide a graphical display of the DC power, current, voltage, and energy production of the individual trackers in the Sunny Boy TL series of inverters, although certain other inverter series should also be compatible.
The first application collects data from all inverters in the system via their Modbus TCP servers every 5 minutes and stores it in daily “history” files on the computer. The second application graphically displays data from these files for the selected day. For the most thorough results I run the data collection application 24/7, but in reality running it only during daylight hours would be sufficient. Since the graphical display application is not involved in data collection I only run it when I wish to view previously collected data. Examples of the graphical displays are provided below.
If anyone is interested in using my applications I have no problem in sharing them free just for the fame and glory it will bring me 😉 Please write an email to SocialMedia@SMA.de and I will get back to you.
I’m always interested in enhancing and improving what I’ve done. So in case anyone has any requests for different inverter information monitoring, please let me know. I’m looking forward to your feedback and questions in the comment section.
You will find more information on SMA Developer.
Interesting options open up with modbus interface now being available.
Problem with SMA’s monitoring architecture is that it seems patchy, not everything works with all devices.
Example for instance is MAC OSX users do not have an option to set parameters in SMA devices like you can do with explorer or webbox. Now that the support foe webbed is gone, mac OS X users are left a bit in limbo. The only way to use explorer is to install a windows version in virtualbox ( free software from Oracle), and use a usb bt adapter.
I digress, with the new monitoring via modes, it would be nice if the homemanager box could act as mobus proxy/gateway for all installed SMA devices. That way devices with BT communication (no speedwire ) could be monitored too.
I think I should be able to assist you. I have sent a Facebook message to someone of your name living in Edinburgh.
I am only up the road so I am sure we can sort something fairly quickly.
in your reply to Peter, were you indicating that the Sunny Home Manager could be used as a Modbus proxy to access older Bluetooth inverters?
No – I have seen that line of reasoning elsewhere but to the best of my limited knowledge that is not an option. Having said that I dare say someone will correct me!!
What I was offering was help in setting up a raspberry pi to interrogate an inverter using the modbus protocol.
This is something I have recently achieved myself and found it very useful.
I have a sunny island and a sunny boy. And my biggest frustration was that I couldn’t operate the SI 8.0 remotely as if I was at the control panel. Fortunately I discovered the modbus interface and that has largely changed.
Thanks to raspberry pi and an rudimentary understanding of python I can now monitor the state of charge (SOC) of my battery bank and top it up at night with grid power (cheapest grid rate) and maintain a minimum SOC during the day – if the forecast or demand was not as expected. What I would like to do is recharge the batteries at a set rate irrespective of consumption, that way I can put on the dishwasher, tumble dryer and washing machine overnight and still be guaranteed that my batteries would be full in the morning. The problem I am having is to determine the correct modbus address that will return the real time consumption ? Any ideas?
P.S The other good thing about monitoring the SI is that I can now control the battery room fan and raise alerts without relying on the limited number of internal multifunction relays.
Sorry for my earlier posting. I just realised you probably don’t have access to a Sunny Island. In which case my questions would be somewhat unrealistic to answer – my bad.
As you have kindly stuck your head above the parapet, you may well get loads of questions fired at you like mine. Please keep my details on file and if you think I might be able to assist others then feel free to refer them. I suspect we might generate sufficient traffic for our own forum!
Thanks for your comment. Do you have a SMA Energy Meter, to meter the energy consumption?
I also have a Sunny Island and have been struggling to find the real time consumption – did you manage to get anywhere with this?
The short answer is yes and without it i wouldn’t get those lovely graphs in sunnyportal.
If I could get access to that data I would be able to drill down on mains consumption. Which should be interesting as I use each phase (l1,l2 and l3) for different purposes as I only have one phase to the house.
I have requested via the developer team that the data should be in in modbus format too. As there appears to be a demand from owners to get access.
However if you are referring to my question to Ray regarding consumption I was in fact referring to energy consumed from the battery bank. Which equates to domestic load..
Have you been able to communicate with the Sunny Island? We are also experiencing problems to write to the Sunny Island registers using modbus.

industry_corpus2: Power & Energy


text:
Stuck here for at least 30 secs. Should be about 5. This is Disney World on a major holiday.
Spotted in the wild. Is this for the new A-Team movie?
of airport security sunk so low?
There are •snails• on her plate!
And the other one must be old, it has a light crust on the outside.


text:
Confirming rumors and reports, Microsoft announced a new Xbox subscription offering on its latest Inside Xbox livestream. The company is launching a new subscription package on Xbox One that bundles Xbox Live Gold and Xbox Game Pass together. It's called Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and costs $15 USD/month.
This is the full version of Xbox Live Gold, which itself already includes access to free games every month with Games With Gold, in addition to the ability to play games online and access other network features.
Xbox Game Pass is Microsoft's all-you-can-play offering that provides access to a library of more than 100 Xbox One and backward-compatible Xbox 360 titles. Also, many of Microsoft's newest games are immediately available on Game Pass. This was the case for Sea of Thieves and Crackdown 3.
If you already have an existing membership, Microsoft says you'll be able to apply that value to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. The company also notes that you won't be required to upgrade to Game Pass Ultimate if you don't want to; you'll be able to keep your current Xbox Live Gold or Game Pass subscription as-is.
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is available now to a "limited number" of Xbox Insiders. The service is slated to launch in full later this year in all markets where Xbox Game Pass is offered.
In other news, Microsoft announced an all-digital Xbox One S called the Xbox One S All-Digital Edition–here's everything you need to know.


text: Cuttack is the former capital and one of the oldest cities of Orissa. The city is popular throughout the country for its exauisite and delicate filigree works, artistic horn works and the fome and colourful textiles.Places of Interest: · Stone Revetment of Cuttack - The stone revetment is used on the river banks of Cuttack and it is a great engineering marvel of the 11th century A.D. · Barabati Fort - The ruins of a medieval fort has moat and gate and the earthen mound of the nine-storeyed palace on the bank of the river Mahanadi. · Temple of Cuttack Chandi - It is the shrine of the presiding deity of the city. · Quadam-i-Rasool - It is a sacred shrine both for the Hindus and Muslims.


text:
Accelerate your edge system development with the versatile and ultra-reliable VIA VAB-820 Pico-ITX edge computing platform. Powered by a choice of 1.0GHz NXP i.MX 6QuadPlus and 6Quad series Cortex-A9 quad-core SoCs, the platform combines advanced compute and graphics performance with a wealth of I/O and connectivity features in its compact fanless Pico-ITX form factor.
The VIA VAB-820 includes a choice of Android 6.0 and Linux BSPs for rapid system development and integration. It is also Microsoft Azure Certified for IoT and supports Windows 10 IoT Core, as well as being compatible with FogHorn’s Lightning “edge intelligence” software for enterprise and commercial installations.
With its flexible low-power design and myriad hardware and software development, integration, and customization options, the VIA VAB-820 provides the ideal platform for meeting the exacting demands of edge industrial automation, enterprise IoT, and in-vehicle applications.
Powered by a choice of 1.0GHz NXP i.MX 6QuadPlus and 6Quad series quad-core SoCs, the VIA VAB-820 edge platform packs a wealth of I/O and connectivity features into its small Pico-ITX form factor, including two COM ports, one DIO port, two CAN bus ports, three USB 2.0 ports, one HDMI port, one composite RCA jack, one Gigabit Ethernet port, and optional 3G, Wi-Fi, and PoE (Power over Ethernet) support.
The platform also supports a wide operating temperature range from -20°C ~ 70°C (3G & Wi-Fi not included) and extremely low power consumption of a maximum 7W TDP to provide a robust and reliable solution for edge computing and edge intelligence applications in even the most demanding environments.
The VIA VAB-820 includes a choice of Android and Linux BSPs supporting both the NXP i.MX 6QuadPlus and NXP i.MX 6Quad series Cortex-A9 quad-core SoCs.
The Android BSP features Android 6.0 as well as the VIA Smart ETK comprising a number of APIs, including Watchdog Timer (WDT) for safeguarding against system crashes, GPIO access, COM port access, RTC for auto-power on, FlexCAN access, and a sample app.
The Linux BSP includes the modifications and user guide to create a system image including kernel (4.1.15) and bootloader source codes for the NXP i.MX 6QuadPlus SoC and the NXP i.MX 6Quad SoC. Other features include a Tool Chain to help make adjustments to the kernel and to leverage the onboard pin headers, GPIO, I2C, and other hardware features.
The VIA VAB-820 is Microsoft Azure Certified for IoT and supports Windows 10 IoT Core. It is also compatible with FogHorn’s Lightning “edge intelligence” software for enterprise and commercial IoT deployments.
You can enhance the functionality of the VIA VAB-820 with the integration of optional high-speed wireless broadband extender cards and modules. These include the EMIO-5531 USB Wi-Fi + BT Module, the EMIO-1533 USB Wi-Fi Module, the EMIO-2550 miniPCIe 3G HSPA/UMTS Mobile Broadband Module, and the EMIO-2531 miniPCIe Wi-Fi + BT Module.
A full set of hardware and software customization services that speed up time-to-market and minimize development costs is also available.
The VIA VAB-820 edge computing platform is at the heart of the VIA AMOS-820, a ruggedized low-power edge system with flexible I/O and wireless connectivity integration options. Please click here to learn more about this ultra-reliable, high-performance edge computing system.
The has also been optimized to meet the demanding in-vehicle requirements of the VIA AMOS-825 system with advanced features such as wide voltage input, a wide operating temperature range, sophisticated power management, and ignition-controlled quick boot. Please click here to learn more about this robust and highly-customizable in-vehicle solution.
Contact us to learn more about the comprehensive range of services we offer for accelerating the design, development, manufacturing, and deployment of dependable, high-performance Edge Computing and Edge AI systems that meet your specific requirements.