GLOBAL REGULATION: EU rules force more tax transparency on multinationals.

As published on eureporter.co, Wednesday 10 November, 2021.

As of October 2021, Panama is on the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes.

Multinational companies will have to disclose publicly how much tax they pay in each EU country, which will increase scrutiny of their tax practices, Society.

On 11 November MEPs will vote on a provisional agreement with the Council that would oblige companies with an annual revenue of more than €750 million and with operations in more than one country to declare the profits they have made, the corporate income tax paid and the number of employees in each EU country for the previous financial year.

The companies will also have to publish details about their profits, staff and taxes in some non-EU countries, including countries that do not cooperate with the EU on tax matters and those that do not meet all standards but have committed to reform. The EU keeps lists of the jurisdictions in the two categories, which it reviews regularly.

The aim of the new rules is to shed more light on where multinationals pay taxes and make it more difficult for them to avoid paying their fair share.

MEPs have been calling for the introduction of public country-by-country reporting by companies since a number of scandals in the mid-2010s revealed that many multinationals shift profits to countries where they might have few employees and operations, but where they enjoy preferential tax treatment.

In practice this means that multinationals pay less tax at the expense of countries struggling to fund investment or social benefits.

Improved transparency should lead to big companies facing more questions on their approach to paying taxes.

The European Parliament made recommendations in 2015 for rules to oblige companies to disclose profits and taxes per country. The European Commission proposed legislation in 2016, but while Parliament adopted its position in July 2017, progress on the file in the Council of ministers was slow and negotiations between the co-legislators started only in 2021. A provisional agreement was reached in June 2021.

“This result is a great success for the European Parliament, as it was the European Parliament that demanded this and brought it to the table,” said Austrian S&D member Evelyn Regner (S&D, Austria), one of the MEPs negotiating on behalf of Parliament in comments on the provisional deal. She said the rules are important for citizens as they could bring greater tax justice on where taxes are paid.

The new rules will not force multinationals to reveal their profits and taxes in each country across the globe: the companies will still be allowed to disclose aggregate figures for countries that are not EU members and not on the EU lists of non-cooperative countries and of countries that have committed to tax reform. However, Parliament negotiators say the rules may be strengthened further after the Commission carries out a review of the impact of the legislation at least four years after its implementation.

“It is only the start of a journey, not the end... This is a milestone, from this conquered ground we can keep going forward,” said Spanish S&D member Iban García del Blanco, the other MEP who negotiated on behalf of the Parliament.

UK: Britain piles pressure on…


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how the mirror works

The mirrors and its seasons -

If the mirror is placed on the wall or any other spot where they can reach direct sunlight, they will reflect this light into the room.

Imagine not moving your artwork around and the different seasons of the year are coming.

The sunlight will change according to the season by height, depth and color as well. This will result in a different reflection depending on the irradiation angle of the light.

The entire room will be changed by this a few times a year and thus making the mirror a kind of a clock, where the time of the day can be seen by the color reflected from the artwork.

Have a look yourself.

abstrakte kunst


• Maxwell J.

Smile (FANTASTIC) Turns a Grin with Familiar and plodding Supernatural Scares

Title: Smile

First Non-Festival Release: September 28, 2022 (Theatrical Release)

Director: Parker Finn

Writer: Parker Finn

Runtime: 115 Minutes

Starring: Sosie Bacon, Jessie T. Usher, Kyle Gallner

Where to Watch: Check out where to find it here

This film’s review was written after its screening at the Fantastic Film Festival in 2022.

Dr. Rose Cotter (Sosie Bacon) is a workaholic emergency room therapist who is forced to witness her newest patient, Laura (Caitlin Stasey) die by suicide. Moments before, Laura revealed that she has been pursued by an invisible entity that wears the faces of those around her with a terrifying grin. Initially, Rose brushes it off, but as the days pass, she finds herself haunted by the same visions as her former patient. She confides in her fiancé Trevor (Jessie T. Usher) who doesn’t believe her. Her ex-boyfriend Joel (Kyle Gallner), however, is convinced after they discover a horrific pattern of suicides and murders stemming from Laura.

Technically sound, curse-driven Smile falters due to uneven pacing and reliance on tired tropes despite striking imagery.

Curses are typically horror fodder for East Asian horror cinema, especially after the influx of early 2000s films that mined the concept to the point of oversaturation. Smile creates an excellent idea for a curse that taps into primal fears surrounding uncanny facial expressions. Unfortunately, as the terror is unwound, it gets messier and less engaging. Ambiguity is an excellent tool for horror creators to unnerve their audiences, but with the additional access at the disposal of Rose and Joel, it feels silly that they only learned as much as they do.

Much of Smile falls on the back of Sosie Bacon, as Rose is in nearly every scene. Bacon plays Rose with a sensitive and determined approach one might see in an actual therapy session. Through her, Rose is kind, thoughtful, and dedicated to her work. This shines on as she slowly deteriorates to the effects of the curse by the film’s end. Kyle Gallner does an excellent job as usual but is given far less material to develop Joel beyond the caring secondary character archetype.

This works because Smile is all about Rose. Smile uses Rose’s own struggles with guilt to explore how trauma acts like an infection. When each character succumbs to the curse and dies by suicide, the wounds they inflict on those who witness become their own trauma. This cycle of victimization continues until someone decides to break it. Once the third act rolls in, Rose’s horrifying backstory is fully shared, explaining why she is so hellbent on helping others.

Even the concept of the titular smile supports this. In the beginning, there are multiple occasions where Rose puts on a brave face and downplays her own suffering to not upset company or the mood. Despite this, she still finds ways to hurt those around her because she alone cannot control the onslaught of attacks against her. She seeks help and is shot down, as people refuse to believe or listen to her. The unfortunate reality is that when people do finally come around, it is too late, and the cycle continues.

Meandering through its two-hour runtime, Smile could use some purposeful culling to reduce the fat from the narrative. Some of the scare sequences are especially ill-timed within the plot despite each scare being well-produced thanks to great editing and clever filmmaking. There is a serious disconnect between the length and frequency of horrific moments in the film for the type of tension it tries to create. Furthermore, there are plenty of moments of comic relief that feel out of place. The tension isn’t eased with their inclusion, but, instead, erased. For the most part, Smile employs great special effects work. This is especially true for the final reveal, which is among the most haunting visuals of the year.

Its memorable premise and clever marketing campaign disguise a movie that is primarily fine. Smile treads through familiar territory without offering much in the way of plot development and escalating tension. Its egregious pacing issues and inability to add flair to the formulas of J-horror and PG-13 remakes of the early aughts make it a laborious watch. What Smile does achieve, however, is its underlying messages on mental health and presentation to society, which blends seamlessly with the horror of the film. Great camerawork, lighting, editing, and sound design elevate it to the best of the bland. Hopefully, all this information doesn’t deter you from turning up to see a nice Smile at the cinema.

Overall Score? 5.5/10

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Morris Manning & Martin, LLP

California Consumer Privacy Act Expires California Privacy Rights Act’s Employee Data Exception

On January 1, 2023, the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) will be replaced by the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA), which contains various requirements for businesses, including a set of opt-out requirements and controls on sensitive personal information such as precise geolocation, race/ethnicity, government identifiers, and email content. One of the key changes in the CPRA will be the expiration of CCPA’s employee data exception, originally set to expire in 2021 but extended to 2023 to coincide with CPRA’s entry into force.

This means that beginning on January 1, companies subject to the CPRA will need to begin treating the data of their Californian job applicants, consultants, and employees as personal information protected by California law. Even if your company is otherwise prepared for the CCPA with respect to your customer data, you should consider impacts on California employees. Companies should especially consider the following to the extent these issues have not been considered already:

  1. Create and distribute an employee privacy notice calibrated for California law. Employees and job applicants should be provided with a copy of the Company’s privacy policy before their data is first collected. Companies should consider developing a separate privacy policy for employment data as the personal information collected and its uses will vary widely from the uses of customer information.
  2. Ensure that your HR service provider contracts contain critical provisions. Now that employee data is covered by CPRA, you will need to ensure that HR vendor contracts contain the same provisions as other vendor contracts to avoid inadvertently creating a data ‘sale’. Critically, contracts should include appropriate use limitations for the data and a compliant scheme for disposal of the employee data at the end of the vendor’s engagement.
  3. Consider the approach to employee data subject requests. You may need to offer data rights to employees, including the right to access, correct, and delete employee data unless an applicable exception applies. In providing these rights, you will need to carefully balance the requirements of the law against its exceptions and your own corporate legal interests.
  4. Consider implications on insider threat programs, employee surveillance, and other topics: CPRA also introduces new requirements regarding the use of sensitive personal information (such as the requirement to provide an opt-out). Since sensitive personal information can include communications, employee monitoring may also be impacted. You will need to carefully consider whether your business will need to make changes to any automated insider threat detection or employee surveillance programs.

If you have any questions about this update, please contact Michael Young


Get tutored by the creator of Mooramo

As well as making Mooramo, I also tutor Science and Maths in London and online.

To find out more, visit my website,

Introduction to Protons, Neutrons and Electrons

As discussed previously, there are many different kinds of subatomic particles (particles which are smaller than an atom). However, in this course we will only study three kinds: protons, neutrons and electrons. These three types of particle are very important in chemistry because they are the particles that atoms are made of.

Protons are positive, electrons are negative, neutrons are neutral

One of the differences between protons, neutrons and electrons is their charges. Protons are positively charged, electrons are negatively charged and neutrons are neutral. It is easy to remember that neutrons are neutral because the word neutron is very similar to the word neutral. Also, proton and positive both start with the letter p, which helps you to remember that protons are positive. Then you just have to remember that electrons are negative.

Electrons are smaller than protons and neutrons

These subatomic particles also differ in their sizes. Protons and neutrons are about the same size, but electrons are much smaller.

Diagrams of protons, neutrons and electrons

In the diagrams in this course, protons, neutrons and electrons will be represented by circles. A proton will be represented by a circle with a plus sign in it, to show that it is positively charged. A neutron will have the letter n in it to show that it is neutral. Finally, an electron will have a minus sign in it to show that it is negatively charged. Also, the electron will be drawn smaller than the other two particles. Note that the size difference between electrons and the other two particles is actually much greater than what is shown in these diagrams.

Diagram of a proton, neutron and electron. The proton is a red circle with a plus sign on it. The neutron is a grey circle with the letter 'n' on it. The electron is a smaller, blue circle with a minus sign on it.

A proton, a neutron and an electron - the three types of subatomic particle that make up atoms, ions and molecules.

Flashcards help you memorise information quickly. Copy each question onto its own flashcard and then write the answer on the other side. Testing yourself on these regularly will enable you to learn much more quickly than just reading and making notes.

Which three subatomic particles are atoms made of?

What type of charge does each of these particles have (positive, negative or neutral)?

How do the sizes of these particles compare with each other?

Please consider donating to support Mooramo. I am one person doing this whole project on my own - including building the site, writing the content, creating illustrations and making revision resources. By making a one-time or repeating donation you will buy me time to work on Mooramo, meaning that I can get new content on here more quickly.


Carroll Diagrams

Related Topics:
More Lessons for Grade 4 Math
More Lessons on Statistics
Venn Diagrams and Sets

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In these lessons, we will learn how to use Carroll Diagrams. We also have some Carroll Diagram games that involve objects and numbers.

Carroll diagrams are tables that work like Venn diagrams and are used for the purpose of cross-classification. For Carroll diagrams, two attributes are being used for sorting, with one attribute of each characteristic being the focus.

The categories of a Carroll diagram should be mutually exclusive (do not overlap), for example even and not even numbers. In a Carroll Diagram, numbers or objects are either categorized as having an attribute or not having an attribute.

A table is created with four cells to show the four possible combinations of these two attributes. Either the items themselves, or the count of how many items of each type, are put in the cells.

The following diagram shows an example of a Carroll Diagram. Scroll down the page for more examples and solutions on how to use Carroll Diagrams.

Carroll Diagram

Sort the following numbers in the Carroll Diagram provided:
953, 888, 1501, 8000, 201, 2542, 450, 9349

Carroll diagram

Carroll Diagram Example
Using a Carroll Diagram to sort numbers based on divisibility rules.
Which of the following numbers are divisible by 4? by 9?
by 4 and 9? by neither 4 nor 9?
144, 128, 153, 235, 68, 120, 361, 424, 468

Carroll and Venn diagrams
Organize the following numbers: Odd, Even, Multiple of 6, Not multiple of 6 using a Carroll diagram and a Venn diagram.
12, 15, 10, 17

Venn and Carroll Diagrams
Organize the following numbers: Divisible by 3, divisible by 5 using a Venn diagram and a Carroll diagram.
6, 8, 10, 15, 18, 25

Carroll Diagram Games

Sort Shapes using Carroll Diagrams Sort a variety of 2d shapes on a Carroll diagram. Sort by one or two conditions. Sort triangles - scalene, equilateral and isosceles. Sort quadrilaterals, pentagons, hexagons, heptagons and octagons, as well as parallelograms, rhombus, kites and trapeziums. Also sort according to a shapes properties such as acute, obtuse, reflex or right angles and symmetry or whether it is a regular shape. Carroll Diagrams Odd and Even
Develop an understanding of sorting numbers on a Carroll diagram using particular properties as criteria. Numbers are sorted by two conditions. In Level 1 numbers are sorted into odd or even and more or less than either a number up to 10 and in Level 2 up to 99. In levels 3 and 4 sorting numbers up to 99 or 999 respectively is by odd or even and by the place value of particular digits such as 7 tens.
Carroll Diagrams Multiples Sort multiples of selected numbers on the Carroll Diagram. This game will test your times tables knowledge. 2D Shapes Carroll Diagrams Sort 2D shapes on Carroll diagrams. There are four levels of difficulty and sorting is by two variable criteria. Squares are classed as rectangles as they are special case rectangles.

Mathway Calculator Widget


Showing posts with label sports. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sports. Show all posts

Saturday, September 24, 2022

Value Others

Philippians 2:3-4

What would the world look like if we truly valued people?

My granddaughter, Dylan, and her best friend, Emma, have played doubles tennis together for three years. The day I dropped Dylan off for her first practice, she was the only student who showed up. A few days later, more girls joined, and she had recruited Emma to play with her.

In the last three years, I’ve watched these young ladies grow in the game. They’ve improved their serves, thought through their strategies, and learned to slam the ball, when needed. Their prowess on the court has grown from uncertain to confident. And more importantly, they’ve learned to trust each other. They don’t play for themselves or try to steal the limelight. Instead, they encourage each other and value the other one’s skills. I love watching them because they play as a team, dependent on one another. As a matter of fact, their whole team cheers for and champions each other.

What would the church look like if we did that?

Paul wrote his letter to the Philippians to encourage them and to advise on how to live life together as believers. His writing emphasizes the opposite of the ‘me first’ mentality. Instead, he instructed the people of the church of Philippi to humble themselves as Jesus did when He lived life on earth.

Jesus humbled Himself to the point of being a servant to the people He met. He didn’t bang His chest and command attention. Instead, He lifted people up with His words, He washed the feet of the disciples, and He healed the broken and wounded. Jesus, by example, taught how to love other people and placed great value on everyone.

Be a team player and encourage each other.


The effects of an enrichment training program for youth football attackers

The aim of this study was to identify the effects of a complementary training program based on differential learning approach in the physical, technical, creative and positioning performance of youth football attackers. Fifteen players were allocated into the control (U15C = 9, age: 13.9±0.5 years; U17C = 6, age: 16.1±0.7 years) and the experimental (U15E = 9, age: 14.2±0.8 years; U17E = 6, age: 15.8±0.5 years) groups. The experimental groups participated in 10-weeks of a complementary training program based on differential learning approach to improve physical literacy and players’ tactical behaviour. Variables studied encompassed: motor (vertical jump, speed and repeated change-of direction), technical (pass, dribble and shot), creative (fluency, attempts, versatility) and positioning-related variables (stretch index, spatial exploration index and regularity of the lateral and longitudinal movements). Results revealed that U15E improved both the jump and repeated change-of-direction performance, while the U17E have only improved the jump performance. The U15E showed improvements in all technical variables (small to large effects), and in the fluency and versatility (moderate effects), while the U17 have only improved the successful shots (large effects). From a positional perspective, there was a moderate increase in the stretch index, and decreased longitudinal and lateral regularity (small to moderate effects) in the U15E compared to the U15C. In turn, the U17E revealed a moderate increase of the spatial exploration index and a small decrease in the stretch index. Overall, the results suggest that the complementary training program was effective for the development of the overall performance of the U15E attackers, while more time and/or variability may be needed for older age groups. Nevertheless, the overall higher values found in experimental groups, may suggest that this type of complementary training program improves performance.


What Network Is Manifest On

Does Netflix have Manifest?

Manifest is slowly touching down on Netflix around the world with at least 16 new regions of Netflix receiving the show on January 1st, 2022. The show is regaining in the top 10s again thanks to its global rollout onto Netflix. In 2021, Netflix first licensed the show in June 2021 in both the United States and Canada.

Why was Manifest Cancelled?

So why did NBC cancel Manifest ahead of season 4? Looking at Manifest’s ratings and figures, the average audience viewership has dropped from an average of 6.5 million in season 1 to 3.1 million in season 3. Meanwhile, the ratings average in season 1 was 1.25, which fell all the way down to a .

Is Manifest on Amazon Prime?

Watch Manifest: Season 1 | Prime Video.

Has Manifest been removed from Netflix?

Netflix Just Unexpectedly Dropped ‘Manifest’ Season 3 & It’s Already the #1 Show. Netflix just unexpectedly dropped all of season three on the streaming platform—and we never even got a warning. NBC. The latest installment—which we recently learned would be its last—was released on Saturday, August 21.

Is Hulu available in South Africa?

As of now, Hulu is not available anywhere outside the US. But you can easily watch Hulu in South Africa by connecting with the help of a premium VPN service. A virtual private network will help you change your location from South Africa to US that will allow you easy access to Hulu’s content.

Is flight 828 a true story?

The plot of the series starts with the real-life airline mishap. The show later features supernatural elements which make the series exciting. But clearly states that it is not a true story.

Will Manifest have a season 3?

So many unanswered questions. NBC canceled Manifest despite its shocking season 3 finale cliffhanger. Luckily, Netflix saved the day, ordering a fourth and final season, thanks to a new crop of fans desperate to find out what happened to Flight 828.

Does Netflix save Manifest?

I appreciate their passion and being connected to the characters, but the viewing is the thing that saved the show.” Netflix reveals to The Hollywood Reporter that 25 million accounts in the U.S. and Canada watched the show within its first 28 days of streaming.

Will there be a 4th season of Manifest?

Season 4 Of Manifest Will Be On Netflix Despite initially passing on Manifest, Netflix did end up picking up the series for a fourth and final season, announcing it on none other than 828 Day on August 28. Netflix has saved series from cancellations before, including Designated Survivor and Lucifer, both in 2018.

Where can I watch season 1 Manifest?

Currently you are able to watch “Manifest – Season 1” streaming on Netflix, DIRECTV or buy it as download on Apple iTunes, Google Play Movies, Vudu, Amazon Video.

Is Manifest on Amazon Prime free?

Supernatural drama Manifest has returned with the third season with an action-packed drama, shocking revelations, and answers to the show’s biggest mystery: What happened to the passengers of Flight 828? So if you want to binge-watch the show, this is how you can enjoy the show for free on Amazon Prime Video.

Is Manifest on HBO?

Watch Manifest – Stream TV Shows | HBO Max.

How many episodes of Manifest are on Hulu?

As Manifest was an NBC show, it is available on NBCUniversal’s streaming service Peacock, but only the most recent third season. Same goes for Hulu, with its subscribers able to stream the 12-episode, possibly final, season.

Is Manifest on HBO Max?

Watch Manifest – Stream TV Shows | HBO Max.

Is Hulu on DStv?

MultiChoice CEO Calvo Mawela said it makes sense for DStv to become a one-stop-shop where you pay one bill and get access to all streaming content, including Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, and YouTube.

Does ExpressVPN work in South Africa?

ExpressVPN gives you a new IP address in South Africa, Europe, the U.S. or any of 94 countries around the world. Unblock sites and services, uncensor blocked content, and enjoy the internet without limits.

Does MH370 found?

MH370 expert claims to have found exact spot where doomed plane crashed. A British engineer says he is “very confident” he has found the exact spot where MH370 crashed. The missing Malaysian Airlines plane vanished in 2014 with 239 onboard en route to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur.

Did they ever find MH370?

But despite all this, sometimes aircraft do disappear. Although it does not seem that long ago, Malaysia MH370 disappeared on March 8, 2014. Despite air and sea searches of vast stretches of the Indian Ocean, the aircraft and its passengers has never been found.

Is Manifest kid appropriate?

Netflix gave the show a TV-14 rating, which, according to their maturity classifications, means that young ones who are 15 and up can watch the show without parental guidance.

Is Grace dead on Manifest?

Fans saw Grace die after being stabbed by Angelina, but first the mother of three reunited with her now-teenage son, Cal. However, she certainly would not be the first Manifest character to be resurrected. This was part of our story, and her significance in Manifest remains as strong as ever.

Who killed grace in Manifest?

Manifest delivers one shock after another for the Stone family in the final moments of the two-part Season 3 finale. First, 828er Angelina (Holly Taylor) stabs Grace (Athena Karkanis) and kidnaps baby Eden.

Is Manifest coming back in 2022?

A premiere date for Manifest season 4 has not been announced yet, but we do know a few details. For instance, we know for a fact that season 4 will wrap up the entire series. What’s more, the fourth and final installment of the drama will have a total of 20 episodes and will start airing in late 2022.

What happened to the drug dealers in Manifest?

After Pete showed his softer side and let Cal sneak out, everyone chased onto a frozen lake to get him. A rogue bolt of lightning cracked the ice, plunging Cal and the meth dealers into the water.

What is the theory behind Manifest?

A common theory that picked up traction during Manifest season 3 postulates that the passengers are from a parallel universe. This alternative to the resurrection theory suggests that Ben is right about the passengers dying – but wrong about them being brought back from the dead.

Where can you watch season 1 and 2 of Manifest?

Stream Manifest Seasons 1 and 2 on Netflix.


3 Key IT Components to Remember when Refreshing Workstations

3 Key IT Components to Remember when Refreshing Workstations

Andrew Koon, Advanced Business Solutions

When we think about IT, our team’s workstations are not usually the first thing that comes to mind. Yet, they may be one of the most essential components in your IT arsenal. If your team’s workstations are outdated and unhealthy, your business will undoubtedly suffer.

It’s essential to maintain a cycle of preventive maintenance for each of your employee’s workstations. This will allow you to stay technologically relevant and efficient.

Let’s take a look at the three key components to remember when refreshing your team’s workstations.

Cost and efficiency

Ensuring that each aspect of your business is cost effective and efficient is essential for good business performance. However, we often can get caught in the fruitless cycle of trying to save money by not replacing that 5-year-old workstation. This may seem the best choice at the moment, but the reality is that the workstation will break down sooner or later and you will lose time and money having to send out for repair work while putting that worker in a shutdown mode without access to their data and resources.

At Advanced Business Solutions, we recommend maintaining a healthy 3-5 year replacement cycle on workstations. By investing in proactive and regular workstation replacement and refresh, your business will be able to maintain a healthy fleet that will ultimately save you money. For example, that 5-year-old workstation is not equipped to handle the workload of a newer one. As time goes on, all the applications used for work on a daily basis get updated and demand more and more of a computer’s resources. If that computer is not being upgraded to keep up, it will take longer and longer to load and run the applications your workers rely on for their job role. That equates to wasted time for the user and wasted money for the business.

This wasted time adds up. An outdated computer may take a bit longer to start up than it once did. It may have developed little age-related issues leading to minor time-wasting errors. This leads to an average worker making about $16 an hour spending about 15 minutes a day having to deal with those types of issues. Over a 2-year period, that equates to about a $2,000 loss for the business. This calculation does not account for any potentially lost productivity, only the worker’s salary. $2,000 is more than enough for a replacement computer.

Some businesses think that waiting to replace computers until they are starting to have problems, or have completely failed, is a way to get all the value they can out of an expensive piece of hardware. In reality, many times the worker doesn’t have an alternative computer to use, so the business ends up with an employee who can’t do their job until their replacement arrives, which could be several days or weeks! That ultimate cost could be enormous for the business.

Employee Satisfaction

Showcasing that your business values the time and efforts of each employee is vitally important to the success of your business and of your employees. Maintaining a healthy fleet of workstations not only improves worker efficiency and productivity, but it also improves employee satisfaction. Workers today expect access to the right set of tools for their job. They don’t have time to waste dealing with old equipment that is not functioning properly.

Dealing with IT problems can lead to lost time, lost work, missed deadlines, and other stressors. If your employees are dealing with frustrating IT issues on a regular basis due to old and faulty equipment, it can lead to overall job dissatisfaction. That may be the catalyst that leads them to seek a new employer.

In today’s competitive job market, attracting and keeping quality candidates is more challenging than ever. You must give your team the best tools available to win at their jobs. This shows that you value and appreciate the work they do.

Proactivity vs. Reactivity

Being proactive is sometimes easier said than done. One of the areas in businesses that most often are forgotten or put at the bottom of the preventive maintenance list is the physical aspects of your office and workstations. These essential aspects of computers, phones, printers, and more are often overlooked or only quick fixes are made to try and “save time”. Yet, when we schedule the time to be proactive around our physical IT needs we can save immeasurable time and money for our business.

Maintaining a healthy, proactive refresh cycle is simpler and less disruptive than reactively replacing computers as they fail. Handling workstation replacements in a reactive way requires more involvement from the business leadership and the affected users because a plan has to be formed on the fly each time. It’s always easier to prevent a business issue before it occurs than dealing with the consequences after the fact.

When we think ahead, and work to prevent failures and bolster issues, downtime is avoided and team morale boosted. And, ultimately, our team is reassured of the value of their work when time and effort is preemptively invested in maintenance and improvements. So don’t wait until your workstations become obsolete to refresh them. Take the proactive steps to ensure the quality and efficiency of your business’ work and establish a workstation refreshment plan. Let ABS help you structure a strategic plan. Contact us today.


This online workshop is right for:

Grandparents, family members, or friends that start to use the app or just downloaded it and want to learn how to use it.

What is Peekabond

Peekabond is a child-friendly video messaging app that lets families connect across time and space. It offers daily playful prompts in the form of activity cards.

Why join this workshop?

- You'll learn how to log in and use the app.

- You'll get a general overview of Peekabond.

- You'll get some ideas and an overview of the activity cards you can use with your little ones.

- We will teach you how to add family members and start to interact with them.

- You'll get all your answers and doubts answered.

Peekabond helps global families build meaningful releationships with young children at a distance. Anieke Lamers is the founder&CEO of Peekabond.

About Stanya Pektova, User Researcher and Designer

Stanya is Peekabond's newest user researcher. She firmly believes in and works toward creating ethical and effective design solutions that help people achieve their goals. She uses empathy and creativity to achieve these objectives.

Stanya joined the Peekabond team because she experienced first-hand the difficulty of bonding with a young child from a distance and also having to overcome a language barrier at the same time. She wants to help other aunties like her or any family member build a loving bond with a little one from a distance.

About Kendra Mijatov

Kendra is our Virtual Assistant. She assists the founders in all types of administrative tasks including: Day to day operations, marketing research, and social media post creation and uploading.

Kendra joined Peekabond because loves the idea of reconnecting with families around the world. as an expat living abroad, she knows the importance of keeping the bond with loved ones while being far away.


RFPs For Dummies: Further Efficiencies Are Possible

Having designed, managed and worked with hundreds of requests for proposals over the years, I have some ideas, based on painful experiences, that suggest more efficiencies are within reach. [more]

Common Data

Most supplier RFPs, especially those for travel management services and airlines, request common, nonconfidential information that can be answered with a couple of keystrokes by each bidder. Examples include the number of operational locations, employees, management by categories, global distribution systems used, back-office systems, aircraft per route and airline Quality of Service Indices. This information is readily available but costly and time-consuming to develop prior to issuing the RFP.

While the concept is not a new one, a common website containing all this data and updated regularly would enhance efficiencies for everyone. I would volunteer to develop and manage such a site. The costs would be minimal compared to those currently incurred by all parties dealing separately with those issues. It is possible that suppliers already are maintaining the beginnings of such a database when keeping tabs on their competitors. Now would be an excellent time to make it readily available.

Organizational Structure

With the aforementioned common data available at a website, prequalification specifications could be used early to rule out questionable or unqualified suppliers. Other location-specific or confidential information, including sales volumes, bank references and available employees for an on-site or off-site service structure, can be addressed in the RFP. Procurement departments usually have a set of minimum specifications that apply across the board for suppliers, and these are useful.

Bids should be required to follow a set sequence, including:

1. A summary of the buyer's business and travel needs, recent volumes, current trends and overall objectives. Buyers cannot assume bidders have much knowledge of those topics, especially the buyer's travel profile and technologies in place. Information on upcoming corporate mergers or sell-offs is particularly important to avoid later surprises.
2. The configuration desired or required. Suppliers should have leeway to innovate if they have a better idea.
3. A standard set of questions that will help evaluate the aspects most important to the buyer. As brevity is key, many questions should require only "yes" or "no" responses.
4. Financial proposals that follow a specific format, using templates included in the RFP appendices. This will allow an apples-to-apples comparison.
5. Mandatory minimum contractual clauses, also included as an appendix. Attaching a full contract can be useful but not really critical, since both sides need some flexibility in negotiations.

Nothing to reviewers is more frustrating than a lack of clear organization. Failure to include page numbers is an unnecessary irritant.

Benchmarking And Confidentiality

RFPs strictly state that confidentiality of company data is required, and bids do too. Does that extend to non-employees or consultants accessing bid pricing? Suppliers usually accept that but may want separate nondisclosure agreements. Actual compliance is difficult to achieve or prove. Also, prohibit use of agreed pricing in your contract for any other bidding. This can fall inside a carefully constructed confidentiality clause in the contract itself.

Aggregating pricing seems to be outside specific NDA language, but this needs to be addressed.

Using Consultants

Third-party consultants, if not conflicted by working directly or indirectly for suppliers, can be valuable due to their exposure to a multitude of bids and analytical techniques. They also can help validate the process with senior management. Cost always is an issue, but to an extent you get what you pay for, so bottom-fishing consultants may be a problem.

Service-Level Agreements

Service-level agreements are critical for agency relationships as well as technology and card programs. Airlines feel they are too hard to manage, but I disagree. Air service and on-time performance can be measured and rewarded or penalized just like agency satisfaction levels and other factors. The weights and dollar impact should be left for negotiation, but bidders can be required to offer their view of what is a fair scale, metrics and suggestions on when to evaluate. During implementation and possibly for the first year, SLAs may not be worth the trouble, although a successful implementation itself can be a year-one factor for reward or penalty.

One initial SLA issue is whether to include positive and negative clauses, or only negative. Some buyers believe only in negative scales, since they are paying for excellence in the basic fees. Others believe positive clauses motivate better results especially for travel management companies that set aside part of dedicated counselors' bonuses. People work harder for more money; it's that simple. SLAs need to be recalibrated in most cases yearly or biannually. Fast changes in the industry require flexibility.

SLAs designed by nuclear physicists don't belong in RFPs or contracts. Best practice is to limit metrics to five or six with some subparts. The most important criteria are satisfaction, complaint rates and account management. Low-fare achievement may be difficult to administer and can be picked up by survey questions and also by periodic audits.

The first rule is not to allow non-lawyers to draft the contract. Content can be designed and provisions suggested, but this is a legally enforceable document and deserves legal scrutiny and preparation by licensed professionals.

It's a good idea to include non-negotiable provisions with the RFP and ask suppliers to commit early. Requiring the supplier's lawyers to approve these clauses avoids latter hassles, such as: "I never saw this until it crossed my desk a few weeks before the effective date."

Standardized clauses for buyers can form the early part of the agreement, but the final document needs to contain sufficient detail to be a working arrangement for delivery of service and financial payments.

Suppliers also may have clauses they expect in any relationship, and the earlier these are disclosed and reviewed the better. Do not wait until the last minute (like a week before startup) to close on the contract provisions, pricing, configuration and the SLA. Beginning service without the contract signed costs both sides leverage and risks disruption and wrangling during rollout. There is a vacuum if a dispute arises post-closure and the only evidence of intent is the memory of the parties.

Global contracting also takes more time and involves local input. Data ownership and privacy regulations are especially sensitive and need to be worked out well before the date of service.

This post was first published in the Sept. 12, 2011, edition of Business Travel News.


Key Trends in the Life Sciences to Look Forward to in 2022

Key Trends in the Life Sciences to Look Forward to in 2022

New and improved technologies are fundamental to advancing our understanding of health and disease biology.

If the past year is anything to go by, then 2022 will also be a year marked by continued innovations in the life sciences. The development and widespread adoption of new technologies is key to revolutionizing the way we diagnose, prevent, treat and manage disease.

Here is a look at some life science trends to expect in the coming year, including key themes and topics in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries to keep an eye out for in 2022.

The RNA Revolution: From mRNA Vaccines to RNA Editing

The age of RNA is officially here, and it’s here to stay as more than a passing life science trend.

RNA, and its protein-generating form messenger RNA (mRNA) discovered in 1961, has quickly transitioned from being an obscure, finicky molecule that is difficult to work with, to becoming a significant cornerstone of therapeutic innovation in pharma and biotech. The power of its real-world application was demonstrated by the resounding success of the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines.

The mRNA COVID-19 vaccines have showcased the speed, versatility, scalability and flexibility that mRNA-based interventions offer. They can be developed and adapted quickly. Formulas can be generated in days and clinical-grade manufacturing can be accomplished in weeks. This is why creating variant-specific boosters to battle emerging new variants of SARS-CoV-2 like Delta and Omicron will not be problematic for mRNA-based vaccine makers.

The market for mRNA-based vaccines and therapeutics is projected to grow from $46.7 billion in 2021, a figure that has already been overtaken by the two leading mRNA COVID-19 vaccines alone, to $101.3 billion by 2026 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.8 percent, according to a report by BCC Research.

RNA technology is not new nor has its potential been surprising.

RNA in the Making

So why did this perceived RNA ‘revolution’ take so long? RNA is an unstable molecule because it is single-stranded and susceptible to RNA degrading enzymes found ubiquitously in the environment. That’s why it requires careful handing at the lab bench and storage at double digit sub-zero temperatures. It is also prone to quick destruction by the body’s immune system before it can be translated into protein in cells.

In attempts to mask RNA from immune attack, researchers Drew Weissman and Katalin Karikó at the University of Pennsylvania switched out uridine, which is one of the four bases of the RNA code, for pseudouridine. This did the trick and set the stage for the development of viable mRNA-based therapeutics. To address delivery issues, Robert Malone, a graduate student at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in California, showed in 1987 that lipid droplets could be combined with mRNA to help get it into cells.

Fast forward to more recent times, companies like Moderna as well as Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine partner BioNTech had been working on mRNA-based therapeutics, including vaccines, for just over a decade. While BioNTech was focused on developing mRNA vaccines for cancers, Moderna was dedicated to RNA therapeutics in addition to vaccines.

After the success of its first commercial vaccine product, Moderna has developed an mRNA-based vaccine against influenza, for which it recently released early positive safety and efficacy data. It is also working to create an all-in-one influenza, COVID-19 and RSV vaccine as well.

Apart from smaller biotechs and start-ups, big pharma is also starting up and/or expanding their in-house mRNA tech programs or striking development partnerships. In February, Gilead Sciences announced it is teaming up with biotech Gritstone bio to develop an mRNA-based vaccine for HIV. At the beginning of the year, Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, struck a deal with Ribometrix to leverage its discovery platform to discover, develop and commercialize small molecule drug candidates against RNA targets. The deal could bring the North Carolina-based RNA-based small molecule therapeutics developer more than $1 billion.

RNA Therapeutics

RNA therapeutics hold promise as powerful treatments for diseases, including those that are genetic-based. It’s, therefore, no surprise that the development of RNA-based therapies will be among the major life science trends over the next several years.

RNA-based treatments include RNA interference (RNAi) with double-stranded RNA molecules, or small interfering RNA (siRNA) involving single-stranded antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs). Double-stranded RNA is flagged by cells as foreign, triggering the cell’s RNA interference machinery to dice it up and destroy it.

The gene-editing tool CRISPR edits DNA using specialized strands of guide RNA and endogenous cellular mechanisms of RNA interference. We talked about the emergence of dozens of CRISPR biotechs last year and the growing number of CRISPR-based therapies in clinical trials for conditions ranging from Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) and sickle cell disease (SCD).

As with other RNA technologies, RNA editing also makes use of endogenous cellular components and processes. RNA editing utilizes editing ASOs, which pair with cellular RNA to form double-stranded RNA, triggering recruitment of endogenous ADAR enzymes (adenosine deaminases acting on RNA) to a target adenosine in a disease-associated RNA. ADAR reverses guanine (G) to adenosine (A) mutations by mediating conversion of A to inosine (I), which is seen as guanosine (G). This has the possibility to target the more than 20,000 G to A disease-causing mutations in humans.

To develop these novel RNA-based therapeutics, we saw a number of big pharma companies team up with smaller biotechs focused on developing RNA-based therapeutics. This included Eli Lilly’s partnership with Netherlands-based RNA biotech ProQR Therapeutics this year to develop RNA editing-based therapies for rare genetic diseases, namely blindness-causing retinal conditions, based on the company’s proprietary Axiomer RNA editing platform technology. The deal is worth $1.5 billion. Prior to this, Lilly struck an agreement worth $1.25 billion (including $25 million upfront) with UK-based MiNA Therapeutics to develop small activating RNA (saRNA) drugs for up to five targets across Lilly’s key therapeutic areas of cancer, diabetes, immunology, neurodegenerative diseases and pain. We’ll be on the lookout to see how these partnerships pan out in the development of RNA-based therapeutics.

In addition to Moderna and BioNTech, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Alnylam Pharmaceuticals and Sarepta Therapeutics are the big, small RNA biotechs to continue watching in 2022. Sarepta Therapeutics has been focused on developing AOS for the treatment of DMD and has received FDA approvals for three of its compounds — EXONDYS 51 (eteplirsen), VYONDYS 53 (golodirsen) and AMONDYS 45 (Casimersen), which are based on exon skipping. The trio brought a significant increase of about $70 million in revenue for Sarepta during the third quarter of this year, to between $605 million and $615 million. Sarepta currently has 14 RNA programs in its pipeline of 42 programs.

Digital Health

A trend that spiked in 2020 and that will continue into 2022, and beyond, is digital transformation in healthcare. This has been a huge topic in healthcare, especially with the onset of the pandemic. Digital transformation is growing rapidly and is a trend that is here to stay.

Digital transformation technologies include telemedicine, remote monitoring and health wearables among others. The pandemic shuttered operations in many clinical spaces, which led to a shift to virtual visits and telemedicine. Telehealth went from being an option that not many healthcare practitioners routinely used, to a necessity during the pandemic.

Both healthcare providers and patients quickly realized that remote and virtual models of care were not only borne out of necessity during the pandemic, but they offer patients significant convenience and improve accessibility. Patients can also communicate with their providers more often from the comfort of their own home. Not having to travel to clinical sites for healthcare visits or for participation in a clinical trial can help reduce costs and time associated with transportation for patients and their caregivers.

The increasing digitalization of healthcare is being realized by digital health companies that are helping design and implement digital health technologies. According to non-profit digital health company Rock Health, throughout 2020, digital health companies in the US raised $14.1 billion in venture capital funding, which is a 72 percent increase from 2018, and the largest amount achieved since 2011.

The biggest challenge to the digitalization of healthcare is transitioning from old models to new digital models. This involves technology transfer and training staff in new digital methods.

Digital Health Tools

How is digital transformation happening and how is it achieved? The simple answer is that it’s largely about out with the old tools and in with new innovative technologies.

Digital solutions in healthcare rely on the technologies that enable them. The technological tools must be sophisticated, reliable and user friendly, particularly for patients. While telemedicine involves the use of phones, things can get more complicated with more complex devices or video-based calls. But going online to book health appointments, including COVID-19 vaccine appointments, has certainly become the new norm.

Old methods such as paper-based record keeping are now being replaced by electronic patient records, for example. And the collection, management and analysis of data is being achieved with electronic data capture (EDC) systems involving cloud technologies, which can help create centralized, accessible data systems. The application of sophisticated analytics to manage and analyze the data is helping to drive enhanced insights into diagnosis, treatment and overall patient care.

AI and Automation

The application of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies in healthcare can help drive more efficient and effective patient care. The integration of these sophisticated tools is allowing for deeper insights to be extracted from existing and new data. For example, the application of digital approaches in pathology is allowing for more detailed insights that were not achievable in the past, as well as integration with other data forms. AI can also be used in applications like robot-guided surgery and in radiotherapy planning where they can help improve treatment delivery and outcomes.

Device Connectivity

Having an interconnected ecosystem is also a key part of the new digital landscape in healthcare. Having connected devices allows for centralization and holistic approaches to delivering patient care. This includes efficient data collection, management and analysis to inform that care. It also enables greater accessibility to both stored and real-time data, as well as data sharing between providers and multiple centers. This can reduce time and monetary costs associated with physical visits and document deliveries.

Therefore, while the pandemic accelerated the adoption of digital healthcare, its success and new innovations will continue to help drive it forward.

Medical Device Innovations

The medical device space will see continued innovations in 2022, particularly in the growing adoption of non- or minimally invasive devices and wearable devices. Personalization of care has been a key life science trend and it is being exhibited in new-age medical devices such as at-home wearables for both health monitoring and delivery of treatment.

Wearable Technology

The global wearable medical devices market is projected to burgeon to a whopping $195.57 billion by 2027, reflecting a CAGR of 26.4 percent from 2020.

The wearable device arena was first spearheaded by the likes of Fitbit fitness trackers that record your physical activity and exercise goals. Later, smart health watches came on the scene that could monitor health indicators like heart rate, pulse, breathing and sleep patterns among others. What started as a trend several years ago has now turned into a lucrative industry. And it will continue to be lucrative as demand for health apps and associated wearable devices continues among consumers. It is estimated that just over 20 percent of Americans will use a smart wearable device in 2022 with this life science trend rising upwards over the next couple of years. Part of this owes to people wanting to take better charge of their health to look and feel better. This may have increased during the pandemic as people might have become more conscious of their health and wellness.

Wearables for health monitoring are also increasing in popularity and continue to be among the top in life science trends. With the greater adoption of virtual models of healthcare, healthcare providers can monitor patients remotely through wearable devices that are connected to the cloud. This allows for real-time data collection and some devices even have sophisticated AI-based algorithms being built into them to allow for data analytics.

Devices like wearable blood pressure monitors from companies like Omron Platinum, Withing BPM Connect and LifeSource are expected to increase in popularity. Similarly, wearable ECG monitors that assess heart rates and rhythms could also offer patients a way to monitor the activity and health of their heart more periodically than an occasional visit to the doctor’s office.

Wearable biosensors may be the next generation of wearables. Biosensors are analytical devices that detect changes in chemical substances as readouts for biological events. From patches that measure biochemical markers in fluids like saliva, tears, sweat and interstitial fluid. They can provide continuous real-time monitoring of metabolites, bacteria, hormones, glucose and other elements in these fluids. This can offer people an easy and convenient way to monitor physiological changes in real-time, over time.

Minimally Invasive Devices

Non-invasive or minimally invasive medical devices that can diagnose, monitor and treat disease is entering a promising era, and will be a key life science trend next year. In 2021, we saw a number of innovations in fields like neuromodulation, with several neurostimulation devices having received FDA approvals. These included devices to treat conditions like depression and chronic pain.

These devices are placed externally and deliver therapeutic activity in the form of electrical or magnetic signals, or in the case of virtual reality, it is in the form of imagery based on principles of cognitive behavioral therapy.

The global minimally invasive devices market is expected to grow in the coming years, with key companies including Precision for Medicine Inc, Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc, Olympus Corp and Fortimedix Surgical BV leading the way.

Minimally invasive devices also include those that may require a one-time surgical implantation and then are controlled from the exterior. For example, the world’s first approved smart knee implant from Zimmer Biomet has gait tracking sensor technology that records metrics like range of motion, walking speed and step count. This information is then wirelessly transmitted to a cloud-based data-tracking platform that surgeons can access to monitor post-surgery recovery in real-time. This offers better post-op evaluations than self-reporting of progress.

Implants to measure eye health such as contact lenses that can monitor glucose levels in the eye are just some of the exciting innovations that we’ll continue to see in the space.

Life science trends next year will center on the individual. Empowering the patient to be an active participant in their journey towards health and wellness is a theme that has been coming to the forefront in recent years. This is why we will see more personalized strategies such as targeted therapies and customizable medical devices, inspired by, and for patients.


The process of planning and managing personal financial activities

Date: 2022-11-22 09:55:13

What is Personal Finance? Personal finance is the process of planning and managing personal financial activities such as income generation, spending, saving, investing, and protection. The process of managing one’s personal finances can be summarized in a budget or financial plan. This guide will analyze the most common and important aspects of individual financial management. Areas of Personal Finance In this guide, we are going to focus on breaking down the most important areas of personal finance and explore each of them in more detail, so you have a comprehensive understanding of the topic. As shown below, the main areas of personal finance are income, spending, saving, investing, and protection. Each of these areas will be examined in more detail below. #1 Income Income refers to a source of cash inflow that an individual receives and then uses to support themselves and their family. It is the starting point for our financial planning process. Common sources of income are: Salaries Bonuses Hourly wages Pensions Dividends These sources of income all generate cash that an individual can use to either spend, save, or invest. In this sense, income can be thought of as the first step in our personal finance roadmap. #2 Spending Spending includes all types of expenses an individual incurs related to buying goods and services or anything that is consumable (i.e., not an investment). All spending falls into two categories: cash (paid for with cash on hand) and credit (paid for by borrowing money). The majority of most people’s income is allocated to spending. Common sources of spending are: Rent Mortgage payments Taxes Food Entertainment Travel Credit card payments The expenses listed above all reduce the amount of cash an individual has available for saving and investing. If expenses are greater than income, the individual has a deficit. Managing expenses is just as important as generating income, and typically people have more control over their discretionary expenses than their income. Good spending habits are critical for good personal finance management. #3 Saving Saving refers to excess cash that is retained for future investing or spending. If there is a surplus between what a person earns as income and what they spend, the difference can be directed towards savings or investments. Managing savings is a critical area of personal finance. Common forms of savings include: Physical cash Savings bank account Checking bank account Money market securities Most people keep at least some savings to manage their cash flow and the short-term difference between their income and expenses. Having too much savings, however, can actually be viewed as a bad thing since it earns little to no return compared to investments. #4 Investing Investing relates to the purchase of assets that are expected to generate a rate of return, with the hope that over time the individual will receive back more money than they originally invested. Investing carries risk, and not all assets actually end up producing a positive rate of return. This is where we see the relationship between risk and return. Common forms of investing include: Stocks Bonds Mutual funds Real estate Private companies Commodities Art Investing is the most complicated area of personal finance and is one of the areas where people get the most professional advice. There are vast differences in risk and reward between different investments, and most people seek help with this area of their financial plan. #5 Protection Personal protection refers to a wide range of products that can be used to guard against an unforeseen and adverse event. Common protection products include: Life insurance Health insurance Estate planning This is another area of personal finance where people typically seek professional advice and which can become quite complicated. There is a whole series of analysis that needs to be done to properly assess an individual’s insurance and estate planning needs. The Personal Finance Planning Process Good financial management comes down to having a solid plan and sticking to it. All of the above areas of personal finance can be wrapped into a budget or a formal financial plan. These plans are commonly prepared by personal bankers and investment advisors who work with their clients to understand their needs and goals and develop an appropriate course of action. Generally speaking, the main components of the financial planning process are: Assessment Goals Plan development Execution Monitoring and reassessment Credit Source Follow Us On:

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7 Tips For Picking Ceramic Dishware

- Mar 26, 2018-

A wide variety of ceramic tableware, complete patterns, smooth and delicate, is the preferred type of tableware for many families. The so-called "illness from the mouth", if you can not ensure the quality of ceramic tableware in the purchase process, it will threaten the health of the family.

2, if you really like beautiful painted ceramics, it is recommended to buy raw materials, process control more stringent glaze, underglaze color tableware. Underglaze technology is to paint colorful patterns on porcelain greens, then glaze them, and finally put them into the kiln for high temperature firing. Since it is painted first and then burned, the colored pattern is under the glaze. Protected by the glaze layer, the colored paint will not dissolve. Even if the pattern is cleaned for a long time, it will not fade, ensuring that the family will not be threatened by the metal pigment.

3, if the economic conditions allow, you can buy a new type of ceramic tableware with antibacterial features. Antibacterial porcelain is made by adding antibacterial agents during the production of porcelain, so that porcelain products have antibacterial effects. Can be sterilized, has a very good protection.

4, do not buy ceramic tableware is too bright, try to use non-color white high-grade cutlery or high-grade tableware does not contain lead glaze. In order to make the colors colorful, manufacturers will add some heavy metal additives to the glazes. Therefore, the more colorful the dishes, the more likely the heavy metals will be exceeded.

5, when buying should pay attention to see the fineness of the tableware, hand touch the surface of the tableware, look inside and outside the wall, ring foot is clean, no sand, no pinholes, no burrs. Dish bowls are generally based on the shape of a perfect round mouth. When purchasing, the deformed, elliptical, and irregular shapes should be removed first, and then carefully selected. Xiaobian offer: Hold the vertical stack of several bowls by hand. , Rotate slowly one by one, observe whether the gap between the two bowls is uniform, not width and width. Otherwise, there must be a bowl that is not perfectly round and should be removed. And so on until you are satisfied with your choice.

6, the bottom of the bowl must be structured, placed in a smooth, can not have glitches. Otherwise, it is easy to hurt your hands when brushing, and it is easy to scratch the table. For the complete set of tableware, be sure to observe the glaze color, pattern color if there is a color difference, the carcass is white and clean. Generally thin ceramic tire products look in the sun or light, there will be a sense of transparency, light texture, and uniform thickness.

7. After the new cutlery is returned to home, it is best to soak in vinegar for 2 hours before use to dissolve the toxic substances contained in the cutlery. Or use boiled water for 5 minutes before use to reduce the potential hazards of ceramic dishes to the human body.


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dark leafy greens

Name That Green!

When it’s said that “variety is the spice of life,” greens are no exception!

Plants “allow” humans and animals to eat ALL of their fruits, but only PART of their leaves, because plants need to have leaves for their own use – which is manufacturing chlorophyll. Yet, plants depend on moving creatures for pollination, fertilizing the soil, and helping eat the ripe fruit. For this reason, plants accumulate a lot of highly nutritious elements in their leaves, but mix these nourishing ingredients with either bitterness or very small amounts of alkaloids (poisons) – which is why animals are forced to rotate their menu. They eat a small amount of one thing, then move on to other plants. The body is only capable of detoxifying small amounts of a great many things, but it is much more difficult for the human system to get rid of a large amount of one type of poison. This is why it’s so important for us to learn to rotate the greens in our diet.

Simply eating “lots of salads” is not truly benefiting you if you’re using the same greens over and over.

It’s important to alternate our variety of greens as much as possible. My hope is that our farmers will actually grow a larger variety of green leafy vegetables to increase our green intake. Many of the greens available in grocery stores are mostly bred from the dandelion and mustard families. Despite their names and appearances, cultivated greens have similar nutritional content. To truly meet our nutritional needs, it’s important we include greens from a number of totally different plant families into our daily diets.

So, the next time you’re making a salad, consider adding a combination of 4 or 5 greens.  Consider adding a few of these:

Greens:   Arugula (rocket), Asparagus, Beet greens (tops), Bok choy, Celery, Chard, Collard greens, Escarole, Fresee lettuce, Goji leaves (wolfberry), Kale (3 types), Mache, Mitsuna, Mustard greens, Lettuce (all types red and green), Radicchio, Radish tops, Spinach, Romaine lettuce green and red leaf, Turnip greens, Wheatgrass

Herbs:  Basil, Cilantro, Lemon Balm, Mint, Parsley, Peppermint leaves, Spearmint

Ready to experiment a litte more the next time your shopping?  I hope so! If you have a great recipe you’d like me to share, send me an email!

Where’s the Protein??

As a person who eats a high raw food diet and especially when I am juicing, the most frequent question I am asked is where do you get your protein? I want to address this in the post today and I think you might be quite surprised at the answer!

First let me begin by explaining exactly what the term protein means. Protein is one of the 3 major food groups essential for growth and health. Protein provides the building blocks of our body, is vital for energy, and is very much needed to make hormones, enzymes, tissues, and antibodies. Protein is basically made up of amino acids. All foods contain amino acids. Our body makes all of these amino acids but a few. The few that we do not make are considered essential and must be obtained from what is traditionally considered a “complete” source such as meat, eggs, and fish. Other sources such as grains, nuts, seeds, and dark leafy greens are considered “incomplete”proteins because they do not contain all the amino acids needed in the body. So it seems as if we can only get the proper amount of protein that we need from animal products, correct?? No this is not correct!

By eating a variety of whole, natural, unprocessed foods your body can get the daily amount of protein that it needs and thrive. There are numerous vegan and raw triathletes, athletes, and body builders out there that are using what nature gave us to feed their bodies. In fact Americans tend to overeat in the protein department consuming 2 – 3 times higher than the recommended daily allowances. Too much protein can cause lots of health issues such as constipation, sweet cravings, low energy, and weight gain. Too little protein can also cause lots of health issues such as sugar and sweet cravings, fatigue, weight loss, and poor skin color.

Now allow me tell you about one of nature’s most best kept secrets, the most important food group our body needs, and the most overlooked in the entire American diet. Can you guess what it is?? It is dark leafy greens!!!

So now you might ask what are dark leafy greens? These are things such as broccoli, bok choy, napa cabbage, savoy cabbage, kale, collards, watercress, mustard greens, broccoli rabe aka brocolini and rapini, dandelion, mesclun, green cabbage, arugula, endive, chicory, lettuces, spinach, swiss chard, beet greens, turnip greens, and wild greens. I believe as others that this should be a whole separate food group because of their importance.

Dark leafy greens are nutritional powerhouses as they are very high in calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, phosphorous, zinc, and Vitamins A, C, E, and K. They are chock full of fiber, folic acid, chlorophyll, and many other micronutrients and phytochemicals. Not to mention that they also may often contain more absorbable “protein” than animal sources.

Victoria Boutenko has done a lot of major research in her book Green For Life. In her research she found that eating a wide variety of dark leafy greens provides all the essential amino acids that we need. In addition T. Colin Campbell in his book the China Study also refers to the abundant amount of essential amino acids in greens. Both sources report that the body completely absorbs all of these amino acids better than they do the amino acids found in the traditional animal sources. So contrary to the traditional belief, dark leafy greens contain plenty of protein and our bodies can process it more efficiently. But here’s the kicker, you do need to eat these in large amounts and with variety. How can anyone eat 1 – 2 lbs of dark leafy greens a day? Simple, juices containing lots of dark leafy greens and/or drinking a green smoothie every day.

What are Green Smoothies? A green smoothie is a blend of organic fruit and green leafy vegetables. Most people start with 60% fruit and 40 % greens. Place your fruit and vegetables into a blender with 2 cups of pure water and blend until smooth. You will have a quick, nutritious drink that can be used as a meal replacement or a nice refreshing beverage.

Green smoothies usually have a bright green color and taste great!! I personally try to have at least one per day. When I do I have more energy, my skin is smoother, my sleep is better, and I feel fabulous. I’ve listed one of my favorite green smoothie recipes here.

Green Smoothie Recipe:

Mango Heaven
1 1/2 c frozen mango or 1 large or 2 small fresh mangos
2 really ripe bananas (brown spots)
2 handfuls of spinach
1 T cinnamon
2 cups of purified water, spring water, or coconut water

If using a high speed blender such as a Vita Mix place all ingredients in blender and blend for about 1 minute. If using another blender it is suggested that you chop the spinach first and then mix the spinach and water of choice for a few seconds before adding the fruit. This will give you a smoother consistency. Makes approx. 1 quart. Remember, you can pretty much mix any combination of fruit and green together sticking to the 60% fruit and 40% green. You might find after awhile that becomes too sweet and reverse it.

Drinking one quart of green smoothie a day can help to provide much needed minerals to the body which are necessary for bone growth, blood purification, and other functions in our body. Other benefits include helping to prevent cancer, regulating blood sugar, weight loss, improving digestion, strengthening of the immune system, clearing up congestion, and eliminating sugar cravings. They are tasty, easy and quick to make and clean up from and what a great way to start the day. Better than a bagel and coffee. They also are a great afternoon snack at 3:00 pm when you are getting that after lunch crash!
Are you ready to get your green on? What kind of green smoothie will you make? Let us know if you do and how you feel after one week of consuming green smoothies daily!!

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Item-total point-biserial correlation

point-biserial item discrimination

The item-total point-biserial correlation is a common psychometric index regarding the quality of a test item, namely how well it differentiates between examinees with high vs low ability.

What is item discrimination?

While the word “discrimination” has a negative connotation, it is actually a really good thing for an item to have.  It means that it is differentiating between examinees, which is entirely the reason that an assessment item exists.  If a math item on Fractions is good, then students with good knowledge of fractions will tend to get it correct, while students with poor knowledge will get it wrong.  If this isn’t the case, and the item is essentially producing random data, then it has no discrimination.  If the reverse is the case, then the discrimination will be negative.  This is a total red flag; it means that good students are getting the item wrong and poor students are getting it right, which almost always means that there is incorrect content or the item is miskeyed.

What is the point-biserial correlation?

The point-biserial coefficient is a Pearson correlation between scores on the item (usually 0=wrong and 1=correct) and the total score on the test.  As such, it is sometimes called an item-total correlation.

Consider the example below.  There are 10 examinees that got the item wrong, and 10 that got it correct.  The scores are definitely higher for the Correct group.  If you fit a regression line, it would have a positive slope.  If you calculated a correlation, it would be around 0.10.

point-biserial item discrimination

How do you calculate the point-biserial?

Since it is a Pearson correlation, you can easily calculate it with the CORREL function in Excel or similar software.  Of course, psychometric software like Iteman will also do it for you, and many more important things besides (e.g., the point-biserial for each of the incorrect options!).  This is an important step in item analysis.  The image below is example output from Iteman, where Rpbis is the point-biserial.  This item is very good, as it has a very high point-biserial for the correct answer and strongly negative point-biserials for the incorrect answers (which means the not-so-smart students are selecting them).

FastTest Iteman Psychometric Analysis

How do you interpret the point-biserial?

Well, most importantly consider the points above about near-zero and negative values.  Besides that, a minimal-quality item might have a point-biserial of 0.10, a good item of about 0.20, and strong items 0.30 or higher.  But, these can vary with sample size and other considerations.  Some constructs are easier to measure than others, which makes item discrimination higher.

Are there other indices?

There are two other indices commonly used in classical test theory.  There is the cousin of the point-biserial, the biserial.  There is also the top/bottom coefficient, where the sample is split into a highly performing group and a lowly performing group based on total score, the P value calculated for each, and those subtracted.  So if 85% of top examinees got it right and 60% of low examinees got it right, the index would be 0.25.

Of course, there is also the a parameter from item response theory.  There are a number of advantages to that approach, most notably that the classical indices try to fit a linear model on something that is patently nonlinear.  For more on IRT, I recommend a book like Embretson & Riese (2000).

Nathan Thompson, PhD

Nathan Thompson, PhD, is CEO and Co-Founder of Assessment Systems Corporation (ASC). He is a psychometrician, software developer, author, and researcher, and evangelist for AI and automation. His mission is to elevate the profession of psychometrics by using software to automate psychometric work like item review, job analysis, and Angoff studies, so we can focus on more innovative work. His core goal is to improve assessment throughout the world.

Nate was originally trained as a psychometrician, with an honors degree at Luther College with a triple major of Math/Psych/Latin, and then a PhD in Psychometrics at the University of Minnesota. He then worked multiple roles in the testing industry, including item writer, test development manager, essay test marker, consulting psychometrician, software developer, project manager, and business leader. He is also cofounder and Membership Director at the International Association for Computerized Adaptive Testing ( He’s published 100+ papers and presentations, but his favorite remains

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The clothing industry thrives on modern technology

It is important to have some knowledge about the textile industry before heading into the garment industry in Bangladesh. If we talk about the textile industry, it will be a big story. The apparel industry is part of this spectrum. While the textile industry is generally divided, it can be divided into four main segments. For example, the first is spinning, that is, the process of making yarn. It can be cotton or linen. But usually, cotton is used more in this case. In sporting goods, i.e. where elasticity is required but not sweat absorption, polyester yarn is used. In the context of Bangladesh, the effect of spinning is not as noticeable.

Next comes the fabric. The yarn produced during spinning is made into fabric or cloth by weaving and knitting. The next step is to dye or dye the fabric in different colors in simple Bengali. Because the gray fabric, i.e. the fabric after weaving and knitting, contains natural oils, waxes, etc., and its colors are also natural. It must therefore be removed. And that’s why the fabric needs wet processing. After that comes our topic of making clothes. The dyed fabrics obtained in the wet processing stage are then cut, balanced, trimmed, finished, etc. to produce our clothes. Needless to say, Bangladesh currently ranks second in the world for exports of ready-made garments. China is in the first place.

Let us now come to the standards of technology used in the garment industry of this country. That is if we can compete with the outside world. Or we can go for first place at the top of China! The answers to these questions depend on several factors. For example, how we source raw materials, where or what technology we use, etc. Initially, the country’s relatively cheap labor and the hands of some talented industrialists formed the basis of the garment industry in the country. Despite various difficulties and obstacles, the country’s ready-to-wear industry has managed to carve out such a special place in exports. But new entrepreneurs are born all over the world, there is a rise of industrialists.

New technologies are constantly emerging, some are semi-automatic, and others are automatic. By using these technologies, on the one hand, time decreases, on the other hand, production increases significantly. As the number of workers also decreases, the total cost of production decreases.
Countries buying from the ready-to-wear industry will always want to buy higher-quality products at lower prices. As a result, our competitive market is also slowly increasing. Because we still depend on conventional methods.

So there is no alternative to using modern technology to maintain their position in this competitive market and improve from there. But the hope is that most garment industries in Bangladesh have started using modern technology and equipment.
The technologies we use

The first thing required in the production of garments is the making of patterns. The patterns are made mainly on thick pattern paper. The symbols of the different parts of the clothes are made with this pattern paper. In this way, models of different sizes are created. In general, since this work requires relatively skilled and experienced people, time is also spent on this work.
So if we can do this job with the help of computer software, time will be saved and much less manpower will be needed for this job. Major garment industries in the country are now turning to computer-aided design (CAD) software.

With the help of this software, it is now possible to easily create patterns of different parts of different garments and save them in computer memory. This electronic copy of the pattern can be scaled again to create garment patterns of different sizes. However, many industries still use traditional methods to create models.

All the patterns for each garment should then be placed on marker paper. Marker paper is basically a type of thin paper about the same size as fabric. Cutting fabric is necessary to make clothes. So that there is less wastage of fabric during this cutting and that each part of the garment follows its specific grain, these planings are mainly done by placing the patterns on the marker paper. It is understood how much work and time can go into it.

This complex and time-consuming work is now done by computer. With the help of CAD technology in the computer, the markers are made by arranging the patterns manually or automatically in very little time and certainly with less labor. After that, using a printing technology called a plotter, the marker print made on the computer is removed and this is then sent to the cutting room for cutting the fabric.
Two things are usually important in the cutting room. The first is fabric laying, that is, the fabric is exposed from the roll of fabric and the fabric is laid out in several layers on a long table. By cutting multiple layers together in this way, more garments can be made in less time, taking much less time.

Spreading usually does not require a lot of labor. But that might waste time. Now, a semi-automatic rail system is used for fabric laying, where a single operator can do the job easily. But traditional methods are still used in most industries. What comes after the cut section is to sew the cut parts of the garment into a complete garment. This section is called the swing section. When we talk about sewing, we remember the treadle sewing machines of our mothers and grandmothers in rural Bengal. But the picture of the industry is quite different.

Here the high-speed swing is used in the clothes swing which is operated using electricity. Previously, using conventional technology was time-consuming and labor-intensive. Today, thanks to semi-automatic or automatic technology, time and labor have been reduced several times, while increasing production.
Apart from the swing, there is another subject which is embroidery. Embroidery is now done using electrical machines and computer software. A specific design, i.e. the design or logo to be embroidered, is entered through the computer software, and, using the embroidery machine, it is embossed onto the fabric.

Some clothes should be washed after being cut. For example, denim or denim items are washed to produce a fading effect. Washing clothes and our daily washing of clothes are not the same things at all. We wash our everyday objects to remove dirt. But in industry, washing clothes is mainly used to give various effects. The stonewashed effect of denim pants is primarily created by stone washing.
Then there is the pressing section, the bending section. Made-up garments should be ironed to remove unwanted wrinkles. In general, we understand it as ironing. But apart from ironing, it is possible to press in other ways. For example, pressing can be done using steam but also using a vacuum. Although there is not much use of these technologies in Bangladesh. In the garment industry, workers mainly perform pressing and folding tasks.

Are we ahead or behind in technology?

If we say how far we are in terms of the technology used in the garment industry, we can see that the technology used in some of the major industries in the country is relatively advanced. In addition, the use of modern technology also begins, changing the configuration of old-fashioned machines. But in many industries, it is still not possible to use all technologies properly.
For example, manual or semi-automatic cutting is still common in almost all industries. But automatic cutting machines are used in a few industries. Technological development will therefore play an important role in further developing our garment industries and bringing Bangladesh garment industry exports to the global market.

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Archeologists have discovered vestiges of ancient tiled courtyards while excavating Lang Dao pagoda in Son Duong district, in the northern mountainous province of Tuyen Quang.

According to archeologists, the courtyards were built under the Tran dynasty in the 13th -14th century and existed until the Le dynasty, between the 15th-17th century.

Uncovered artifacts included rectangular bricks, shoe-cap tiles and a number of typical pottery and ceramic objects dated back the Tran and Le dynasties.

The ancient religious construction was one of two most typical and intact relics that have been discovered in Vietnam .

Doctor Tran Anh Dung of Vietnam Archeology Institute said this is a large-scale and rare architectural work in the country’s ancient architectural systems.

The discovery has provided archeologists with more evidence in their study of the historical value of ancient Tuyen Quang./.


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Computer Science > Machine Learning

Title: Measuring Systematic Generalization in Neural Proof Generation with Transformers

Abstract: We are interested in understanding how well Transformer language models (TLMs) can perform reasoning tasks when trained on knowledge encoded in the form of natural language. We investigate their systematic generalization abilities on a logical reasoning task in natural language, which involves reasoning over relationships between entities grounded in first-order logical proofs. Specifically, we perform soft theorem-proving by leveraging TLMs to generate natural language proofs. We test the generated proofs for logical consistency, along with the accuracy of the final inference. We observe length-generalization issues when evaluated on longer-than-trained sequences. However, we observe TLMs improve their generalization performance after being exposed to longer, exhaustive proofs. In addition, we discover that TLMs are able to generalize better using backward-chaining proofs compared to their forward-chaining counterparts, while they find it easier to generate forward chaining proofs. We observe that models that are not trained to generate proofs are better at generalizing to problems based on longer proofs. This suggests that Transformers have efficient internal reasoning strategies that are harder to interpret. These results highlight the systematic generalization behavior of TLMs in the context of logical reasoning, and we believe this work motivates deeper inspection of their underlying reasoning strategies.
Comments: NeurIPS 2020; 17 pages; 9 figures; 6 tables
Cite as: arXiv:2009.14786 [cs.LG]
  (or arXiv:2009.14786v2 [cs.LG] for this version)

Submission history

From: Nicolas Gontier [view email]
[v1] Wed, 30 Sep 2020 16:54:37 GMT (1356kb,D)
[v2] Tue, 20 Oct 2020 20:31:11 GMT (1354kb,D)

Link back to: arXiv, form interface, contact.


The Cold War

John Lamberton Harper

Publication Date - July 2011

ISBN: 9780199237012

352 pages
8.5 x 5.4 inches

Retail Price to Students: $33.95

The East-West struggle for supremacy from 1945 to 1989 shaped the lives of hundreds of millions and brought the world to the brink of disaster on several occasions. More than two decades on, the debate over its causes and dynamics is far from over. Drawing on the latest archival evidence and scholarly research, prize-winning historian John Lamberton Harper provides a concise, briskly-written assessment of the Cold War.

Why did it start, and eventually envelope nearly every corner of the planet? Why did it stay "cold," at least in its original, European theatre? Why did it end, and who should take the credit? Harper illuminates the deep-seated behavioural patterns within both the Soviet Union and the United States: the search for security through expansion and military might, the belief in a "messianic" mission to uplift humanity, but also a readiness to live and let live based on membership in a common state system and a shared interest in survival. He stresses ways in which internal competitions for political power tilted both the U.S. and Soviet systems towards bellicosity and obsessive preparation for a hot war that no one seriously intended to begin.

It is a story of delusions of omnipotence and rash behavior, punctuated by moments of redeeming statesmanship and self-restraint. Harper concludes that, rather than triumphalism, a clear look back at the Cold War's close calls with catastrophe and enormous cost in lives and treasure ought to evoke a sense of regret and humility, as well as relief.

  • Concise and briskly written overview of Cold War history, two decades from its end
  • Includes an introductory primary documents section to orient the reader
  • Looks both at international and domestic factors driving the policies of the two superpowers

About the Author(s)

John Lamberton Harper is Professor of American Foreign Policy and European Studies at the Bologna Center of the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. He is the author of America and the Reconstruction of Italy (1986), winner of the Marraro prize from the Society for Italian Historical Studies, American Visions of Europe: Franklin D. Roosevelt, George F. Kennan, and Dean G. Acheson (1994), winner of the Ferrell prize from the Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations, and American Machiavelli: Alexander Hamilton and the Origins of U.S. Foreign Policy (2004). He is a contributing editor of Survival, and a member of the Istituto Affari Internazionali in Rome.

Table of Contents

    Documentary Traces
    1. Russia and the West: Destined to Collide?
    2. The End of Illusions, 1945-1946
    3. The Consolidation of the Blocs, 1947-1949
    4. The Globalization and Militarization of the Contest, 1949-1953
    5. The Age of Brinkmanship, 1953-1963
    6. The Struggle in the Third World, 1950-1968
    7. The Rise and Decline of Detente, 1969-1977
    8. To the Panic of '79
    9. Stirrings of Change, 1980-1985
    10. Putting an End to the Cold War, 1986-1990
    Select Bibliography


Liverpool taxi blast being treated as ‘terrorist incident,’ U.K. police say

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