VESTED INTEREST IN K9s, Inc.
From sniffing bombs to tracking criminals, police K-9 units provide an invaluable service to their community and deserve the same kind of protection as their human counterparts. Unfortunately, many police departments don’t have the budget to properly uniform these dogs with protective vests, which cost $1,050 each.
That’s where we come in: PetArmor has partnered with Vested Interest in K-9s, Inc. to donate custom-fit bullet- and stab-protective vests to police departments in need.
“Police K-9 units provide an invaluable service to their community and deserve the same kind of protection as their human counterparts,” said Sandy Marcal, founder of Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. “Thanks to PetArmor, many more dogs will be protected from harm while they protect their neighborhoods and towns.”
PetArmor’s initial donation benefits dogs in Texas, Florida and Maryland where police departments have requested assistance in vesting their police dogs.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
If you would like to donate to Vested Interest in K9s, Inc. to help them equip even more dogs,
visit their website.


Ye Lamhe , ye pal hum har pal yaad karenge.. ye mausam chale gaye toh hum fariyad karenge..
Those big beautiful expressive eyes and that mischievous smile sent arrows through hearts and set the screen on fire! Sridevi was truly Bollywood’s first female superstar, her name being a sure shot guarantee for a film’s success. In an industry dominated by male superstars, Sridevi had an impressive career for more than five decades. Sadly, on Saturday night Sridevi passed away after a sudden cardiac arrest. She had no history of heart ailments which makes this an even bigger tragedy.
Sridevi was visiting Dubai with hubby producer Boney Kapoor and their daughter Khushi Kapoor for Mohit Marwah’s wedding festivities. Her second daughter Jahnvi wasn’t in attendance due to her work commitments in Mumbai. The sad news of Sridevi’s demise has come as a big shock to the entire Bollywood and television fraternity and her numerous fans. Many of her co-stars and fellow actors took to Twitter to express their grief, shock and condolences.
Rajnikanth tweeted his condolences saying “I’m shocked and very disturbed. I’ve lost a dear friend and the industry has lost a true legend. My heart goes out to her family and friends. I feel the pain with them #RIPSridev … you will be missed.”
Kamal Haasan too expressed his sorrow saying that “Have witnessed Sridevi’s life from an adolescent teenager to the magnificent lady she became. Her stardom was well deserved. Many happy moments with her flash through my mind including the last time I met her. Sadma’s lullaby haunts me now. We’ll miss her.”
Rishi Kapoor tweeted saying “Woken up by this tragic news. Absolute shock. Sad. Heartfelt condolences to Boney and their two daughters!”
Karan Johar took to his Instagram account and shared a picture of Sridevi expressing his grief over the legendary actor’s demise. The ace director wrote,
“I danced to Hawa Hawaii when I was in school…..I have seen every film of hers multiple times….I met her with shaking hands and feet on the sets of my father’s film GUMRAH….and felt I had arrived when she called me for the first time …..every time I met her I had a star-struck moment and a fanboy vibe….I don’t think I can believe it…perhaps I don’t think I want to believe that she is no more… she is a huge reason I love the movies….I feel like Indian cinema just lost its smile….the heavens are fortunate they just inherited a gift of life…..heartbroken.”
Sridevi was fond of dancing from a very early age. She began her career as a child actor at the age of 4 in the Tamil movie Thunaivan playing the role of young Lord Muruga. After this, there was no looking back for this legend! Besides many Tamil and Telugu movies, she also made a huge impact on Bollywood! Sadma, Chalbaaz and Mr. India were some of the fabulous movies which fans have really loved during her heydays! But she unleashed a new vigor on screen with her recent movies like English Vinglish and MOM.
Sridevi’s superb performance in English Vinglish and her depiction of the typical Indian housewife had a huge connect with every Indian woman. She brought the character of ‘Shashi’ alive on screen! With a couple of more movies in the pipeline and her daughter’s debut around the corner – Sridevi had still so much to offer and look forward to! It was only on Wednesday that we got to see the poster of Sridevi’s daughter Janhvi Kapoor and Shahid Kapoor’s brother Ishaan Khatter’s Bollywood debut, Dhadak.
But life is so uncertain and we don’t really know what will happen tomorrow. In her last moments, Sridevi dressed like a queen and now she will meet her maker wrapped in white. What will live on is her grace and dignity and the respect and love she still commands in the hearts of her fans. As her mother, she was fiercely protective of her daughters and kept them away from the media glare.
Sridevi’s ultimate dance performances, her amazing acting performances, her comic timing, her beauty – will be remembered by forever. There is so much can be written about Sridevi – but right now we should all pray that her daughters, her family and friends get the strength to deal with this irreparable loss.
Sridevi, you will be missed, by all of us. May your soul rest in peace.
Want to share your mommy experience with other moms through words or images? Become a part of the Moms United community. Click here and we will get in touch with you


- Results & Publications
- Census Resources
- Census Projects
- Media Resources
- About the Census
The first Census of Marine Life reported its findings of its ten-year investigation of diversity, distribution, and abundance of marine life on October 4, 2010. Those results and a decade of resources can be found on this website. The following is an outline of what you might find and where. Should you have any further questions or need additional information, please feel free to contact Darlene Crist or Kristen Yarincik.
About the Census -- a summary of how the Census was structured, its scientific framework, sponsors, and links to learn more.
2010 Release of Census Results – a detailed account of the news conference in London on October 4, 2010 to unveil the Census findings.
Science books – links to a number of books that describe the Census findings.
Scientific papers – links to more than 2,600 peer reviewed scientific papers can be found on this searchable database http://db.coml.org/comlrefbase/, as well as specific references at the PLoS One Collection http://www.ploscollections.org/static/comlCollections.action, and Special Issue Journals http://www.coml.org/scientific-papers.
Video and image galleries- The Census created a wide selection of videos, many of which are available for use by the media. Census scientists and photographers also contributed images which can be viewed in a flash gallery. Some images are available for download at http://www.flickr.com/photos/55038698@N03/sets/Census in the News 2010 | 2009 | 2008 Short news stories about the activities of Census projects and researchers.
Media Contact List - Contact information for interviews, access to Census researchers, and further information about the Census.
Press Releases - Download PDF versions of Census press releases from 2003-2010.
FAQ - Answers to frequently asked questions about the Census.
Census Perspectives - Interviews with researchers, speeches, essays, and films about the Census.
News Coverage Archive - Selected articles from the world press highlighting Census research.
Reports Archive -- Download PDF versions of the annual Highlights Reports, Draft Plan, and Project Annual Reports.
Census in the Arts -- Artwork inspired by the research of Census scientists.
Maps and Visualizations -- Maps and diagrams illustrating Census research and data.


Whether it’s speaking about politics or HBCU news on the radio, engaging a crowd as an exciting event emcee, or empowering teens as they struggle with self-confidence, the one constant theme is Ashlei’s unmistakable voice.
And she uses her voice to Inform, Inspire, and Empower.
A news reporter-turned-communications guru, Ashlei has more than 15 years of media experience spanning government to non-profits to television and radio. A former spokeswoman for UNCF and media relations manager for the 2020 Census, she currently works in communications for an industry-leading public health research consulting firm.
You may have also seen Ashlei on TV One’s top-rated show, “Fatal Attraction,” of which she’s offered commentary on criminal cases for the past six seasons. She’s also appeared on CNN, Oxygen, ID and the Weather Channel, after hosting several entertainment talk shows across New York City. And in case her voice sounds familiar, Ashlei lends her talents to businesses and brands as a voice artist, event emcee, panel moderator, and motivational youth speaker.
She was recently featured in DC Government's PSA on paid family leave, and as narrator for “Adulting As a Millennial…uncut,” an audiobook by acclaimed mental health therapist and life coach Asha Tarry.
And she's most excited about the newest venture God has assigned to her voice: Ashlei provides news to listeners on gospel stations across several states, including Tuesdays and Thursdays on Columbia, SC's top inspiration channel, WFMV, at 4:35pm and 6:35pm ET and on Fort Wayne, IN's Rhythm & Praise at 11:40AM and 1:40PM ET.


Connect, Share, Imagine, Laugh!
As the Coronavirus requires us to stay apart, the Workers Circle has created a program called the Great Schmooze to help our members connect by phone, while staying safe at home!
There’s nothing like stories to bring us all closer together (even through social distancing!) and remind us of the things that matter. That’s what the Great Schmooze is all about – building community by connecting with each other and sharing our stories.
The Great Schmooze will bring us together, over the phone and online, across the generations, bridging our physical distance with the warmth of human community.
In the coming weeks, we will be training students, members, and friends to make calls and reach out to members who have let us know they’d like to receive a call and to share some stories. We’ll soon launch the Great Schmooze private Facebook page where people will have the chance to connect and share stories with each other. We will share the stories that make us laugh, that bring us joy, and inspire us all. And, of course, we’ll kvetch a little! We’ll be featuring “guest schmoozers,” noted celebrities, artists, writers, elected officials and more on Facebook live so stay tuned!
Want to learn more? Drop a line to email@example.com.
This program is free, but if you are able, please donate to support our administration of this program.


With deepest sorrow, the family of Delaney Grace McRoberts announces that Delaney, age 24, ran out of time in her battle with cancer on April 18, 2023, in the presence of her family at her home in Des Moines.
Services for Delaney will be held on Saturday, April 29, 2023, at 11:00 a.m. at the Celebrate Community Church in Knoxville, Iowa. Family will receive friends on Friday, April 28, 2023, from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. also at the church. In lieu of flowers, memorials will be designated at a later date to several of many organizations and causes that deeply touched Delaney during her journey.
Delaney battled cancer fiercely and with never-ending grace for the past fifteen months. Her family thanks all of the doctors, nurses, and those who have prayed for her and supported her. A very special thanks to Dr. Richard Deming and nurse navigator, Deana Kerkove, whom Delaney adored and who provided support, guidance, and most of all, love throughout her fight.
Delaney Grace McRoberts was born February 11, 1999, to Steve and Colette McRoberts. Delaney grew up in her beloved hometown of Knoxville, Iowa. She was a talented dancer on her high school dance team. She graduated from Knoxville High School in 2017.
Delaney met her soulmate, Joe Mitchell, while working at Fareway during her junior year of high school. While Joe was working up the courage to ask Delaney out, she took the first step and asked him to be her co-ed partner for the spring show dance. And so, their storybook love story began. Joe proposed on June 30, 2022, at Grey’s Lake Park. Delaney was excited to be the wife of a Des Moines fireman.
Delaney received a degree in Early Childhood Education from UNI. Working with kids was her true calling. She was to begin her dream job of teaching kindergarten, but began her fight against cancer instead. Throughout numerous appointments, chemotherapy and immunotherapy sessions, and hospitalizations, Delaney remained focused on her family’s well-being and welfare.
Those left behind to honor Delaney include her fiancé, soulmate, and the love of her life, Joe Mitchell; mother, Colette McRoberts; father, Steve (Lynnette) McRoberts; brother, Connor McRoberts; sister and best friend, Hallie McRoberts; stepbrothers, Dylan and Kody Kramer; grandmother, Betty McRoberts; bonus parents and family, Jim and Sharon Mitchell; along with many loving aunts, uncles, and cousins.
Delaney was preceded in death by her grandparents, Carl and Ruth Schwanebeck; grandfather, Robert McRoberts; uncle, Kevin Daugherty; and cousin, Joe Schwanebeck.


“The visibily of homosexuality in public space as an issue of HIV/AIDS prevention”
Over the past decade, HIV/AIDS prevention has diversified with the discovery of new biomedical strategies, including pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), which involves taking antiretroviral therapy by HIV-negative people. Legal since January 2016 in France, it is recommended for people at high risk of HIV infection, especially men who have sex with men (MSM). At the end of 2016, the diversification of prevention was for the first time the subject of the French state communication campaign targeting MSM in the public sphere and featuring male couples. This has been the subject of controversy, in the legacy of moral debates and homophobic rhetoric generated by the PACS and the so-called “Marriage for all” law. As public communication can be considered as a reservoir of meaning, the appropriation of prevention strategies seems complex in this context. Based on the analysis of the content of the four posters making up the 2016 campaign as well as nineteen general press articles, this communication proposes to examine the visibility of homosexuality in the public space as a prevention issue.


In a recent editorial about how our “overdocumented lives” are making it more difficult to let go of the past, Susanna Schrobsdorff writes:
Most of us type more than we talk these days. And the more we live in this parallel digital world, the blurrier the line gets between present and past. Because when nothing is lost, nothing is past. Even if you want it to be. Unbidden, Facebook’s Memories function has started posting photos of a meal you ate seven years ago with people who may not even be alive anymore. And those images sit in your feed along with photos of the mimosa brunch you’re having on vacation right this very second. Time is no longer a river; it’s a looping series of digital paths.
While human beings have long found diverse means of organizing and traversing the flow of time, Schrobsdorff’s observation raises interesting questions for anthropologists today: How are “digital paths” and practices changing the way people navigate and experience the life course? How is the contemporary obsession with documentation and digital connection altering our relationship to time, memory, and even death? How might digital technologies and social media be reconfiguring the experiential boundaries between life and death, and reshaping practices of mourning and memorialization? Finally, how might the youth, the most avid users of such technologies be particularly affected by these developments?
These are questions I am just beginning to explore in my new research on death in the digital age. For instance, I have come across very moving examples of bereaved children using online memorials to communicate with a deceased parent even months and years after the death occurred. As one ten year-old girl posted several months after her father’s death, “Hi Daddy! It’s me again! I miss you so much! Tell God I say Thank you for taking care of u for us!” Two years later she began another post with, “Dear Daddy, I got into the spelling bee and made it to the second round.”
This girl’s appropriation of social media for the purpose of mourning and memorialization is becoming increasingly common among youth. Some observers interpret it as evidence that digital technologies are playing a key role in “democratizing” the mourning and memorialization process. Others suggest that online memorialization among the youth is generating new intergenerational conflicts about who has the authority to mourn, memorialize, and even communicate with the deceased. Indeed, a number of scholars studying “virtual mourning,” have observed that messages posted on online memorials typically take the form of a letter or message written directly to the deceased. This has led them to conclude that in the digital age, biological death is less and less congruent with social death. The deceased are often kept alive, or at least in circulation through the postings of online friends and others, and in many cases, as Lim has found, “the dead are either assigned, or else presumed to have active social roles” (Lim 2013).
“…perhaps these ongoing and prolonged attempts to communicate with the dead could be conceptualized as a digital drying of the bones. Perhaps, they reflect not only a desire to maintain connections with the dead, but also provide the bereaved with a way to ferry the deceased to the other side.”
This raises further questions for anthropologists about the functions that online mourning and memorialization serve. Are such practices providing young people with a way to transcend the embarrassment of grief and more effectively cope with loss? Or alternatively, as Hartman has proposed, does cybermourning recharge “the libidinal cathexis to the object” launching it “into ever-new iterations such that the ego is no longer impelled to give up the object”(Hartman 2012:463- 465)? Could the current popular fascination with the “Walking Dead” be reflective of a digital society where the dead do not so much disappear, as linger on in varying states of animation?
It might be tempting to conclude that in a society of networked selves and hyper-connectivity, the human fear of disconnection has become exacerbated. After all, “nomophobia”- the fear of being separated from one’s cell phone is now recognized as a legitimate disorder among younger generations. And a recent report by CNN found that teens currently spend about nine hours a day on social media and check their Facebook pages approximately 100 times!
And yet it is also clear that the attempt to maintain connections with the deceased is as old as humanity itself. As such, anthropologists might also consider how digital technologies are providing the bereaved with new means for pursuing a very old desire- continuing bonds with the deceased.
From my vantage point, examples of online memorialization by children are interesting not only because they suggest that the digital age is enabling bereaved children and youth to play a much more active role mourning but also because these examples suggest fascinating parallels with many other ethnographic contexts where extended mortuary processes and the double burials are the norm. As Robert Hertz noted long ago, “We cannot bring ourselves to consider the deceased as dead straight away: he is too much a part of our substance, we have put too much of ourselves into him, and participation in the same social life creates ties which are not to be severed in one day” (Hertz 2004:209-210). Considered from this perspective then, perhaps these ongoing and prolonged attempts to communicate with the dead could be conceptualized as a digital drying of the bones. Perhaps, they reflect not only a desire to maintain connections with the dead, but also provide the bereaved with a way to ferry the deceased to the other side. Perhaps writing and posting messages to the deceased does provide contemporary Americans with a ritual means through which the deceased are rendered dead, and ultimately incorporated into a collective world of ancestors.
To be honest, I am not sure what to make of all of this yet. But I do know that if time is no longer a river but rather a looping series of digital paths, as Schrobsdorff suggests, then anthropologists should be actively considering what the entailments of this change are. How is the digital age shaping the way youth navigate the life course and deal with matters of life and death?
Durkheim, Emile. (1912) 1995. The Elementary Forms of Religious Life, translated by Karen Fields. New York: Free Press.
Hartman, Stephen. 2012. “Cybermourning: Grief in Flux From Object Loss to Collective Immortality.” Psychoanalytic Inquiry, 32: 454-467.
Hertz, Robert. 2004. “A Contribution to the Study of the Collective Representation of Death” In Death, Mourning, and Burial: A Cross-Cultural Reader edited by Antonius Robben pp.197-212. Malden MA: Blackwell Publishing.
Lim, Ming. 2013. “The Digital Consumption of Death: Reflections on virtual mourning practices on social networking sites.” In The Routledge Companion to Digital Consumption edited by Russell Belk pp.396 -403. Hoboken: Taylor and Francis.
Schrobsdorff, Susanna. February 2016. “In our overdocumented lives, letting go has gotten a lot harder.” Time Magazine. 59. http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/03/health/teens-tweens-media-screen-use-report
Jenny Huberman is an Associate Professor of Anthropology at the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She is the author of Ambivalent Encounters: Childhood, Tourism, and Social Change in Banaras, India. Her current research explores how experiences of loss, mourning, and memorialization are changing in the digital age.


Celine’s Las Vegas Show to Resume August 27, 2015
Tickets for 40 performances on sale Saturday, March 28 at 10 a.m.
LAS VEGAS (March 25, 2015) – Celine Dion announced today that she will return to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace on Thursday, Aug. 27, 2015 to resume her Las Vegas show, Celine. The residency, which is presented jointly by AEG Live and Caesars Entertainment, has been on hiatus since August 2014 when Celine put her show business activities on hold to focus on her husband Rene, their family, and associated health issues.
“I am excited to finally tell my fans I am coming back to Caesars Palace, “says Celine. “It was Rene’s wish that I come back. While my family will always be my priority, my fans are just as important to me. I look forward to performing again for all of you starting August 27th, and more importantly having Rene there with me. Thank you for giving me this time I needed to spend with my family.”
The news of Celine’s return comes on the 12-year anniversary of her first performance in The Colosseum, when she opened the venue on March 25, 2003.
Since then, Celine has performed 927 shows in The Colosseum at Caesars Palace.
Tickets for 40 performances scheduled from Aug. 27, 2015 through Jan. 17, 2016 will go on sale to the public beginning Saturday, March 28 at 10 a.m. The show dates are:
Aug.: 27, 29, 30
Sept.: 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 11, 12, 29, 30
Oct.: 2, 3, 6, 7, 9, 10
Nov.: 3, 4, 7, 8, 10, 11, 13, 14, 17, 18, 20, 21
Dec.: 30, 31
Jan.: 2, 6, 9, 10, 12, 13, 16, 17
Tickets may be purchased in person at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace Box Office, by calling 866-320-9763, or online at thecolosseum.com or axs.com. Orders are subject to additional service charges and fees. Ticket prices are $250/$175/$140/$95/$55 (prices include 10% Live Entertainment Tax). For groups of 10 or more, call 866-574-3851. All shows are scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
Celine at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace is a glamorous show featuring Celine’s biggest hits directed by famed Grammy Awards producer Ken Ehrlich. For additional show and ticket information, visit celineinvegas.com.
Celine, one of the most immediately recognized, widely respected and successful performers in pop music history, has sold almost 250 million records during her over 30-year career. She has earned five Grammy Awards, two Academy Awards, seven American Music Awards, 20 Juno Awards (Canada) and an astonishing 40 Felix Award (Quebec). In 2004, Celine received the Diamond award at the World Music Awards recognizing her status as the best-selling female artist of all time. In 2007 she was honored with the Legend Award at World Music Awards in recognition of her global success and outstanding contribution to the music industry.


On 17 March 2023, an announcement was made by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) that an additional 18-month work permit will be made available to international students whose post-graduation work permits (PGWPs) are expiring in 2023.
The provision is applicable to students whose PGWPs have already expired as well. As per IRCC, “Those whose work permits have expired will have the option to restore their status, even if they are past the 90-day restoration period, and will receive an interim work authorization while they wait for their new work permit application to be processed.”
Typically, students who finish study programmes lasting eight months or more are eligible for PGWPs that permit work periods ranging from eight months to three years, based on the programme’s duration.
Know about Canada Work Permit Guidelines.
A comparable extension was implemented for students with permits expiring in 2022, leading to the recent decision. IRCC has scheduled a “facilitative process” through its online services on 6 April 2023, enabling students to apply for the extension.
In a news release accompanying the announcement, IRCC stated, “Talented and skilled international graduates play a crucial role in addressing Canada’s labor shortage, and those who are nearing the end of their PGWP are already well-integrated into the Canadian labor market. The extra work permit will permit qualified candidates to continue contributing to the Canadian economy while gaining valuable work experience and preparing for the chance to apply for permanent residence.”
The release from IRCC also establishes a clear connection between the PGWP as an opportunity for gaining work experience in Canada and the transition to permanent residency for foreign graduates. According to the department, there were over 157,000 foreign students who received permanent residency status in 2021 (a record number), followed by an additional 95,000 in 2022.
IRCC further states that as of the end of 2022, “Over 286,000 international graduates were in Canada with valid post-graduation work permits. Roughly 127,000 PGWPs are set to expire in 2023, though around 67,000 PGWP holders have already applied for permanent residency and will not need to extend their work permit via this program.” These statistics imply that roughly 60,000 students with expiring PGWPs will qualify for the extension that was recently announced.


The first TIR multimodal transport operation from India to Afghanistan via the Iranian port of Chabahar was completed last week.
The operation, which shipped production line parts from the Iranian port of Chabahar to its final destination in Afghanistan, took seven days, five days by sea and two days by road. By comparison, the traditional route from the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas takes three to four days longer. It was also the first TIR multimodal operation to start in India and be carried by an Indian TIR licensee.
TIR facilitates seamless multimodal transport
With TIR and its IT tools, the risk management process can be done up front. Therefore, at all ports including Chabahar, containers do not need to be checked out of the box.
Cargoes departing from Afghanistan can now reach their destinations safely and reliably 20 percent faster, allowing carriers in and out of the region to benefit from reduced land and sea travel times.
"This is the first TIR multimodal operation from India via the Chabahar Corridor and is an exciting development that demonstrates the vast potential of TIR multimodal transport to carriers and transport companies around the world," said IRU Secretary General Umberto de Pretto.
Chabahar - Important trade gateway for TIR in and out of India
Besides connecting Iran to Afghanistan, Central Asia, Russia and Europe, Chabahar is Iran's only port with direct access to the Indian Ocean.
This TIR transport operation is based on the Chabhar Transit Agreement signed between Iran and India and represents the first step towards the full start-up of the Indo-Iran-Afghanistan Corridor.
Mr. Umberto de Breto concluded, "Given the current impact of the Novel Coronavirus 2019 outbreak, it is particularly important to open up new corridors. Opening up new, faster and safer routes will help ensure a steady flow of goods to those in need."


The provocative works of the poet, performer and artist Caroline Bergvall have long intrigued and challenged medievalists – so when a handful of us CLAMS Anglo-Saxonists were invited to view a one-off performance of Bergvall’s newest work, Raga Dawn, we jumped at the chance.
‘Dawn’ by name, dawn by nature – the piece, to be performed at twelve locations on the old troubadour route from Morocco to southern Spain and through Europe in 2017, takes place outdoors at the rising of day. For us, that meant a 4am start, a big flask of coffee and a McDonald’s breakfast as we set out on a journey from South London and out towards Essex, our final destination being the landing platform at the Grade II listed Tilbury Cruise Terminal.
What’s the significance of Tilbury? Today it’s a working-class port town which never quite recovered from the devastating mass unemployment of the 1970s and 80s. But former centuries told quite a different story – the town’s position at the mouth of the Thames and its deep-water port meant it was historically an important location for trade and defence. Bede mentions in his Ecclesiastical History that St Cedd established a missionary church at ‘Tilaburg’ with the aim of converting the East Saxons to Christianity. It was here that Elizabeth I delivered her famous ‘heart and stomach of a king’ speech to assembled troops in advance of the anticipated invasion of the Spanish Armada. Here, too, the HMT Empire Windrush brought one of the first groups of West Indian immigrants to the UK after World War II.
Raga Dawn, performed by Bergvall and soprano Peyee Chen, was part of Estuary 16, the first biennial festival celebrating the cultural and historical importance of Tilbury and its neighbouring estuary towns of Gravesend, Canvey Island and Southend-on-Sea.
Via a spellbinding hour of layered spoken and sung voices in multiple languages, electronic sounds, yogic breathing and linguistic play, Bergvall’s work – performed under a blanket of shifting grey clouds – voices anxieties concerning forced human migration and issues of language, displacement and belonging. Performed as night turns to day, on the brink of the Essex marshlands, and exploring multilingualism and transnationalism via the use of minority languages (Punjabi and Romansch), Raga Dawn rejects the Anglocentric and instead gives centre-stage to all things liminal.
By looking to medieval lyric poetry for inspiration, Bergvall finds apt meeting points between east and west, the past and the present, and the spoken and written word. The history of troubadour love poetry reveals it to be transnational and nomadic, starting in the Middle East and moving across Spain and to Italy through the 11th, 12th, 13th and 14th centuries. The form translates and transforms itself through various times and places, becoming a shared tradition which denies a standardised or hierarchical linguistic culture. There was certainly the feeling amongst the rapt audience that we are being reconnected – in Bergvall’s words – to time, place, and to each other. It was an enormously profound and unique experience.
When the performance finished we flocked back inside the ferry terminal to partake in a Sikh breakfast of bombay potatoes and chapatis, prepared by the Essex Cultural Diversity Project – a welcome way to warm up after our hour by the water but also, undoubtedly, an important part of the transnational community-building experience.
By then it was half past 8 in the morning and the day was far from over – Tilbury Cruise Terminal was abuzz with visitors enjoying sound, film and photography installations as well as talks, poetry readings and films that explored the region’s complex connections with its own history and the wider world.
Waterborne was a particular highlight – a poignant audio piece experienced on board a working Thames boat, the Avante. French and Mottershead’s work is part of a wider project – Afterlife – in which the listener hears a detailed description of the decay of the human body in a variety of environments – woodland, water, in a museum and at home. Looking out across the Thames and hearing a visceral description of tissues and bones dissolving in the water over centuries, one expects to feel chilled but is instead strangely soothed by the deeply humanising shared experience that transgresses periodisation.
Also on display was Chloe Dewe Mathews newest project Thames Log. The photographer has spent five years documenting rituals, both habitual and ceremonial, enacted along the banks of the Thames. Surprising and moving moments come to light in this exhibition, including pentecostal baptism and the scattering of human ashes. We were especially intrigued by the way that Dewe Mathews displayed metadata about the photograph alongside the image itself, recording these watery rituals both quantitatively and visually.
The estuary was an unexpected but fitting location for thinking through our relationships with history, the environment and each other, and a (very) long but enjoyable and enriching day was had by all.
Beth Whalley is a PhD Candidate in the English and Geography Departments at King’s College London. Funded by the Rick Trainor Scholarship and the Canal and Rivers Trust, Beth’s research explores the semiotics of water across times and places.


Monday, 07 May 2012
Former Speaker of the House, Tip O'Neill once famously explained "All politics is local." The same, apparently, is true of Oreos. You see, Kraft Foods, who now own the Oreo brand, is determined to expand Oreos' global popularity. But the iconic cookie has not always sold well internationally. According to Sanjay Khosha, Kraft's president of developing markets, as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, for many years, Oreos were "spectacularly underperforming" in international markets. The cookie was too sweet, for example, in China, too bitter in India.
The San Francisco Chronicle is reporting that Kraft has responded by developing local Oreos, designed to satisfy local palates. Green tea Oreos in China. Banana and dulce de leche Oreos in Argentina. Mango and orange Oreos. Chocolate and peanut Oreos. On and on. All Oreos is local.
For my own local palate, I'm holding out hope for Hydrox-flavored Oreos. Hydrox was the original creme-filled chocolate sandwich cookie (Hydrox debuted in 1908, Oreo not until 1912). Unfortunately, Hydrox lost the chocolate cookie-and-cream war. And, as is often the case (think Betamax and VHS) the superior product disappeared from the market. Not only was Hydrox better-tasting than Oreo, but it held up better when dunked in a glass of milk. Which is, after all, the whole point.
Don't be fooled by "look-alikes."


Senate Democrats want the chamber's health committee to hold a hearing on the causes and remedies of mass shootings, including school shootings.
Nine Democrats, as well as Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders
(Vt.), sent a letter
last week to Sens. Lamar Alexander
(R-Tenn.) and Patty Murray
(D-Wash.), the top members on the panel, requesting they schedule a hearing in the wake of the Parkland, Fla., shooting, in which 17 people were killed.
"As senators, it is our responsibility to address gun violence like the public health crisis that it is, investigate the causes of these deadly acts of violence and hatred, and make policy changes to ensure that they no longer happen," they wrote.
They added "we request that you hold a hearing as soon as possible to examine the causes and remedies for mass shootings, including school shootings, across the country."
The proposed hearing, according to the senators, would include testimony from survivors of gun violence and those who have been affected by it, as well as experts on public health research.
The letter comes after thousands protested in Washington, D.C., and throughout the United States on Saturday as part of March for Our Lives, which was organized by survivors of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting.
"The shooting was a sober reminder that mass shootings, including school shootings, and gun violence more broadly, are persistent threats that affect children, teachers, and families across this country," the senators added in the letter.


June 3 at 4 pm within the framework of the International Platonov Festival of Arts in the exhibition hall of the Voronezh Regional Art Museum. I.N. Kramskoy, the opening of the exhibition “Arkady Shaikhet. Time Witness. Photos 1924-1940 “.
Arkady Shaikhet (born in 1898) arrived in Moscow in 1922, already possessing photographic skills, which he managed to acquire in his native Nikolaev. In Moscow, Shaikhet got a job as a retoucher at the Rembrandt photo studio, whose owner soon began to trust him with photographing clients. At the same time, on the advice of a distant relative (experienced journalist Dmitry Brazul), Shaikhet tried his hand at photographing, his pictures regularly appear in Rabochaya Gazeta.
Acquaintance with the chief editor of the magazine “Ogonyok” Mikhail Koltsov became a turning point in the life and work of Shaikhet: in 1925 he became the chief photographer of the most popular illustrated magazine in the country. The topics of his magazine reports are very different: the fight against illiteracy and the NEP, the anniversary of Lenin’s death and the anniversary of the Bolshoi Theater, automobile plants and metallurgical plants, the life of street children and parades on Red Square.
In 1927, Shaikhet, arrested on a false denunciation, spent several months in Butyrka prison, and through Koltsov’s efforts he was released (he was rehabilitated posthumously in 2006).
Arkady Shaikhet was one of the authors (along with Alexander Rodchenko, Boris Ignatovich, Georgy Petrusov, Mikhail Prekhner) who laid the foundations of Soviet visual culture. In 1931-1932. the Russian Association of Proletarian Photographers (ROPF) was formed, Arkady Shaikhet took an active part in its work. The photographers who were part of the ROPF argued with the members of the October group, one of the leaders of which was Alexander Rodchenko. Despite the differences in views, the photographers of these groups constantly interacted, used each other’s experience in their work and were sincere in defending their own opinions.
In 1938, Arkady Shaikhet was fired from Ogonyok; he was no longer published in the magazines Sovetskoe foto and USSR in Construction.
The Great Patriotic War, Shaikhet passed from the first day until the Victory as a correspondent for the newspapers “Front illustration” and “Pravda”; after demobilization, he hoped to return to the editorial office of Ogonyok, but this was prevented by a large-scale anti-Semitic propaganda campaign.
Shaikhet has always been distinguished by a fanatical attitude to work, incredible scrupulousness, the ability to grasp the essence of the moment and build an ideal composition. There was no opportunity for the photographer to refuse the editorial assignment or delay its completion. On November 18, 1959, he died of his fourth heart attack while shooting for the magazine “Young Technician”.
At the exhibition “Arkady Shaikhet. Time Witness. Photos 1924-1940 ”presents photographs taken in different parts of the USSR.
Pre-war photographs, carefully attributed by MAMM employees, provide an opportunity to get acquainted with Soviet visual culture.
The Multimedia Art Museum, Moscow (MAMM) is a museum and exhibition complex, the first museum in Russia specializing in photography, video and media art. Founded in 1996. The museum has hosted exhibitions of such photographers as Georgy Petrusov, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Annie Leibovitz and many others. Repeated participant of the Platonov Arts Festival.
On the opening day, admission to the exhibition is free.
At both festival exhibitions “Arkady Shaikhet. Time Witness. Photos 1924-1940 “and” Jack of Diamonds. Emanations of isms ”- a single ticket is valid.
Full – 200 rubles
Preferential (pupils, students, pensioners) – 160 rubles.
Purchase of tickets at the ticket office of the museum (CASH PAYMENT ONLY).
Purchase of electronic tickets on the website of the Platonov Festival.
Visitors need a mask.
Exhibition opening hours:
During the festival – daily from 10:00 to 19:00
The ticket office stops working 45 minutes before the museum closes.
From June 21 – according to the usual schedule of the Museum. I.N. Kramskoy
The exhibition will run until July 25, 2021.


Atlantic City is a small resort city on New Jersey’s Atlantic coast, with a population of around 40,000. Despite that, it’s a city that is known all around the world, primarily for one reason – gambling. Along with Las Vegas it would become the premier location for players, boasting a huge range of casinos and attracting people from far and wide.
Already blessed with beautiful beaches, the influx of casino players would see major hotels and nightclubs pitch up in the city, transforming the nightlife, and the city in general. All of this combined to make Atlantic City a must-see place for people seeking thrills.
The early days
While gambling is synonymous with Atlantic City, it wasn’t always like that. In fact, it took until the mid to late 70s before gambling was accepted in the area. In 1974, a vote went against legalising gambling, although it was close and pressure was building by big money businessmen for the decision to change.
Two years later, a new vote would see casinos allowed in New Jersey, but restricted to Atlantic City, and in America at the time the only other legal casinos were in Nevada – on the other side of the country. So, for many people Atlantic City became the go-to place to get all your casino excitement.
Over the next few years some of the biggest casinos in the city would be built, and in 1978 the first casino was officially open. Singer Steve Lawrence would throw the first dice at the Resorts Casino Hotel, and gambling in Atlantic City had begun.
Revenues begin to soar
It didn’t take long for locals and tourists to realise the potential of the city, and in 1981 revenues would top $1bn for the first time, and they would continue to rise every year for 26 years!
As the revenues, and in turn profits rose, the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority was created, with the sole purpose to use casino money to make public improvements and housing. Over the years, billions of dollars would be spent and hundreds of projects across the state would benefit.
Despite the money going around, Elsinore’s Atlantis Casino Hotel became the first one to close in 1989, after filing for bankruptcy. Other casinos manage to emerge from similar experiences, but that doesn’t stop the popularity and appeal of Atlantic City from increasing during this period.
The city had transformed to take on all types of entertainment over this period. As well as the casinos clubs, there would be big names from the music industry performing, and huge boxing bouts. ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson made several defences of his heavyweight title as sports fans would descend on the East Coast.
As mentioned, a significant reason for the major early success was the fact that nowhere else on the East Coast could offer gambling facilities, but over the years more states legalised it and so competition increased significantly.
It began in the 90s, two casinos opened in Connecticut, while Pennsylvania, New York and Delaware would all expand and grow their gaming industries. It was similar across all other areas of the country. To compound it, Vegas was in the middle of a major makeover, and it began to wrestle the number one mantle back from Atlantic City with new hotels, casinos and improvements all over Nevada.
With the competition, Atlantic City inevitably lost some customers, as people wouldn’t feel the need to travel across the country for their fun. However, it was still going strong in the mid-90s, with a whopping 50,000 employees, and revenues would still be rising through the billions.
Hard times hit Atlantic City
Although revenues would continue to rise until they hit a peak in 2007, the first signs of trouble began in the early 2000s. New Jersey was suffering economic hardship, with higher unemployment, and a surge in crime, which started to take the gloss off the city for the visitors.
Revenues would then peak at $5.2bn, but then the recession hit. The whole country would suffer, which meant casinos everywhere would suffer, particularly Atlantic City. With less disposable income, less punters would take to the casinos when travel and hotel costs were added into the mix.
As numbers were falling, it called on the casino to offer more inventive ways to attract players, especially the high rollers. They were considered essential in the tough times and the casinos would go to some lengths to entice the players. It could be as simple as free rooms, meals, and in some cases, it would be negotiating specific deals.
For Don Johnson, a high roller, that deal included a payback percentage on some of his losses, and specific rules for his blackjack games, and what a good deal that would turn out to be for him.
In 2010, he would take around $15m from three casinos in the city, all within a few weeks of each other, decimating their profits in the process and attracting worldwide attention. That included winning $1.2m in the space of three hands at the Tropicana, before ending his 12-hour gaming spree up a massive $6m. A further $5m would come from the Borgata casino, with $4m from Caesars. Not bad!
A few years later, New Jersey was hit by the devastating Hurricane Sandy, which killed 37 people. It also caused $30bn worth of damages and so had a major impact on the casino industry. Obviously, people were escaping the area and Governor Chris Christie ordered that all casinos in Atlantic City would be shut as President Obama made an emergency declaration for New Jersey.
The casinos were shut for several days, and November 2012 saw a 28% drop in revenue, which was the biggest monthly drop in 34 years. These factors meant that tourism to the city would drop year on year, and four of the city’s 11 casinos would announce closure, plans to close or bankruptcy in 2014.
What does the future hold?
At its pomp, Atlantic City would rival Vegas, for the entertainment, the nightlife and the easy way of life. However, over the last decade the two have drifted apart at a significant rate.
Sure, you can still enjoy a great range of casinos in the city, and the history and glamour that was once attached to the area means that it will always attract some gamblers. However, as the buildings get older and the competition improves it makes it harder for Atlantic City to stand out in a competitive market. Keep an eye on the blog for more articles on the history of gambling around the world.


Since the Olympic Winter Games Nagano 1998, Samsung has supported the Olympics with innovative mobile technology as the official Worldwide Olympic Partner in Wireless Communications Equipment.
Just as new records are created when limits are pushed, Samsung is continually challenging the possibilities of Olympic Games marketing by believing that a valuable change begins when crossing barriers.
Samsung's innovative mobile technologies have transformed the way the Olympic Games community, athletes, and fans around the world communicate and share with each other.
Samsung will continue to serve as the official Worldwide Olympic Partner and provide wireless communication and computing equipment support for the Olympic Games until 2028.
Samsung will work to make history at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.
Team Galaxy for Tokyo 2020 is a diverse group of world-class athletes that defy barriers and unite us together to celebrate the Olympic and Paralympic spirit. With your support, Team Galaxy will continue to create new possibilities for our future, and change the way fans around the world experience Tokyo 2020 with Galaxy.
Samsung builds a convenient mobile environment for everyone to use during the Olympic Games. Samsung provides Galaxy Note8 Olympic Games Edition smartphones to the International Olympic Committee (IOC), who encourages athletes to capture and share moments of Olympic Games excitement. They also choose 1,500 people to spread hope and enthusiasm to the world during the Torch Relay. In cooperation with the PyeongChang Organising Committee for the Olympic Winter Games 2018(POCOG), the "THE OFFICIAL OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES PYEONGCHANG 2018 APP" is released and downloaded by 1.28 million fans worldwide. The app provides real-time game-related news such as game records, player stats , medal standings, and Olympic Games updates.
Combining design, function, and innovation is Samsung’s specialty. The Galaxy S7 Edge perfectly showcases this with cutting-edge technology and improved functionality, encased in an aesthetically breathtaking package. For the first time, Samsung specifically designs a smartphone for the Olympic Games. Its exterior accents and interface are designed with the five colors of the Olympic rings, and the Olympic emblem appears on the rear exterior. Galaxy S7 Edge Olympic Games Edition phones are provided to all Olympic Games athletes, making it one of the most visible products at the Olympic Games Rio 2016. Following the success of the Olympic Games Edition phone among the athletes, the device is released in Japan, Korea, United States, China, Germany, and Brazil.
People start editing photos and watching media more on their smartphones. The demand for bigger screens rise and Samsung is there to fill the need. Galaxy Note3 is a true multimedia powerhouse. It's the first phone with USB 3.0 for fast transfers, a 13-megapixel camera with the ability to record 4K video at 30 frames per second, and has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth for wireless functionality. The Olympic Winter Games Sochi 2014 is the first year Samsung supplies phones to all athletes. The phone's flip cover, which features the athlete's national flag, is waved enthusiastically during the Opening Ceremony.
Galaxy S3 products are frequently used by celebrities associated with the city's Olympic Games. In an unexpected product placement, actor Rowan Atkinson uses a Samsung smartphone to take and share photos during the Opening Ceremony, pushing Samsung awareness even higher. Combined with the 360-degree marketing effort, Galaxy S3 marks the point where Samsung shifts from being just another mobile manufacturer to being a market leader in technology and sales. As user satisfaction increases, the Galaxy S3 bests its competitors and achieves top rankings from prominent technology magazines.
At this point, the smartphone revolution is truly underway, and Samsung is positioned for success. The Omnia II, the predecessor of the Galaxy series, is provided to the Olympic family. It comes equipped with Windows Mobile OS and sports a 3.7-inch AMOLED display along with Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS. Facial recognition, geotagging, and uploading to cloud are also possible at this time.
As China pulls out all the stops for the Olympic Games Beijing 2008, Samsung provides the SGH-i688, an early version of the smartphone. The innovative push-to-talk (PTT) feature is groundbreaking for the Olympic family as well as for consumers. The shift from one-to-one devices to one-to-many devices streamlines the organizers' communication and coordination of events allowing for a better Olympic Games experience for everyone.
The evolution of technology continues. The D600 dramatically improves multimedia capabilities with its two-inch screen, stereo speakers, and MP3 Player. Samsung provides Olympic Games Officials with D600 phones capable of advanced graphics and video and preinstalled with WOW software. The introduction of the WOW platform following the Athens prototype version sets the stage for more innovation to come in hardware and software.
Samsung provides SGH-i530 for the Olympic Games in Athens in 2004. The SGH-i530 uses Palm OS and features a large touchscreen interface with advanced graphics. An early version of Samsung’s Wireless Olympic Works (WOW) service comes preinstalled and provides the organizers with real-time event information for event management.
For the first time, Samsung produces an Olympic Games Edition phone featuring memorable ringtones, setting the "Olympic Games Edition" standard. At 128 x 128 pixels, the display of SCH-T300 is more than double the size of the previous Olympic Games edition. As one of the first Internet-enabled phones, it has a built-in web browser and a dedicated Internet button.
In two years, Samsung rapidly expands its technology and manufacturing capabilities in the wireless sector. Sales of the SGH-600 reaches one million units, with an additional two million units to be exported. The SGH-600 gains a competitive edge with its black on green display, ability to store up to 100 phone numbers, voice recording, and calendar features.
Samsung becomes the official Worldwide Olympic Partner in Wireless Communications Equipment. Samsung provides N206 phones to the Olympic Games organizers and officials.
More Stories with the Olympic Games


WHEN: May 9, 2015 at 6:00pm
WHERE: WORD International Ministries Ireland (WIN Dublin Church)
Unit G5 Chapelizod Industrial Estate, Dublin 20
Reflecting on some of the important public debate about the importance of family, and what exactly does that mean, Focus on the Family Ireland presents the film, “Irreplaceable”.
More information on the film showing at www.family.ie/latest-news/irreplaceable-the-film/
This is part of our awareness campaign in relation to the upcoming same-sex marriage referendum this month.
Please support, come and bring your friends. God bless you!
For inquiries, please contact Pastor Manny De Leon 086 3470794.


William "Bill" Mobley is the CEO of FreeCast, the company behind the world's largest online media guide, Rabbit TV, which aggregates and organizes millions of hours of web-based entertainment content, both free and premium, together into one interface for easy access. Rabbit TV Plus is one of the top 5 fastest-growing paid subscription services, delivering a next generation TV experience to nearly 4 million subscribers less than two years after its launch. With the release of the all-new Rabbit TV Plus, an international expansion in progress, and the upcoming launch of Select TV, Bill's company is poised to continue shaking up the television industry.
The Evolution of OTT
EXECUTIVE INSIGHTS by Bill Mobley
Over-the-top video has come a long way. I know, because I’ve been in the business from the start. As the founder of MegaMedia Networks, my company pioneered the no-download on-page web video, delivering over 800,000 point to point streams a day, almost a decade before YouTube or Netflix would do the same. Today, web video is bigger than ever. In fact, just about everything is available online. In 2013, KPMG did a study that revealed over 70% of the top box office movies and over 87% of the year’s top television titles were all available online in one form or another. For the top movies and TV shows from the year prior to the study, those percentages were 100% and 96%. The bottom line is this: everything that you can watch with a pay-TV subscription is or will be available to watch on the Internet within a year or less.
Streaming media is superseding linear cable and satellite TV delivery systems, present tense, and these numbers make that clear. These statistics are two years old, and it was happening then. And anyone who’s been following knows that that trend towards web-based video has only accelerated since then. Cord-cutting has exploded, as the MSOs hemorrhage video subscribers. In fact, there’s only one reason why every household in the country isn’t getting their TV from the web: right now it’s a cumbersome experience to do so.
Amazon, Netflix, Hulu, and even more familiar names in the media industry like CBS and HBO all have streaming media products, and there are hundreds more; too many to be listed, with more joining the fray every month. What you end up with is gazillions of unique offerings. While they all have great libraries of content, they’re currently siloed, forcing consumers to go to each one individually: log in to each one, search each one, manage and pay for each one. It’s a time consuming hassle that consumers just don’t have time for. And because these video providers are direct competitors, they are not collectively about to make it any easier on their mutual customers. It’s simply not in their interest to direct you to content that you might want to watch, and that surely exists out there somewhere, if it isn’t in their own library. That’s precisely the problem. But while you can’t really blame a company for not directing their own users to the competition, this current state of affairs creates an entirely new opportunity in the OTT space that often goes unnoticed.
What consumers want and need is, believe it or not, exactly what these content providers want and need as well: impartial cross-platform content discovery. In other words, a virtual MSO. A single agnostic platform that can bring content from competing online video sources together, the same way that a cable TV subscription makes it easy for consumers to enjoy content from multiple competing cable and broadcast networks. The media buzzes about every new SVOD player that jumps into an increasingly crowded space, but they’re missing an entire half of the equation that ultimately defines the future landscape of the television industry: the business not of selling access to content, but of organizing the existing pieces of content and content sources, and thereby making over-the-top TV a viable option for mainstream consumers.
It’s simply not in their interest to direct you to content that you might want to watch, and that surely exists out there somewhere, if it isn’t in their own library. That’s precisely the problem.


More than 500 people— including Fountain House members, staff, and community members— spent Saturday morning in Riverside Park to raise awareness about the connection between mental and physical health. The second annual walk/run has a dual purpose of fighting stigma while promoting the importance of physical fitness for people with mental illness.
“The One-in-Four 5K is an important way for people with mental illness to strengthen their minds and their bodies,” said Paul, a member who has become an avid runner since joining Fountain House one year ago. “When I first came to Fountain House, I was overweight, depressed and lethargic,” he said. Through his work in the Wellness Program, Paul has lost 60 pounds, and devoted himself to healthier living. He is an avid runner and is coordinating a running group at Fountain House.
Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer attended the event to cheer on runners and walkers. According to the World Health Organization, one in four people will experience a mental health condition in their lifetime. Those with a serious mental illness such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and major depression have a life expectancy that is 25 years less than the general population. All proceeds from the One-in-Four 5K help Fountain House sustain a wellness program to help end the negative health trends that people with mental illness face every day.
Through fitness, nutrition and health education, Fountain House members gain energy and motivation, lose weight and improve their overall wellness and quality of life. The wellness program’s key objectives are to increase physical activity and introduce stress reduction techniques through yoga and meditation classes. Members learn how to incorporate healthy food into their diets as well as how to improve their overall wellness.
“We created our wellness program to reverse the terrible trend of early death among people living with serious mental illness. Physical activity is an important component of the program, and we’ve worked hard to get people moving, regardless of their fitness level,” says Fountain House President Kenn Dudek.
To keep the enthusiasm for the One-in-Four 5K going and growing, tag and share photos of the walk/race on Facebook.


October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM). Domestic violence thrives when we are silent; but if we take a stand and work together, we can end domestic violence.
Join NCEDSV & NNEDV October 15 – 21, 2017 for the National Week of Action!
10/15/2017: Conversation Sunday – use our talking points to start conversations about domestic violence with friends, family members, neighbors, or colleagues.
10/16/2017: Media Monday – download our new Tech Safety App (now available in Spanish!) or share our #31n31 campaign this year on social media.
- 2016 #31n31: 31 Ways to Challenge Myths about Domestic Violence
- 2015 #31n31: 31 Survivors’ and Advocates’ Stories
- 2014 #31n31: 31 Ways VAWA, FVPSA, and VOCA have Made a Difference in Survivors’ Lives
- 2013 #31n31: 31 Ways to Get Involved and Help End Domestic Violence
10/17/2017: Twitter Chat Tuesday – join our bilingual (English & Spanish) Twitter chat from 2-3 PM (ET). Details to come!
10/19/2017: #PurpleThursday – wear purple and show your support for survivors and for ending domestic violence! Sign up here.
10/21/2017: Shout-Out Saturday – celebrate the people you admire who speak out for survivors and use their voices to make a difference.
*Resources brought to you by http://nnedv.org/pages/5858-week-of-action-2017.html


Brussels, Thursday 16 February 2017 – AEGIS Europe today added its support to the chorus of European industries, which have signed up to a “Joint Declaration for an ambitious EU industrial strategy,” sent to policy-makers across Europe.
“European industry has presented a clear message to policy-makers. In the EU, we are lucky to have world-class companies, which are global leaders in R&D, and responsible for the maintenance of a strong European industrial base,” pointed out Mr Nitzschke, spokesperson for AEGIS Europe.
“European manufacturers, both large and small, are becoming increasingly alarmed at the erosion of the EU’s industrial base, which threatens to destroy the very foundation on which our economy is built,” stated Mr Nitzschke.
AEGIS Europe, an alliance representing around 30 European manufacturing industries, joined with 91 other European associations calling on policy-makers to meet the objective of increasing the share of industry in European GDP to 20% by 2020.
“The members of AEGIS Europe are fully committed to these targets and call for immediate action by the EU and its Member States to prevent any further destruction of Europe’s manufacturing base,” emphasised Mr Nitzschke.
"The 20% target was set in 2014, but instead of moving towards this goal, the EU has allowed industrial manufacturing to decrease in nearly all of its Member States. Today manufacturing has reached a record low of only a 15.3% share of total output," Mr Nitzschke explained.
“European manufacturing sectors are not only the backbone of the entire economy, employing over 34 million people, they also support indirect value chains of tens of millions more jobs,” pointed out Mr Nitzschke. “Europe needs manufacturing if it is to compete in the global economy,” he added.
“Policy-makers should be very alarmed about the increasing number of entire sectors moving to Asia, including high-tech industries where labour costs are not decisive,“ said Mr Nitzschke.
“Europe simply cannot create sustainable growth on the basis of unbalanced imports, for example with China where the trade deficit has reached a massive €180BN Euros per year. We are setting the benchmark in the EU on environmental, health and safety standards. Yet, the EU is allowing domestic manufacturing to be replaced by imports, which do not come close to meeting these standards. At the same time investments and jobs are being lost in the European economy every single day,” Mr Nitzschke pointed out.
“It is essential that we have fair competition and fight for the application of free and fair international trade rules,” stressed Mr Nitzschke. “That is why so many European industries have lent their support to the Joint Declaration, which must be seen as an urgent call to action to support jobs and growth in European industry,” he concluded.
For media enquiries please contact: firstname.lastname@example.org | Natalia Kurop: M: +32 488 945 579
About AEGIS Europe
AEGIS Europe brings together nearly 30 European associations representing a broad variety of industries including traditional industries, consumer branches, SMEs and renewable energy sectors, accounting for more than €500 billion in annual turnover and millions of jobs across the EU. This industry alliance, made up of leaders in sustainable manufacturing and social and environmental responsibility, is committed to European manufacturing as the fundamental driver of innovation, growth and jobs in Europe.
For more information, visit www.aegiseurope.eu.


Groundwater recharge in the Western U.S. will change as the climate warms—the dry southern regions will have less and the northern regions will have more, a University of Arizona-led research team reports. The new study covers the entire U.S. West, from the High Plains states to the Pacific coast, and provides the first detailed look at how groundwater recharge may change as the climate changes, said senior author Thomas Meixner, UA professor and associate department head of hydrology and atmospheric sciences.
October precipitation was below average to record driest in Arizona, with the driest conditions occurring in the southwestern corner of the state, and temperatures were above average to much-above average. However, the current forecast also suggests this will remain a weak La Niña event, for which correlations to below-average winter precipitation in the Southwest are not as evident.
The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at the UA is bringing concepts taught in the classroom to the community, applying scientific research to real-world problems.
One of the nation's most successful partnerships between farm and urban water agencies has lately run into serious turbulence, potentially threatening an important Colorado River water-sharing deal. Robert Glennon, a law professor at the UA who specializes in water issues, said the best way to preserve farms and farm communities is to improve water conservation. The saved water can be used to grow more valuable crops, sold to other farmers or to urban areas.


10 YEARS EURO Rolls
Euro-area citizens and residents have selected the winning design of a new euro coin (€2) issued in January 2012 to commemorate 10 years of euro banknotes and coins. Close to 35.000 people voted in an online competition from a choice of five designs that had been pre-selected by a professional jury following a design competition among citizens from the whole euro area. The new commemorative 2-euro coin will be issued by all euro-area Member States. It is estimated that some 90 million of these coins will be put into circulation. The winning design symbolizes the way in which the euro has become a true global player in the last ten years and its importance in ordinary people’s lives (represented by the people in the design), trade (the ship), industry (the factory) and energy (wind power stations).
Learn about the Numismatic Programme 2012Download the pdf file


During a meeting Friday with North Korean Vice Marshal Choe Ryong-hae, Chinese President Xi Jinping was unequivocal in his view that Pyongyang must participate in denuclearization talks. But was North Korea really listening?
“China has a very clear position concerning the issue that all the parties involved should stick to the objective of denuclearization, safeguard the peace and stability on the peninsula, and resolve disputes through dialogue and consultation,” Xi stressed.
He called on all parties concerned to remain calm and with restraint, ease the situation and restart the process of the six-party talks, in a bid to achieve denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula and safeguard peace and stability in Northeast Asia.
Choe Ryong Hae conveyed greetings sent by Kim Jong Un to Xi Jinping. Xi Jinping expressed deep thanks for this and asked Choe Ryong Hae to convey his cordial greetings to Kim Jong Un…Xi Jinping expressed deep thanks once again to Kim Jong Un for dispatching Choe Ryong Hae as his special envoy and conveying his personal letter.
This was hardly the first time that China has publicly expressed its frustration with North Korea’s nuclear program. Beijing voted in favor of imposing United Nations sanctions on Pyongyang following its troublesome ally’s nuclear tests in 2009 and earlier this year. And Xi himself said in April that, “No one should be allowed to throw a region and even the whole world into chaos for selfish gains.”
Although this week’s meeting between presidents Barack Obama and Xi Jinping is still a couple days away, China’s new leader won some measure of respect simply by agreeing to a more informal, freewheeling format, White House officials said. At a private estate in California, the two leaders are expected to spend several hours of largely unscripted time together over two days. The agenda is not particularly detailed, the officials said, and the White House hopes a candid conversation will result. (via White House Likes Flexibility of China’s Xi - China Real Time Report - WSJ)


Breaking the shackles of the stereotypical society, black diamonds are now becoming the modern sensation. With the evolution of the thought process, there has been a vivid change in the taste and preferences of the public. Colorless transparent diamonds which have been in very high demand for centuries are now closely followed up by the eccentric beauty of the captivating black diamonds. Grading itself slightly lower on the scale of purity, black diamonds are the second most popular diamond choice among the public.
Black diamonds have a long history attached to them. Presently considered as the “Fancy Black”, the black diamonds were once considered to be an outskirt in the society bringing about death and misfortune. Being held within the lower stratum based on its historical background, black diamonds have now come along a long way.
Black diamonds have regained their virtue since the late 20th century. when jewelers started looking at it as a valuable asset that can set new standards within the industry. The dramatic outlooks of the black diamond owing to the inclusions have since then started becoming a fashion statement. A magnificent piece of dazzling dark-colored black diamond with a set of small beads of transparent white diamond-paved along its edges makes the ring look absolutely stunning.
Over the recent years, the trend of black diamond rings has been coping up in the fashion industry. The exposure of the sanctimonious altruistic engagement rings with black diamond accents is now being popularized by movies and celebrities. The dramatic appearance of the Black Diamond engagement ring in the popular Hollywood movie Sex in the City 2 has been a major turn up for the industry of black diamond.
Overview of Black Diamond
It is a very common question that comes to mind while thinking of black diamond as the color. Setting itself at par from the transparent white diamond, black diamonds have been formed in a very similar manner as that of the transparent diamonds. However, the only striking difference between the two is the presence of inclusions in black diamonds which imparts the dark color to the diamond.
Inclusions play a very important major dynamic role in imparting the dark color to the diamond. Although inclusions maybe sometimes considered as interior imperfections as it lowers the grade of diamond on the scale of purity, such inclusions play a significant role in making the diamond look black. Inclusions of large quantities of minute mineral particles such as pyrite, graphite, or even hematite during the process of crystallization have resulted in the black color in the diamond. Black diamonds also include several fractures which can also impart the color black to the stone and sometimes it is also because of the process of graphitization.
These additional inclusions lower the grade of the diamond imparting a strong dark color to the crystal. Diamonds are generally the hardest stone available and the durability of diamonds is extremely high. But as compared to the transparent diamonds, the black diamonds are slightly fragile although their durability as compared to other gemstones is way more committed. As a result of which black diamond although it may appear bigger in size as compared to the transparent diamond but will still be comparatively cheaper than pure transparent diamonds. Therefore, if you have a clutch on your budget black diamond makes a perfect choice in that case.
Also Read: All About Black Diamond Ring
Black Diamond as Engagement Rings
Black Diamonds make a perfect engagement ring if you want to set the bar thus by bringing about a revolution in the common thought process of the masses. The dark emphasizing black color of the diamond with delicate fractures and inclusions in it making it slightly fragile is a brilliant option for an engagement ring.
Black diamonds are very hard to handle. The delicate gemstone is tedious to cut, shape, design, and polish making the ring look an absolute wonder when adorned. A black diamond engagement ring with small transparent pure diamonds encircling the astounding beauty will make the ring highly praiseworthy.
Paved Black Diamond Engagement Ring
Paved black diamond engagement rings make a brilliant option owing to their spectacular look. The stunning art of the metalwork with dramatic diamond setting paved along the sides of the metal surrounding the large piece of black diamond looks marvelous.
Milgrained Black Diamond Engagement Ring
A black diamond engagement ring in the shape of a migraine is also a very popular and common design. Very similar to that of a paved engagement ring, 14 accents of transparent diamonds are mounted on the metal surrounding the black diamond giving a high appreciable visual appearance. The contrast between the black and the small transparent diamonds looks stunning on the engagement ring.
Shank Halo Black Diamond Engagement Ring
An endorsing circular piece of black diamond situated at the center with its edges surrounded by small beads of transparent diamonds makes the ring a piece of art. Commonly used 0.16 carats of small transparent diamonds that surround the striking black diamond, the contrast between the two gives a jaw-dropping look.
Tapered Halo Black Diamond Engagement Ring
The petite halo design consisting of 0.32 carats of transparent diamonds encircling the centerpiece of black diamond giving a distinct vibrant contrasting look to the ring is an absolute beauty. The diamonds have been aligned in such a manner that it provides a prominent feature to the ring.
Raised Black Diamond Engagement Ring
The accentuated feature of black diamond placed slightly in an angular manner giving an appearance of raised gemstone placed on the metal surrounded by small paved transparent diamonds makes the engagement ring look extremely beautiful.
There is a huge variety of options that is available for you to choose from among the black diamond engagement rings. Therefore, if you are wondering to make a bold decision by choosing a black diamond as your engagement ring, have a holistic approach towards the availability of choices.
Also Read: Trending Styles Of Diamond Earrings
Black diamond engagement rings look an absolute eloquent beauty when coupled with accentuated small transparent diamonds. The black diamonds which are now being progressively becoming a fashion statement make an extraordinary engagement ring. The classy edgy eccentric color of black diamond makes a bold dynamic icon as an engagement ring. So, this festive season if you want to make your bold statement opt for the gorgeous black diamond engagement ring.


A sunny Friday afternoon in the heart of Madrid’s Salamanca district. As you are walking down Maria de Molina Street, you feel hungry. Instinctively, you tweet “I’m starving!” and, instantly, you receive a €5 voucher for a veggie sandwich in a friendly place, within a five minute walk.
Behind the scenes your tweet was captured by sophisticated algorithms. Then, by integrating your credit transactions, social media activity, and your location (given away by your phone’s GPS) you were identified as a 29-year old vegetarian, with a craving for healthy food, who appreciates a friendly atmosphere and would pay up to €5 for a snack. After scanning the nearby cafes, the algorithm found the perfect match for you.
Our digital life
Data that is too big or too fast to process in typical systems is called Big Data. With nearly 6 billion people, i.e. 87% of the world population, using mobile phones and 2 billion using the Internet, anything from transactions, through social media, to search queries or even medical records is being tracked. While living our life, each one of us is leaving behind his/her own digital trail.
Furthermore, millions of networked street sensors, smart phones, or industrial equipment that measures and communicates location/ movement/ temperature etc., generate unprecedented amounts of data and rapidy fomulating our digital universe.
Among the most stunning data visualzation maps (above) that illustrate the global use of social media, Eric Fischer compared Flickr and Twitter usage. The color white indicates where people used both, blue is Twitter, and orange is Flickr.
How big is Big?
1.8 zettabytes of data, equivalent to 200 billion HD movies (that would take 47 million years to watch), was generated in 2011 and this figure is more than doubling every two years, IDC reports. The Economist reports that this industry is worth more than $100 billion and is growing at almost 10% a year.
Big Data is a disruptive trend
Companies are making every effort to build a customer-centric business. If only they could collect their customer data, mine it and transform it into actionable insights they could improve their bottom line. This ability will soon become vital for their growth and will drive their competitive advantage.
Companies will use Big Data for informed decision making, predictive analytics, sentiment analysis, or micro-segmentation.
A pioneer in that area is Wal-Mart’s customer tracking system that captures a total of 24 terabytes of transaction information from each of its 2,900 retail outlets, and analyzes sales, pricing, demographics and even weather info to customize the most efficient product selections and to determine the timing for discounts at particular stores.
Amazon exploits Big Data analytics to feed its recommendation engine (“you may also like”) and LinkedIn for its “People you may know” feature.
Another use of Big Data is sentiment analysis, i.e. detecting consumer attitudes towards brands, companies, or individuals. Start-ups such as Datasift or Gnip already analyze Google search queries, Facebook posts and Twitter messages to measure the public sentiment in real-time.
Global Pulse is a UN organization that analyzes social networks and text messages in the Third World countries to predict job losses or disease outbreaks in certain regions. Big data analysis, thus, serves them as a digital warning that signals where to send assistance programs.
Governments may use Big Data to combine different databases and improve public service. A Mckinsey report estimates that the EU public sector could save up to €300 billion in administrative costs by using big data.
Government agencies, such the NYPD, analyze historical arrest patterns and combine them with variables such as paydays, sporting events, weather and holidays in order to predict the places where a crime could occur and deploy in advance.
The Challenges of Big Data
There are technical challenges, privacy and security concerns, and a lack of talent in the Big Data arena.
Some of the technical challenges are related to capturing and analyzing different types of data (structured and unstructured), integrating different databases together and ensuring that out of the vast amount of data only the relevant one will be transferred to the decision makers so they can extract actionable insights from it.
Governments will need to create policies related to privacy, security and intellectual property as not many people are happy with the idea that their every move is digitized and analyzed, while companies want to make sure their data collecting is legal and not compromising them.
Finally, a lack of talent is another challenge. According to McKinsey, in the next 5 years in the US there will be a shortage of 140,000 to 190,000 people with analytical skills and 1.5 million managers and analysts skilled enough to make decisions based on the Big Data input.
Tell me what you think about Big Data and how will it affect our lives?
Use the comments below!


Laughter is the best medicine and that was certainly true at the sixth annual Ladies Out Laughing Comedy Night. The tremendously successful evening raised an incredible $60,000. Women’s chuckles have raised more than $175,000 for cancer since Ladies Out Laughing began in 2008. Net proceeds in 2013 will go toward four worthy charities that support the battle against cancer.
The sold out show this year was hosted by funny lady Laurie Elliott, along with comics Trevor Boris and Terry McGurrin. Elliott, voted Funniest Female Stand Up at The 2010 Canadian Comedy Awards, has participated in Ladies Out Laughing since the beginning. This was Trevor Boris' second appearance, and Terry McGurrin's premiere at the event.
We are thrilled with the community's enthusiasm for Ladies Out Laughing, and we are so incredibly grateful to the many businesses, individuals and volunteers who have contributed to the success of our 2013 event.
Thank you all for supporting Ladies Out Laughing 2013, and hope to see everyone out again next year - stay tuned for 2014 details!
Click here to view all the fabulous photos of the evening.


As someone who has struggled with mental health issues, I know firsthand how challenging it can be to manage symptoms like anxiety and depression. While there are many different strategies that can be effective, one that has consistently helped me is taking nature walks.
Research has shown that spending time in nature can have a range of mental health benefits. For example, a study by Harvard Health found that just 20 minutes of connecting with nature can help lower stress hormone levels. Similarly, a review of multiple studies published in the journal Sustainability found that nature walks can be effective for reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety.
Personally, I find that taking a nature walk is a great way to clear my mind and reduce feelings of stress and anxiety. Whether I’m walking through a local park or hiking in the wilderness, being surrounded by nature helps me feel more grounded and connected to the world around me. If you’re looking for a simple yet effective way to manage your mental health, I highly recommend giving nature walks a try.
The Benefits of Nature Walks for Mental Health
Nature walks have been shown to have numerous benefits for mental health. In this section, I will discuss three of the most significant benefits: reducing stress and anxiety, increasing happiness and well-being, and boosting cognitive function.
Reducing Stress and Anxiety
Nature walks can help reduce stress and anxiety. Studies have shown that spending time in nature can lower cortisol levels, a hormone associated with stress. Additionally, being in nature can help promote relaxation and calmness, which can reduce feelings of anxiety.
One study found that people who took a 90-minute nature walk had lower activity in the prefrontal cortex, a brain region associated with rumination and negative thinking, compared to those who took a walk in an urban environment. This suggests that nature walks can help quiet the mind and reduce negative thoughts.
Increasing Happiness and Well-being
Nature walks can also increase happiness and well-being. A study conducted in Japan found that people who spent time in nature had lower levels of depression, anxiety, and anger, and higher levels of vitality and life satisfaction.
Another study found that people who walked in nature had greater feelings of awe, which has been linked to increased well-being. Additionally, being in nature can help people feel more connected to the world around them, which can increase feelings of purpose and meaning in life.
Boosting Cognitive Function
Nature walks can also boost cognitive function. Research has shown that spending time in nature can improve attention and working memory. One study found that people who took a nature walk performed better on a cognitive task than those who took a walk in an urban environment.
Additionally, being in nature can help improve creativity. One study found that people who spent four days in nature without electronic devices had a 50% increase in creativity compared to those who stayed in an urban environment.
How to Incorporate Nature Walks into Your Mental Health Management Routine
Finding the Right Location
I find that finding the perfect location for nature walks is crucial for me to get the most benefits. It is important to choose a location that is easily accessible, safe, and comfortable. Whether it’s a nearby park, a hiking trail, or a beach, make sure it’s a place that you enjoy and feel at ease.
Preparing for Your Walk
Before going on a nature walk, I always make sure to prepare myself mentally and physically. It’s important to dress appropriately for the weather and wear comfortable shoes. I also bring a water bottle, sunscreen, and insect repellent. I like to listen to calming music or a podcast to help me relax and clear my mind.
Making It a Regular Habit
Incorporating nature walks into my mental health management routine has been a game-changer for me. I try to make it a regular habit by scheduling it into my calendar and treating it like any other important appointment. I find that going on a nature walk at least once a week helps me feel more grounded and centered.
Overall, nature walks have been a great addition to my mental health management routine. By finding the right location, preparing for the walk, and making it a regular habit, I have been able to reap the benefits of spending time in nature.
Other Mental Health Management Techniques to Use in Conjunction with Nature Walks
Mindfulness and Meditation
I find that practicing mindfulness and meditation in conjunction with nature walks can be especially helpful for managing my mental health. By focusing on my breath and being present in the moment, I can quiet my mind and reduce feelings of anxiety and stress. One technique I like to use is to focus on the sounds and sensations of nature around me while I walk. This helps me stay present and engaged in the moment.
I’ve got a whole blog post on mindfulness that you should check out!
Therapy and Counseling
In addition to nature walks, I have found that therapy and counseling can be incredibly helpful for managing my mental health. Talking to a trained professional can provide a safe and supportive environment to explore my thoughts and feelings. I have found that therapy has helped me gain insight into my patterns of thinking and behavior, and has given me tools to better manage my mental health.
Exercise and Physical Activity
Incorporating regular exercise and physical activity into my routine has also been an important part of managing my mental health. Exercise has been shown to release endorphins, which can improve mood and reduce feelings of anxiety and depression. I like to mix up my routine with a variety of activities, such as yoga, hiking, and strength training. By incorporating nature walks into my exercise routine, I can reap the benefits of both physical activity and being in nature.
Overall, I find that using a combination of techniques, such as mindfulness and meditation, therapy and counseling, and exercise and physical activity, in conjunction with nature walks can be an effective way to manage my mental health. By finding what works best for me and incorporating these techniques into my routine, I am better able to maintain my overall well-being.
Nature walks are a simple and effective way to manage mental health. Studies have shown that spending just 20 minutes in nature can help lower stress hormone levels, reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression, and improve focus and creativity. Walking in natural environments has also been linked to improved attention, better mood, and reduced risk of psychiatric disorders.
While more research is needed to fully understand the benefits of nature walks, the evidence so far suggests that spending time in nature can be a powerful tool for mental health management. Incorporating nature walks into your routine can be as easy as taking a stroll through a local park or hiking in a nearby forest.
It’s important to note that nature walks should not be seen as a replacement for professional mental health treatment. If you are struggling with mental health issues, it’s important to seek help from a qualified healthcare professional. However, nature walks can be a helpful addition to your mental health management plan.
Overall, nature walks are a simple and accessible way to improve mental health. Whether you’re looking to reduce stress, boost creativity, or simply enjoy the beauty of nature, incorporating nature walks into your routine can have a positive impact on your mental wellbeing.


Jeff Bezos and his company, Amazon, have become synonymous with online shopping. Even if you have never gone onto Amazon to shop (and hit that magical US$125 to enjoy free shipping), chances are you would know people who have. Amazon appeared at the most opportune of times to attain an iron grip on a new age of shoppers, and is in the process, making its founder a very wealthy man.
According to Bloomberg, Jeff Bezos has now overtaken Zara founder Amancio Ortega and philanthropist and business magnet Warren Buffett as the second richest person in the world. Ex-CEO of Microsoft Bill Gates is of course still sitting at the top of the ranks. And as with any successful entrepreneur, Jeff Bezos has his fair share of advice that he shares during interviews or at conferences. Here are some which may prove useful to any aspiring entrepreneur.
In a session with students at his Bezos Center of Innovation, he told them: “Without a willingness to fail, you cannot innovate because most innovations won’t work.” Being someone who is often described as a great innovator, Jeff Bezos didn’t get Amazon to where it is today by doing the same things. After enjoying much success with its e-book reader, the Kindle, Amazon made the decision to dabble with smartphones next. This turned out to be not so smart a move, and their smartphones ended up joining Amazon’s expanding list of spectacular failures. Even then, Bezos remains undeterred and continues to pour in billions of dollars into projects that can potentially turn out to be failures, and this has helped immensely with Amazon’s creation of products and services that actually work.
Where most people would simply be comfortable using whatever is around them, Jeff Bezos thinks that that’s exactly where you should start for your next big idea. Much like how Elon Musk and his team took apart a Mercedes Benz car before creating Tesla, Jeff Bezos shares the same sentiments. But this isn’t just about taking things apart to know how they are built and what goes into the product, it is also about recognising business opportunities in areas that current products and services fail to fulfil. With the internet, Jeff Bezos saw an opportunity to take advantage of the 2300% growth of the world wide web by breaking down the very traditional business of goods delivery. Out came Amazon, which soon become the world’s largest bookstore. And the rest, as they say, was history.