On the Fifth of November, British people celebrate Bonfire Night
on the anniversary of the Gunpowder Plot. A scarecrow in the
likeness of Guy Fawkes is put in the center of a large pile of
wood, before lighting it on fire. There is also a huge fireworks
display, eating, drinking, and partying.
The reason why the conspirators of the Gunpowder Plot were
trying to blow up Parliament was in an attempt to end the
persecution of Recusant Catholics. Before the scarecrow was
made in the likeness of Guy Fawkes, they were burning an effigy
of the Pope. In the town of Lewes in Sussex, they will have a
parade where they burn crosses on the Fifth of November.
Nov 30, 2019
Wordology, NMLS
So many commercials end with some fast talking announcer and
one of the things the announcer says is NMLS Number 12345, or
whatever the number is. NMLS stands for the Nationwide Mortgage
Licensing System and Registry. NMLS is a web based platform for
regulatory agencies to administer initial license applications
and ongoing compliance requirements.
NMLS itself does not grant or deny license authority. It is the system of record for all federal registrations required of federally regulated mortgage loan originators. License cost for an individual is usually less than $100. Individuals usually need 20 hours training and take a test to pass the National Mortgage Licensing System pre-licensing exam. It includes 100 computer-generated, multiple-choice questions that must be answered within three hours. Ten of the 100 questions are "test" questions that do not affect the grade. Passing score is 75%. The test can be taken online.
NMLS itself does not grant or deny license authority. It is the system of record for all federal registrations required of federally regulated mortgage loan originators. License cost for an individual is usually less than $100. Individuals usually need 20 hours training and take a test to pass the National Mortgage Licensing System pre-licensing exam. It includes 100 computer-generated, multiple-choice questions that must be answered within three hours. Ten of the 100 questions are "test" questions that do not affect the grade. Passing score is 75%. The test can be taken online.
Winter and Phone Batteries
Very low temperatures can reduce your battery
to ½ or less of your normal use time. Keep your phone warm to
keep your battery level up. If it gets cold and battery charge
goes down, making the phone warm again will not bring up the
charge level.
Doctor Drug Payments
There is a website that you can look up your doctor or
hospital to see what payments they have received from drug and
medical device companies. I looked my primary care doc and found
he received $892 last year. Not sure of the value of the info,
but it is interesting to know. LINK
Roger Whittaker
Came across this video "Last Farewell" the other day while
perusing YouTube. It has over nine million views. Almost forgot
how smooth Whittaker's voice is. He is 88. LINK
Netflix Plans
Netflix offers three streaming video plans, plus you can still
order DVD and Blu-ray discs in the mail.
The most basic plan allows one user at a time and is shown in standard definition, which is equivalent to the old, pre-HD (720) televisions. The standard streaming plan allows you to watch on two screens at a time in high definition (1080) (HD), like newer, but non-4K TVs. The premium plan allows you to watch on four screens at once and you can watch programs in HD or 4K Ultra HD.
What amazed me is that it is still offering the old 720 standard television, until I realized how much of its business is overseas and how millions of users around the world use PCs, pads, and phones to watch and which require 720 or less for adequate pictures.
Incidentally, Netflix still makes 30 million US dollars a month on DVD and Blu-ray rentals.
The most basic plan allows one user at a time and is shown in standard definition, which is equivalent to the old, pre-HD (720) televisions. The standard streaming plan allows you to watch on two screens at a time in high definition (1080) (HD), like newer, but non-4K TVs. The premium plan allows you to watch on four screens at once and you can watch programs in HD or 4K Ultra HD.
What amazed me is that it is still offering the old 720 standard television, until I realized how much of its business is overseas and how millions of users around the world use PCs, pads, and phones to watch and which require 720 or less for adequate pictures.
Incidentally, Netflix still makes 30 million US dollars a month on DVD and Blu-ray rentals.
Wordology, Whistleblower
Back in Elizabethan times “to whistle” or
“to blow” was to reveal secret information. During the twentieth
century, “to blow the whistle” and “whistleblower” referred to
people blowing whistles, or people attempting to stop illegal or
immoral activity by causing a disturbance. Law enforcement
officials, such as police in the United Kingdom used whistles to
alert the public or fellow police of a crime.
A whistleblower is someone who exposes information about wrongdoings that companies or organizations do not want to share, usually about illegal or unethical actions or wrongdoings within a public or private organization. Whistleblowers disclose the wrongdoing without approval, to the public, a higher authority, or law enforcement. They could expose illegal actions affecting public safety, violations of company rules or policies, or fraud, among others.
Incidentally, the main difference between leakers and whistleblowers is that whistleblowers release information that shows wrongdoing. They have a right and responsibility to report this information. Leakers release sensitive or classified information unlawfully and possibly for their own personal or political agenda, not necessarily for public good or policy.
A whistleblower is someone who exposes information about wrongdoings that companies or organizations do not want to share, usually about illegal or unethical actions or wrongdoings within a public or private organization. Whistleblowers disclose the wrongdoing without approval, to the public, a higher authority, or law enforcement. They could expose illegal actions affecting public safety, violations of company rules or policies, or fraud, among others.
Incidentally, the main difference between leakers and whistleblowers is that whistleblowers release information that shows wrongdoing. They have a right and responsibility to report this information. Leakers release sensitive or classified information unlawfully and possibly for their own personal or political agenda, not necessarily for public good or policy.
Oct 26, 2019
Happy Friday
Laughter
is the sharpest weapon in the arsenal.
It
is the swiftest tool to open a closed mind, especially on a
Happy Friday!
Yuca vs. Yucca
Yuca – pronounced yoo-cuh – is the root portion of a cassava
plant. It is often prepared and eaten like sweet potatoes.
Yucca - pronounced
yuhk-a - is an ornamental plant. Yuccas are spiky flowered
plants common in Southern and Western parts of the US,
including Florida, New Mexico, and California. The stems,
leaf bases, flowers, emerging stalks as well as the fruit of
most types of yucca are edible.
Wordology, Mukbang
South Korea video trend is known as “mukbang,” and it
has spread to the US and around the globe on YouTube,
Facebook, and Instagram.
Japanese mukbang
entertainer Yuka Kinoshita has 5.34 million subscribers on
YouTube. She is shown in different videos eating various
foods, such as one hundred Chicken McNuggets, 62 hamburgers, 3
large pizzas, 10 pounds of cereal, 6.6 pounds of noodles. She
is thin, 5' 2" tall, and weighs 95 pounds.
The trend has grown into a worldwide sensation and often involves massive consumption of foods in nauseating quantities. Hosts will often prepare or buy a meal, sit down and eat it as part of a live stream, watched by hundreds of thousands of fans. Many times, the whole purpose is to see the mukbang host take in multiple servings.
The trend is social and interactive. According to some, watching a person eat while possibly having a meal at the same time and perhaps the same meal that they are watching a mukbang entertainer consume on the screen fills certain longings in a modern society with less personal interaction. Social media gets scarier every day.
The trend has grown into a worldwide sensation and often involves massive consumption of foods in nauseating quantities. Hosts will often prepare or buy a meal, sit down and eat it as part of a live stream, watched by hundreds of thousands of fans. Many times, the whole purpose is to see the mukbang host take in multiple servings.
The trend is social and interactive. According to some, watching a person eat while possibly having a meal at the same time and perhaps the same meal that they are watching a mukbang entertainer consume on the screen fills certain longings in a modern society with less personal interaction. Social media gets scarier every day.
Movie Trailer Colors
There are three colors preceding each movie
trailer, red, yellow, and green. These colors show up as the
background for movie rating cards. The rating for the film
itself shows up in text, but the rating for the preview shows
up in text and indicated by the background color of the rating
card splash screen. The specific regulations surrounding what
can be shown in the preview for each of these rating cards are
set by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA),
though the rules are not publicly made available.
The most common is the green rating card. Before April of 2009, a green background meant that the preview was approved for all audiences. Since April of 2009, the MPAA now states that the green card is for “appropriate audiences”. This basically means it is appropriate for audiences in theaters, taking into account what movie the audience is about to watch.
A yellow rating card indicates the preview is for age-appropriate internet viewers and is used on internet trailers only.
The most common is the green rating card. Before April of 2009, a green background meant that the preview was approved for all audiences. Since April of 2009, the MPAA now states that the green card is for “appropriate audiences”. This basically means it is appropriate for audiences in theaters, taking into account what movie the audience is about to watch.
A yellow rating card indicates the preview is for age-appropriate internet viewers and is used on internet trailers only.
The red rating card
indicates that content in the preview is only appropriate for
mature audiences. These previews can only be shown in theaters
where the movie about to be watched is R-rated, NC-17-rated,
or unrated.
Theatrical trailers
must be less than two minutes and 30 seconds, as mandated by
the Motion Picture Association of America. The MPAA gives
each movie studio one exception to this a year where they are
allowed to show a trailer that is longer than 2 minutes and 30
seconds.
Magnetic Particle Imaging
MPI was first presented during 2005 and began
to come into its own by 2012. So far, only a handful of
prototype small-animal MPI scanners have been constructed
worldwide. It has the potential to revolutionize the
biomedical imaging field. The new tracer imaging modality is
gaining significant interest from NMR and MRI researchers. MPI
employs the same superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) contrast
agents that are sometimes used for MR angiography and are
often used for MRI cell tracking studies.
These SPIOs are much
safer for humans than iodine or gadolinium. SPIOs in MPI
generate positive, bright blood contrast. With this ideal
contrast, even prototype MPI scanners can already achieve
fast, high-sensitivity, and high-contrast angiograms with
millimeter-scale resolutions.
While the physics of MPI differ substantially from MRI, it employs hardware and imaging concepts that are familiar to MRI researchers, such as magnetic excitation and detection, pulse sequences, and relaxation effects.
While the physics of MPI differ substantially from MRI, it employs hardware and imaging concepts that are familiar to MRI researchers, such as magnetic excitation and detection, pulse sequences, and relaxation effects.
MPI shows great
potential for an exciting array of applications, including
stem cell tracking and inflammation imaging in vivo,
first-pass contrast studies to diagnose or stage cancer.
Irish Rovers
The Irish Rovers have had strings of fun Irish songs for many
years. Here is a musical interlude of 'Wasn't That a Party' to
help you get up, tap your feet, and appreciate your Happy
Friday just a bit more. LINK
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