Latest Posts Under: zbpezczw
Comments are closed. Despite warnings of a global recession and continued predictions of gloomand doom surrounding e-business, figures from UK-based Internet monitoringcompany NetValue show that the number of secure connections made on e-commerce sitesgrew steadily during the summer months. A secure connection is an indicationthat confidential information is being exchanged, such as credit card detailsin an online purchase. Between May and August this year, the number of homeInternet users making a secure connection to e-commerce sites increased by over500,000 from 4,414 million unique users to 4,962 million. The top 10 e-commerce sites in the UK, according to Netvalue, www.netvalue.comCompany Unique visitors Duration(000) (min)per user amazon.co.uk 1,601 13.6amazon.com 1,171 5.6tesco.com 1,141 18.9lastminute.com 847 8.1argos.co.uk 694 11.2jungle.com 551 12.2comet.co.uk 503 6.6expedia.co.uk 460 9.7bonzi.com 414 3.1Britannia-music.co.uk 406 8.8 Previous Article Next Article E-commerce on the riseOn 2 Oct 2001 in Personnel Today Related posts:No related photos.
Comments are closed. Taking the long-term view will reap rewardsOn 12 Nov 2002 in Personnel Today One of the challenges of the continuing downturn has been to convincebusiness leaders to take a long-term approach and not a hatchet job toassessment and development when trading is difficult. This week’s coverage on HR strategy, performance management and talent(pages 23-32) is heartening in that it shows some companies did learn from thelast recession. Despite depressed trading, many companies have been committedto maintaining budgets and effort in key HR areas in the belief that suchconsistency towards employees will put them in a stronger position when theupturn arrives. The prize for those who follow the longer view will be improvedproductivity, lower recruitment costs and better retention, but it inevitablytakes a while for results to shine through. Contrary to what many might like tothink, HR never was about quick fixes. Sun Microsystems, T-Mobile and Virgin Atlantic are just a few of theenlightened companies with the confidence to avoid short-termism. Some areinvesting in developing their top management; others are working hard atidentifying the talent not only within their own business but in the widerrecruitment pool. T-Mobile, for instance, ensures its exit interviews are a positiveexperience and maintains contact with talented employees long after they haveleft. The pay-off may be years hence, but T-Mobile has a clear people visionundiminished by competitive pressures. HR and training professionals should be motivated by companies thinking thisway. The common trait of such businesses is that they have won the argumentabout HR impacting on the bottom line and have people strategies embedded inbusiness goals. Other companies would do well to emulate them. Charity must begin at home When the public donate their hard-earned cash to charity, they want it allto be spent on the cause. People – and even grant-giving trusts for that matter – do not like theirmoney being spent on the pay bill. Consequently, charities err on the side ofcaution when setting salaries. But low wages are leading to severe recruitmentand retention problems (see page 13). While volunteers play a vital role in the work of many charities, the ethoscannot be allowed to undermine the quality of staff – charities have to competeon salaries and benefits. Previous Article Next Article Related posts:No related photos.
FacebookTwitterLinkedInEmailOREM, Utah (AP) — Jake Toolson had 19 points and eight rebounds, and Utah Valley cruised to an 82-61 victory over UT Rio Grande Valley on Thursday night. January 17, 2019 /Sports News – Local Utah Valley cruises past UT Rio Grande Valley 82-61 The Wolverines (13-6, 2-2 Western Athletic Conference) have won seven of their last nine games. UTRGV (9-11, 1-3) has lost five of its last six. Terry Winn III scored 15 points to lead UTRGV. Lesley Varner II and Johnny Crnogorac added 10 points apiece. Conner Toolson added 14 points for Utah Valley. Baylee Steele chipped in 12 points and TJ Washington had 10. Written by Richard Harward’s dunk gave the Wolverines a double-digit lead about midway through the first half as they built a 43-27 halftime advantage. The Vaqueros pulled within 13 early in the second half, but Toolson’s 3-pointer and Steele’s hook shot sparked a 9-0 surge. Utah Valley led by at least 20 points the rest of the way. Tags: UVU Wolverines Basketball/WAC Associated Press
IS IT TRUE as of yesterday the State Board of Accounts still hasn’t released the City of Evansville 2015 Audit? …we can’t wait see if SBA will address the alleged $6 million deficit that City of Evansville had at the end of 2015? …we look forward to see if City Controller Russ Lloyd Jr or former Councilman John Friend was right about this issue?IS IT TRUE last week we predicted that the Evansville IceMen will leave Evansville? …we are sad to say we were correct? …we believe that the loss of the Evansville IceMen could have been avoided if the Mayor had negotiated one-on-one with IceMen owner Ron Geary?IS IT TRUE the latest local news does not bode well for the high expectations many hold for the new City Council? …the news that the IceMen are leaving the Ford Center for a very strong deal in Owensboro, along with the news that Alcoa is laying off 600 smelter workers, and Vigo Coal is laying off 60 miners is not a good atmosphere to start off a new, positive term. for the Mayor and City Council?IS IT TRUE the first two City Council meetings have been a rocky start to say the least, and dealing with the area job losses and searching for a new hockey team for the Ford Center will be tasks that demand a well-versed, collaborative Council to lead us in the right direction?IS IT TRUE while the loss of jobs at Alcoa and its suppliers is something that local government could have done little to stop? …we sincerely hope that replacing the lost jobs for the area will be a top priority for the Mayor and the City Council, and that they will be available for negotiation of new, good-paying jobs?IS IT TRUE we are still told that DMD Director Kelley Coures is still keeping the time and place of the 29th Brownfield meeting secret? …the only thing he is telling his board is to put on their calendar that the time and place of the meeting is be “TBA”? …shouldn’t the President of the Brownsfield sit the time, place and date where the Board will meet on January 29, 2016 and not city employee Kelly Coures?IS IT TRUE according to yesterday Michelle Mercer Facebook post she is being treated to great Greek Cuisine with Indy firm Structurepoint at the IACT State Conference? … doesn’t Structure point do business with the City of Evansville? …we hope Structurepoint isn’t paying for Mercer food and drinks at this event? …if they did, it could cause Mercher a possible violations of State conflict of interest laws?IS IT TRUE that The Evansville Parks Commissioners is considering banning smoking and the use of other tobacco products in city parks during it’s meeting Wednesday? …the proposed Parks and Recreation Commissioners ban could include all tobacco products and electronic cigarettes? …we wonder who is going to enforce this ban? …we predict that this issue could opened another political can of worms that Mayor Winnecke doesn’t need going into his 2nd term? …we also predict that this issue could spill over to the City Council Chambers?IS IT TRUE that today “READERS POLL” ask; Do you feel that John Friend CPA statement that the 2015 City Budget had a $6 million deficit is accurate?Copyright 2015 City County Observer. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.FacebookTwitterCopy LinkEmail
The neural architecture in the auditory cortex — the part of the brain that processes sound — is virtually identical in profoundly deaf and hearing people, a new study has found.The study raises a host of new questions about the role of experience in processing sensory information, and could point the way toward potential new avenues for intervention in deafness. The study is described in a June 18 paper published in Scientific Reports.The paper was written by Ella Striem-Amit, a postdoctoral researcher in Alfonso Caramazza’s Cognitive Neuropsychology Laboratory at Harvard, Mario Belledonne from Harvard, Jorge Almeida from the University of Coimbra, and Quanjing Chen, Yuxing Fang, Zaizhu Han, and Yanchao Bi from Beijing Normal University.“One reason this is interesting is because we don’t know what causes the brain to organize the way it does,” said Striem-Amit, the lead author. “How important is each person’s experience for their brain development? In audition, a lot is known about [how it works] in hearing people, and in animals … but we don’t know whether the same organization is retained in congenitally deaf people.”Those similarities between deaf and hearing brain architecture, Striem-Amit said, suggest that the organization of the auditory cortex doesn’t critically depend on experience, but is likely based on innate factors. So in a person who is born deaf, the brain is still organized in the same manner.But that’s not to suggest experience plays no role in processing sensory information.Evidence from other studies has shown that cochlear implants are far more successful when implanted in toddlers and young children, Striem-Amit said, suggesting that without sensory input during key periods of brain plasticity in early life, the brain may not process information appropriately.To understand the organization of the auditory cortex, Striem-Amit and her collaborators first obtained what are called “tonotopic” maps showing how the auditory cortex responds to various tones.To do that, they placed volunteers in an MRI scanner and played different tones — some high frequency, some low frequency — and tracked which regions in the auditory cortex were activated. They also asked groups of hearing and deaf subjects to simply relax in the scanner, and tracked their brain activity over several minutes. This allowed the researchers to map which areas were functionally connected — essentially those that showed similar, correlated patterns of activation — to each other.They then used the areas showing frequency preference in the tonotopic maps to study the functional connectivity profiles related to tone preference in the hearing and congenitally deaf groups and found them to be virtually identical.“There is a balance between change and typical organization in the auditory cortex of the deaf” said Bi, the senior researcher, “but even when the auditory cortex shows plasticity to processing vision, its typical auditory organization can still be found.”The study raises a host of questions that have yet to be answered.“We know the architecture is in place — does it serve a function?” Striem-Amit said. “We know, for example, that the auditory cortex of the deaf is also active when they view sign language and other visual information. The question is: What do these regions do in the deaf? Are they actually processing something similar to what they process in hearing people, only through vision?”In addition to studies of deaf animals, the researchers’ previous studies of people born blind suggest clues to the puzzle.In the blind, the topographical architecture of the visual cortex (the visual parallel of the tonotopic map, called “retinotopic”) is like that in the sighted. Importantly, beyond topographic organization, regions of the visual cortex show specialization in processing certain categories of objects in sighted individuals; the same specialization in the congenitally blind when stimulated through other senses. For example, the blind reading Braille, or letters delivered through sound, process that information in the same area used by sighted subjects in processing visual letters.“The principle that much of the brain’s organization develops largely regardless of experience is established in blindness,” Striem-Amit said. “Perhaps the same principle applies also to deafness.”
By Dialogo March 04, 2011 Thank you More than two thousand military personnel went out on 2 March, to patrol the streets together with the police in Honduras’s major cities, under the banner of containing a crime wave that has President Porfirio Lobo’s administration up against a wall. Defense Minster Marlon Pascua and Security Minister Oscar Alvarez dropped the flag to start the joint operation with a small ceremony held in Tegucigalpa’s central park. Immediately afterward, vehicles loaded with police officers and military personnel were deployed to neighborhoods and districts in the capital to begin the patrols, which were ordered by President Lobo starting on the night of 28 February. Operations were also launched in San Pedro Sula (240 km to the north), the country’s industrial capital and now – in addition – its crime capital, taking first place in the incidence of crime, according to official statistics. The decision to send the military into the streets was taken by President Porfirio Lobo at a meeting with the defense and security ministers, Human Rights Minister Ana Pineda, and authorities from the bodies that operate the judicial system, including the association of judges and the bar association. The crimes of two notable individuals – an evangelical pastor and a lawyer – in recent days, as well as the continuation of a series of kidnappings for ransom, were the immediate triggers for the decision. “We’ve made agreements that we’re going to work together, agreements that we’re going to re-establish the interinstitutional criminal justice commission, which will enable us to work jointly,” Alvarez declared. The commission, which ceased operating a few months ago, was formed in response to complaints by authorities from the Security Ministry that criminals who were detained were being released by the courts. The judges, for their part, complained about the lack of evidence to support the charges, due to the deficiencies of the police force. Pineda told AFP that one of the agreements reached at the meeting was to adopt “an interinstitutional plan to prevent and fight crime,” respecting human rights. Ordinary citizens and human-rights organizations complain that patrols, like those embarked on for an indefinite period at the beginning of March, violate human rights, because military personnel and police officers mistreat individuals during searches.
FLA now handling more psychological problems July 15, 2004 Regular News FLA now handling more psychological problems The last two years have been the assistance program’s busiest Florida Lawyers Assistance, Inc., is now helping more lawyers with psychological problems than those with substance abuse problems, and the past two years have been its busiest in its 18-year existence.The organization’s executive director, Mike Cohen, gave his annual report to the Bar Board of Governors recently and emphasized the important role the agency plays.“The money that you allocate to Florida Lawyers Assistance is probably the only money that goes directly to saving lawyers’ lives, their families, and their careers,” he said. “What you do here makes a real difference.. . . Your organization should take great pride that there are a number of great lawyers out there who are still practicing. . . who, without you giving them support, would not still be practicing.”The agency’s mission, Cohen said, is to help lawyers suffering from substance abuse, psychological problems, or other compulsive disorders. FLA, Inc., has added a part-time mental health clinician to help deal with the rising number of psychological cases.He praised the Bar for supporting the addition of psychological treatment to the agency’s initial charge of helping lawyers with addiction problems. “This was not an issue that needed to be hidden. This was an issue that had to be dealt with and this is something that The Florida Bar did address,” Cohen said. “This Bar was the second one in the country to do that.”One reason for increasing caseloads, he said, is the word is getting out about FLA, Inc., and its services.Information is now presented at all Practicing with Professionalism seminars, as well as at all law school orientations and other venues. As a result, the number of referrals from judges, law schools, and the Florida Board of Bar Examiners is increasing. “I think the word is getting out that lawyers with problems have an alternative to the grievance system,” Cohen said.He also praised the change, now about 15 years old, that allowed conditional admission for new lawyers who had had problems.He said more than 400 lawyers have been conditionally admitted, and fewer than 10 percent had any further problem. “I think you can take a tremendous amount of pride in that,” Cohen said.But for all that has been accomplished, much still needs to be done. Cohen said there were at least three lawyer suicides in the past year, as well as four deaths from overdoses and several high-profile arrests.“I think one of those is too many,” he said. “We are dealing with a population of 73,000 to 74,000 lawyers, and it’s not all going to be a success.” FLA Workshop Florida Lawyers Assistance also will hold its Annual Workshop and Seminar July 30-31 in Naples. The registration fee is $160 and scholarships are available on a qualifying basis. Requests must be in writing and mailed or faxed to FLA at (954) 568-0803. The CLE event will be held at the Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club at 851 Gulf Shore Blvd., in Naples.For more information log on to www.fla-lap.org/workshop04.html.
3SHARESShareShareSharePrintMailGooglePinterestDiggRedditStumbleuponDeliciousBufferTumblr “Community banks fear them. Big banks think they can crush them. But over the years, the credit union has proved resilient. And unknown to most people, credit unions thrive by writing car loans.”by: Christina PontissoJordan Wathen, from The Motley Fool, explains why and how credit unions can offer lower rates compared to banks on auto loans.Wathen recommends that credit unions are a consumers best bet for choosing an auto loan in 2015. Thanks to the credit union non-for-profit structure, CUs are able to offer better interest rates on savings and loan products to their members. Most of the time credit unions offer their rates 1%-2% lower than banks!The difference are significant, see for yourself in the graphs below: continue reading »
continue reading » ShareShareSharePrintMailGooglePinterestDiggRedditStumbleuponDeliciousBufferTumblr The Federal Reserve Board last week announced details of the FedNow℠ Service, a new 24x7x365 interbank settlement service with clearing functionality to support instant payments in the United States.The features and functionality described represent a key milestone in the FedNow Service’s development and are based on input received from the public in response to the Board’s 2019 request for comment. CUNA strongly supported the service in its comment letter sent in November.According to the Fed, it will take a phased approach to service implementation.The first release of the FedNow Service will provide core clearing and settlement features that will support market needs and help financial institutions manage the transition to a 24x7x365 service. Based on ongoing stakeholder engagement, additional features and service enhancements will be introduced over time.
Lynfield said the key to the successful development of the flu line was the phone triage expertise of the state’s health system partners and having private partners that are very public health minded. “They had the flexibility to quickly ramp things up and they understand what the priority needs are,” she said. Minnesota Health Commissioner Sanne Magnan, MD, said today at a press conference, “By providing support and treatment over the phone, we hope this new service will allow our healthcare providers and facilities to focus on those people who need the most attention.” Another benefit is keeping sick people from spreading the virus when they visit clinics and emergency departments, she said. Health plans are interested in measures such as the flu line that can improve the quality of and access to care, she said. “Not everyone is knowledgeable about how to access healthcare,” Brust said, adding that Minnesota’s system has the potential to seamlessly connect people to all their different plans by calling one number. See also: Minnesota’s flu line is the first in the country that has a statewide reach and can prescribe antivirals over the phone under standing orders from a physician. The service was developed through a public-private partnership that includes the MDH, the Minnesota Hospital Association, the Minnesota Council of Health Plans, healthcare providers, local health departments, and the Children’s Physician Network. Its developers also received advice from others partners, including the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Oct 21, 2009 (CIDRAP News) In a move designed to lighten the burden on emergency departments and clinics, Minnesota officials today unveiled a flu triage line staffed by nurses who can discuss symptoms with sick patients, suggest treatment steps, and prescribe an antiviral drug if the caller is in a high-risk category. However, he said prescribing antivirals over the phone may raise liability issues. At today’s press conference, Magnan said most actions of triage line workers, unless they are egregious, will be covered under the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness (PREP) Act, a federal law that provides liability protection for healthcare workers in public health emergencies and provides compensation to patients who are injured by countermeasures. Magnan said the flu line was developed with a $2.5 million federal grant and that state officials won’t know the total cost until they can get a fix on the line’s usage. “But if we can keep people who need information out of doctor’s offices, it won’t take long for savings to accrue,” she added. Janny Brust, director of community affairs and medical policy for the Minnesota Council of Health Plans, told CIDRAP News that private medical groups and state officials have been working on flu issues and emergency preparations for several years. “We already had those relationships,” she said. Magnan said one of the state’s medical providers told her their calls have tripled because of patients with suspected flu infections. Aaron DeVries, MD, a medical epidemiologist at the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), told reporters, “The flu is stretching our healthcare system in new ways and we need new options.” Ruth Lynfield, MD, Minnesota’s state epidemiologist, told CIDRAP News that the flu line offers the potential for patients to begin antiviral treatment sooner. Over the past few weeks, federal officials have voiced concerns about delays in antiviral treatment as a contributing factor in some of the more serious and fatal flu cases. Earlier this week the CDC sent a health alert network message urging clinicians not to depend on rapid tests for treatment decisions and to start antiviral treatment promptly in at-risk patients, without waiting for the results of more definitive tests. A round-the-clock serviceThe Children’s Physician Network is spearheading flu line operations with 50 lines staffed by nurses around the clock, 7 days a week. Callers who have flu symptoms are connected to either a CPN nurse or, if they have health insurance, a nurse at a triage line operated by their health system. Liability concern raisedCarl Schultz, MD, professor of emergency medicine at the University of California at Irvine, told CIDRAP News that a flu line like Minnesota’s is a reasonable public health response that has the potential to reduce the burden on hospital emergency departments. Schultz also chairs the disaster preparedness and response committee of the American College of Emergency Physicians. Schultz said emergency departments in the Irvine area are seeing an increasing number of flu cases but have not resorted to any surge plans. He said some California counties and some of its larger health systems have flu hotlines, but Minnesota’s is the only one he knows of that covers the whole state and has the capacity to prescribe antivirals. “Minnesota has had a tradition of pulling together lots of different participants,” he said. For low-risk patients with mild illnesses, nurses are likely to suggest rest and fluids at home. Patients with more serious symptoms are urged to be evaluated at a clinic or hospital. Those who nurses believe to be at high risk, such as pregnant women and those with underlying health conditions, can receive an antiviral prescription, which is faxed to the patient’s pharmacy. Antiviral medications for people who are uninsured will come out of the state’s antiviral stockpile, officials said. Oct 19 CDC health alert network messagehttp://www.cdc.gov/H1N1flu/HAN/101909.htm