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I is the debut album from Wu-Tang Clan-affiliated producer Cilvaringz. Cilvaringz limited all production to in-house Wu-Tang producers only, a formula applied to Wu-Tang albums recorded between 1993 and 1997. Allmusic.com gave the album 4 out of 5 stars and an "Album of the Month" notation. I sold 62800 copies worldwide with the majority of sales in the United States. |
= = = Les Agites = = = |
Les Agites (el. 1569 m.) is a high mountain pass in the Alps in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. |
It connects Yvorne and La Lécherette. |
The south side of the pass road lies in the Rhone valley. It passes through Corbeyrier and a 300-metre tunnel before reaching the summit. The tunnel is open to one-way traffic only, based on signs posted with allowable times of passage at both ends. |
The north side is substantially flatter, passing on the south shore of the Lac de l'Hongrin. This part of the road is open to private motorized vehicles only in summer. Near La Lécherette, the road meets the pass road that crosses the Col des Mosses. |
= = = Kingmaker (comics) = = = |
The Kingmaker is the name of three fictional supervillains appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. |
The first iteration debuted in "New X-Men: Hellions" #1 (July 2005), and was created by Nunzio DeFilippis, Christina Weir and Clayton Henry. |
The second iteration debuted in "Dark Reign: Hawkeye" #5 (September 2009), and was created by Andy Diggle and Tom Raney. |
The third iteration debuted in "Osborn" #1 (January 2011), and was created by Kelly Sue DeConnick and Emma Rios. |
The first version is a powerful, but largely unknown villain known as Wallace. Though it isn't apparent whether or not the Kingmaker has any superhuman powers of his own, his personal fortune and resources have allied him with various figures of the supervillain underworld. In essence, the Kingmaker is a high-stakes loan shark, but one who deals in favours rather than money. His standard agreement involves delivering any one wish to an applicant in exchange for a favour to be named later. His network of favours have given him vast financial reserves, business agreements with powerful individuals, and a personal trove of high-tech weaponry for his personal defence. He may even have some magical strength to draw upon. He has a history with Emma Frost as a result of rejection of his bid for membership in the Hellfire Club. |
When New X-Men member Hellion was denied a family inheritance, Hellion investigated their financial history, eventually discovering their involvement with the Kingmaker. Conducting a peculiar ritual, Hellion and his team-mates were contacted by the Kingmaker who offered his standard contract. In exchange for their deepest wishes, the kids were tasked with stealing a device for their benefactor. Unbeknownst to the Hellions, the device was a biological weapon that the Kingmaker was retrieving for none other than Doctor Octopus. The kids managed to retrieve the device, but after a briefing with Nick Fury, the Hellions turned on the Kingmaker. After several losing battles, the Hellions finally managed to defeat the villain who was then arrested. He was later released by Emma who convinced him to leave Frost's students alone under threat of using mental powers to get him sent back to jail. |
The second version is the father of Bullseye and appeared during the "Dark Reign" storyline. When Bullseye was fighting an army of Hawkeyes and took them out except for one, he was captured by Solo and brought before the Kingmaker. The Kingmaker prepares to trade his old burned husk of a body for Bullseye's by placing his brain in his son's body. Unfortunately, nobody told him that Bullseye's bones are laced with adamantium which not only is impossible to cut, but also blocks Kingmaker's neural inhibitor. |
Bullseye fights his way through Solo in order to get to his dad. After Bullseye successfully kills the Kingmaker, Ben Urich is frightened from filing a story on the Kingmaker. |
The third version is Pryor Cashman. He is described as a "demon entity" who psychically "feeds" off the memory of any humans. He is additionally able to see and alter the memories of others, and has used this ability in the past to create dictators. At some point, he was captured by government officials and incarcerated in a secret location several miles underwater. |
When Norman Osborn himself was jailed in the facility after being transferred from the Raft, the Kingmaker was among the inmates who staged a break-out following a prison riot alongside Osborn, June Covington, Ai Apaec, and Carny Rives. |
Making their way to an escape pod, Osborn and the rest of the inmates were able to go free. The Kingmaker was last seen on a beach surrounded by children. |
Wallace had a personal force field and his sunglasses have ruby optic blasts similar to Cyclops's optic blasts. |
Pryor Cashman can manipulate memories. |
= = = Upper Nicola Band = = = |
The Upper Nicola Band is a First Nations band government in the Canadian province of British Columbia, located near the town of Merritt in the Nicola Country at Douglas Lake. Known in the Okanagan language as the Spaxomin, they are a member of both the Okanagan Nation Alliance and the Nicola Tribal Association, which is a joint government of Okanagan and Nlaka'pamux bands. |
= = = Coding gain = = = |
In coding theory and related engineering problems, coding gain is the measure in the difference between the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) levels between the uncoded system and coded system required to reach the same bit error rate (BER) levels when used with the error correcting code (ECC). |
If the uncoded BPSK system in AWGN environment has a bit error rate (BER) of 10 at the SNR level 4 dB, and the corresponding coded (e.g., BCH) system has the same BER at an SNR of 2.5 dB, then we say the "coding gain" = , due to the code used (in this case BCH). |
In the "power-limited regime" (where the nominal spectral efficiency formula_1 [b/2D or b/s/Hz], "i.e." the domain of binary signaling), the effective coding gain formula_2 of a signal set formula_3 at a given target error probability per bit formula_4 is defined as the difference in dB between the formula_5 required to achieve the target formula_4 with formula_3 and the formula_5 required to achieve the target formula_4 with 2-PAM or (2×2)-QAM ("i.e." no coding). The nominal coding gain formula_10 is defined as |
This definition is normalized so that formula_12 for 2-PAM or (2×2)-QAM. If the average number of nearest neighbors per transmitted bit formula_13 is equal to one, the effective coding gain formula_2 is approximately equal to the nominal coding gain formula_10. However, if formula_16, the effective coding gain formula_2 is less than the nominal coding gain formula_10 by an amount which depends on the steepness of the formula_4 "vs." formula_5 curve at the target formula_4. This curve can be plotted using the union bound estimate (UBE) |
where "Q" is the Gaussian probability-of-error function. |
For the special case of a binary linear block code formula_23 with parameters formula_24, the nominal spectral efficiency is formula_25 and the nominal coding gain is "kd"/"n". |
The table below lists the nominal spectral efficiency, nominal coding gain and effective coding gain at formula_26 for Reed–Muller codes of length formula_27: |
In the "bandwidth-limited regime" (formula_28, "i.e." the domain of non-binary signaling), the effective coding gain formula_2 of a signal set formula_3 at a given target error rate formula_31 is defined as the difference in dB between the formula_32 required to achieve the target formula_31 with formula_3 and the formula_32 required to achieve the target formula_31 with M-PAM or (M×M)-QAM ("i.e." no coding). The nominal coding gain formula_10 is defined as |
This definition is normalized so that formula_12 for M-PAM or ("M"×"M")-QAM. The UBE becomes |
where formula_41 is the average number of nearest neighbors per two dimensions. |
MIT OpenCourseWare, 6.451 Principles of Digital Communication II, Lecture Notes sections 5.3, 5.5, 6.3, 6.4 |
= = = John Francis (environmentalist) = = = |
John Francis (born 1946) is an American environmentalist nicknamed The Planetwalker. Born in Philadelphia, the son of a West Indian immigrant, he moved to Marin County, California as a young man. After witnessing the devastation caused by the 1971 San Francisco Bay oil spill, he stopped riding in motorized vehicles, a vow which lasted 22 years from 1972 until 1994. From 1973 until 1990, he also spent 17 years voluntarily silent. During this time he earned a Ph.D. in land management and traveled extensively, walking across the entire width of the lower 48 states of the USA as well as walking to South America. |
On January 17, 1971, two oil tankers owned by Standard Oil Company, the Arizona Standard and Oregon Standard, collided in San Francisco Bay, creating an enormous oil spill of 840,000 gallons. After seeing the damage caused, John Francis joked with a friend about never riding in a car again. The following year, a neighbor of Francis' died suddenly. Faced with a new sense of the uncertainty of life, Francis decided to act immediately and for the next 22 years refused to ride in motorized vehicles. Francis describes himself as having had an over-inflated sense of self-importance at this time and says that he initially expected other people to follow his example and also forgo automobiles and other powered vehicles. |
As Francis traveled about on foot, people would sometimes stop to talk about what he was doing, and he often found himself arguing with them, as well as with friends and acquaintances, about his decision to go on foot. On his birthday in 1973, Francis decided to stop speaking as a gift to his community, to not argue for one day and instead listen to what others had to say. He found this so valuable that he continued to be silent the next day. This continued and he ended up not speaking for 17 years, with the exception of a phone call to his mother after 10 years of silence. During this time, he communicated by writing and gestures, and also expressed himself by playing the banjo. He ended his vow of silence on Earth Day in 1990. The following day, while in Washington, D.C. he was struck by a car. He managed to convince the ambulance crew to allow him to walk to the hospital. |
While he was silent, he completed three college degrees, culminating in a Ph.D. in Land Management from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He walked to Ashland, Oregon to enroll in Southern Oregon University, and completed a B.A. there in a two-year program. Next, he walked to the state of Washington and built a boat, contacting the University of Montana and informing them that he'd like to enroll in a master's degree program in about two years. He walked and sailed to Montana, and completed his degree there. With little money, he audited classes but professors tracked his grades, and when funds became available to pay for the classes he had taken, they were put on his transcript for credit. As is common with graduate students, Francis taught classes while studying for his master's degree. |
Francis then walked to Wisconsin, where he took up his doctoral studies, focusing on the effects of oil spills. During his studies, the Exxon Valdez disaster occurred, which brought attention to his research. After completing his degree, he walked to Washington D.C. |
In 1994, Francis decided he could be a more effective environmentalist if he began to again use motorized transportation. At the border of Venezuela and Brazil, he boarded a bus. |
Francis has been employed by the United States Coast Guard to work on legislation relating to the management of oil spills. In 1991 he was named a United Nations Environmental Program Goodwill ambassador. In 2009 he was in Australia, walking the Great Ocean Road for a film being made by Tourism Victoria. |
He is the author of "Planetwalker: How to Change Your World One Step at a Time". He lives in Point Reyes Station, California with his wife and two sons. |
His life story was optioned by Universal Studios in 2006 for a movie release, with rumor of Will Smith expressing interest to play the role of John Francis. |
= = = Saketini = = = |
The saketini is a cocktail that uses sake as its base, along with other ingredients such as simple syrups, distilled spirits, liqueurs, juices and garnishes. The name saketini is a portmanteau of "sake" and "martini", a cocktail traditionally made from gin and vermouth. |
The 2015 work "The Cocktail Detective" attributes the drink's invention to the chef Matsuda, in Queens during the 1964 World's Fair, and only later reviving it in the 1990s. |
Preceding the resurgence in popularity of the martini in the early 2000s, people began using sake as a mixer in cocktails, simultaneous with a larger broadening of the term "martini" to include a wide variety of cocktails. Some cocktail purists feel the saketini is an insult to the integrity of the classic gin-vermouth cocktail. Others, such as mixologist Lucy Brennan, approve of the saketini and have adapted and concocted many sake-based cocktail recipes. Hiroaki Aoki, the founder of Benihana restaurants, says in the 2003 book "Sake: Water From Heaven": "if a cocktail made with sake is pleasing to the palate, why should tradition stand in the way of progress?" |
= = = Ismail Qasim Naji = = = |
General Ismail Qasim Naji (, ) was the chief of staff of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia and currently the Somali ambassador in Oman. He has served as a senior officer of the Somali army since the administration of Siad Barre, who was removed from power in 1991. Before the formation of the TFG, he also commanded the army of the predecessor Transitional National Government (TNG) of Somalia between 2002–2004. |
From 2004–2004, Gen. Naji served as the military chief of the Transitional National Government (TNG). During this time, the TNG was opposed militarily and politically by the rival Somalia Reconciliation and Restoration Council (SRRC), backed by Hussein Mohamed Farrah Aidid (son of the late warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid), Mohamed Dhere, and others. Eventually the leadership of the SRRC and the TNG reconciled. |
In November 2004, the TNG was succeeded by the establishment of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG). On April 15, 2005, Gen. Naji was appointed Chief army commander of the TFG. |
In October 2005, a report by the UN Monitoring group quoted Gen. Naji as having accepted a large shipment of goods from Yemen in contravention of UN sanctions on arms imports, including 5,000 weapons, hand grenades and antipersonnel mines. |
In November 2006, Gen. Naji acknowledged the defection of TFG militia to the Islamic Courts Union (ICU). |
On January 17, 2007, Gen. Naji reported what was believed to be Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed's briefcase, filled with documents, was recovered by government forces from a jungle hideout in southwestern Somalia as conflicting reports emerged the ICU leader had been arrested near the Dadaab refugee camp in the Garissa district of Kenya. |
On February 10, 2007, he was replaced as army chief-of-staff by Abdullahi Ali Omar. |
The same day he was dismissed as army chief-of-staff (February 10, 2007), Prime Minister Ali Mohamed Ghedi appointed Ismael Qasim Naji to the position of Ambassador to Oman. |
= = = Guiscarda, Viscountess of Béarn = = = |
Guiscarda (or Guiscarde) (died 1154) was the eldest child of Gaston IV of Béarn and Talesa of Aragon. She later succeeded her younger brother Centule VI as viscountess in 1134. |
Guiscarda first married Peter II of Gabarret, who died before she succeeded to Béarn. Her son by him, Peter II, also succeeded in 1134. Guiscarda's mother acted as primary regent, Guiscarda only secondarily. In 1147, Peter attained his majority and Guiscarda retired from her functions in government. |
When Peter died in 1153, Guiscarda assumed the regency for his son Gaston V, until her own death the next year. |
= = = David Sandström = = = |
David Sandström (born January 2, 1975) is the drummer for hardcore punk group Refused. After Refused broke up David and the other members of Refused worked on a project entitled TEXT and released one album. Then David went on to do solo work. In 2008 he formed the hardcore punk band AC4 with Refused frontman Dennis Lyxzén, playing bass guitar. |
Sandström states that before Refused formed he was a "glue-sniffing death metal kid" but eventually a fan of Step Forward, the embryo of Refused. As Step Forward called it quits and the friendship between Sandström and Dennis Lyxzén grew stronger, Lyxzén took him home and made him listen to Youth of Today's "We're Not in This Alone" album over and over again in a room alone. |
After Refused's demise, Sandström formed his own band, David Sandström Overdrive. His first release under his own name was called "Om det inte händer nåt innan imorgon så kommer jag.." (If nothing happens before tomorrow, I am going to...). "Om det" is about David's grandfather, and was sung in Swedish. The second album, "The Dominant Need of Needy Soul Is to Be Needed" was released in 2004. His third album is "Go Down!" and was released in May 2005 under the name David Sandström Overdrive. In October 2008 the fourth album was released, titled "Pigs Lose" on Razzia Records. |
Under the alias The Faint Sounds of Shovelled Earth |
1998, Simba recordings |
as Member |
2000, Demon Box Recording |
2000, Desperate Fight Records |
2001, Buddyhead |
2000, Demonbox Recordings |
2004, Mofab Teg Recordings |
With David Sandström Overdrive. |
2005, Mofab Teg Recordings |
With David Sandström Overdrive. |
2008, Razzia Records |
A Heavy Feather |
2011, Razzia Records |
Tillflykt |
2007, Folkets Bio |
Directors: Alberto Herskovits, Mikael Wiström |