Mark Blyth, professor at Brown University and author of "Austerity: The History of a Dangerous Idea."

The former U.S. Senate majority leader and U.S. envoy to Northern Ireland and the Middle East describes his approach to resolving disputes and fostering bipartisan compromise.

Weldon's Jewellers of Dublin have recently uploaded a brand new batch of exquisite diamond engagement rings to their website.

The creations shared in "my Sicilian kitchen" have been prepared by members of the Bilo family for generations, and now are passed on to you and your family. Buon Appetito."-Linda Bilo-Brechtel

Uniwatches launch their official YouTube channel with video reviews of timepieces and expand their collection of Nixon and Hugo Boss watches.

A special thanks to Core77 reader Ross Oliver, who read our post on Cheat Sheets and commented that silicone--which I always thought was inert--may in fact leach harmful chemicals into food.

Oliver provided a link to Life Without Plastic, a company founded in 2006 by two parents seeking alternatives to plastic for their then-newborn child. Today the company sells over 450 products made from nontoxic alternatives to plastic, like good ol' glass and stainless steel. Because they do sell some items that feature silicone gaskets and seals, their website has a section on silicone, where they provide links to several peer-reviewed studies done on how the material reacts with food. Here's some relevant information:

Silicones are not completely inert or chemically unreactive and can release toxic chemicals. They can leach certain synthetic chemicals at low levels, and the leaching is increased with fatty substances, such as oils.

One study tested the release of siloxanes from silicone nipples and bakeware into milk, baby formula and a simulant solution of alcohol and water. Nothing was released into the milk or formula after six hours, but after 72 hours in the alcohol solution several siloxanes were detected.

Another study found siloxanes [a byproduct of the polymerization process used to create a silicone product] being released from silicone bakeware, with leaching increasing as the food fat content increased.

A review of the literature indicated that the key critical effects of common siloxanes, as shown in animal studies, are impaired fertility and potential carcinogenicity (2005 Report by the Danish Ministry of the Environment: Siloxanes - Consumption, Toxicity and Alternatives).

The European Union considers certain siloxanes to be endocrine disruptors (Study on enhancing the Endocrine Disruptor priority list with a focus on low production volume chemicals, ENV.D.4/ETU/2005/00w28r).

If you use silicone in your kitchen, I'd say the entire page is well worth a read.

Handrail manufacturers often weld straight pipes to elbow connectors, then must grind the welds smooth. To speed this task, some use contraptions like this MB 650 RV product by German power tool manufacturer GeBrax, which attaches to an angle grinder to turn it into a flexible strip sander:

Other German companies, like Flex Tools and Fein, make dedicated pipe sanders:

There are also a host of sketchy-looking "As Seen on TV"-type companies flogging their own angle grinder attachments…

…but I think I'd stick with the reputable German brands.

Dutch restaurant ETEN, which is part of Amsterdam's Mediamatic Arts Centre, is trialing an innovative approach to social-distancing dining. As reported by Reuters, a series of small greenhouses (max. capacity: 3) has been constructed along the waterfront outside of their restaurant.

Servers wear gloves and facemasks.

Food is served on long planks, so the servers can slide them onto the tables without entering the greenhouses.

Ditto for busing the dishes afterwards.

If I can point out one flaw, it's that the tables need those server-summoning buttons they have in Asia. In the photo below, you can clearly see the two dudes on the right are desperate for refills.

And while the solution is Dutch, the marketing contains a bit of French. "Organisers call the project 'Serres Séparées' (Separate Greenhouses)," Reuters reports, "because they say it sounds better in French."

ST. LOUIS, March 18, 2013 – Anders has been named to Accounting Today’s “Beyond the Top 100: Firms to Watch” list.  Anders also made the “Top Firms: Midwest” for the eighth year in a row.
The lists appear in a… Read More

The post Anders Named a “Firm to Watch” appeared first on Anders CPAs.

Switch hardware and software continues to deliver the goods for Nintendo, which reported an increase in both sales and profits during the fiscal year ended March 31, 2020. ...

There is a lot to be said for the therapeutic benefits of sewing. Life has certainly been challenging lately. Concern over elderly family members and family members with high risk medical conditions, together with working long hours, has left little energy or inclination to be creative. I knew I needed a colourful scrappy project to... 

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The post Patchwork Pocket Pouch appeared first on A Spoonful of Sugar.

The sports brand enhanced its workflow with collaborative virtual reality

The borrower has SBI Max Gain home loan at 8.55 per cent under the MCLR option.

Watch: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Reliance Jio deal

The list of backers includes: Bain Capital Ventures, CIBC, CME Ventures, MasterCard, New York Life and Transamerica Ventures

Folafoluwa O. Odetola, MD, MPH, discusses an article published in the January 2008 issue of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, "Do outcomes vary according to the source of admission to the pediatric intensive care unit?" Dr. Odetola is from Mott Children's Hospital, University of Michigan Health System, and from the Child Health Evaluation and Research Unit Department of Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor. (Pediatr Crit Care Med. 2008;9[1]:20)

Margaret Parker, MD, FCCM, associate podcast editor, speaks with Nana Coleman, MD, EdM, about her editorial published in the July Pediatric Critical Care Medicine

Margaret Parker, MD, FCCM, speaks with Ranjit S. Chima, MD, lead author of an article published in the November Pediatric Critical Care Medicine

Margaret Parker, MD, MCCM, speaks with Brett J. Ehrmann, MD, MS

Margaret Parker, MD, MCCM, speaks with Philip Toltzis, MD. Dr. Toltzis is Professor of Pediatrics at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.

Margaret M. Parker, MD, MCCM, speaks with Rashid Alobaidi, MD, on his article titled Population-Based Epidemiology and Outcomes of Acute Kidney Injury in Critically Ill Children published in the January 2020 issue of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine.

In its Global Economic Outlook 2020, Fitch said the number of people affected by coronavirus will keep rising in the coming weeks but that the outbreak will remain contained. However, there are downside risks to this scenario.

MUMBAI: Liquidity risk is increasing for Indian-based real-estate developers, as non-bank financial institutions (NBFI; including housing finance companies) are shying away from lending to the sector, said Fitch Ratings.Developers that rely on refinancing from NBFIs, particularly those with weak financial profiles, will be affected the most should conditions persist. The availability of unencumbered assets among large developers may be of limited use, as NBFIs are looking to shed their already-high exposure to the sector, especially to large borrowers.NBFIs have disproportionately increased their share of real-estate sector credit in the previous few years, owing to heightened risk aversion by banks; banks have been cutting exposure due to their own funding challenges that began in late 2018, which have become more acute in the previous few months; domestic bank exposures fell to 2.3% of loans in the financial year ending March 2019 from 2.8% in 2015-16.NBFIs are now also shying away from refinancing maturing debt of even large, proven developers to limit concentration risk to the sector. This is pushing developers towards alternative funding channels, such as private equity. The availability of such funding could be more limited than the value of maturing debt and may only be available to established developers with sufficient unpledged assets. It would also come at a higher cost. We believe banks may still consider exposure to quality real estate, but overall exposure continues to decline.Developers that are focused on high-end projects may face higher risk, as sales of such projects have slowed in the last two years. We believe these developers would be wary of taking sharp price corrections on unsold inventory to boost sales, except in extreme circumstances, as this could diminish the value of unsold inventory and weaken collateral cover for existing lenders.In addition, any boost in sales would be temporary. Meanwhile, developers with substantial exposure to affordable housing may still benefit from marginal access to lenders in light of healthy pre-sales growth, supported by India's substantial housing deficit and government incentives for buyers via the credit-linked subsidy scheme as well as for developers, including tax deductions and grant of infrastructure status, which entitles companies to some benefits and concessions.The government has announced measures to improve NBFI-sector liquidity, but their efficacy remains to be seen. For example, we believe the government's July 2019 announcement to provide a first-loss guarantee of 10% on securitised assets issued by NBFIs to banks could ease funding pressure for NBFIs in the short term. However, the provision refers only to financially sound issuers and there is a lack of clarity about the duration of the guarantee and the definition of what comprises a 'financially sound' entity. In addition, most of the actions by the authorities to alleviate the liquidity squeeze will benefit the largest and least risky NBFIs and is unlikely to address the pressure on the more property focused players.Defaults by two NBFIs - Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Ltd (IL&FS) in September 2018 and Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd (DHFL) in June 2019 - have contributed to the sector-wide liquidity squeeze, as investors have become more risk averse. Banks' low appetite for lending to real-estate developers is evidenced by the usually high risk weights attached to such loans. These are due to developers' typically low credit ratings amid high leverage, making exposure to the sector an inefficient use of banks' already-limited capital.Substantial bank recapitalisation to increase lending capacity could benefit NBFIs as well as real-estate developers, subject to the banks' risk appetite. Although a structural improvement in NBFI asset books would take time. Nonetheless, even under better conditions we expect NBFI's to tighten credit standards, with developers facing funding pressure until there is a broader improvement in their operations, with better end-user demand and pricing support.

Asked whether Indians are being targeted abroad, Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi said, "One cannot make such a general statement."

ITC Q3 net profit jumps 29% at Rs 4,142 crore, beats Street estimates

RBI monetary policy: Factors to watch out for

South Korea's capital has shut down more than 2,100 nightclubs, hostess bars and discos after dozens of coronavirus infections were linked to club goers who went out last weekend as the country relaxed social distancing guidelines.

Watch: Delhi cop wins fight against Coronavirus, receives heroic welcome

These companies have undertaken massive exercises to retrain agents to approach and convince customers to buy new policies and renew premiums entirely through digital channels such as WhatsApp or Zoom, while also rejigging sales strategies starting right from the drafts used by agents to approach prospective customers, said people aware of the developments.

Bitcoin’s technology was designed in such a way that it cuts the reward for miners in half every four years, a move meant to keep a lid on inflation.

‘As economic activity resumes, expect a further revival in the market in the coming months’

The emergence of new business environment in the wake of Covid-19 is expected to boost cloud services and digitisation as companies overhaul their digital infrastructure to deal with new ways of working, they said.

The Commission of Railway Safety, which investigates all serious rail accidents and clears all rail projects, also said that now that such an incident of migrant or other persons walking along the tracks leading to consequent deaths have come to notice, all-out efforts must be made to prevent recurrence of such incidents in future.

The Department of Justice announced today that it is requiring United Technologies Corporation (UTC) and Raytheon Company (Raytheon) to divest Raytheon’s military airborne radios business and UTC’s military global positioning systems (“GPS”) and large space-based optical systems businesses in order to proceed with their proposed merger.  Without these divestitures, the merger would eliminate competition between two of the primary suppliers of military airborne radios and military GPS systems to the Department of Defense (DoD), and enable the merged firm to lessen competition for multiple components used in reconnaissance satellites sold to DoD and the wider U.S. intelligence community.  

The Department of Justice announced today the conclusion of its investigation into proposed acquisitions by Dairy Farmers of America Inc. (DFA) and Prairie Farms Dairy Inc. (Prairie Farms) of fluid milk processing plants from Dean Foods Company (Dean) out of bankruptcy.  The department’s investigation was conducted against the backdrop of unprecedented challenges in the dairy industry, with the two largest fluid milk processors in the U.S., Dean and Borden Dairy Company, in bankruptcy, and Dean faced with imminent liquidation.

A COVID-19 outbreak at a Maryland nursing home contributed to an increase in virus cases Sunday across the state that the governor described as “frightening.”

Trainer Luis Carvajal, Jr. was disappointed when veterinarians scratched Imperial Hint on the morning of the Breeders' Cup Sprint, and told horseracingnation.com that despite the horse's “Win and You're In” paying the entry fees, there were other expenses related to traveling to Santa Anita which placed a strain on his 15-horse operation. Vets scratched the 6-year-old […]

The post Carvajal Believes Imperial Hint ‘Was 100 Percent Right’ When Scratched By Vets, Will Run Next Year appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

The Breeders' Cup, one of Thoroughbred horse racing's most prestigious international events, announced Blessings for the Backstretch, a charitable initiative in partnership with The Stronach Group to support mothers living and working on the backstretch at Santa Anita Park this Mother's Day. On Sunday morning, May 10, the two organizations will hand-deliver Mother's Day Blessings […]

The post Blessings For The Backstretch: Breeders’ Cup Honors ‘Pivotal’ Racing Employees On Mother’s Day appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

BuzzFeed News: The J.Crew Bankruptcy Has Exposed A Hard Truth About The Influencer Economy. “The news this week that the parent company of beloved preppy brand J.Crew and its hip millennial sister, Madewell, had filed for bankruptcy led to an outpouring of sadness from fans across social media. It also led to a stark revelation … Continue reading BuzzFeed News: The J.Crew Bankruptcy Has Exposed A Hard Truth About The Influencer Economy

New kitchen in St. Louis Park home remakes space for optimal workflow, organization and natural light.

The Daily Racing Form reported Thursday that trainer Todd Pletcher is sending strings of horses north to Churchill Downs and Belmont Park next week. Pletcher had pulled many of his horses from Belmont and sent them to Florida in late March as shutdowns and fears surrounding the coronavirus pandemic ramped up. Pletcher told the Form […]

The post Pletcher Sending Horses Back North After Waiting Out COVID-19 In Florida appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

A COVID-19 outbreak at a Maryland nursing home contributed to an increase in virus cases Sunday across the state that the governor described as “frightening.”

Seth Flaxman et al. have an updated version of their model of coronavirus progression. Flaxman writes: Countries with successful control strategies (for example, Greece) never got above small numbers thanks to early, drastic action. Or put another way: if we did China and showed % of population infected (or death rate), we’d erroneously conclude that […]

The other day we posted some Stan models of coronavirus infection rate from the Stanford study in Santa Clara county. The Bayesian setup worked well because it allowed us to directly incorporate uncertainty in the specificity, sensitivity, and underlying infection rate. Mitzi Morris put all this in a Google Collab notebook so you can run […]

Desert View Watchtower, one of the most prominent architectural features on the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park, is slated to undergo renovations over the next several months. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/news_2010-1-11_watchtower.htm

Local artisans will share their culture and crafts with Grand Canyon National Park visitors at the Desert View Watchtower. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/dv-cultural-demonstrations.htm

The Desert View Watchtower at Grand Canyon National Park will host the final artist in the annual Cultural Demonstrator Series. https://www.nps.gov/grca/learn/news/last-2015-desert-view-demonstration.htm