text:
Powering Salespeople to Sell More

A Faster Way to Grow

[Veelo Sales Enablement Platform Overview]

Veelo sales enablement gets your sales team performing at their best with built in training, content management and sales engagement.

Fuel Your Growth With Veelo

BE A HERO. HELP YOUR REPS SELL MORE.

Veelo’s machine learning and unique brain science approach work behind the scenes to make sure your sellers are at their best.

[Veelo Sales Enablement Platform Brain Science Training and Coaching]

[Veelo Sales Enablement Platform Email CRM Mobile Integration]

SALES TECH THAT YOUR SELLERS LOVE.

Veelo is intuitive, easy to use and in their workflow: email, CRM and mobile. Built-in productivity enhancements save them from manual drudgery.

REAL RESULTS – PROOF YOU CAN SEE.

With Veelo’s sales enablement platform you can expect to see an 80% engagement and 20% sales productivity gain by the 90th day.

[Veelo Sales Enablement Platform Productivity Boost]

The Right Sales Enablement Platform For Your Business

Robust sales enablement platform that offers sales onboarding, sales content management, prospect engagement, analytics and more.

Basic: Onboard & Train

Everything you need to ensure sales readiness:

sales onboarding, training, video coaching and more.

Premium: Full Sales Enablement Platform

A full sales enablement platform to ensure sales

productivity & effectiveness.

Everything in Basic + sales content management,

prospect engagement and advanced analytics.

The Veelo Difference

[machine learning]

Powered by machine learning

Powered by machine learning, Veelo delivers the content _and_ coaching reps need to win deals. Veelo gets smarter with every interaction, ensuring your reps are always armed with what they need to sell value.

[brain icon]

Rooted in brain science

Built on modern brain science principles, Veelo helps your sellers learn, retain and apply information — including contextual knowledge reinforcement, memory boosting and micro-learning.

[]

Easy to set up, use and maintain

Get up and running quickly with out-of-the-box functionality. Veelo integrates with the tools you already use and scales as your business grows, creating a seamless experience for you and your users.

Get a Personalized Demo

Powered by machine learning, Veelo delivers the content and coaching reps need to win deals. Veelo’s sales enablement platform gets smarter with every interaction, ensuring your reps are always armed with what they need to sell value.

Customer support: Support form
Press inquiries: marketing@bigtincan.com
Career opportunities: Open positions

question: What level of improvement in engagement metrics does this promise?

answer: Increases of 80%

question: What is Veelo?

answer: A Sales Enablement Platform

question: What type of training is provided?

answer: Sales

question: What is the setup like?

answer: It offers out-of-the-box functionality

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: This article describes some of the advantages of using Veelo's Sales Enablement Platform.


split: train

text:
Black and M
Part 1 Black

josh was an ordinary boy Just like you or me or... so it seemed, on the outside he was just a boy who for some reason , Hated life. In other words he was just a fifteen year old boy who showed no emotion, no feeling, no compassion. He appeared as if he WANTED to be hated in public, wearing clothes no other would DARE to wear at fancy party's he wore jeans a novelty shirt such as a video game character and he always held a cane for NO reason when asked the question "josh what has happened to you" he would reply, "that name serves no purpose to me ... and what did i TELL YOU! i am the same GUY" but he wasn't he had changed... he had not always been like this with jet black hair the dyed red tip scraping his chin. people around him would know, he would only talk sorrow and death after that day... he spoke to M for the very ... last...time M a woman who no one dared mention the full name of in front of black was a fifteen year old girl who had no confidence in herself whatsoever yet black rather... josh, taught her to have some but that is one of his many regrets josh found resolution in M as she was a quite attractive young woman who could no nothing but worry and that... was just what set her over the top. Her wavy pink hair gave her all the power to men in the world and black had power over that he never used it... he wished he did.

Black didnt have many people he concidered friends but he had many people who was TRYING to be his friend  he knew it... but did not want it he was happy with the friends he already had there names all changed when he changed to blackdare... well atleased to him he had his best friends Linkkirby, grayslimer and M--- wait  black thaught to himself why did i "OH NO" he shouted outloud as his mind jumped back in time... this was no "flashback" he could controll himself but... things always had the same outcome that night when M leaned in and said ... it was to painfull to say but ha always, he always said the same thing "no I...I DONT WANT TO HURT YOU" he regains control but the part that really pains me, you , black its hard too tell 1st,2nd or 3rd person who am i the world just pushes us and when we push back the world cries.

GAH black awoke with a freight he told the only erson he could tell
"kirby it happend again DONT CALL ME MAD ITS NOT A DREAM or a flashback"
kirby replied five minutes later
"JOSH its 3AM my name is not kirby pull yourself together your father already said family curse"
"KIRBY i am NOT josh and do NOT mention my father you have NO right"
the skype call ended there with the same words every covosation ends with"you have alot of people who want to help you they were friends with josh ... not blackdare and i am starting to see why"
I did not cry ... she had my tears and she misused themi got up and had asoden thaught that i was afraid of so i forgot about it it would drag me back there but perhaps...this time.

Part 2 Kirby

"OMG josh is soo annoying right now slimer"
"what do you mean NOW kirby he has been like this ever since he said the UNUSABLE PHRASE to m kirby god how long have we known eachother and we dont even know eachothers names"
"oh no daniel i know your name im robbie so TTYL AFK and all that"
I shut my laptop and thaught how good black had it his folks were rich and he acts like he is POOR his mother loves him and his father is "cursed" but he acts like he is homeless
after M left kirby was blacks one outlet in life he used daniel as a way te escape the VR as kirby lived far away but little did he know he was the key to niagras heart he did not know what that ment he just heard black mention it beforeway back then when they broke up
kirbys memory spiraled "dont worry kirby she may have left me but you haha are niagras heart" that one scentence stuck with him... it was the last time black was truly happy

Kirby was a young boy 13 years old had the whole world goin for him brown surf swept hair a clam necklas and the whole 5,0 but the only problem is after blacks big "phrase utter with M" his confidence was knocked too he was a profestional in sword fighting and sometimes took black 1 on 1 but the one thing he would never try was to even talk to M as last time he god a warning but NEXT TIME the sword will do more than toutch his neck

kirby got up and walked to his old secret creek just down the road from niagra falls as kirby and blackdare used to live there thats where they met M but after the break up black moved too canada kirby now being the only one who new the location of the creek had a old picture pinned up he looked for a good thirty seconds at what it used to be... the days of playing zelda with our feet in the water the days of yaunder gone  by

title: Black and M (WIP)

question: What are some key qualities used to describe Josh?

answer: Josh is described as a fifteen year old boy who showed no emotion, no feeling, no compassion. He is moody and not the happiest boy.

question: How does Kirby view Josh?

answer: Kirby views Josh as very annoying and pretentious.


text: I'm reminded of a time at a Home Depot in Salt Lake City. I was visiting family and realized that I had a situation that was going to be resolved in short order. I could tell immediately that the terms of the resolution could be set by me or the other concerned party. Either way, I was a ticking time bomb. After sanitarily situating myself upon the available depository, I realized that I had a neighbor. Like me, he was also attempting to remedy his plight with the utmost of auditory discretion. I was aware that I was engaged in an epic battle of wills. I was determined to see my adversary committed to the murky depths (without an utterance on its part) when I arrived on the scene, but as events unfolded I was quickly made aware of the fact that I was hopelessly outmatched. Evidently the co-inhabitant of the room was blessed with better fortune than I. He had completed his task in exemplary fashion. It was at such time that my condition had come to a head. All time stood still. The uncontrollable breach was imminent. I knew that the anonymous person adjacent to me was aware, on some level, of my situation due to imperfections in my performance caused by the desperation that had seized me. It was then that I knew, the battle was lost. My thoughts turned to the kamikaze pilots of the Great War. Without thinking I said aloud, " You know what? I'm just gonna let this thing go." With that, I simultaneously collapsed containment and summoned every ounce of strength I had in me. I bore down on my assailant with all my might. The resulting explosion of material, coupled with the massive shock wave of water, was deafening. Silence took the room. I was lost in an eternity of defeat. It was then that the satisfaction and peace washed over me like a warm gentle wave of the sea on a sandy beach. I knew I had lost touch with reality. I was being tugged back to my senses by a mysterious and rhythmic hissing. As my wits returned to me, I could hear the sound coming from my left, just on the other side of the steel partition. The source of hissing sound became apparent to me. Laughter. Laughter from someone overwhelmed by the sensory bouquet that had consumed the entire space only moments earlier. Our somewhat shared experience had obviously overloaded every synapse in his head and his brain was struggling to process what his senses had portrayed to him. By now it was apparent that he was so tightly gripped by the involuntary response that he was having trouble catching his breath. After a few moments he seemed able to collect himself enough to wash his hands and make an exit that was honestly not hasty enough for my taste. None the less I remained in solitude for another few minutes to ensure that my identity remained hidden upon my egress from this gastrointestinal colosseum of terrors. It was a learning experience to be sure. Sometimes a man can only do so much to defend his public image in the face of great adversity.

title: A humorous and irreverent tale of a desperate man.

question: Who are the main characters of the story?

answer: The narrator and his adversary, the other guy.

question: Where does the story take place?

answer: Adjacent toilet cubicles in the men's room.

question: What happened to the narrator?

answer: He was trying to take a dump with as little sound as possible and quickly because someone else was in another cubicle.

question: Explain why the narrator said "You know what? I'm just gonna let this thing go."

answer: The guy in the other toilet was done taking a dump and he did it quietly and he feels he lost their unspoken battle.

question: Write a ~6 sentence summary.

answer: The narrator rushes to the men's room to take a dump and realizes that he has a neighbor. They engage in an unspoken battle of who can finish the quickest and most discreet. When the other guy finishes before him, the narrator decides to let it all go, which results in an explosion of farts and feces. There was silence and the narrator feels he lost touch with reality. Laughter from the other cubicle brings him back as the other guy gets up, washes his hands, and leaves. The narrator remains on the toilet a few minutes more to keep his identity secret.


text:
[]

The people who got caught up in the exercise boom of the 1970s and stuck with it into their senior years now have significantly healthier hearts and muscles than their sedentary counterparts. DAVID TROOD/GETTY IMAGES HIDE CAPTION

TOGGLE CAPTION

 David Trood/Getty Images

[]

The people who got caught up in the exercise boom of the 1970s and stuck with it into their senior years now have significantly healthier hearts and muscles than their sedentary counterparts.

 David Trood/Getty Images

We know we need to exercise for our health, but a lifelong exercise habit may also help us feel younger and stay stronger well into our senior years. In fact, people in their 70s who have been exercising regularly for decades seem to have put a brake on the aging process, maintaining the heart, lung and muscle fitness of healthy people at least 30 years younger.

Take 74-year-old Susan Magrath, a retired nurse practitioner who lives in Muncie, Ind. Magrath has been running almost daily for 45 years. She often runs outdoors and describes it as addictive. "It's just such a release, just a wonderful release," she says. "I ran today and there were little snowflakes coming down, and I was down by the river and it's just wonderful. And I think it's become more of a contemplative meditative process for me."

Magrath may be living proof that lifelong exercise helps with cardiovascular and muscle health. She recently took part in a study at the Human Performance Laboratory at Ball State University, also in Muncie, headed by exercise physiologist Scott Trappe. Trappe is among the first to study the enticing new population of lifelong exercisers.

After the running and aerobic boom of the 1970s, large numbers of septuagenarians stuck with it and have been exercising regularly for the past 50 years. In this population, Trappe says, "We were interested in basically two questions: One, what was their cardiovascular health? And two, what was their skeletal muscle health?"

What he saw surprised him. "We saw that people who exercise regularly year after year have better overall health than their sedentary counterparts. These 75-year-olds — men and women — have similar cardiovascular health to a 40- to 45-year-old."

" 'Exercise wins' is the take-home message," he says.

In the study, Trappe divided 70 healthy participants into three groups. Those in the lifelong exercise group were on average 75 years old and primarily kept their heart rates up through running and cycling. They had a history of participating in structured exercise four to six days a week for a total of about seven hours a week.

The second group included individuals who were also, on average, 75 years old but did not engage in structured exercise regimens, although they might have participated in occasional leisure walking or golf.

The third group consisted of young exercisers who were, on average, 25 years old and worked out with the same frequency and length of time as the lifelong exercisers.

All participants were assessed in the Human Performance Laboratory at Ball State University. Cardiovascular health was gauged by having participants cycle on an indoor bike to determine VO2 max, also known as maximal oxygen uptake, which is the measurement of the maximum amount of oxygen a person can use during intense exercise and is an indicator of aerobic endurance. During the cycling test, which became increasingly challenging, individuals exhaled into a mouthpiece that measured oxygen and carbon dioxide levels.

The aerobic profile of the participants' muscles was measured by taking a sample via a biopsy about the size of a pea, says Trappe. Then in the lab, researchers examined the micro vessels, or capillaries, that allow blood to flow through the muscle itself.

They also looked at specific enzymes that provide fuel to the working muscle and help break down carbohydrates and fats.

Although the study was relatively small, the findings, which were published in the _Journal of Applied Physiology_ in August, suggest a dramatic benefit of lifelong exercise for both muscle health and the cardiovascular system.

"Lifelong exercisers had a cardiovascular system that looked 30 years younger," says Trappe. This is noteworthy because, for the average adult, the ability to process oxygen declines by about 10 percent per decade after age 30.

"It's kind of a slow decay over time that's probably not so noticeable in your 30s or 40s," says Trappe, but eventually as years go on, becomes apparent. People can get out of breath more easily and may have difficulty pushing themselves physically.

The age-related reduction in VO2 max is directly associated with an increasing risk of multiple chronic diseases, mortality and loss of independence. Maintaining a strong heart and lung system has been shown to decrease these health risks.

As for muscle health, the findings were even more significant, says Trappe. Trappe says researchers were surprised to find the 75-year-old muscles of lifelong exercisers were about the same as the muscles of the 25-year-olds. "If I showed you the muscle data that we have, you wouldn't know it was from an older individual. You would think it's from somebody that's a young exerciser," he says.

David Costill, 82, was not part of the study but is a former colleague of Trappe's and professor emeritus of exercise science at Ball State University. As an exercise physiologist, he has always known about the benefits of exercise and has been committed since high school.

He says he has spent about "60 years actively exercising." Costill ran marathons for about 20 years until his knees started to bother him, so he headed to the pool. "And I've been swimming for the last 35 years."

When Costill looks at his friends, he says he finds he can do a lot more physically than they can. "If I'm out with a group of my peers, guys who are near 80, and we're going someplace, it seems to me they're all walking at half speed."

Trappe says the findings are clear: 30 to 60 minutes of exercise a day may be the key to a healthy life. But you don't have to run marathons or compete in cycling events. "If you want to do 30 to 45 minutes of walking a day, the amount of health benefit you are going to get is going to be significant and substantial," he says. "Will it equal the person training for competitive performances? No. But it will outdo the couch potato."

Unfortunately, couch potatoes are the norm. Federal guidelines recommend two hours and 30 minutes of moderate exercise a week, or one hour and 15 minutes of vigorous exercise per week. Yet 77 percent of Americans do not come close to getting that amount of exercise.

Dr. Clyde Yancy, spokesperson for the American Heart Association and chief of cardiology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, says the findings suggest "a lifelong investment in health and fitness appears to be associated with a really sustainable benefit out until the outer limits of life."

Since we are living longer, maintaining a good quality of life is more important than ever. While the study was small and the findings need to be confirmed, they present a "strong argument" for lifelong exercise that is inexpensive and accessible for everyone. "If you can swim, do yoga, cycle, or walk," you can benefit," Yancy says.

question: What does the text say are the overall health benefits of exercising?

answer: Regular exercise is necessary for a general functional system and well-being. Research has shown that a person who exercises regularly stands a chance of living a longer and healthier life than those who don't. The overall health benefits of exercise include improved cardiovascular, skeletal, and muscular health that prevent future decay as the person ages. It also helps a person stay fit and promotes a longer and healthier life.

question: What does the text say about how often a person should exercise to maintain a healthy body?

answer: Scientists insist the average human body should engage in daily exercise for about 30-40 minutes to maintain a healthy life. By doing this, a person can engage in many forms of exercise to stay fit, such as walking, jogging, running, swimming, and even yoga. By the end of the week, a person should've engaged in at least 2 hours and 30 minutes of moderate exercise activity. It's not compulsory to stick to a particular form of exercise; instead, based on the individual, they can choose the type of exercise that suits them and mix it up with other inexpensive forms of exercise per day.


text:
Well it is a long story but because you asked with a smile I will share. My father got wrapped up in some seriously bad shit with the unicorn mafia. They killed him in front of my 8.5 month pregnant mother.

Soon after I was born into a life filled with hatred for their kind and those that associate with them. I went on like that for years.I even got involved in some unicorn poaching. It was on a gig in Malaysia that I saw her. She was just different than all the other unicorn that I had even known.

Her mane was a color that I didn't knew existed, and had an iridescent glow. I knew then that my whole life was a lie. If unicorns could be like this than they couldn't be the diabolical destructive force that I was indoctrinated into believing in. Her name was Emma and against all odds I loved her.

We abandoned our station with the clans that refused to accept our love. We were married to the fine music of the Appalachians. Our fairy-tale life went on for years. She baked the finest confections in the land and I worked with the local miller doing more or less manual labor. People were non too friendly to our type but we had each other. This was not to last however.

It turned out that I was wrong. Emma was a filthy unicorn whore. At the first sign of something shinier than I she left me. She left me for some smelly hippy Douche bag named Brad. I try not to think about those days anymore as that sends me to the bottom of a bottle.

TL:DR- Not a very big fan of unicorns.

title: Always chasing one.

question: Is the narrator a unicorn?

answer: It's implied that the narrator is a human, as an inter-species relationship is the focal point of ire. He's decidedly not a unicorn as he was raised to hate unicorns.


text:
HIGHTOWER HIGH SCHOOL is a secondary school (grades 9-12) located at 3333 Hurricane Lane, Missouri City, Texas, United States, adjacent to The Fort Bend Parkway Toll Road.

Hightower is administered by Fort Bend Independent School District and its mascot is Poseidon, but they are known as the Hightower Hurricanes.

Hightower serves parts of Missouri City.[1] The school also serves a portion of the city of Arcola,[2] sections of the unincorporated area of Fresno,[3] the neighborhood of Lake Shore Harbour, which is located in the extraterritorial jurisdiction of Missouri City. It also serves a small section of western Pearland.[4] In addition, Hightower previously served the rest of Arcola,[5] sections of master-planned community of Sienna Plantation,[6] and the unincorporated area of Juliff.[7]

The school is named after Lockhart Valentine (L.V.) Hightower, a former principal in the district.[8] Hightower had served as an American football coach for Sugar Land High School.[9]

History

Hightower opened on August 13, 1998 and was dedicated on October 11 of the same year.[10] The $35 million school campus, when opened, had fewer than 600 students and 50 teachers. The school only served Freshmen and Sophomore classes during its first year.[11] Hightower was FBISD's seventh comprehensive high school.[12]

Debbie Dunlap was the first principal. She said that her style of managing the school was “to be supportive. I just let the teachers do their jobs.”[13] Todd Spivak of the _Houston Press_ said that Dunlap “was hailed for assembling a staff that some say included the best high school teachers in the Houston area” and that the school “quickly gained a reputation for academic excellence and became a destination school for veteran teachers.”[14] Dunlap left her position in 2003 so she could work for a teacher certification company.[15]

Patricia Paquin became the next principal. Many of the teachers that were at the school during Dunlap's term as principal left during Paquin's term. During each year of Paquin's term, until 2006, between 35 and 55 teachers left. Todd Spivak of the _Houston Press_ said that many teachers believed that Paquin micromanaged too closely.[16]

In the 2005-2006 school year, Paquin gave over 1,800 suspensions. Spivak said “This would appear to indicate the work of a strict disciplinarian. But many teachers and parents say student behavior at Hightower is getting only worse, with fights breaking out on a regular basis.”[17]

Pavlos Karnezis, a 12th grade honors student, was sent to jail and later expelled from school for bringing a knife to class in November 2005.[18] Paquin could have chosen lighter stipulations for Karnezis' expulsion. Despite the fact that teachers had vouched for his character, Paquin had chosen the most severe punishment possible, sentencing him to a boot camp.[19] Karnezis' parents, Thomas and Kathy, fought and had the entire expulsion decision overturned in 2006, allowing Karnezis to return to class.[20]

Viretta West was principal from 2008 to 2016. Frederick Richardson was an interim principal for the Fall semester of 2016, and Thomas Wallis was the interim principal for the Spring semester of 2017. The current principal is John Montelongo.

By 2006 Hightower had over 2,600 students and 140 teachers.[21]

Academies

Hightower High School, in 2006, was one of the district's only two high schools with block scheduling. Todd Spivak of the _Houston Press_ said during that year that the school “is considered the most innovative of the district's seven public high schools”.[22] As of the 2015-16 school year, the school went to a normal 7- period schedule.

Hightower has specialized academies that offer specialized education for gifted and ambitious students.[23]

The Medical Science Academy allows motivated students meet academic challenges and have opportunities to explore world class medical facilities. Courses such as Medical Terminology, Medical Ethics, and much more help to form the basis of knowledge for a medical career. Also, a Medical Science Internship is offered in which students may develop a hands-on experience of the environment in a hospital through volunteer activity.

The Digital Media Academy allows students to focus on using the computer as a creative tool. Classes are designed to teach technical proficiency in a broad range of software while encouraging innovative design. Graduates from the Graphics & Digital Media strand have the skills to create still graphics, animations, and interactive media using industry standard software. Many specialized courses are available for the many different areas of graphical production.

The Digital Media Academy] also offers students with the opportunity to create masterpiece media productions. Students will be able to experience hands-on activities that resemble realistic media. Courses allow students to use real world equipment and professional programs to create their works. Also, students are able to assume the roles of professionals and direct their own news-broadcasting channel known as HTV. The academy is now joined together in one academy with the Telecommunications Media Academy as the Digital Media Academy.

Athletics

In 2006 Todd Spivak of the _Houston Press_ said that Hightower's athletic facilities were “state-of-the-art” and “rival those of some colleges.”[24] Hightower is adjacent to the District owned Hall Stadium and Hopson Field House, resulting in a decrease of transportation for football games.

As of February 1, 2016, Hightower is one of the eight 6A schools in the District. In UIL terms, they are in district 6A-20, alongside Austin, Bush, Clements, Dulles, Kempner, Ridge Point, and Travis High Schools, all of which are in Fort Bend ISD.

File:FBISD Hopson Field House.jpg|Hopson Field House is on campus. File:Hightower High School cheerleaders.jpg|HHS cheerleaders in parade (2012) File:Hightower High School's girls basketball team qualifying for the UIL state tournament; conference 5A.jpg|Hightower girls basketball team qualified for 5A UIL state tournament.

Student bodies

In 2016, 72% of the school's student body was African American and Hispanic.[25]

Associations

thumb|right|upright=0.9|Hightower High School's Public Health team at HOSA ILC 2019. In 2006, Hightower qualified 16 students for the National HOSA competition in Anaheim, of which all 16 placed top 4 or higher in their respective categories.[26] In addition, 2 students qualified for the FBLA national competition in Nashville, Tennessee.

In 2007, Hightower High School qualified 31 students for the National HOSA Conference in Orlando, Florida, the most out of any school in the nation. They will compete in mid-June, 2007.

In 2008, Hightower High School qualified 38 students for the National HOSA Leadership Conference in Dallas, Texas. The team earned one gold, nine silver and eight bronze medals. Team members Jonathan Vo and Matthew Lei were also named to the mastery level of the Kaiser Permanente Medical Current Events Roster based on their placement in the top 10 in the United States.[27]

In 2010, Hightower High School qualified 34 students for the National HOSA Leadership Conference in Orlando, Florida. The team earned 2 gold, 4 silver, and 2 bronze medals along with 15 other finalists that placed top 10 or higher.[28]

Hightower High School originally had a Robotics team, which has placed in several local and statewide competitions.[29]

thumb|right|upright=1.1|Hightower Marching Band, Peach Bowl On the final week of 2015 (Dec 27-Jan 1), the Hightower High School “Hurricane” Marching Band was invited to perform at the 2015 Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl on New Year's Eve, including a mass band, parade, and other competitions. They returned with (in CATEGORY 3) 3rd place Silver for field show, 1st place Gold for marching percussion, Honorable mention for parade, and Best Drum Major award.

In 2019, Hightower High School qualified 9 students for the National HOSA Leadership Conference in Orlando, Florida. The group consisting of Saeed Ahmed, Gayathry James, Gisela Mathew, Yasamine Shehni, Susan Varghese, and Natasha Verghese earned second place in the Secondary-Division event of Public Health Emergency Preparedness.[30][31] Contender Isabella Gándara received a 'Highest Overall Score' award in the Secondary-Division of the Health Care Issues Exam.[32]

Feeder patterns

The following elementary schools[33] feed into Hightower:[34]

-   Burton
-   Goodman
-   Palmer (partial)
-   Parks

The following middle schools (Not counting the kids from other schools who go for the academies)[35] feed into Hightower:

-   Lake Olympia (partial)

Notable alumni

-   D. J. Augustin - Former point guard for the University of Texas Longhorns[36] and drafted to the Charlotte Bobcats. (Class of 2006)
-   Matthew Adams - Current NFL football player for the Indianapolis Colts.
-   Cory Rodgers - Former football player for the NFL Green Bay Packers, and current player for the CFL BC Lions. (Class of 2002)[37]
-   Herbert Taylor - Former NFL Football player for the Kansas City Chiefs. (Class of 2002)[38]
-   Danuel House Professional basketball player for the Houston Rockets of the NBA
-   Bralon Addison
-   Eric Moreland
-   Garlon Green
-   Christopher G. Hollins (Harris County clerk, involved in the 2020 U.S. elections)[39]

[1] “High School Attendance Zones.” Fort Bend Independent School District. Retrieved on April 15, 2017.

[2] “2010 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: Arcola city, TX.” U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on April 15, 2017.

[3] “2010 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP (INDEX): Fresno CDP, TX.” U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on May 4, 2017. Page 1, Page 2

[4] “City of Pearland School Districts.” (Archive) City of Pearland. Retrieved on March 21, 2014.

[5] “CENSUS 2000 BLOCK MAP: ARCOLA City.” U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on April 15, 2017.

[6] “CENSUS 2000 BLOCK MAP: SIENNA PLANTATION CDP.” U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved on April 15, 2017.

[7] “High School Attendance Zones” (2009-2010). Fort Bend Independent School District. February 6, 2010. Retrieved on February 19, 2017.

[8]

[9]

[10] “Campus History .” Fort Bend Independent School District. Retrieved on December 31, 2011.

[11] Spivak, Todd. “Cut Short.” _Houston Press_. Thursday June 26, 2006. 3. Retrieved on December 31, 2011.

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16] Spivak, Todd. “Cut Short.” _Houston Press_. Thursday June 26, 2006. 4. Retrieved on December 31, 2011.

[17]

[18] Spivak, Todd. “Cut Short.” _Houston Press_. Thursday June 26, 2006. 1-3. Retrieved on December 31, 2011.

[19]

[20] Spivak, Todd. “Cut Short.” _Houston Press_. Thursday June 26, 2006. 4-6. Retrieved on December 31, 2011.

[21]

[22]

[23]

[24]

[25] https://www.schooldigger.com/go/TX/schools/1965007885/school.aspx

[26] HOSA 2006 National Leadership Conference Winners

[27] http://www.fortbendnow.com/pages/full_story?article-Hightower-High-School-s-HOSA-Team-Earns-National-Medals%2520=&page_label=home&id=217265&widget=push&instance=home_news_bullets&open=&

[28]

[29] Hightower Robotics website

[30] http://ilc.hosa.org/sites/default/files/2019%20Secondary_0.pdf

[31] http://ilc.hosa.org/sites/default/files/PHR2.pdf

[32] http://ilc.hosa.org/sites/default/files/HCIE2019.pdf

[33] FBISD Elementary School Attendance Zones

[34] FBISD High School Attendance Zones

[35] FBISD Middle School Attendance Zones

[36] DJ Augustin Biography - Texas Longhorns DJ Augustin Biography - DJ Augustin Bio

[37] BC Lions :: Official Site of the BC Lions

[38] Player Bio: Herbert Taylor :: Football

[39]

title: Hightower High School

question: Is Missouri City located in the state of Missouri or the state of Texas?

answer: Texas

question: Who is Debbie Dunlap and what was she known for?

answer: Debbie Dunlap was the first principal of Hightower High School. She was known for her "supportive" management style and just letting the teachers do their jobs. Dunlap was hailed for assembling a staff that included the best high school teachers in the Houston area. The school gained a reputation for academic excellence and became a destination school for veteran teachers.

question: What happened when Debbie Dunlap left Hightower High School in 2003?

answer: Patricia Paquin took over as principal when Dunlap left and many of the teachers (between 35 and 55) resigned due to Paquin's micromanagement style.

question: What is Hightower High School known for?

answer: Hightower High School is known for offering specialized education for gifted and ambitious students by way of specialized academies. The Medical Science Academy gives students the opportunity to explore world-class medical facilities. The Digital Media Academy lets students focus on using computers as a creative tool. The school is also known for being one of the most innovative schools in the district.


text:
ALCHEMICAL YIELDS MUST BE INCREASED.

REASON 1: ALCHEMY IS CURRENTLY THE MOST INACCESSIBLE OF ALL OF THE CRAFTS.

A clothier plant yields 3-4 items per node, with a 10% chance to yield 6-8 with the PH perk. A flower yields just 1 mat per node, with a 10% chance to yield 2 with the PH perk. This makes no sense, esp. since potions are consumables that last around 45 seconds while a piece of gear can last you _indefinitely_.

For example, at CR160, a typical crafted armor piece requires 130 refined mats, which requires, on average, 153 raw mats. The average harvest per node is 3.85 (with the PH perk), so you're looking at 40 node harvests to craft a piece of max-level gear--a piece of gear that can last indefinitely: Inside dungeons, I'm still using the Julianos gear that I crafted 10 months ago. In contrast, 40 node harvests of Lady's Smock and Corn Flower (20 harvests of each) will, on average, yield enough mats to make 88 Spell Power potions, which is gone in less than 2 hours of raiding. And that's not counting the solvents.

Of course, most of the alchemical nodes that I harvest aren't even the ones that I need for a specific potion.

I used to try to be self-sufficient, and before a night of trials, I'd spend over an hour running circles around the Hollow City. If I did this at a quiet time when nobody else was competing for nodes, that would typically yield enough Lady's Smock and Corn Flower to support just ONE night of trials. Is this what you want, ZOS? For people to mindlessly farm for hours just so that they can play your content for one night?

This affects not just endgame players like me, but also casual players. When I first started playing this game over a year ago--back when I was still learning and trying out my first vet dungeons--my first clear of vet Darkshade was a painful 3+ hour wipefest. And in that time, I had completely depleted the potions that I had accumulated over the course of a few weeks of casual harvesting. The fact that the stock of potions that I had build over weeks could vanish so quickly made me not want to even consider using potions.

REASON 2: DIFFICULT CONTENT HAS DRAMATICALLY INCREASED DEMAND.

Back before the vAA revamp in Update 11, a run of AA for the weekly took less than 10 minutes. You could clobber together a group with people on alts, with a few inexperienced people, etc., and it'll still be done in 10 minutes. After Update 11, vAA weeklies take anywhere from a bit under 30 minutes (if you have a solid, experienced group, with people on their mains) to well over an hour (a duct-taped group with people on alts).

I welcome the new difficulty, and it's breathed a lot of new life into the raiding scene. But what it also means is that potions are no longer optional luxuries--they're mandatory. And instead of budgeting for 7-10 minutes worth of potions for an AA weekly, we now need to budget for 30-70 minutes worth of potions for a vAA weekly. @ZOS_Finn had stated that they tuned the new trials based on the DPS that people are capable of achieving. This level of DPS, however, is heavily dependent on popping spell power and weapon power potions on cooldown. EFFECTIVELY, ENDGAME CONTENT NOW MORE OR LESS REQUIRES POTIONS.

If we look at alchemical prices on PC/NA, they were stable for much of 2015 and early 2016. But they started to steadily rise when MoL was released and people started getting back into PvE raiding, and with the revamp of vSO, and later the revamps of vAA, vHRC, vDSA and the introduction of new demanding vet dungeons, the price increase has accelerated. In the midst of all this, more and more people are coming to the game, lured in by vet removal, the Japanese launch, etc. Early this year, I could easily find Corn Flower for 25g apiece. These days, I'm lucky if I can find some for sale at 100g apiece, and I usually have to pay 150-200g apiece if I want them in any substantial quantity. We're talking about over a 4-FOLD PRICE INCREASE in a bit over half a year's time. And from what I hear, the PC/NA prices are actually the lowest--prices are even higher on Console and on EU.

REASON 3: ONE TAMRIEL WILL DECREASE SUPPLY, AND, NO, THE INSTANCING WON'T HELP.

There aren't many good farming spots for alchemical nodes, and it's no secret that the Hollow City is the best place for it. On Live, if one faction's instance is too busy with flower pickers, I can try my luck on another faction. This will no longer be an option in One Tamriel. Of course, there is the mechanism of splitting into multiple instances to avoid overcrowding, but that happens only when the zone in general is overcrowded. All it takes is 2 or 3 people farming the same route to mess things up--that's not nearly enough to cause the overcrowd instancing to kick in. During the off-hours--the best time to gather mats--the zones are pretty quiet except for the farmers, and there simply won't be enough of them to spawn new instances.

And, yes, this is happening for all harvestable nodes, but for cloth, ores, and wood, this is mitigated by all the zones now yielding max-level mats. This means that max-level alchemical solvents will be easier to get, since they can now drop in more zones, but that doesn't matter because they aren't the bottleneck (also, each solvent node yields several solvents instead of just one, which is rather inconsistent--why are the reagents the only harvestable node in the game that drop only one mat per node?).

REASON 4: INCREASING THE GOLD COMPENSATION FOR CONTENT ISN'T THE SOLUTION.

@Nifty2g made a thread highlighting the problems facing people running endgame PvE. The biggest problem that we face right now is the cost of running this content, almost all of which is related to the cost of potions. And if the status quo on the PTS remains unchanged, Update 12 will seriously harm the health of the endgame PvE community.

While it is important that content should be rewarding, I don't think that gold compensation is a sufficient solution for the cost of potions. It won't alleviate the high demand of potions, which, as I noted above, are now REQUIRED for serious endgame PvE. And it won't alleviate the shortage of alchemical mats, esp. with what One Tamriel will do to alchemical farming. When demand remains high and supply goes down, throwing more gold into the mix will serve only to inflate prices even more, making potions even less accessible FOR EVERYONE.

Furthermore, it also won't solve the pain for the many people who are still progressing. The 10K gold every 5 days from vSO HM is nice... if you can get it. But what about the groups that spend hours wiping in vSO, learning the trial and progressing? They're not getting that 10K gold, and they're using even more potions because of all the wipes and time spent. We want to encourage more people to try out, learn, and progress through the content, not erect further barriers between the people who have made it to the end and the people who haven't.

This isn't a problem that can be solved by throwing more gold into the pot. This is a problem that REQUIRES a rebalance of the supply-and-demand equation. The demand isn't going to change--the new difficult content is here to stay (and, again, we in the endgame PvE community welcome it), and One Tamriel (along with Tamriel Gold Edition) will bring in more players. So all that's left now is the supply. And that part can be changed--and quite easily--simply by increasing alchemical node yields.

SUMMARY: WE NEED HIGHER ALCHEMICAL NODE YIELDS, AND WE NEED IT NOW!

1.  Demand of alchemical mats will only increase as the player base grows and as more people start getting into the newly-rescaled endgame PvE.
2.  If the status quo is unchanged, One Tamriel will hurt the already-low supply of alchemical mats.
3.  THIS IS A PROBLEM THAT AFFECTS EVERYONE. Although I speak from the perspective of an endgame PvE player, when tripots are costing north of 40K per stack, casual players are going to be hurt by it just as much. THE WORST-HIT WILL BE PLAYERS WHO ARE PROGRESSING. That's when you spend hours and hours wiping and learning, but not earning any kind of reward. The countless weeks that we spent in vMoL, wiping, before finally seeing the contents of that final chest. The countless hours, deaths, and stacks of potions I spent getting my first vMA clear. Or even a simple vet dungeon, for a new player who is just starting out--I still remember the hours, potions, and repair kits that I spent getting that first clear of a vet dungeon. One Tamriel is supposed to make the game more accessible to everyone--the status quo in alchemy is in stark conflict with that goal.
4.  For endgame PvE in particular, the removal of lucrative sellable loot will severely hamper our ability to fund our trial runs. I understand ZOS's desire to not lock too much gear behind trials, so if this change doesn't get reverted, at the very least, give us relief in another manner. (Though, for the reasons stated earlier, yields still need to be increased even if we get a full or partial restoration of economic rewards from trials.)
5.  The current yields are grossly out of whack with everything else in crafting. When I can get 3-4 pieces of raw silk off of a cloth node, and multiple solvents out of a solvent node, it makes absolutely no sense why that flower I picked yielded just ONE mat that will last me for just a few _minutes_ of gameplay.

ADDENDUM 1: As suggested in this thread, the yields of potion crafting can also be increased. Either in lieu of node increases or, ideally, in conjunction with node increases. Increasing node yields to 3-4 per node (in line with other harvestables) while at the same time increasing potion crafting yields to 2/4/6/8 would solve many of the problems that we face, and it should be a fairly simple, straightforward solution.

ADDENDUM 2: As people have noted, potions are a crucial part of the Argonian race and of the Nightblade class. The difficulty of crafting enough potions to last a long play session places Argonians and Nightblades at a relative economic disadvantage compared to builds that get similar benefits without the need for consumables.

question: How can you describe the narrator's motivation?

answer: The narrator's motivation can be seen as very focused and unwavering. The narrator spends a lot of time and focus on conducting the trials.


text:
[]

I forgot to take a picture of him so here he is (in the red) being interviewed by someone else.

I had the chance yesterday at the Toronto stop of the Nintendo Switch preview tour to sit down with Andrew Collins, the Communications Manager at Nintendo of Canada for a chat about the Switch and its launch on March 3rd, here’s what I was able to find out:

THANKS FOR TAKING THE TIME TO TALK WITH GAME USAGI, HOW LONG HAVE YOU WORKED WITH NINTENDO OF CANADA?

Andrew:  It’s coming up to two years, my anniversary is really memorable because it’s May the 4th and as a Star Wars fan I’m never going to forget that.

THAT’S ACTUALLY THE ANNIVERSARY OF MY GIRLFRIEND AND I AS WELL, IT’S GOOD BECAUSE IT’S HARD TO FORGET.

WHAT KIND OF AUDIENCE DOES NINTENDO SEE THE SWITCH APPEALING TO AT LAUNCH?

Andrew:  I think it’s everybody really, because if you look at the games we’ve got available there’s games for all areas of the market.  Obviously we’ve got _Breath of the Wild_, which is an incredible game for the core gamer who’s been waiting for it for a long time.  Hopefully when people get a chance to play it they’ll understand why it took as long as it did.  It’s one of the things that Nintendo do, we don’t design and release to a specific time-frame, it’s not like we cut it off and are like, “Well is this game good enough?”, we’re like, “Let’s give it some more time.”

NINTENDO HAS ANNOUNCED THAT OVER 80 THIRD PARTY PARTNERS ARE CURRENTLY WORKING ON GAMES FOR THE NINTENDO SWITCH, BUT THE GAMES ANNOUNCED SO FAR IN THE FIRST YEAR HAVE BEEN CRITICIZED AS BEING PORTS OF OLDER TITLES (_SKYRIM_, _RAYMAN LEGENDS_) AND SMALLER INDIE GAMES LIKE _FAST RMX_.  HAS NINTENDO BEEN WORKING TOWARD GETTING CONTEMPORARY MULTI-PLATFORM GAMES TO THE SWITCH?

Andrew:  One of the things we learned from Wii U is that third party is very, very important and so as we were developing Nintendo Switch there was a lot of effort put onto making sure that we made everything as good as possible for third parties.  I’ve got friends who are developers and they really enjoy programming for it.  Just purely from a programming perspective it’s a fun thing, we spent a lot of time thinking of how we can make this easier to develop for and that’s proving really fruitful because there are obviously some games we’re looking at today, but there are “80” games that haven’t been announced. So I’m fairly sure there there will be some games that you’re looking for, and your fellow Redditors are also looking for.

THE SPECIAL AND MASTER EDITIONS OF _BREATH OF THE WILD_ HAVE BEEN IMPOSSIBLE TO GET IN CANADA, EB GAMES HAD IT FOR PREORDER ONLINE AND IT SOLD OUT WITHIN MINUTES, AND THAT’S ALL THAT WE’VE SEEN.  ARE THERE ANY ANNOUNCEMENTS REGARDING THE CANADIAN AVAILABILITY OF THE SPECIAL AND MASTER EDITIONS AND IS THE MASTER EDITION EXCLUSIVE TO EB GAMES?

Andrew:  We are trying to get more into the country, but as you can imagine the Master Edition just looks so incredible that it’s very hard to get.  So we are always trying to get more copies of that for our Canadian gamers.  As to the exclusivity, I can’t speak for my retail team about that.

IS THE SPECIAL EDITION COMING TO CANADA?

Andrew:  Absolutely.

_[Little did I know that within half an hour they would temporarily be available on Amazon.ca while I was busy playing the Nintendo Switch in person.]_

THERE ARE STILL A LOT OF THINGS THAT HAVEN’T BEEN ANNOUNCED REGARDING THE ONLINE CAPABILITIES OF THE NINTENDO SWITCH AND THERE HAS BEEN PARTICULAR BUZZ AROUND THE SMARTPHONE APP AND WHETHER ALL CHAT AND ONLINE ACTIVITIES ARE TIED EXCLUSIVELY TO THE APP.  IS THERE A WAY TO SAY FIND AN ONLINE GAME OF SPLATOON 2 AND CHAT WITH FRIENDS USING THE SWITCH BY ITSELF?

Andrew:  Well, the app and the live service is quite a bit away so we’re not talking about it at the moment.  What we’ll do is when it’s closer we’ll have far more details available at that point.

HAS ANY CONSIDERATION BEEN GIVEN TO ALLOWING PREMIUM SUBSCRIBERS TO KEEP THEIR MONTHLY FREE VIRTUAL CONSOLE GAMES AFTER THE INITIAL MONTH THEY’RE OFFERED WITHOUT NEEDING TO REPURCHASE THEM?

Andrew:  That would be a decision made by people in Japan, so it’s not something that I would be party to.

IN CANADA, THE COST PROPOSITION IS QUITE HIGH FOR PURCHASING THE SWITCH AT LAUNCH — IF YOU WANT THE NINTENDO SWITCH CONSOLE, THE SPECIAL EDITION OF _BREATH OF THE WILD_, ONE OTHER LAUNCH GAME, AN AC ADAPTER TO TAKE ON THE GO (IF YOU’RE LEAVING THE DOCK PLUGGED IN) AND A PRO CONTROLLER IT’S AROUND $750 BEFORE TAX.  HOW DOES NINTENDO SEE THIS FITTING INTO THE GAMING BUDGET OF THE AVERAGE CANADIAN FAMILY AND WAS THIS TAKEN INTO CONSIDERATION WHEN CANADIAN PRICING WAS DECIDED?

Andrew:  The main thing we did when we were looking at the Canadian pricing is we looked at the exchange rate, it’s as simple as that.  If you take the exchange rate from the $299 US and just apply it to that it becomes $398 [CDN] I think.  So, a lot of the pricing decision was taken out of our hands through the exchange rate.  We’re always doing the best we can to keep it affordable within the range, that’s why games like _Snipperclips – Cut it Out, together!_ which I strongly recommend you play are digital-only titles that will be at a cheaper rate.  That’s a great game to buy for those people who are looking at buying Switch but from a budget conscious.

SIMILARLY, AMIIBO PRICES HAVE BEEN GOING UP RECENTLY, THE YARN POOCHY AND WOLF LINK AMIIBO ARE RETAILING FOR $21.99 EACH.  HAVE PRICE POINTS BEEN DECIDED FOR THE NEW _BREATH OF THE WILD_ AMIIBO IN CANADA YET?

Andrew:  No, not yet.  We’re waiting until closer to the launch to determine those prices.

I PURCHASED A WII U AT LAUNCH, AS I DO WITH EVERY NINTENDO SYSTEM, AND I ENJOYED MANY OF THE GAMES THAT WERE AVAILABLE FOR IT INCLUDING MY FAVOURITE VERSION OF _CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS II_.  SOME WII U OWNERS THOUGH, ESPECIALLY ONES THAT BOUGHT THE SYSTEM IN THE LAST YEAR OR TWO WHEN GAME RELEASES HAVE BEEN SLOW FEEL LIKE THEY DIDN’T GET ENOUGH VALUE OUT OF THEIR PURCHASE.  WILL THERE BE ANY AMBASSADOR PROGRAM OR SPECIAL DEALS FOR SWITCH GAMERS WHO ARE COMING OVER FROM THE WII U?

Andrew:  Again, unfortunately this is one that I don’t have any knowledge about, so I can’t give an answer.

DO WE HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL E3 TO HEAR MORE ABOUT NINTENDO’S PLANS FOR THE SWITCH FOR THIS FALL/WINTER?

Andrew:  At this point we’re focusing on everything that’s upstairs and then once that’s out of the way then we can start looking towards E3, but for now we’ve brought E3 to Toronto and that’s a pretty good booth up there.

IT IS!  OUT OF THE GAMES THAT YOU HAVE ON SHOW HERE TODAY WHICH WOULD YOU SAY IS YOUR FAVOURITE THAT YOU’VE PLAYED?

Andrew:  That’s tough because at E3 last year we had a staff meeting before and they showed us the Zelda trailer for the first time.  I know it’s recording but I don’t mind admitting I had a tear in my eye.

WHEN I FIRST BOOTED UP OUR ADVANCED COPY OF _WIND WAKER HD_, I WAS ACTUALLY CRYING AT HOW GOOD IT LOOKED.

Andrew:  It’s a beautiful trailer and it’s just such a stunning game — that’s one I’m definitely looking forward to spending a lot of time with, but of the new games that I’ve only played recently I’d say _ARMS_ is my favourite.  Whenever I’ve had the opportunity to do some training I’ve always gone to _ARMS_ because it’s — you know, people have said, “Oh, it’s just _Wii Sports_ boxing”, but it’s not remotely.  With _Wii Sports_ boxing you’re swinging your arms, but with ARMS there’s a significant amount of strategy.  When you get a chance to play it think of driving a car, you don’t drive it like that [he moved his hands separately], you drive it like that [he moved his hands in unison].  Once you’ve learned the basic controls and you get deeper into the intricacy at first you’ll see like “this punch is flying here, okay so that’s what happens”, but now I quite enjoy lunging sideways and leaping and swinging and punching at the same time. I was doing that to a couple people yesterday who had never played before, I kind of felt bad.

[general laughter]

IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE THAT YOU THINK OUR READERS MIGHT LIKE TO KNOW ABOUT THE NINTENDO SWITCH’S LAUNCH IN CANADA ON MARCH 3RD?

Andrew:  It depends, you talk about third parties and there is a significant amount of third party coming — if you read the interviews, those guys are really excited and enjoying the time with Nintendo Switch.  I think for me the exciting moment is the first time you take the console out of the dock, just watch how quick it is.  I’ve been lucky to demo this quite a few times now and there’s two things I’m always hearing people say: “It’s so fast!” [he motioned taking the Switch out of the dock], it is just like that. And also when you hold a Joy-Con in your hand, because you look at them and you think “Oh, it’s kind of small”, but then you actually hold it in your hand and again it’s the same, it doesn’t feel small.  It looks small, but when you’re using it — I’ve got big hands and I have absolutely no problem.  I think the guys in Japan did a fantastic job designing that to fit with everything else that they did when you consider all of the tech that’s inside there.

Another game I’d recommend you try is _1-2 Switch_ and try the Ball Count.  That’s probably the best demo that we’ve got for the HD rumble feature.  It’s awesome because I was with someone yesterday showing it to them for the first time and you can see that moment when it really feels like — I had one go “Are you sure?  Is something loose in here?” It’s uncanny, it really is.  I’m looking forward to once developers really start to exploit this great tech, it’s got some real possibilities.

THANK YOU FOR TAKING TIME OUT OF YOUR DAY TO TALK TO US.

This entry was posted on Saturday, January 28th, 2017 at 1:08 am and is filed under Interviews, Nintendo, Nintendo Switch. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

question: Who is Andrew Collins?

answer: Andrew Collins is the Communications Manager at Nintendo, Canada.

question: What is Nintendo Switch?

answer: It may be implied that Nintendo Switch is a gaming system.

question: Where is the interview taking place?

answer: The interview is taking place in Toronto.

question: When is the Nintendo Switch launching in Canada?

answer: The Nintendo Switch is launching on March 3rd.

question: Write a ~5 sentence summary.

answer: The interviewer is in conversation with Andrew Collins, the communication head of Nintendo Canada. Nintendo Switch is going to launch on March 3rd. The special edition of which would be available soon. Its pricing has been based on the exchange rate and should cost around $398 (CDN). Collins recommends the buyers to try the games -  Ball Count and 1-2 switch.


text:
Several smartphone models introduced by LG Electronics between 2015 and 2016 were discovered by users to have manufacturing defects, all of which eventually cause the devices to become unstable, or stuck in a loop of reboots attempting to boot, rendering them effectively inoperable—an issue that had been nicknamed a BOOTLOOP. The LG G4 (2015) has been the most synonymous with these failures, with LG stating that the issues were the result of a “loose contact between components”. Similar issues have also been reported to a smaller extent with the G4's successors and sister models, including the Nexus 5X, LG V10 and LG G Flex 2.

In March 2017, a class-action lawsuit was filed against LG in regards to their handling of these hardware failures.

Cause

When officially acknowledging the bootloop issues with the G4, LG stated that it was caused by a “loose contact between components”; _Android Authority_ explained that “a loose connection between power supply or memory components could certainly cause a phone to fail to boot up properly, due to a lack of system stability or not being able to access vital memory. It's also possible that a faulty connection to other components, such as the camera or fingerprint scanner, could cause a similar problem. This could be down to important setup communications not being sent or received between peripherals correctly.”[1]

Affected devices

LG G4

Early reports of “bootloop” issues with the LG G4 occurred on forums such as Reddit as early as September 2015; LG was initially inconsistent in accepting warranty claims on affected devices, leading some users to go through their respective wireless carrier instead. A petition was issued calling upon LG to acknowledge the bootloop issues.[2]

In January 2016, LG officially acknowledged that some G4 models suffered from a manufacturing issue “resulting from a loose contact between components”, that caused them to experience symptoms such as failure to reboot. The company stated that it was unknown how many devices were affected by the defect, as when or whether it occurs depended on “usage behavior”. LG stated that it would replace or repair affected phones under warranty, and that it was committed to “providing the highest standards of product quality and customer service and apologizes for the inconvenience caused to some of our customers who initially received incorrect diagnoses”.[3][4]

Nexus 5X

In September 2016, reports began to circulate that similar failures were being encountered with the Nexus 5X manufactured for Google by LG, particularly whilst upgrading to Android 7.0 “Nougat”. Google stated that this was a hardware issue, and that it only impacted a small number of users. LG later stated that it would provide full refunds for affected devices, as the Nexus 5X was reaching the conclusion of its production run.[5][6][7]

LG V10 and V20

The LG V10's hardware is very similar to that of the G4; it was identified in a class-action lawsuit as suffering from nearly identical forms of hardware failure to the G4.[8]

In response to reports that a model of its successor, the LG V20, experienced a similar bootloop issue, LG claimed that the failure had been caused by the usage of a non-compliant third-party USB-C cable.[9]

LG G3 & G5

Isolated reports of bootloop issues occurring with the LG G3 & LG G5 have also been reported by users. However, they have not occurred to the same extent as the G4, and LG has not acknowledged any hardware defects with those models.[10]

LG Fiesta 2

Data has been collected from multiple sources (including user reports) that boot loops are normal. They have occurred, but not the extent of the LG V10 and V20 with different build models and part manufactures. Data is still being collected for this model.

LG G7 ThinQ

On December 1, 2018, all of the European LG G710EM models using a T-Mobile or T-Mobile-based SIM card began suffering from a bootlooping issue.[11] A fix was released with Firmware Version V10p.

Reaction

In March 2017, a U.S. lawsuit was filed against LG Electronics in the state of California for unjust enrichment, unfair trade practices, and warranty law violations, seeking damages and for LG to repair all affected G4 and V10 devices. The lawsuit claimed that LG continued to produce and distribute LG G4 and V10 smartphones with the defect, even after it acknowledged the issue, and claimed that LG failed to recall or “offer an adequate remedy to consumers” who bought the two models, nor provide any remedy for devices that fell outside of the one-year warranty period. A party to the suit claimed that LG had issued them multiple warranty replacement phones that eventually suffered from the same hardware failure.[12] The lawsuit was expanded the following month to include the G5, Nexus 5X, and V20.[13] The lawsuit was never certified as a class action, and was sent to arbitration.[14] In January 2018, LG agreed to pay the participants in the lawsuit a $700 credit towards the purchase of a LG smartphone or $425.[15] Since the lawsuit was not certified as a class action, consumers not actually participating in the lawsuit do not get this payment.

In January 2018, due to stock shortages, Google's wireless network Project Fi began to offer the Moto X4 as an alternative replacement for bootloop affected Nexus 5X owners.[16]

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title: LG smartphone bootloop issues

question: What is a bootloop?

answer: a bootloop is when a device becomes stuck in a loop of reboots attempting to boot, rendering it effectively inoperable

question: What LG phones bootloop?

answer: LG G4, Nexus 5X, LG V10 and V20, LG G3 & G5, LG Fiesta 2, and LG G7 ThinQ

question: Why did LG get sued?

answer: The lawsuit against LG alleges that the company continued to sell phones even after it knew of a manufacturing defect within those phones.

question: When did the lawsuit against LG end?

answer: January 2018

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: Between 2015 and 2018, a variety of phone models sold by LG have had a manufacturing defect rendering them inoperable, known colloquially as a "bootloop".


text:
On Earth it is the year 2286 and a humanity-changing scientific discovery has once again been made to further our never ending need to know whom we are and where it is we came from. Over the course of the last two centuries there are several items that have become known as everyday knowledge.

The planet was found to be expanding quite slowly from all of the waste that we as humans had created while Earth's natural resources were being siphoned at a much more rapid pace. Realizing this we created massive dig sites which were erected worldwide with the hopes of a discovery for a yet unknown resource we could utilize. After several decades we had made our first major discovery. Miles within the Earth we found what remained of what we would believe to be an ancient civilization.

While we have known them as several names through the years, in slang they are now commonly called "Epoch". We quickly realized that the Epoch had massive cities just like ours, but made of an unknown metallic alloy that reflected much as a mirror would. Within each city we found enormous platforms made out of the same material, but no visible markings. Through all of our discoveries we realized that among all of this we discovered no traces of the actual Epoch themselves. Never was found a single trace of an anatomical nature, nor anything that would be equivalent to personal property. There was nothing. It was as if we had only discovered a piece of the puzzle. We were left with all of their technology, but nothing of them as an actual species.

We harnessed their technology and our own increased ten fold. We didn't understand it at first, but we came to learn to use it and after time we learned to improve upon it. With this it brings us to today. Now I stand here recalling the stories my father told me of the ancient Epoch race and the mysteries surrounding who they were.

It is only now that I stop to take notice of the mirrored object slowly filling the nights' sky. Humanity changing indeed.

title: "Epoch."

question: When does the story take place?

answer: The year 2286.

question: Where does the story take place?

answer: Earth.

question: Explain Epoch.

answer: An ancient civilization found miles beneath the Earth.

question: Why were massive dig sites created?

answer: Earth's natural resources were getting depleted rapidly and humans were looking for a new resource to use.

question: Write a ~6 sentence summary.

answer: In 2286, the rapid depletion of Earth's natural resources prompts humans to dig deep in the hopes of finding a yet unknown resource to utilize. Miles within the Earth, they find the remains of an ancient civilization they call Epoch. The Epoch's cities are massive and made of an unknown alloy that reflects like a mirror. There were huge platforms made from the same material, but with no visible markings. The people also did not find any trace of bones or personal effects anywhere. The Epoch left only their technology, which the humans of that time harnessed and improved to solve their crisis.


text:
August 16, 2016 / 11:06 AM / GOBankingRates

[ ]
 Getty Images/iStockphoto
BY CAMERON HUDDLESTON/GOBANKINGRATES

Most consumers agree that buying generic rather than name-brand products is a good way to keep down costs. In fact, 81 percent of North American consumers surveyed by marketing research firm Nielsen said they purchase private-label brands to save money.

"Generally, store brands are about 40 percent less than their name-brand counterparts," said Teri Gault, author of "Shop Smart, Save More." And she added that most are as good as name-brand products.

If you want to save money and are willing to give generic products a chance, here are some of the best private-label brands.

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1. Aldi Simply Nature

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 Matthew Lloyd/Getty Images
Discount supermarket chain Aldi sells several private-label brands in its 1,500 stores across 34 states. In fact, 90 percent of what is sold in Aldi is a store brand.

Aldi's Simply Nature line of organic items is a particularly good buy, explained Lauren Greutman, a frugal-living expert and author of "The Recovering Spender." This line includes products such as milk, bread, cereal, pasta, frozen foods and more.

"Their organic line saves me easily 50 percent off what I'd pay for name brand," she said.

Greutman also recommended Aldi's Never Any! brand, which is a line of natural meats that cost about half as much as brand-name equivalents.

2. Costco Kirkland Signature

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 Tim Boyle/Getty Images
Warehouse club Costco has its own private label brand, Kirkland Signature, which appears on nearly 20 percent of the products sold at its stores. Many of the items sold under this label garner good reviews for quality and value. However, its wine and spirits -- such as vodka and bourbon -- offerings are particular stand-outs, said Jim Wang, founder of the money-saving blog WalletHacks.com.

"All of the Kirkland brands are white-labeled products from companies that produce it under other names, too, and Kirkland requires the quality to be top-notch," Wang explained. He added that compatible brand names sell for 20 percent to 30 percent more, he continued.

Costco's laundry and dish detergents also offer great value for the money. A 2015 Consumer Reports' test of laundry detergents found that Costco's Kirkland Signature Free & Clear did as good of a job getting clothing clean as name-brand products that cost two to three times as much. The Kirkland Signature Dishwasher Pacs compared favorably with top-rated Cascade at one-third of the cost, according to Consumer Reports.

3. Kroger Simple Truth

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 AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File
Supermarket chain Kroger sells a line of organic and natural food products under its private-label Simple Truth brand, which is typically cheaper than name-brand counterparts. It's my go-to brand for organic milk because it's at least $1 cheaper for a half-gallon carton.

When it's on sale -- at least once a month -- the savings are more than $1.50.

Another great Simple Truth bargain is the organic peanut butter, which costs a couple dollars less than brand-name organic peanut butter, in my experience.

4. Safeway Select

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 AP Photo/Ted S. Warren
Supermarket chain Safeway offers a line of premium foods under the Safeway Select brand. The coffee sold under this brand is a particularly good buy, Gault said.

A standard-size bag of Safeway Select coffee beans is regularly priced at least $1 less than brand-name coffee. And when it's on sale for $3.99, it's $3 less than its brand-name counterparts -- but tastes just as good, Gault said.

5. Target Up & Up

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 Scott Olson/Getty Images
Any parent knows that the cost of diapers can add up quickly, but some might not be willing to take a chance on generic brands to save money. However, BabyGearLab.com -- which tests baby products -- found Target's Up & Up brand of diapers offered quality at a more affordable price than brand-name diapers.

Although the Up & Up diapers didn't rank at the top of BabyGearLab.com's list, they performed better than some more expensive brands. And, no other brand offered more for the money. Per diaper, the Up & Up brand cost half as much as brands such as Pampers and Huggies, according to the BabyGearLab.com review.

6. Trader Joe’s

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 PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP/Getty Images
Discount grocer Trader Joe's is known for its high-quality food products sold under the Trader Joe's name at low prices. But shoppers should pick up their sunscreen there, too.

Consumer Reports gave Trader Joe's Spray Sunscreen with an SPF of 50 a perfect score for delivering the SPF protection it promises, reports WebMD. At $5.99 for a 6-ounce can, it's a fraction of the price of the only other sunscreen to receive a perfect score -- $35.99 for a 5-ounce container of La Roche-Posay Anthelios 60 Melt-in Milk.

7. Walmart Equate

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 Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
To get a good deal on health and beauty products, consider Walmart's Equate brand. Equate over-the-counter medications, in particular, offer significant savings over brand-name equivalents, Greutman said.

For example, a bottle of Equate Ibuprofen with 500 tablets costs $6.98 at Walmart. A bottle of Advil with half as many tablets -- 225 -- costs twice as much -- $13.99.

According to the Food and Drug Administration, generic drugs are required to have the same active ingredient, strength and dosage as the brand-name product. This means you won't get a lesser product -- just a more affordable one.

question: How does buying generic as opposed to name-brand products keep costs down?

answer: Generic brands offer cheaper products because they don't have the name recognition.

question: Why do some people not want to buy generic?

answer: It's probably because they assume generic doesn't offer as good of quality as name-brand.

question: Summarize the "Target Up & Up" section.

answer: This brand offers more diapers for a cheaper price than name-brands, but still offers quality.

question: Which company seems to be offering up the best savings?

answer: It seems to depend on the particular product being offered at each place.

question: What is the main point of this article?

answer: The main point is to inform readers that buying generic store brands versus name-brands can be much more cost effective and of equal quality.


text:
In the Studio \

The singular-sounding duo took four years to finish their fifth LP

 | June 15, 2015 - 9:53 am

[RATATAT by Asger Carlson]

When Ratatat were writing new music at a Long Island beach shack, the Brooklyn-based instrumental duo decided something needed to be done about the kitchen. “This house had a really hideous kitchen,” says guitarist, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Mike Stroud. “Was it neon green?” asks his bandmate Evan Mast, who shares production, percussion, and synth duties. “No, it was just old and dirty,” Stroud corrects. “It was hideous in there.”

Using their visual-art skills, the duo sketched an assortment of people’s faces and plastered them all over the walls. Their drawings — mostly fictional, with occasional representations of actual icons like Roy Orbison, Al Pacino, and skateboarder Lance Mountain — eventually became the _Revolver_-meets-_Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club _album cover of their upcoming fifth LP, _Magnifique_. Though the artwork is as engrossing as the album itself, it’s almost an anti-metaphor for the back-to-basics take on their signature sound, which for the past decade has seamlessly straddled the increasingly thinning line between rock and electronica.

[RATATAT-magnifique-album-art-600x600]

Following their breakout sophomore LP — 2006’s singular, diverse _Classics_ — Ratatat deviated slightly from their mercurial but melodic six-string wails, somewhere between a high-pitched Mick Jones freakout and Hawaiian steel guitar music. They recorded 2008’s _LP3 _and 2010’s _LP4_ in the Catskills’ Old Soul Studios, which was also “the first time we had access to a million different instruments,” says Stroud. As might be expected of musicians with a bunch of shiny new toys to play with, those records seethe with grumbling, gurgling synthesizers and vibrate with beat-boxing percussive vocal samples.

“The way we made those songs was kind of throwing everything into a pile and sorting it out later,” adds Mast. “This record’s a little more organized and deliberate, maybe. It’s mostly just guitars and bass and drums.”

Such a seemingly simple formula took a little longer to re-master than they anticipated — about four years longer. “Because it’s instrumental music, you can’t just be half-assed with the music and then like, ‘Oh someone will sing on this,'” says Mast. “It makes it a bit more of a challenge.”

The self-criticism and pressure the two felt stifled creativity to the point of annihilation: “We were really hurting ourselves about it,” says Stroud. “Like, this is going to be so good, so catchy — if the next part didn’t live up to it, we’d work on it for a week and then have to scrap it.” From the 50-odd tracks left on the cutting room floor, however, came moments of inspiration that eventually made it onto the record: Mast decided to add twittering bird calls to lazy river ballad “Supreme” after hearing them while listening to the song’s original mix on his headphones.

Aside from fortuitous moments like those, Ratatat also did their time at studios in Brooklyn, upstate New York, and Jamaica, where friends of Stroud’s wife offered to let them use their house for a few months. There, Ratatat worked through writer’s block by swimming in the ocean — or, when that got old, the pool. “That was a great routine,” says Stroud, laughing.

Sashaying first single “Cream On Chrome,” hydraulic jam “Countach,” and the sparklingly screeching “Pricks of Brightness” are representative of the band’s return to their self-titled 2004 debut’s stripped-down aesthetics, if not arrangements. (“We didn’t know what we were doing as far as recording,” Stroud says of _Ratatat_. “Everything was just plugged right into the computer. We didn’t have a microphone.”) That’s not to say they don’t take risks, though: “Nightclub Amnesia,” named after a highway sign the two passed on their way upstate, boasts early-’00s Black Keys grit, and the lead guitars on “Abrasive” might have been a demo instrumental from the Strokes’ _Room on Fire_ sessions.

“We finally figured out that if you thin out the sound of the guitar, you can have way more layers,” says Stroud. “Instead of doing an arrangement of one guitar melody, and keyboards, and all this other stuff, it’s all just guitar with different tones and ranges.”

“We tried really hard to not have any moments on the record where you’re waiting, like, ‘The next part’s cool!'” says Stroud. “Like, the part you talk over and start talking about how the next part is good.”

question: What is the music group's name?

answer: The music group's name is Ratatat.

question: Where did they record 2008's LP3?

answer: They recorded 2008's LP3 in Catskills' Old Soul Studios.

question: Who are the two musicians that make up Ratatat?

answer: Mike Stroud and Evan Mast make up Ratatat.

question: Why does Mast say writing instrumental music is harder than traditional music?

answer: Mast says that writing instrumental music is harder because you don't have someone singing over it.

question: Write a ~2 sentence summary.

answer: The band Ratatat has finally released their fifth LP after working on it for four years. The author writes about their past records and their writing methods, including direct quotes from the band members when appropriate.


text:
[Elvis scs1]An Englishman is the Ultimate Elvis? The King would have turned over in his grave!

Surely only a southern boy with the grime of the delta and the rhythms of gospel ingrained in his soul could possibly be the definitive Elvis?

[Gordon Hendricks s]

But the winner at Tweed’s Tribute to Elvis Festival 2013 was 42-year-old Gordon Hendricks from Stoke-on-Trent in England, who looks a lot better than Elvis did at the same age. From the moment he steps on the stage, he is transformed into the youthful version of The King.

[Elvis on stagescropped]

Gone is the Midlands accent, replaced with the distinctive Southern slur (every Elvis fan can do the “thank ya, thank ya vera much”). And every movement brings Elvis back to life.

In fact, there have been Ultimate Elvis winners from both England and Australia in the past. And such is the devotion to The King, that Elvis Tribute Artists (ETAs) have been many different nationalities from many different parts of the world, have been every size and shape, and at Tweed, one was even a woman!

[Four Elvisess]

Being Elvis is a family affair for the Acklands. Norm Ackland Sr. has been an ETA for 40 years. A huge fan of The King, he saw him live twice and owns a scarf that once belonged to Elvis. He placed third in the Vegas competition in 2011. His son, Norm Jr. is newer to the circuit but having lived with his father’s dedication, it was inevitable that he too, would enter the fray. At Tweed, his nine-year-old son, Jax, came second in the junior division. “I think we’re the only triple generation family on the competition circuit,” says Norm Sr. with pride.

There are some astoundingly good performers here but the audience in this small Ontario town is mesmerized by Hendricks, and rises to its feet, cheering, as he finishes. Not surprisingly, he wins their vote – as well as the judges’ – for Ultimate ETA.

[The Winner with a plethora of Elvisess]

However, lest you think a small Ontario town is hardly a recommendation, Tweed is an officially sanctioned venue and the fans here are serious in their devotion to the King. Torontonian Diane Sharpe and her husband have travelled to many competitions and been to Graceland more than once. Now blind, Bob Sharpe says doggedly, “I can still hear.” He’s settled in his chair, listening to the competitors strut their stuff while Diane grabs him a burger.

Tweed is an official sighting location for Elvis. Apparently, not long after his death, Elvis appeared on one of the floats in the 1979 Santa Claus Parade. A local radio station joked about it and the story spread. This led to their registration on the sanctioned sighting list.
[elvisfireplug]  The town boasts an Elvis Lane, and at its entrance, one of Tweed’s signature hand-painted fire hydrants features – who else? – Elvis!

Indeed, Tweed’s fire hydrants are worth checking out. Painted by local artists, no two are alike. One of my favourites, right on the main drag, is a fire-breathing dragon. And near the town’s arena is a hockey player.

[fire hydrants Tweed ]

Photo credit: Tweed.ca

But Tweed is also one of the province’s prettiest little towns. Straddling the Moira River, there are two bridges which unite the town’s East and West sides. Indeed, water is a theme because at the edge of town sits Lake Stoco, a famous spot for sport fishing. Apparently, this is the best place to catch muskie, those particularly elusive members of the pike family. And it’s a great spot for canoeing, boating and swimming as well.

The town also claims to have North America’s smallest jail house.

[jailhouse s]

During the Elvis Festival, this sports a marquee where several of the ETAs perform throughout the day, much to the delight of passersby. A favourite song at this site? Jailhouse Rock, of course!

[Jailhouse rocks s]

Just a half hour from Belleville, Tweed is one of those once ubiquitous, traditional Ontario towns. There are few enough left, so take the time to visit this one. And let us know if you happen to spot someone in a jewel-studded jumpsuit on the main street. It could be The King himself. After all, he does like to remain incognito.

Here’s an update on Gordon Hendricks. In 2017, the Englishman went on to win at the prestigious Collingwood Elvis Festival twice as well as the Ultimate Elvis competition at Graceland, Elvis’ own home.

TheTweed Elvis Festival is an annual event. Check the website for dates.. More about Elvis and about Memphis.  The Arcade was his favourite diner.

[]

question: What does the text say about Elvis' favorite food?

question: What does the text say about Tweed?

answer: Tweed is one of the prettiest small towns in Ontario, Canada. It straddles the Moira River, and there are two bridges that unite the town's East and West sides. Tweed sits at the edge of Lake Stoco, a famous spot for sport fishing, canoeing, boating, and swimming. The town boasts North America's smallest jailhouse and beautiful hand-painted fire hydrants, each one sporting a unique design. Tweed hosts the annual Tribute to Elvis Festival and is an official sighting location for Elvis.

question: What does the text say about Gordon Hendricks?

answer: Gordon Hendricks is a 42-year-old Elvis Tribute Artist (ETA) from Stoke-on-Trent, England. He won the Ultimate ETA award at Tweed's Tribute to Elvis Festival in 2013. In 2017, Hendricks went on to win at the prestigious Collingwood Elvis Festival and the Ultimate Elvis competition at Graceland, Elvis' own home.

question: What does the text say about the Ackland family?

answer: The Acklands are a family of dedicated Elvis Tribute Artists and the only triple generation family on the ETA competition circuit. A huge fan of The King, Norm Ackland Sr. has been an ETA for 40 years. He watched Elvis perform live twice and owns a scarf that once belonged to The King. Norm placed third in the Vegas competition in 2011. His son, Norm Jr. is newer to the circuit. At Tweed, Junior's nine-year-old son, Jax, came second in the junior division.


text:
GERMAN OPAČIĆ (; August 8, 1857 – January 18, 1899) was the Serbian Orthodox prelate and the last Bishop of Bačka in the 19th-century.[1]

Early life and education

Opačić was born as MILAN OPAČIĆ () on 8 August 1857 in the village of Slabinja, in the Banija region[2] in Austrian Empire (present-day Croatia). His father Marko was a Serbian Orthodox priest and mother Sofia was a priest-wife. After finishing elementary school in Vojnić, Opačić graduated from a gymnasium in Zagreb and Novi Sad.[3] For a while he studied law in Zagreb, but he graduated from Clerical High School of Saint Arsenije in 1884.[4] From 1884 to 1890 Opačić was catechist in gymnasium, and since 1889 was a professor of seminary.

Spiritual service

Opačić became consistory-notary of Archeparchy of Karlovci in 1890.[5] He entered the Kuveždin monastery on the Fruška Gora mountain where he was spiritually guided by hegumen Amfilohije (Jeremić) and became a monk.[6]

Opačić was ordained by Archbishop of Karlovci and Serbian Patriarch German as deacon-monk on April 24, 1888. On December 13, 1890 he was ordained as protodeacon and on October 6, 1891 as archdeacon by Patriarch Georgije.[7]

Opačić was ordained on Christmas Day in 1891 as presbyter and as syncellus on same occasion. In 1892 he was ordained as protosyncellus.

Opačić was unanimously elected as the Bishop of Bačka in 1893 and consecrated on Saint George's Day in 1894 by Patriarch Georgije, Bishop of Timișoara Nikanor Popović and Bishop of Gornji Karlovac Mihailo Grujić.[8]

Death

After a short illness, Opačić died in Vienna in January 1899. He was buried in Plato's chapel at the Almaš Cemetery in Novi Sad, Austria-Hungary (present-day Serbia).[9][10]

[1] Sava Vuković, _Srpski jerarsi: od devetog do dvadesetog veka_, Evro, 1996

[2] Bishops of Bačka, German Opačić Sermon Radio

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title: German Opačić

question: Who was German Opačić?

answer: German Opačić was the Serbian Orthodox prelate and the last bishop of Bačka in the 19th-century.

question: In Serbian Orthodoxy, what is a prelate?

answer: the article does not answer this question

question: When did German Opačić die?

answer: January 1899

question: Where was German Opačić born?

answer: Slabinja, in the Banjia region of of the Austrian Empire (present-day Croatia)

question: Write a ~1 sentence summary.

answer: German Opačić was the Serbian Orthodox prelate and the last bishop of Bačka in the 19th-century.


text:
FETAL BOVINE SERUM (FBS) comes from the blood drawn from a bovine fetus via a closed system of collection at the slaughterhouse. Fetal bovine serum is the most widely used serum-supplement for the in vitro cell culture of eukaryotic cells. This is due to it having a very low level of antibodies and containing more growth factors, allowing for versatility in many different cell culture applications.

The globular protein, bovine serum albumin (BSA), is a major component of fetal bovine serum. The rich variety of proteins in fetal bovine serum maintains cultured cells in a medium in which they can survive, grow, and divide.

FBS is not a fully defined media component, and as such may vary in composition between batches.[1] As a result, serum free and chemically defined media (CDM) have been developed as a matter of good laboratory practice.[2][3] The effectiveness of serum-free media is limited, however; many cell lines still require serum in order to grow, and many serum-free media formulations are intended for narrowly-defined types of cells.[4] Therefore, fetal serum is still widely used in cell culture.[5]

Production

Fetal bovine serum is a by-product of the dairy industry. Fetal bovine serum, as with the vast majority of animal serum used in cell culture, is produced from blood collected at commercial slaughterhouses from dairy cattle that also supply meat intended for human consumption.

The first stage of the production process for fetal bovine serum is the harvesting of blood from the bovine fetus after the fetus is removed from the slaughtered cow. The blood is collected aseptically into a sterile container or blood bag and then allowed to clot. The normal method of collection is cardiac puncture, wherein a needle is inserted into the heart. This minimizes “the danger of serum contamination with micro-organisms from the fetus itself, and the environment”.[6] It is then centrifuged to remove the fibrin clot and the remaining blood cells from the clear yellow (straw) colored serum. The serum is frozen prior to further processing that is necessary to make it suitable for cell culture.

The second stage of processing involves filtration, typically using a filtration chain with the final filtration being triple sterile 0.1 micrometre membrane filters. When processed by a reputable commercial serum supplier, the sterilized fetal bovine serum is subjected to stringent quality control testing and is supplied with a detailed Certificate of Analysis. The certificate gives full test results and information concerning the origin of the serum. Certificates of Analysis vary between commercial suppliers, but each usually includes the following details: filtration statement, country of origin, cell growth performance testing, microbial sterility testing, screening for mycoplasma and virus, endotoxin, haemoglobin, IgG and total protein assays.

Ethics

Ethical questions have been raised regarding the blood collection process due to the potential suffering caused to the fetus. Although anoxia or active slaughter could be used to induce unconsciousness or death prior to serum harvesting, exposure of live unborn calves to oxygen can cause them to gain awareness before being killed,[7] resulting in active debate about the ethics of harvesting serum.[8][9]

Serum use

Fetal bovine serum is commercially available from many manufacturers, and because cells grown in vitro are highly sensitive, customers usually test specific batches to check for suitability for their specific cell type. When changing from batch to batch it is usual to adapt the cells to the new batch of material, for example, by mixing 50% of the old serum with 50% of the new serum and allowing the cells to acclimatize to the new material.

Serum is stored frozen to preserve the stability of components such as growth factors. When serum is thawed, some precipitation may be seen. This is a normal phenomenon and it does not compromise the quality of serum in any way. The precipitate may be removed by transferring the serum to sterile tubes and centrifuging for 5 minutes at 400 × _g_.

To limit the amount of precipitation, it is recommended that the serum is thawed in a refrigerator at 2-8˚C. The serum should be regularly stirred during this process. Repeated freeze/thaw cycles should be avoided and it is advisable to dispense the serum into single use aliquots before freezing.

Technical issues

FBS contains a complex array of protein components that are required by many cells to grow which is why it has been successfully used in cell culture. Unfortunately, large quantities of undefined proteins can lead to unwanted stimulation of cells. This is why 'serum starvation' is commonly used in experiments where subtle changes in cytokine expression need to be measured.[10] This is where FBS can be used to maintain the cells but prior to the experiment, the serum is removed upon passage of the cells to normalize the cytokine expression. Another possible approach is to use charcoal stripped FBS which doesn't seem to be as stimulatory to cells in culture, while at the same time, supporting growth of healthy cell layers.[11]

Source history

Serum produced for use in the biotechnology industry and research sectors is highly regulated. The collection and movement of all animal derived products globally is strictly controlled. Veterinary control of animal derived products largely follows the regulations set by the EU (DG SANCO) and the US (USDA). The current regulation governing the importation of animal by-products into the EU is covered by Regulation (EU) 1069/2009 and the implementation document Regulation (EU) 142/2011.

FBS is a product collected worldwide with the main collections being centered in the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Central America, South America and Europe.

Global sales

Sales of FBS in 2008 were estimated to be 700,000 litres globally.

Collectors, manufacturers and end users of FBS globally are members of the ISIA, the International Serum Industry Association. Member companies are listed on the ISIA website. Full contact details are available through this portal and the ISIA is able to answer any questions concerning the collection and use of this important resource.

The International Serum Industry Association was incorporated in June 2006 to self-regulate a previously unstandardized industry. The ISIA Mission Statement states: “ISIA shall establish, promote and assure compliance with uncompromised standards of excellence and ethics in the business practices of the global animal serum and animal derived products supply industry. Our primary focus will be on safety and safe use of serum and animal derived products through proper origin traceability, truth in labeling and appropriate standardization and oversight.”[12]

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[4] https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/0047/1d428700f44e3d1d5371dd2ea83f984a13fd.pdf

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title: Fetal bovine serum

question: What is Fetal bovine serum used for?

answer: It is used for the in vitro cell culture of eukaryotic cells.

question: Is the Serum Industry standardized?

answer: The International Serum Industry Association promised to establish, promote and assure compliance with uncompromised standards of excellence and ethics in the business practices in 2006. It is not stated if it kept the promise.

question: Is the serum industry ethical?

answer: No, because of the potential suffering caused to the fetus.

question: Why is the serum used for the in vitro cell culture?

answer: Because it contains protein components that are required by many cells to grow.