Avid Pro Tools Tutorial: Adjust Time and Warp Using Elastic Audio
Pro Tools’ Elastic Audio features powerful warping and time flexibility algorithms when editing rhythmic parts, dialogue and ADR.The concept of warping audio is the movement of Transient Event Makers in context to the underlying audio in association. Music editors may conform Event Markers to a grid, consequently “locking” drums into place and producing “solid” time. Dialogue editors may warp ADR to the location dialogue attempting to achieve perfect sync. Whatever your reason for utilizing Elastic Audio, this tutorial focuses on the keyboard symbols, techniques and functions with their relationship to warping techniques in Avid’s Pro Tools.Elastic AudioBefore we begin there are a few things to discuss when it comes to warping audio. Pro Tools offers real-time processing for Elastic Audio (displayed as a plug-in) as well as rendered processing for CPU conscious users. There are five types of Elastic Audio plug-ins to choose from: Polyphonic, Rhythmic, Monophonic, Varispeed, and X-Form (the later features rendered processing only).How you elasticize the audio will vary greatly depending on what type of track you are warping. Percussive tracks with defined transient peaks such as drums or handclaps should use the Rhythmic algorithm. Audio featuring vocals or dialogue works best with the Monophonic algorithm. Choose the correct Elastic Audio option in the Elastic Audio pop-up selector on the track header (for multiple tracks press option to enable):Analysis and WarpingTo begin, we will select the analysis view from the track view selector. Now you will see the Event Transient Markers that Elastic Audio has generated. These markers notate the highest (loudest) transient peaks in your waveform. For dialogue and vocal performances, it’s common for Event Markers to be located at the start of each syllable and one where the last syllable of the vocal phrase ends. To add markers, press control + grabber tool. To delete, press option + grabber tool. Additionally, Warp Markers act as boundaries to the Event Transient Markers. If you have a long audio track it may be advised to split it into several clips, as there are different types of warps that may affect the whole clip.Range WarpRange Warp is typically the most useful from of Elastic Audio, as it will compress the audio on one side of the Event Marker while expanding it on the other side. To perform Range Warp, simply hold shift and use the grabber tool to drag an Event Marker. This forces the adjacent Event Markers on either side of the Range Warp into Warp Markers, acting as the boundaries of the Range Warp. This allows you to change the relative time to each syllable without moving or warping any adjacent audio in the clip.Telescoping WarpUnlike Range Warp, Telescoping Warp applies time compression and expansion across the entire clip, or up until a Warp Marker. To perform the Telescoping Warp, simply click and drag an Event Marker. There should not be any Warp Markers near the Event Marker. When each warp is completed, Elastic Audio will create a Warp Marker at the end of the affected clip.To create a Warp Marker, press option + click + grabber tool. To remove a Warp Marker, double-click, or option + click + grabber tool. To transform a Transient Event Marker into a Warp Marker, simply hovering the grabber tool over the Event Marker until the ‘Telescoping Warp’ cursor appears, then option + click.The Accordion WarpThe Accordion Warp can only be performed when there is one Warp Marker inside the clip. This is important because this type of warp affects the entire clip, compressing/expanding across all regions equally. For this reason, the Accordion Warp is typically not suited for dialogue and vocal audio clips (though you may hear this type of warp during the impossibly fast speaking at the end of a radio spot). To perform the Accordion Warp, drag an Event Marker on either side of the Warp Marker. Observe how the entire region compresses/expands equally.ConclusionWith many different types of Elastic Audio plug-ins to choose from, along with three warping types, experimentation is key when determining which type is best for you. In addition, there are third-party plug-ins such as Synchro Arts’ VocALign PRO that perform this feature both manually and automatically.How do you warp your audio? Share in the comments below.
This is my prayer to thee, my lord —Strike, strike at the root penury in my heart.Give me the strength to lightly bear my joys and sorrows.Give me the strength to make my love fruitful in service.Give me the strength never to disown the poor orbend on my knees before insolent might.Give me the strength to raise my mind high above daily trifles.And give me the strength to surrender my strengthto thy will with love.— Rabindranath Tagore To an uninitiated reader, the above prayer could easily be attributed to a Christian mystic, such as Ignatius of Loyola or Francis of Assisi or Teresa of Avila. Instead, the prayer came from the heart of a Hindu, India’s great poet-mystic Rabindranath Tagore. That this prayer feels familiar and is appealing to Christians should not be surprising, because Tagore valued highly the teachings of Jesus. In one letter he wrote: “Do you know I have often felt that if we were not Hindus … I should like my people to be Christians?”Rabindranath Tagore is a man described variously as novelist, educator, poet, dramatist, artist, mystic, essayist, and Nobel Prize winner. He was born on May 7, 1861, in Calcutta to a family of considerable wealth. For generations, his ancestors had invested in coal mines and sugar plantations in Eastern India. The Tagores were a progressive family and on their estate often hosted social and cultural activities. As a child he was highly resistant to formal education, later saying: “When I was very young I gave up learning and ran away from my lessons. That saved me, and I owe all that I possess today to that courageous step. I fled classes which instructed, but which did not inspire me, and I gained a sensitivity toward life and nature.” His father provided his son with tutors who gave him a strong foundation in Bengali, Sanskrit and English as well as music and literature. However, being an educational vagabond, he never received a graduation diploma from any scholastic institution.His mother died when he was 13 and Tagore rarely saw his father. Parenting was done largely by servants and extended family members. At the time, upper class Indian families provided their children with an English education, so Tagore was sent (1878-1880) off to England where he enrolled at University College, London, studying law. Again, Tagore was resistant to formal education and did not complete a degree. At the age of 22 he married Bhabatarini Devi (1883) by whom he had five children. Upon marriage, Tagore reluctantly accepted his father’s offer to manage a family business at Shilaidah in East Bengal.Though he disdained this task, it proved to be formative as he witnessed and became intrigued with the pastoral life of workers on and around the family estate. He observed carefully people working rice fields and others fishing with nets. Tagore enjoyed visiting village school children. This became a prolific period of writing, during which he produced several works, including Chitra: A Play in One Act (1896), The Ideal One (poetry, 1890) and The Golden Boat (poetry, 1894). Little by little, Tagore was establishing himself as a widely read and highly regarded writer in India.In 1902, tragedy struck Tagore with the death of his beloved wife followed by his youngest son. Not surprisingly, death and loss became dominant themes in his writing. During this time, Tagore also founded a school on part of the family estate — Visva-Bharati University. Modeled after Indian ashrams, Tagore’s educational vision emphasized learning in natural (outdoor) settings, avoiding learning by rote and memorization. His school was an open air university. Today it is one of India’s most well-respected institutions of higher learning. Among its notable graduates was Indira Gandhi who would go on to become Prime Minister of India and Nobel laureate Amartya Sen.In 1910, Tagore wrote Gitanjali: Song Offerings. It is a collection of Tagore’s devotional poems expressing spiritual adoration for God and contemplation of God’s many blessings. For Westerners, they resembled the Psalms of the Old Testament. The themes resonate with people of all faiths because of their spiritual sincerity and beauty. Like the writers of the Psalms, Tagore is able to put his spiritual experiences into words, which are not only attractive and compelling, but with which they can deeply identify. One example is from The Little Flute:Thou hast made me endless, such is thy pleasure. This frail vessel thou emptiest again and again, and fillest it ever with fresh life.This little flute of a reed thou hast carried over hills and dales, and hast breathed through it melodies eternally new.At the immortal touch of thy hands my little heart loses its limits in joy and gives birth to utterance ineffable.Thy infinite gifts come to me only on these very small hands of mine. Ages pass, and still thou pourest, and still there is room to fill.During a dark night of his own soul, Tagore penned these stanzas in Gitanjali:Art Thou abroad on this stormy night on thy journey of love, my friend? The sky groans like one in despair.I have no sleep tonight. Ever and again I open my door and look out on the darkness, my friend.I can see nothing before me. I wonder where lies they path!By what dim shore of the ink-black river, by what far edge of the frowning forest, through what mazy depth of gloom artthou threading thy course to come to me, my friend? Rabindranath Tagore with Mahatma Gandhi.Quickly, Gitanjali became available in other translations and became widely read by Europeans resulting in Swedish Academy awarding Tagore the 1913 Nobel Prize For Literature. Two years later he was knighted by King George V, but renounced it in 1919 as a protest against the Massacre of Amritsar, in which British troops killed nearly 400 Indian demonstrators, according to the British government’s own admission.The power of Gitanjali came from Tagore’s personal experience of God. Edward J. Thompson, PhD, a biographer of Tagore, wrote: “What matters in (Tagore) is … his personal experience of God. Of the depth and sincerity of this no one who has read Gitanjali can doubt. God is strangely close to his thought. He is often more theistic than any Western theist….. God becomes more personalized for him, the Indian, in the most intimate, individual fashion, than He does for the ordinary Christian…. I can only assume that he found it so in personal experience, that neither flesh nor blood revealed to to him but our Father in Heaven.”At the beginning of the 20th century, Indians began resisting British rule. Tagore joined the National movement. However, when members began to engage in violence, Tagore withdrew his membership. For the remainder of his life he would denounce aggressive nationalism and patriotism. In fact, he viewed nationalism as another form of idolatry, writing: “Even though from childhood I had been taught that idolatry of the nation is almost better than reverence for God and humanity, I believe I have outgrown that teaching, and it is my conviction that my countrymen will truly gain their India by fighting against the education which teaches them that a country is greater than the ideals of humanity.” Tagore with Albert EinsteinDespite misgivings about nationalistic pride, Tagore had a profound appreciation of India’s great spiritual and intellectual legacy, saying: “I love India, not because I cultivate the idolatry of geography, not because I have had the chance to be born in her soil, but because she has saved through tumultuous ages the living words that have issued from the illuminated consciousness of her great sons.”Tagore also supported Gandhi’s freedom struggle. In fact, it was Tagore who gave Gandhi the title “Mahatma,” meaning “great soul.” In a speech honoring Gandhi, Tagore said: “So disintegrated and demoralized were our people that many wondered if India could ever rise again by the genius of her own people, until there came on the scene a truly great soul, a great leader of men, in line with the tradition of the greatest sages of old, whom we are today assembled to honor — Mahatma Gandhi. Today no one need despair of the future of the country, for the unconquerable spirit that creates has already been released.”Tagore was especially drawn to Gandhi’s emphasis on ahimsa or non-violence: “Our reverence goes out to the Mahatma whose striving has ever been for truth; who, to the great good fortune of our country at this time of its entry into the new age, has never, for the sake of immediate results, advised of condoned any departure from the standard of universal morality. He has shown the way how, without wholesale massacre, freedom may be won.”Though Tagore kept a distance from Indian nationalists, he did put his literary talents on the side of those seeking independence. He wrote a number of patriotic poems, which were turned into songs, helping mobilize an entire generation of Indians. Tagore became widely recognized as India’s national poet and authored its national anthem “Jana Gana Mana.” Consistently, his poetry conveys a deep-seated spiritual awareness and mysticism. This is evident in his book Fireflies, published in 1928:I touch God in my songas the hill touches the far-away seawith its waterfall….Love remains a secret even when spoken,for only a lover truly knows that he is loved….In love I pay my endless debt to theefor what thou art.Tagore drew spiritual inspiration by spending time in nature, observing it carefully, a ritual rooted since his childhood. “We had a small garden beside our house; it was a fairyland to me, where miracles of beauty were of everyday occurrence,” he recalled. “Every morning at an early hour I would run out from my bed to greet the first pink flush of dawn through the trembling leaves of the coconut trees which stood in a line along the garden boundary. The dewdrops glistened as the grass caught the first tremor of the morning breeze. The sky seemed to bring a personal companionship, and my whole body drank in the light and peace of those silent hours. I was anxious never to miss a single morning, because each one was more precious to me than gold to the miser. I had been blessed with that sense of wonder.” With his emerging fame as a writer, Tagore travelled widely, visiting more than 30 countries on five continents. The travels brought Tagore into contact and conversations with many notable contemporaries including, Henri Bergson, Albert Einstein, Robert Frost, Thomas Mann, George Bernard Shaw, HG Wells, Ezra Pound and the Irish Poet William Butler Yeats, who would later write the preface to an English version of Gitanjali. By the end of the 1930s Tagore had become world renowned. In1940, the University of Oxford conferred upon him an honorary doctorate citing his innovation in education at Visva-Bharati University as well as his writing.While clearly living a spiritual life, Tagore was critical about aspects of his own Hindu heritage, saying: “Our country is the land of rites and ceremonials, so that we have more faith in worshiping the feet of the priest than the Divinity whom he serves.” On another occasion he observed: “From the solemn gloom of the temple children run out to sit in the dust. God watches them play and forgets the priest.”Healthy most of his life, Tagore became ill in January 1941. During his illness he reflected on the gift of life and pondered whether he had used his talents as effectively as possible: “How little I know of this mighty world! Myriad deeds of men, cities, countries….have remained beyond my awareness. Great is life in this wide Earth and small the corner where my life dwells.” Tagore died on August 7, 1941 at the age of 80. As word of his death spread, many around the world paused, reflected and were comforted by his own words:Death is not extinguishing the light; it is only putting out the lamp because the dawn has come. Related Items
Daler Mehndi, Esha Gupta and Jimmy ShergillChandigarh is all set to witness the mega India Today Mind Rocks Youth Summit scheduled to take place on August 23 at Taj Chandigarh.The widely-awaited event, in its eighth year, serves as a perfect setting for bringing the youth and their role models on one platform. Prominent personalities from diverse fields including politics, music, acting, sports and business will participate in the event and share their experiences with youngsters in an interactive and informal setting.Some of the previous speakers during different editions of the summit include Kiran Bedi, Arvind Kejriwal, Priyanka Chopra, Abhishek Bachchan, Ajay Devgn, Sonam Kapoor, Ranbir Kapoor, Soha Ali Khan, Ranveer Singh, Irrfan Khan, Imtiaz Ali, Chetan Bhagat, Sachin Pilot, Kalikesh Deo, Pradyot Bikram Manikya Deb Barma, Akhilesh Yadav, Prasenjit Bose, Om Prakash Mishra, Mahua Moitra, Brett Lee, Baichung Bhutia, Mohammad Azharuddin, Kapil Dev, Narain Karthikeyan, Sourav Ganguly, Yuvraj Singh, Gautam Gambhir, Nandan Nilekani and Kumar Mangalam Birla to name a few.Among several other well-known faces, the eighth edition of Mind Rocks Youth Summit will be attended by actors Jimmy Shergill and Esha Gupta and singers Daler Mehndi and Hans Raj Hans. Actor and politician Bhagwant Mann will also be a part of the event. Kalli Purie, Group Synergy and Creative Officer, India Today Group, will deliver the welcome address.Speaking to Mail Today, singer Hans Raj Hans said that he was honoured to be a part of the event. “Such events serve as a perfect platform to get to know your audiences closely. No artist can be an island in himself/herself. Moreover, when a prestigious group like India Today organises an event, one can be assured of lively discussions and intelligent interactions,” he said.advertisementFor registrations please log on to www.mindrocks.com
Directors Venkat Prabhu and Rajesh are two big names in the Tamil industry, especially when it comes to the realm of slapstick humour and witty dialogues.Both Venkat Prabhu and Rajesh have churned out laugh riots like Chennai 28 (2007) and Boss Engira Bhaskaran (2010) respectively.ALSO READ: Naga Chaitanya on wedding plans- I will tie the knot next yearALSO READ: Kaatru Veliyidai- Mani Ratnam to shoot action sequence in LadakhAccording to recent reports, Venkat Prabhu and Rajesh are coming together for a Tamil film, which is likely to be a full-fledged comedy like many of their films.The film will have the script written by Rajesh while Venkat Prabhu will take over the reins of direction.Speaking about the film, producer T Siva was quoted by The News Minute as saying, “This is a proud moment for our Amma Creations. On the occasion of the 25th anniversary of our company, we are determined to repay the audience for their support through a massive combination. Venkat Prabhu and Rajesh are the two iconic pillars in making laughter riots and I am very much glad to produce this film. My earlier association with Venkat Prabhu for Saroja, and now with Rajesh for Kadavul Irukan Kumaru has strengthened my trust on them.”Venkat Prabhu awaits the release of Chennai 28 II, the sequel to the blockbuster coming-to-age sports film Chennai 28.Rajesh too awaits the release of his Kadavul Irukan Kumaru, which is slated to release in October.
10.or or Tenor is all set to launch its fourth budget phone called the 10.or D2 in India today at 12 noon. The upcoming 10.or D2 will be the successor to the 10.or D which was announced last December. Ahead of the launch, 10.or has been teasing the 10.or D2 for quite a while now. The teasers have revealed that the 10.or D2 will be an entry-level device just as its predecessor and will come with a Snapdragon processor, 3200mAh battery and more.The 10.or D2 will be an Amazon exclusive product. Meaning, after the smartphone is launched it will be available on the Amazon India store. The pricing and availability details of the smartphone are yet to be revealed by the company. But, following the track record of 10.or (Tenor) we expect the 10.or D2 to also come with an affordable price tag and compete with similar segment phones from Xiaomi, Honor, Nokia and Motorola.10.or – via official teasers – have already revealed that the smartphone – 10.or D2 – will be backed by a 3200mah battery and sport an 18:9 display. The landing page of the 10.or D2 has already been up on the website which further revealed that the smartphone will come with a 5.45-inch HD+ display.Teasers have also revealed that the 10.or D2 will come with a Sony camera sensor on the back and Awinic sound system. In addition, the company – as said – has also revealed that the smartphone will be powered by a Snapdragon processor. Considering it is going to be a budget segment phone we can expect Snapdragon 425 to power the smartphone.advertisementTo recall, the successor of the 10.or D2 — the 10.or D — was launched in India back in the month of December last year. The 10.or D was launched in India for a starting price of Rs 4,999. Considering the 10.or D2 is the successor to the 10.or D we can expect the price to go slightly on the upper scale. The official pricing of the phone will be revealed by the company at 12 noon today.
New Delhi, Nov 5 (IANS) On the occasion of Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli turning 30 on Monday, the All India Gaming Federation (AIGF) wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging the country’s highest civilian honour Bharat Ratna for the cricketer.Kohli has performed exceptionally in the recent past, scoring over 18500 international runs in all three formats of the game, an average of above 50 runs in Tests and ODIs. The run machine had recently achieved the feat of becoming the fastest batsman to reach 10,000 runs in the 50 over format.”Cricket is one of the most loved sports in the country and Virat Kohli has captivated the hearts & minds ofbillions with his scintillating performances over the past years. AIGF strongly believes that it is only befitting that his efforts in enhancing India’s stature & image in the global sporting arena are adequately recognized by bestowing the honour of Bharat Ratna,” the letter read.”Honouring Kohli with India’s highest civilian award will mean awarding talent, merit and hard work,” it said.Former cricketer Sachin Tendulkar is the only sports personality till date who has been bestowed the nation’s highest civilian honour.–IANSkk/bg
India’s current bowling coach Bharat Arun is likely to retain his position even if there are multiple candidates while R Sridhar will have his nose ahead despite South African star Jonty Rhodes throwing his hat in the ring for the fielding coach’s position.But batting coach Sanjay Bangar might find it difficult to retain his position when the national selectors pick the support staff for the Indian team.All three have got extension along with head coach Ravi Shastri till the end of the upcoming tour of the West Indies and after that, fresh interviews will be conducted with all the incumbents automatically in fray.As per norms, while the new Cricket Advisory Committee — likely to be chaired by Kapil Dev — will decide on the head coach, the selectors have been tasked to conduct interviews for the rest of the support staff.If those privy to the developments are to be believed, Arun could turn out to be a unanimous choice considering the performance of India’s pacers in all formats of the game.”In the last 18 to 20 months, the work put in by Arun has been phenomenal. The current Indian attack is considered to be the best in the longest format. Mohammed Shami back at his best and (Jasprit) Bumrah’s consistency are a few things Arun must get credit for. It’s up to the selectors but they might find it difficult to replace him,” a senior BCCI official told PTI on Friday.However, same can’t be said about Bangar, who many believe hasn’t been able to create a solid middle order despite four years in the job.advertisement”Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have been performing much before Bangar came into the fray. He has no role in their success. However, his job was to create a few solid options in the middle order and we have seen in the World Cup that he has failed miserably in that,” the official added.There have been reports that it was on Bangar’s insistence that Mahendra Singh Dhoni was asked to bat at No.7 in the lost semifinal against the New Zealand, a decision that has been roundly criticised.While Arun is the favourite among three specialist coaches, Sridhar is also not far behind as India has made rapid strides in the fielding department.But he will get a tough fight from Rhodes, who is set to get an opportunity to give a presentation to the selection committee.”Rhodes is a big name and his candidature can’t be ignored. However, this also needs to be taken into account that how the team’s fielding performance has been,” the official said.Also Read | I can’t believe it: Jack Leach on 92 vs Ireland at Lord’sAlso See:
Story Highlights The Prime Minister emphasized that community renewal is about Government and community making decisions jointly Its aim is to provide a platform for the co-ordination and improvement of service delivery to the communities Prime Minister, the Most Hon. Portia Simpson Miller, says without community renewal, there can be no successful and prosperous Jamaica.In a message read by Local Government and Community Development Minister, Hon. Noel Arscott, at a stakeholder consultation forum towards the implementation of Phase 1 of the Community Renewal Programme (CRP), on August 14, at the Jamaica Conference Centre, in Downtown Kingston, Mrs. Simpson Miller pointed out that there can be no successful renewal unless and until there are improved feelings of safety and well-being across communities.“Reducing crime and violence and strengthening the justice system will enable safe communities. Safer communities mean better environment to educate our children, nurture our talent and do business. Safer environment also provides the context to grow our economy, create more job opportunities, all leading to greater community development,” the Prime Minister said.The CRP is an intervention project targeting 100 of the most vulnerable and volatile communities in Jamaica, distributed across the five most crime affected parishes of Kingston, St. Andrew, St. Catherine, Clarendon and St. James.Its aim is to provide a platform for the co-ordination and improvement of service delivery to the communities, in a bid to enhance social transformation, strengthen governance, and reduce crime and violence.The programme will be implemented in three phases and communities scheduled to participate in Phase 1 include: Central Downtown, Delacree Park, Denham Town, Fletchers Land, Franklin Town, Greater Allman Town, Greenwich Town, Hannah Town, Jones Town, Majesty Gardens, Parade Gardens, Rae Town, Rose Gardens, Seaview Gardens, Springfield Gardens, Tivoli Gardens and Trench Town.The Prime Minister emphasized that community renewal is about Government and community making decisions jointly.“That is a way to guarantee involvement that generates ideas and discussion. It is a technique to better understand stumbling blocks to renewal. Joint decision making is a way by which we encourage citizen empowerment,” Mrs. Simpson Miller said.She also urged stakeholders to have realistic expectations of the problems faced by the communities.“We can take any of the 19 communities represented here today and you will find a common set of problems. We have targeted all these problems for intervention. And one purpose of this consultation is to refine strategy,” the Prime Minister said.She noted that although policies are in place, “we are yet to completely fix problems of job-creation and learning opportunities.”The Prime Minister said that a fuller response to improving educational opportunities and skills training will depend on a stronger economic status and all stakeholders have a role to play in this. She emphasized that the priority must be on providing opportunities for young people.She emphasized that no single stakeholder can solve these related problems. “Solutions will come about through collective effort, and through joined up government agencies, working together to provide better service to all communities,” Mrs. Simpson Miller said.In the meantime, the CRP has received the endorsement of the Opposition. Member of Parliament for West Kingston, Desmond McKenzie, who represented Leader of the Opposition, said the concept of the CRP arose out of an incident in the constituency three years ago and offered his personal endorsement.He noted that it has to be the collective responsibility of all the stakeholders, regardless of their political persuasion, religious belief or where they are from, to support the programme and make it succeed.“I want to commit myself to this process, because at the end of the day we are going to create a Jamaica that our grandchildren and their children will be able to call home,” Mr. McKenzie said.The first phase of the CRP began with a pilot in Majesty Gardens. Community Renewal Programme (CRP) is an intervention project targeting 100 vulnerable and volatile communities 
zoomIllustration; Image Courtesy: Pixabay under CC0 Creative Commons license Monaco-based Navios Maritime Containers has acquired a 2011-built containership from an unrelated party for USD 52.5 million.The 10,000 TEU unit is expected to be delivered into the company’s fleet during the first quarter of 2019. The vessel is chartered out at a net rate of USD 26,325 per day until November 2020 and thereafter at USD 27,300 per day until October 2021.The containership is expected to generate around USD 9.5 million of revenue and USD 6.5 million of EBITDA in the twelve month period following its delivery, the shipowner said.Navios Containers will finance the acquisition through USD 31.8 million of debt financing, maturing in 2023 and bearing interest at LIBOR plus 325 bps per annum, a USD 15 million credit by the seller for a period until December 31, 2019 at a rate of 500 bps per annum, as well as USD 5.7 million of cash on the balance sheet.The company informed that the acquisition is subject to certain conditions, and there can be no assurances that it or the related financing will occur in whole or in part.Navios Containers will own 30 containerships, including a containership subject to an unexercised option, totaling 152,821 TEU, with a current average fleet age of 10.4 years.
RICHMOND, B.C. – Employers in British Columbia have been warned they need to develop plans to keep their workers safe from avalanches.WorkSafeBC, the provincial occupational health and safety authority, tells employers in a news release that workers in the backcountry, including self-employed workers, face a potential risk of serious injury in what is an active avalanche season.WorkSafe’s regulations require all employers to ensure safe workplaces by reducing exposure to avalanche risks, and developing an appropriate safety plan if there’s the chance of a slide.Patrick Davie, WorkSafeBC manager of prevention field services, says employees in the oil and gas, forestry, pipeline construction, highway maintenance and mining industries are at the greatest risk.Worksafe says it expects employers with operations within avalanche terrain to increase their awareness of the risks, step up prevention efforts and collaborate with WorkSafe to ensure compliance with guidelines and regulations.Davie says B.C. is full of rugged terrain and working in it without proper precautions can be deadly.“Employers in these situations are required under the occupational health and safety regulation to ensure a well-rehearsed safety plan is in place and well understood by all workers,” Davie says.Since 1998 in B.C., avalanches have caused the deaths of three workers and 52 time-loss injury claims, including two injury claims in 2017, the release says.“While ski hills and winter lodges have also seen avalanche related injuries, primary-resource industries see the next highest amount,” it says.
Ahead of Asteroid Day, next Friday, Professor Alan Fitzsimmons from Queen University’s Astrophysics Research Centre also warned that an asteroid collision with Earth could easily destroy a major city. Asteroid Day commemorates the Tunguska strike in Siberian in 1908 which devastated 800 square miles. 
The camera-equipped miniature probes, would be sent on their way by tens of gigawatts of focused power from an array of lasers, reaching their destination in about 20 years.”If we succeed we will send a probe to Alpha Centauri within the lifetime of some of you alive today,” he said.”It is clear we are entering a new space age. We are standing at the threshold of a new era. Human colonisation and other planets is no longer science fiction, it can be science fact.”The human race has existed a separate species for about two million years. Civilization became about 10,000 years ago and the rate of development has been steadily increasing, If humanity is to continue for another million years it relies on boldly going where noone has gone before. I hope for the best. I have to. We have no other option.” Prof Hawking and Yuri Milner are planning to send a tiny probe to Alpha Centauri using a beam of light “This is not science fiction it is guaranteed by the laws of physics and probability,” he said. “To stay risks being annihilated. “Spreading out into space will completely change the future of humanity. It may also determine whether we have any future at all.”Wherever we go we will need to build a civilisation, we will need to take the practical means of establishing a whole new ecosystem the will survive in an environment that know very little about and we will need to consider transporting several thousands of people, animals, plants, fungi, bacteria and insects.”Prof Hawking said the Moon and Mars were the best sites to begin the first colonies, stating that a lunar base could be established within 30 years and a Martian outpost within 50. But he also suggested leaving the Solar System and venturing to our nearest star system, Alpha Centauri, where scientists believe there exists a habitable planet known as Proxima B. Prof Hawkingtold the audience that the Earth would eventually be hit by a devastating asteroid strike. Prof Hawking said climate change and over-population meant humans had no option but to leave Earth Credit:BBC The professor said nuclear fusion-powered ships propelled by light, Star Trek-style matter-antimatter reactors, or “some completely new form of energy” could allow humans to travel light years. A small first step was already being taken by Russian billionaire Yuri Milner’s Breakthrough Start Shot project, said Prof Hawking. This envisages sending a fleet of tiny “nanocraft” carrying light sails on a four light-year journey to Alpha Centauri, the nearest star system to Earth. Want the best of The Telegraph direct to your email and WhatsApp? Sign up to our free twice-daily Front Page newsletter and new audio briefings. Prof Hawking said it was important to begin colonising Mars and the Moon Professor Fitzsimmons said: “It is important to know that scientists and engineers have made great strides in detecting Near-Earth Asteroids and understanding the threat posed by them. 
“Over 1,800 potentially hazardous objects have been discovered so far, but there are many more waiting to be found.“Astronomers find Near-Earth Asteroids every day and most are harmless. But it is still possible the next Tunguska would take us by surprise, and although we are much better at finding larger asteroids, that does us no good if we are not prepared to do something about them.” The human race must start leaving Earth within 30 years to avoid being wiped out by over-population and climate change, Professor Stephen Hawking has warned. Making an impassioned speech at the Starmus science festival in Trondheim, Norway, the astrophysicist said it was crucial to establish colonies on Mars and the Moon, and take a Noah’s Ark of plants, animals, fungi and insects, to start creating a new world. Prof Hawking said it was only a matter of time before the Earth as we know it is destroyed by an asteroid strike, soaring temperatures or over-population.He said that becoming a ‘cosmic sloth’ was not an option because ‘the threats are too big and too numerous.'”I am convinced that humans need to leave earth. The Earth is becoming too small for us, our physical resources are being drained at an alarming rate.””We have given our planet the disastrous gift of climate change, rising temperatures, the reducing of polar ice caps , deforestation and decimation of animal species.”When we have reached similar crisis in or history there has usually been somewhere else to colonise. Columbus did it in 1492 when he discovered the new world. But now there is no new world. No Eutopia around the corner. We are running out of space and the only places to go to are other worlds.”
OVER 1,000 GPs who qualified in Ireland have begun working with the NHS over the last five years according to the Irish Medical Organisation.The IMO say that this is the equivalent of seven years output of Irish trained GPs that are going straight to the UK.The union are blaming the Government for the loss of doctors abroad and say that Ireland could be facing a GP shortage.“If we don’t change tack now, we will look back in five years time and we will trace the decline of our high standards of GP services to 2014 and the mistakes that are being made now,” said the IMO’s Ray Walley. The IMO has been locked in a dispute with the Government over the proposal to introduce free GP care for under-sixes and in particular the re-reimbursement contract for GPs.“Any substantial change to the current GMS contact for GPs needs to be negotiated with the IMO as the licensed trade union for GPs in Ireland,” Walley said about the dispute.The Union of Students of Ireland recently launched a campaign to halt a reduction in pay for student nurses which they say encourages emigration among recently qualified health professionals.Read: Graduate nurses to protest “€6.49 per hour” training wage >Read: IMO wants “real negotiations” on free GP care > A further 200 or more GPs currently working in Ireland are close to or beyond normal retirement age and are expected to leave the service in the coming years further exacerbating the situation.
Sea Launch : un nouveau satellite de télécommunications placé en orbiteUn nouveau satellite de télécommunications a été placé en orbite vendredi 1er juin par un lanceur russo-ukrainien. Lancé dans le cadre du programme Sea Launch, ce satellite a quitté la Terre depuis la plate-forme mobile Odyssey, qui flotte dans le Pacifique.La firme Energia Overseas Limited (EOL), filiale de la société de construction spatiale russe RKK Energuia, a annoncé avoir placé avec succès un satellite de télécommunications en orbite vendredi dernier. Cette mission a été réalisée dans le cadre du programme Sea Launch, et c’est depuis la plate-forme mobile et flottante Odyssey, placée dans le Pacifique, que le satellite Intelsat-19 a été envoyé dans l’espace par un lanceur russo-ukrainien Zenit-3SL.À lire aussiMaladie de Charcot : symptômes, causes, traitement, où en est on ?Ce satellite de télécommunications géostationnaire, Intelsat-19 (IS-19), rapporte l’agence RIA Novosti, pèse 5,6 tonnes. Conçu par la société américaine Space Systems/Loral, il commencera à fonctionner dès le mois prochain afin de remplacer un autre satellite placé en orbite pour Intelsat. Pendant près de vingt ans, il assurera alors la couverture de la région Asie-Pacifique, de l’ouest des Etats-Unis, de l’Australie et de la Nouvelle-Zélande. Initié en 1995, le projet Sea Launch a permis de placer 30 satellites en orbite en quatorze ans. Mais en 2009, des difficultés financières ont entraîné un arrêt du programme. C’est deux ans plus tard, grâce au soutien d’EOL, qu’il a pu être relancé.Le 4 juin 2012 à 18:00 • Maxime Lambert
Stay on target Top Movie and TV Trailers You Might Have Missed This WeekWatch These Movies Before ‘Hustlers’ Olympus/London Has FallenWhile we were all too busy paying attention to the Marvel Cinematic Universe and laughing at the Dark Universe, the Has Fallen franchise has kept trucking along right under our noses, providing new government capitals to save and heads of state to protect. There’s even some solid character growth as Morgan Freeman goes from Speaker of the House to Vice President to President.White House DownThere’s a long history of two movies with identical premises releasing at the same time. And Olympus Has Fallen’s counterpart was White House Down, an arguably better movie about a dude bad enough to protect the president from White House infiltrators. Channing Tatum and Jamie Foxx are more enjoyable actors and even the politics were a little better. But there’s no need to pit the movies against each other. Lance Reddick exists in both continuities.300The peak of Gerard Butler’s career, the only reason anyone really cares about him, is 300. Zack Snyder’s action-packed translation of the Frank Miller Greek epic was so stylish that stranger elements like the xenophobic fascism and accidental homo-eroticism just went down easy. Sparta kicks never get old.Phantom of the OperaBefore his action hero days, Gerard Butler tried to go all Hugh Jackman by starring in the film adaptation of the popular Phantom of the Opera musical. The result was more Russell Crowe given Butler’s actual singing talent. And he’s not even that disfigured beneath the mask.Machine Gun PreacherIf you think Machine Gun Preacher has a funny title, just wait until you see the poster where a solemn Butler holds a gun in one hand and holds back a scared innocent African child with another. It what can only be based on a true story, this movie follows former biker gang member Sam Childers defending South Sudanese orphans as a missionary who packs heat.The FugitiveAngel Has Fallen’s new narrative gimmick is that Mike Banning has been framed for an attack on the president. Now he must clear his now while evading both the authorities and the actual terrorists responsible. And the gold standard for fugitive stories like this is still… The Fugitive.Air Force OneSpeaking of Harrison Ford, if you want to watch a Die Hard-esque political action thriller where the president himself plays a key role, watch Air Force One. When the presidential plane is hijacked by Russians, only the commander in chief can stop them.Metal Wolf ChaosMetal Wolf Chaos is a video game, not a movie, but it’s still the most absurd thing you’ll ever experience about a fictional American president. After the country is taken over by the villainous vice president, take America back with your gun-toting robot suit. Formerly a Japan-exclusive, a recent re-release lets everyone in on the party, even if the game itself isn’t so great.
While the politics of the actual United States of America continue to crumble around us, why not go to the movies for an escapist fantasy about American politics crumbling all around us. After saving Washington and London, Secret Service agent Mike Banning must now save himself in Angel Has Fallen. Sure! That’s a pretty clever name at least.Watch these movies before Angel Has Fallen.