A show cat is one, judged to be close to the physical ideal for its breed standard at a cat show. Not all pedigreed cats are show cats, many are just pets but the ones with the best conformation and personality are shown in associations such as the CFA and TICA in the US, the GCCF in the UK or the FiFe in the rest of Europe. Uncommonly, a prize-winning pedigreed show cat can be worth thousands of dollars but most are loved pets. In order to compare examples of breeds and improve stock, cat shows are held where judges evaluate the cats according to a breed standard. Pedigreed cats are identified with microchip implants. A common conception is that all pedigreed cats are less healthy than random-bred cats due to inbreeding; the Ascent of Cat Breeds: Genetic Evaluations of Breeds and Worldwide Random-bred Populations by Lipinski et al. showed that pedigreed cats are more inbred than random bred cats. For some breeds such as Singapura and Burmese the genetic diversity is low and should be addressed.

Some breeders take great care to select for the healthiest animals, this has the potential to reduce the incidence of health issues. An example of this is blindness in the Abyssinian caused by PRA, which have been reduced from 45% to less than 4% in 2008. Many of the worst, like PKD in Persians, Hip Dysplasia in British Shorthairs and Maine Coons, HCM in Maine Coons, Exotic Shorthair, British Shorthair, Norwegian Forest Cat and Bengal, are still present in high frequencies; the frequency of HCM in British Shorthairs are 20.4 % for males. The frequency of Hip Dysplacia in Maine Coons is 36,3% or 30.2%. Some breeders use preventive screening, but no studies documenting possible reductions in prevalences exists. Breeds are established using few cats as founders and outcrossing is not allowed, it is normal that breeds go through population bottlenecks because of the popular sire syndrome. It is quite normal that cats winning in shows are found attractive to breeders and these cats end up being overused and they are present many or all pedigrees many times.

This population structure is addressed in Patterns of molecular genetic variation among cat breeds. Quote - "As a consequence of small effective population sizes, founder effects, population bottlenecks, cat breeds have become repositories of spontaneous mutations causative of hereditary disease." One example is the presence of the mutation R820W, which causes hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, in 30% of all Ragdolls. Breeds have different origins, some are manmade or the result of mutation, while others are found in nature; some breeds of cat have been created by taking a single tom cat or queen with an unusual physical characteristic that breeds true. The entire Cornish Rex breed can be traced back to a single parent animal with an unusual genetic mutation producing a curly coat. Both the Burmese and Tonkinese breeds can be traced back to a single cat, Wong Mau, brought from Burma in the 1930s. Breeders continually strive to eliminate negative characteristics that various cat breeds exhibit as the breeds are developed.

There is not any such thing as a'purebred' cat since all registered breeds began as random-bred cats. In this case,'pedigreed' is a more accurate term. Cat breeders are continually competing to find the'ideal' of the breed – the cats that come closest to fitting the breed standard; because of this, the physical characteristics of a prize-winning show cat have changed in some breeds. This genetic shifting is most obvious in the two oldest, most popular and most distinctive breeds of show cat - the Persian and the Siamese. However, some show cats are occurring breeds that are perpetuated to keep the original look of a cat from a particular region. Examples are the Maine Turkish Van. List of cat breeds Supreme Cat Show Show Cats: The Standard of Perfection, a 2004 documentary about show cats

Damon Silvers is an American lawyer and former government employee who serves as a policy director for the AFL-CIO. Silvers led the AFL-CIO legal team that won severance payments for laid off Enron and WorldCom workers. Silvers served as Deputy Chair of the Congressional Oversight Panel from 2008 to 2010. Silvers is a member of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board Standing Advisory Group, the Financial Accounting Standards Board User Advisory Council, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Corporate Governance Task Force. On November 14, 2008, Silvers was appointed by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and the majority leader of the Senate Harry Reid to serve on the five-member Congressional Oversight Panel created to oversee the implementation of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act. Silvers clerked at the Delaware Court of Chancery for Chancellor William T. Allen. Silvers was raised in Hartford, Connecticut and Richmond, Virginia. Silvers attended Open High School in Richmond, Virginia.

Silvers graduated summa cum laude from Harvard College in 1986. Silvers received his J. D. with honors from Harvard Law School. He received his M. B. A. with high honors from Harvard Business School as a Baker Scholar. Silvers studied history at King's College, Cambridge. At Harvard, Silvers was a leader of the anti-apartheid Divestment movement, was one of two undergraduates invited by Local 26 of the union which represented Harvard's dining hall staff to join their negotiating team in 1986. Bio

The Jeep Tornado engine was the first post-World War II U. S.-designed mass-produced overhead cam automobile engine. The 230.5 cu in straight-six was introduced in mid-year 1962, replaced the flathead 6-226 Willys Super Hurricane, in use since 1954. The Tornado engine was manufactured in Argentina by Industrias Kaiser Argentina from 1965 to 1973; the development of a new engine for Kaiser Jeep for an new vehicle began under Chief Engineer, A. C. "Sammy" Sampietro, in the late-1950s. Sampietro worked under Donald Healey in Europe and focused on improving power output through better engine breathing; the single overhead cam design was combined with hemispheric combustion chambers. Mass production of the new engine began in 1962; the Jeep Tornado engine was introduced in truck models. Six-cylinder versions built after May 3, 1962, received the 230 OHC "Tornado" engine, replacing the 226 L-head "Super Hurricane" I6, it was made the standard engine in the new Jeep Wagoneer station wagons and Jeep Gladiator pickup trucks that began production in the fall 1962 for the 1963 model year.

The Tornado was the only U. S.-built overhead-cam engine in production at that time. The new engine was designed for heavy-duty performance with maximum efficiency, its excellent fuel economy was proven in tests with the Tornado-OHC engine having the lowest specific fuel consumption of all production gasoline engines on the market. The Tornado, like most Jeep engines, was undersquare for better low-speed torque, it had a 3 11⁄32 in bore with a 4 3⁄8 in stroke. The standard version had an 8.5:1 compression ratio. Output was 210 lb ⋅ ft of torque at 1750 rpm. A low-compression version was available, with 133 hp at 4000 rpm and 199 lb⋅ft of torque at 2400 rpm, it was a "high-efficiency" engine with a conservatively rated power output. The new engine's overhead camshaft design was only one of the advanced features offered for the first time in a U. S.-designed and mass-produced engine. The Tornado was a good engine. S. in 1965. It continued to be used in military versions of the Jeep pickup, the M-715 and M-725, until 1969.

These engines had block-mounted motor mounts, rather than the front cover mounts that were a cause of oil leaks on the civilian versions. One unique feature of the design was. One lobe exhaust valve for each cylinder; this made engineering cam profiles a bit more difficult than conventional two lobe per cylinder designs, but allowed the valves to be better arranged for the cross-flow head. Valves were directly opposite their respective ports, ports were short with wide radius turns. Road tests of the new Jeep Wagoneer by Car Life magazine described the OHC six as "commendably smooth and quiet." The engine accelerated the four-wheel-drive full-size station wagon with an automatic transmission from 0 to 60 mph in 15.9 seconds. Their tests recorded 17 mpg‑US on the highway and 14.5 mpg‑US in the city, that "certainly demonstrates the remarkable efficiency of the OHC engine." Production of this engine continued in Argentina by Industrias Kaiser Argentina after 1965. The engine was used in a variety of Jeep vehicles and American Motors passenger cars assembled under license.

The engine became best known for powering the IKA-Renault Torino, their version of the AMC Rambler American having unique styled front body parts, built in Argentina from 1966 to 1981. It achieved international success in the 1969 Nürburgring 84-hour endurance race when a Torino placed third due to penalty points after covering 334 laps, the most of all the racers; the engine name was changed to "Torino" to match the car in 1973. It received a major block and crankshaft refinement that year — seven main bearings instead of the original four. Industrias Kaiser Argentina was bought out by Renault, in 1975, the "IKA" name was dropped and it became "Renault Argentina"; the Torino, Jeeps, AMC cars, as well as the Tornado engine itself, continued to receive upgrades over the years. Argentinian's Tornado engines raised up the power from 155 HP to 215 HP and 250 HP to 350 HP, it was achieved by a new Cylinder head, which exhaust ducts. Adopted a new camshaft, a new exhaust manifold 3-1 / 3-1 type, two 2" diamenter exhaust pipes and 3 carburators Weber DCOE 45-45.

The Torino and the Jeep Tornado engine continued production through 1982. It was marketed as the "Tornado Jet", as the "Tornado Interceptor", in AMC automobiles. From 1976 to 1982 they were the only non-Renault–designed cars and engines built by the French company; the Jeep Tornado engine was used in the following vehicles: Willys Jeep Truck 1962-65 Willys Jeep Wagon 1962-65 Jeep Gladiator 1963-64 Jeep Wagoneer 1963-64 Kaiser Jeep M715 1963-69 Kaiser Jeep M725 1963-69 Renault Torino known as IKA Torino, 1966–73 by Industrias Kaiser Argentina and Renault Argentina, in Jeep utility vehicles, the Rambler Classic and Ambassador passenger cars, from 1965–73 Media related to Jeep Tornado engine at Wikimedia Commons

Beech Bend Park is an amusement park and automobile race track located in Warren County, in the U. S. state of Kentucky, just outside the limits of the city of Bowling Green. The park takes its name from a bend in Barren River where stands of beech trees are scattered throughout the area; the area was used for picnics as early as the 1880s. Charles Garvin purchased the park property in the early 1940s, adding amusements both rides and recreational activities over the years; the first ride was a pony ride, followed by a roller skating rink, dance hall, bowling center and swimming pool. Shortly after World War II, Garvin added mechanical rides to Beech Bend Park, beginning with a Ferris wheel purchased from the Chicago World's Fair. Racing began about that same time with motorcycles. Auto racing began on a 3/8-mile oval dirt track. A dragstrip was added in the 1950s; the 1960s marked the park's heyday. Gate admission was ten cents, with promotions known as "County Days," spotlighting a county within the Bowling Green, Kentucky area each week.

Carnival-type rides were abundant, with the famous Wild Mouse the most popular. The campground grew over the years, with more than 1,000 spaces advertised at its peak, billed at one time as the world's largest. A small zoo was added. In the 1970s, the park went into a state of decline due to competition from theme parks such as Opryland USA in nearby Nashville, Tennessee. Garvin's health was in steady decline; when he died in 1979, the park closed, though the racing facilities stayed open under a lease agreement to a third-party operator. The park was purchased by an ownership group that included country music singer Ronnie Milsap, which operated it unsuccessfully in 1981 and 1982. Jim Varney's first television commercial as character Ernest P. Worrell was for Beech Bend. Varney's character was advertising an appearance by the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders in 1980; the park closed again, with ownership reverting to Garvin's heirs. In 1984, Dallas and Alfreda Jones purchased the racetracks and began hosting national drag racing events sanctioned by the National Hot Rod Association.

The racetracks did well, three years the couple purchased the rest of the park, which had by fallen back into nature. No work was done on the old park until the 1990s, when the Jones' began to clear out the park and renovate the campground; the pool was reopened, the owners added amusement rides back to the park — much as Charles Garvin had done in the park's early years. As of 2005, Beech Bend Park has more than 40 rides, 500 campground spaces with modern amenities, renovated racing facilities, a water park and large picnic pavilions; the race tracks host the annual NHRA Hot Rod Reunion. In 2005, the park opened a Zamperla Twisting Wild Mouse coaster, Zamperla Steamboat ride and a drop tower called the Shock Drop. In 2006, the park added the Kentucky Rumbler wooden roller coaster; the owners of Beech Bend used their savings to build the Kentucky Rumbler instead of building a beach house. The year 2007 brought permanent replacements for some of the older mobile rides. In October the park announced the Holiday Lights Spectacular.

The Kentucky Rumbler was operating along with other smaller flat rides open. In 2008, the park added The Grand Carousel. A new show called "The Magic of Music" involved music from the 1970s and 1980s, they had Cirque Africa Show that ran June 16 through June 23. For the kids the park introduced a new park character show, "Singing with Sammy the Squirrel, from July 14 through July 23 the park had a kids' festival. Thrill seekers received a brand new Scat 2. In 2009, Beech Bend debuted the Chance Rides Sea Dragon ride, purchased from Michael Jackson's Neverland ranch and was alleged to be his favorite ride; the Looping Star Roller Coaster was removed at the end of the season. In 2010, Beech Bend opened a large waterpark expansion, a Zamperla family tea cups ride, a kids' quad runner and a new amphitheater, billed as the largest in Beech Bend's history and was to open in early May; the expansion was delayed by two months due to the 2010 Tennessee floods, the water play structure and amphitheater did not open until the 2011 season.

The first ride at the park, the Ferris wheel, was standing but not operating the whole season, was removed for the 2011 season. In 2011, the old Haunted House ride was overhauled, with new effects and cars added to it; the Shock Drop drop tower was removed at the end of the season. In 2012, the replacement for Shock Drop arrived in the form of the 140-foot-tall drop tower named Zero-G, named by people who participated in a naming contest on Facebook. Zero-G was made by the same manufacturer as Shock Drop was; as well as the park purchased new ThunderVolt Speedway Go-Karts. In 2013, the Park added; the Vortex is a one-of-a-kind thrill ride at Beech Bend. In fact, it is one of the most unusual rides in the region! This radical swinging pendulum ride soars riders 60 feet into the air reaching a maximum swing angle of 240 degrees! Riders will sit facing each other to maximize the interactive experience, at the maximum height of the swing, riders will be suspended upside down! In 2014, no new rides were added, but several of the older rides were repainte

IT'SNAZ is a double live album by the Scottish hard rock band Nazareth, released in late 1981. The full album title is It's Naz but the artwork spread the title, in block-capitals over the outside of the gatefold-sleeve: when not opened only'S NAZ is visible on the front; the back of the original album cover includes the letters "I" and "T" causing many to misinterpret the title of the album as "'Snaz", incorrect. That no space was left between the'S' and'NAZ' seems deliberate, as contemporary adverts for the album in the music press write it as IT'SNAZ; the band's official website gives the title. The album was recorded at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, in May 1981 during the band's 1981 North American tour; the band felt this one show was fine in its entirety. The album was mixed at The Oxfordshire; the original LP featured two bonus studio tracks, "Juicy Lucy" and a re-recording of "Morning Dew". Together with "Crazy", from the Heavy Metal soundtrack, these were the first studio recordings of the new 6-piece line-up.

In Germany, the LP came with a free bonus 1-sided 7", a remix of "Morning Dew" with the vocals sung in German, thus titled "Morgentau". This was never issued separately. Due to time-constraints, the original 1987 single-CD release dropped five tracks from the original vinyl; the 1997 remaster by Rob Corich, on the Castle Communications / Essential label, again did not include all tracks, as the label did not consider a 2-CD set to be financially viable. However, it did restore "Let Me Be Your Leader", whilst the remaining four absent tracks were included on the 1998 reissue of The Fool Circle. Eagle Records acquired the Nazareth back catalogue at the turn of the century, set about reissues. In 2001 Snaz was transferred to CD in its entirety, being a "30th Anniversary Edition" 2CD release, including all live tracks in the correct running-order, plus the two studio tracks that finish side D of the original vinyl. A sticker on the front drew attention to the fact, reading "Original complete double album available for the first time on CD.

Digitally remastered." In 2011 Salvo Records re-released the album with additional material from a Seattle concert together with "Crazy" and the German version of "Morning Dew". Salvo's CD 1 comprises sides 1-3 of the original vinyl, while CD 2 consists of side 4 of the original vinyl, expanded with bonus tracks. In 2005, IT'SNAZ was ranked number 430 in Rock Hard magazine's book of The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time. Disc 1 of the 2011 Salvo Remaster includes Sides 1-3 of the original vinyl release. Disc 2 includes Side 4 plus the 9 bonus tracks listed above. Morgentau and Crazy are available on Salvo reissue of The Fool Circle album. Dan McCafferty - vocals Manny Charlton - guitar Billy Rankin - guitar, backing vocals John Locke - keyboards Pete Agnew - bass guitar, backing vocals Darrell Sweet - drums, backing vocals

Talaromyces marneffei called Penicillium marneffei, discovered in 1956, is now regarded as one of the world's ten most feared fungi. It is a important cause of disease due to weakened immunity in people living in southeast Asia whose immune systems have been weakened by HIV infection; when it was classified as a Penicillium, it was the only known thermally dimorphic species of that genus that caused a lethal systemic infection, with fever and anaemia similar to disseminated cryptococcosis. This contrasted with related Penicillium species that are regarded as unimportant in terms of causing human disease. There is a high incidence of talaromycosis in AIDS patients in SE Asia. Cases of T. marneffei human infections have been reported in HIV-positive patients in Australia, Japan, the UK and the U. S.. All the patients, except one, had visited Southeast Asia previously; the disease is considered an AIDS-defining illness. Discovered in bamboo rats in Vietnam, it is associated with these rats and the tropical Southeast Asia area.

Talaromyces marneffei is endemic in Myanmar, Southern China, Laos, Malaysia and Vietnam. Although both the immunocompetent and the immunocompromised can be infected, it is rare to find systemic infections in HIV-negative patients; the incidence of T. marneffei is increasing as HIV spreads throughout Asia. An increase in global travel and migration means it will be of increased importance as an infection in AIDS sufferers. Talaromyces marneffei has been found in bamboo rat faeces, liver and spleen, it has been suggested. It is not clear whether the rats are affected by T. marneffei or are asymptomatic carriers of the disease. One study of 550 AIDS patients showed that the incidence was higher during the rainy season, when the rats breed, but this season has conditions that are more favorable for production of fungal spores, which can become airborne and be inhaled by susceptible individuals. Another study could not establish contact with bamboo rats as a risk factor, but exposure to the soil was the critical risk factor.

However, soil samples failed to yield much of the fungus. It is not known whether people get the disease by eating infected rats, or by inhaling fungi from their faeces. One HIV-positive physician is known to have been infected while attending a course on tropical microbiology, he did not handle the organism. It is presumed; this shows. Patients present with symptoms and signs of infection of the reticuloendothelial system, including generalized lymphadenopathy and splenomegaly; the respiratory system is involved as well. One-third of patients may exhibit gastrointestinal symptoms, such as diarrhea; the fact that Talaromyces marneffei is thermally dimorphic is a relevant clue when trying to identify it. However, it should be kept in mind that other human-pathogenic fungi are thermally dimorphic as well. Cultures should be done from bone marrow, skin and sputum samples. Plating samples out onto two Sabouraud agar plates incubating one at 30°C and the other at 37°C, should result in two different morphologies.

A mold-form will grow at 30°C, a yeast-form at 37°C. Mycelial colonies will be visible on the 30°C plate after two days. Growth is fluffy and white and turns green and granular after sporulation has occurred. A soluble red pigment is produced, which diffuses into the agar, causing the reverse side of the plate to appear red or pink; the periphery of the mold may appear orange-coloured, radial sulcate folds will develop. Under the microscope, the mold phase will look like a typical Penicillium, with hyaline and branched hyphae; each conidiophore gives rise to three to five phialides, where chains of lemon-shaped conidia are formed. On the 37°C plate, the colonies grow as yeasts; these colonies can be cerebriform, convoluted, or smooth. There is a decreased production in pigment, the colonies appearing cream/light-tan/light-pink in colour. Microscopically, sausage-shaped cells are mixed with hyphae-like structures; as the culture ages, segments begin to form. The cells divide by binary fission, rather than budding.

The cells are not yeast cells, but rather arthroconidia. Culturing isn't the only method of diagnosis. A skin scraping can be prepared, stained with Wright's stain. Many intracellular and extracellular yeast cells with crosswalls are suggestive of T. marneffei infection. Smears from bone marrow aspirates may be taken; these samples can be stained with the Giemsa stain. Histological examination can be done on skin, bone marrow or lymph nodes; the patient's history is a diagnostic help. If they have traveled to Southeast Asia and are HIV-positive there is an increased risk of them having talaromycosis. Antigen testing of urine and serum, PCR amplification of specific nucleotide sequences have been tried, with high sensitivity and specificity. Rapid identification of talaromycosis is sought. Treatment should be provided as soon. Treatment of talaromycosis depends on the degree of immunosuppression and organ involvement, but most isolates of Tala