Tuvalu, is a country in Polynesia, located in the Pacific Ocean, situated in Oceania and about midway between Hawaii and Australia. The island country lies east-northeast of the Santa Cruz Islands, southeast of Nauru, south of Kiribati, west of Tokelau, northwest of Samoa and Wallis and Futuna, north of Fiji, it is composed of three reef islands and six true atolls spread out between the latitude of 5° to 10° south and longitude of 176° to 180°, west of the International Date Line. Tuvalu has a population of 11,192; the total land area of the islands of Tuvalu is 26 square kilometres. The first inhabitants of Tuvalu were Polynesians; the origins of the people of Tuvalu are addressed in the theories regarding migration into the Pacific that began about three thousand years ago. During pre-European-contact times there was frequent canoe voyaging between the islands as Polynesian navigation skills are recognised to have allowed deliberate journeys on double-hull sailing canoes or outrigger canoes.

The pattern of settlement, believed to have occurred is that the Polynesians spread out from Samoa and Tonga into the Tuvaluan atolls, with Tuvalu providing a stepping stone to further migration into the Polynesian outliers in Melanesia and Micronesia. In 1568, Spanish navigator Álvaro de Mendaña was the first European to sail through the archipelago, sighting the island of Nui during his expedition in search of Terra Australis; the island of Funafuti was named Ellice's Island in 1819. The Ellice Islands came into Great Britain's sphere of influence in the late 19th century, as the result of a treaty between Great Britain and Germany relating to the demarcation of the spheres of influence in the Pacific Ocean; each of the Ellice Islands was declared a British Protectorate by Captain Gibson of HMS Curacoa between 9 and 16 October 1892. The Ellice Islands were administered as a British protectorate by a Resident Commissioner from 1892 to 1916, as part of the British Western Pacific Territories, as part of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands colony from 1916 to 1976.

A referendum was held in December 1974 to determine whether the Gilbert Islands and Ellice Islands should each have their own administration. As a consequence of the referendum, the Gilbert and Ellice Islands colony ceased to exist on 1 January 1976, the separate British colonies of Kiribati and Tuvalu came into existence. Tuvalu became independent as a sovereign state within the Commonwealth on 1 October 1978. On 5 September 2000, Tuvalu became the 189th member of the United Nations; the origins of the people of Tuvalu are addressed in the theories regarding migration into the Pacific that began about 3000 years ago. During pre-European-contact times there was frequent canoe voyaging between the nearer islands including Samoa and Tonga. Eight of the nine islands of Tuvalu were inhabited. Possible evidence of fire in the Caves of Nanumanga may indicate human occupation for thousands of years. An important creation myth of the islands of Tuvalu is the story of the te Pusi mo te Ali who created the islands of Tuvalu.

The stories as to the ancestors of the Tuvaluans vary from island to island. On Niutao and Vaitupu, the founding ancestor is described as being from Samoa, whereas on Nanumea, the founding ancestor is described as being from Tonga. Tuvalu was first sighted by Europeans on 16 January 1568, during the voyage of Álvaro de Mendaña from Spain, who sailed past Nui and charted it as Isla de Jesús because the previous day was the feast of the Holy Name. Mendaña was unable to land. During Mendaña's second voyage across the Pacific he passed Niulakita on 29 August 1595, which he named La Solitaria. Captain John Byron passed through the islands of Tuvalu in 1764, during his circumnavigation of the globe as captain of the Dolphin, he charted the atolls as Lagoon Islands. Keith S. Chambers and Doug Munro identified Niutao as the island that Francisco Mourelle de la Rúa sailed past on 5 May 1781, thus solving what Europeans had called The Mystery of Gran Cocal. Mourelle's map and journal named the island El Gran Cocal.

Longitude could only be reckoned crudely at the time, as accurate chronometers only became available in the late 18th century. The next European to visit was Arent Schuyler de Peyster, of New York, captain of the armed brigantine or privateer Rebecca, sailing under British colours, which passed through the southern Tuvaluan waters in May 1819; the name Ellice was applied to all nine islands after the work of English hydrographer Alexander George Findlay. In 1820, the Russian explorer Mikhail Lazarev visited Nukufetau as commander of the Mirny. Louis Isidore Duperrey, captain of La Coquille, sailed past Nanumanga in May 1824 during a circumnavigation of the earth. A Dutch expedition found Nui on the morning of 14 June 1825, named the main island as Nederlandsch Eiland. Whalers began roving the Pacific, although

Scott Phillip Aldred is a former Major League Baseball pitcher and current minor league pitching coach. Aldred was born in Michigan, he graduated in 1986 from Hill McCloy High School in Montrose, Michigan, a rural town just north of Flint. Aldred was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 16th round of the 1986 Major League Baseball Draft. In his first professional season, Aldred compiled an 8–7 record with a 3.57 ERA and 91 strikeouts in 110 innings with the Fayetteville Generals in 1987. Following this performance, he was seen as the best pitching prospect in the organization. Aldred struck out 102 batters in ​131 1⁄3 innings with the Lakeland Tigers in 1988. Aldred was 10–6 with 3.84 ERA and 97 strikeouts in 122 innings with the London Tigers in 1989 despite being sidelined in mid-season with a hand injury. Aldred was promoted to the Major Leagues for the first time in September 1990 after compiling 6–15 mark and 4.90 ERA with the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens, ranking third in the International League in strikeouts.

He played for the Detroit Tigers through 1992. After the 1992 season, Aldred was taken by the Colorado Rockies in the 1992 Major League Baseball expansion draft, he was selected off waivers by the Montreal Expos in April 1993. He experienced a sore arm, underwent Tommy John surgery, missed all of 1994 season, returned to the Tigers organization in 1995. Aldred started on the home opener for the Tigers in 1996, he pitched for the Minnesota Twins, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, the Philadelphia Phillies. In 2001, Aldred pitched for the Double-A Norwich Navigators of the New York Yankees organization. In 2002, he pitched for the Las Vegas 51s. In 2003, he pitched for the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs and Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox of the Boston Red Sox organization. After he was released during the 2003 season, he pitched for the Somerset Patriots of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball in 2003 and 2004 before retiring due to elbow trouble. Aldred held the Major League record for most appearances in a single season without a decision with 48 until 2007 when it was broken by Trever Miller.

He accomplished this feat in 1998 with the Devil Rays. In between, Aldred played winter ball with the Águilas del Zulia, Cardenales de Lara and Leones del Caracas clubs of the Venezuelan League during four seasons spanning 1990–2003, he posted a 15–12 record and a 3.37 ERA in 46 pitching appearances, striking out 114 batters while walking 91 in ​197 2⁄3 innings of work. Aldred was the pitching coach of the New York Yankees Double-A affiliate, the Trenton Thunder, in 2007 and 2008. Since 2009, he has been the pitching coach of the Yankees Triple-A affiliate, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball-Reference, or Retrosheet Scott Aldred at SABR

Cliff Lerner is an American entrepreneur and media personality. He is best known as the co-founder and former CEO of Snap Interactive, a software and social media company which created one of the first applications on Facebook. Snap Interactive creates online dating applications including, FirstMet.com and, The Grade. Snap interactive went public in 2006. Lerner grew up in Long Island, lives in Manhattan, New York, he attended Cornell University where he received a B. S. in Applied Economics & Business Management in 2000. Lerner started at Lehman Brothers as an analyst in the equities division from 2000-2005. In 2005, he launched an online dating site IamFreeTonight.com. Lerner served as president, CEO of Snap Interactive from 2005 – 2016 before merging with AVM Software. Under his leadership, SNAP's revenue grew 4,412 percent from 2007 to 2011. In 2007, Lerner launched the AreYouInterested application on the Facebook platform; the website surpassed 10 million users within a year and became the top grossing app on iTunes App Store.

In 2007, eTwine Holdings, Inc. changed its name to Snap Interactive. In 2010, AreYouInterested was having over 50,000 users per day. In 2016, AreYouInterested was rebranded as FirstMet.com. In 2014, Snap launched another dating app; the application gained attention from the Wall Street Journal and Vocue, was considered an alternative to Tinder. During an interview, Lerner predicted that Bitcoin would be worth $100,000. In 2017, Cliff published Explosive Growth – A Few Things I Learned Growing To 100 Million Users and Losing $78 Million; the book tells the story of Snap Interactive. It became #1 best-seller on Amazon in the Public Relations category; the book was recognized as a Top 5 Business Book on Growth Hacking. In 2012, Lerner rang the Nasdaq Opening Bell. In 2012, Lerner was one of the finalists for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Award

"Edith's Crisis of Faith" is a two-part episode of the U. S. sitcom All in the Family. It aired as the 13th and 14th episodes of season 8 in 1977; the episode saw the third and final appearance of Beverly LaSalle, after "Archie the Hero" and “Beverly Rides Again”. After Beverly, a transvestite and recurring character, is murdered a few days before Christmas, Edith Bunker has a crisis of faith and begins to wonder how God would allow people to punish one of his children, she believes that all people are worthy of love and feels a sense of loss and sadness at the tragic event, doesn't understand it. Pop Matters thought this episode highlighted the "social stigma against trans persons, an act of injustice emphasized by Edith's inability to understand humanity's rejection of people like her dear friend." NewNowNext thought the storyline was groundbreaking for 1975 and by 2016 standards. The Queer Encyclopedia of Film and Television deemed the episode "daring and disturbing". DVDTalk notes that while Edith notes that while Beverly was killed because of "who she was", the episode is coy about define what that is, argues that an earlier episode would have hit the gay-bashing aspect of this violent crime head on.

The Age of Netflix argues that by choosing to air both parts of the episode on Christmas night 1977, the episode " massively recalibrates the episode's affective stakes" by forcing viewers to associate the holiday with a time to " queer loss"

The International Water Association is a non-profit organization and knowledge hub for the water sector, with over 60 years' experience connecting water professionals worldwide to find solutions to the world's water challenges. As a network of water professionals and companies, IWA has a membership comprising utilities and leading companies in the fields of water services, infrastructure engineering and consulting as well as more than 10,000 individuals. IWA works across a wide range of issues covering the full water cycle, with four programmes that work towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and addressing the threat to sustainable water supplies posed by climate change; the IWA is headquartered in London, with a global secretariat based in The Hague and offices in Nanjing and Chennai. IWA has its roots in the International Water Supply Association, established in 1947, the International Association on Water Quality, which formed as the International Association for Water Pollution Research in 1965.

The two groups merged in 1999/2000 to form the IWA, creating one international organisation focused on the full water cycle. The group's mission is to serve as a worldwide network for water professionals and to advance standards and best practices in sustainable water management; the association has four member types: individual, student and governing members. There are about 10,000 individual and 500 corporate members, with governing members in 80 countries. IWA annually hosts more than 40 specialist conferences and workshops on various aspects of water management. Events organised by the IWA include the World Water Congress & Exhibition and the Water Development Congress & Exhibition. There are four programs at IWA: Basins of the future Cities of the future Water and sanitation services Water policy and regulation AquaRating is the world's first rating agency for the water sector; the agency has been jointly developed by the Inter-American Development Bank and the IWA. The rating system has been piloted in thirteen utilities in nine countries in Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean.

A worldwide market introduction is planned during 2015. IWA Publishing, the wholly owned subsidiary of the International Water Association, provides information services on all aspects of water and related environmental fields; the publishing programme includes The Source and a broad range of journals, research reports, manuals of best practice, online services. Water management Water Research journal The International Water Association Website The IWA Connect platform AquaRating Website IWA Publishing Website The World Bank's work and publications on water resources

Fingerspelling is the representation of the letters of a writing system, sometimes numeral systems, using only the hands. These manual alphabets, have been used in deaf education, have subsequently been adopted as a distinct part of a number of sign languages. Manual alphabets have had a number of additional applications—including use as ciphers, as mnemonics, in silent religious settings; as with other forms of manual communication, fingerspelling can be comprehended visually or tactually. The simplest visual form of fingerspelling is tracing the shape of letters in the air, or tactually, tracing letters on the hand. Fingerspelling can be one-handed such as in American Sign Language, French Sign Language and Irish Sign Language, or it can be two-handed such as in British Sign Language. There are two families of manual alphabets used for representing the Latin alphabet in the modern world; the more common of the two is produced on one hand, can be traced back to alphabetic signs used in Europe from at least the early 15th century.

The alphabet, first described by Spanish monks, was adopted by the Abbé de l'Épée's deaf school in Paris in the 18th century, was spread to deaf communities around the world in the 19th and 20th centuries via educators who had learned it in Paris. Over time, variations have emerged, brought about by natural phonetic changes that occur over time, adaptions for local written forms with special characters or diacritics, avoidance of handshapes that are considered obscene in some cultures; the most used modern descendant is the American manual alphabet. Two-handed manual alphabets are used by a number of deaf communities; some of the letters are represented by iconic shapes, in the BANZSL languages the vowels are represented by pointing to the fingertips. Letters are formed by a dominant hand, on top of or alongside the other hand at the point of contact, a subordinate hand, which uses either the same or a simpler handshape as the dominant hand. Either the left or right hand can be dominant. In a modified tactile form used by deafblind people, the signer's hand acts as the dominant hand, the receiver's hand becomes the subordinate hand.

Some signs, such as the sign used for the letter C, may be one-handed. Manual alphabets based on the Arabic alphabet, the Ethiopian Ge'ez script and the Korean Hangul script use handshapes that are more or less iconic representations of the characters in the writing system; some manual representations of non-Roman scripts such as Chinese, Devanagari, Greek and Russian alphabets are based to some extent on the one-handed Latin alphabet described above. In some cases however, the "basis" is more theory than practice. Thus, for example, in the Japanese manual syllabary only the five vowels and the Ca letters derive from the American manual alphabet. In the Nepali Sign Language it is only four "letters" which derive from the American manual alphabet: अ /a/, ब /b/, म /m/, र /r/); the Yugoslav manual alphabet represents characters from the Serbian Cyrillic alphabet as well as Gaj's Latin alphabet. Fingerspelling has been introduced into certain sign languages by educators, as such has some structural properties that are unlike the visually motivated and multi-layered signs that are typical in deaf sign languages.

In many ways fingerspelling serves as a bridge between the sign language and the oral language that surrounds it. Fingerspelling registers for different purposes, it may be used to represent words from an oral language which have no sign equivalent, or for emphasis, clarification, or when teaching or learning a sign language. In American Sign Language, more lexical items are fingerspelled in casual conversation than in formal or narrative signing. Different sign language speech communities use fingerspelling to a lesser degree. At the high end of the scale, fingerspelling makes up about 8.7% of casual signing in ASL, 10% of casual signing in Auslan. The proportion is higher in older signers, suggesting that the use of fingerspelling has diminished over time. Across the Tasman Sea, only 2.5% of the corpus of New Zealand Sign Language was found to be fingerspelling. Fingerspelling has only become a part of NZSL since the 1980s. Fingerspelling does not seem to be used much in the sign languages of Eastern Europe, except in schools, Italian Sign Language is said to use little fingerspelling, for foreign words.

Sign languages that make no use of fingerspelling at all include Kata Kolok and Ban Khor Sign Language. The speed and clarity of fingerspelling varies between different signing communities. In Italian Sign Language, fingerspelled words are slow and produced, whereas fingerspelling in standard British Sign Language is rapid so that the individual letters become difficult to distinguish, the word is grasped from the overall hand movement. Most of the letters of the BSL alphabet are produced with two hands, but when one hand is occupied, the dominant hand may fingerspell onto an "imaginary"