230000005540 biological transmission Effects 0.000 description 25.230000001276 controlling effect Effects 0.000 claims abstract description 4.Assignors: Sata, Andrew Publication of US20140121913A1 publication Critical patent/US20140121913A1/en Application granted granted Critical Publication of US9002597B2 publication Critical patent/US9002597B2/en Status Active legal-status Critical Current Adjusted expiration legal-status Critical Links ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST (SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS). reassignment TOYOTA MOTOR ENGINEERING & MANUFACTURING NORTH AMERICA, INC. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.) Filing date Publication date Application filed by Toyota Motor Engineering and Manufacturing North America Inc filed Critical Toyota Motor Engineering and Manufacturing North America Inc Priority to US13/662,322 priority Critical patent/US9002597B2/en Assigned to TOYOTA MOTOR ENGINEERING & MANUFACTURING NORTH AMERICA, INC. Original Assignee Toyota Motor Engineering and Manufacturing North America Inc Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Toyota Motor Engineering and Manufacturing North America Inc Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.) ![]() ( en Inventor Andrew Sata Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.) Granted Application number US13/662,322 Other versions US9002597B2 Google Patents US20140121913A1 - Automobile paddle shifters with secondary paddles While the paddle shift cars are faster and easier to drive than manual models, the loss of Ferrari's classic open-gate manual transmission in favour of a tiny t-bar or buttons is lamented by more than a few enthusiasts.US20140121913A1 - Automobile paddle shifters with secondary paddles The loss of the clutch pedal and the traditional manual shifter has continued throughout the years, to the point where Ferrari no longer builds any new cars with a manual transmission. The two-seater could sprint from 0-100km/h in a claimed 4.7 seconds on the way to a top speed of 295km/h. Power for the rear-wheel drive F355 came from a mid-mounted 3.5-litre V8 engine that made 297kW at 8250rpm and 363Nm at 6000rpm. And the F355 F1 wasn't stritctly an automatic, as you still had to change the gears manually. ![]() The paddle shifters added to the sportiness of the car by allowing drivers to still have control over their gear changes with the added control of keeping both hands on the wheel. ![]() The new electro-hydraulic system was operated by the paddles which guaranteed lightning-quick gear changes from the car's traditional six-speed manual transmission. ![]() While almost $20,000 seems like a steep asking price for paddle shifters, back in 1997 the system used by Ferrari was cutting edge technology derived from its F1 cars.
0 Comments
![]() It makes it appear that society doesn’t care much, but in fact it does. The last phrase “but that’s not my business” has its own implications. Kermit demonstrated how eager society is to let go of its frustrations, and how willing we are online to help. Social media has made it possible to slander others for likes. ![]() This made you either a coward or a bad friend. Before social media, people used to vent their frustrations face-to-face or behind the back of another party. Kermit is a great example of how social media has transformed society’s tendency to publicly criticize others. However, people are now able to discuss their criticisms of other people. Since humans are naturally critical, it’s been known for a long time that people have their own opinions on the actions of others. ![]() However, I’m left to wonder if Kermit and the unquenchable thirst he has for savagery reveal anything about our society. This simple rule has produced countless memes and tons of advertising for Lipton. These images either show Kermit drinking Lipton tea or Kermit sitting at a table with a glass. The meme gained its own identity when the majority of memesters, which is the official term, started using one of these images. This meme is unique because they all start with one party being exposed for some terrible action, followed by Kermit’s admission that it wasn’t his business. But what happened after it was created was a meme that reached epic proportions (which is also my business). Who was the original to use the now-famous punchline? That’s not my business. They also did not have a common image, and were therefore overtaken by the more recent memes. These memes were not as universally popular as the later versions. They often featured Kermit riding in a car. These memes were more situational and described awkward situations or situations in which one party feels bitter. These memes were unique in that they did not include the punchline “but that’s no of my business.” However, they were still funny and had their own theme. The first Kermit memes were very popular. In the first months of 2014, the original meme started appearing. Kermit (the meme) did not actually begin in his final form. What happened when our green puppet became the authority on ethics and morality? The Anchorman said it best: “That escalated quickly.” The Kermit meme soon called out almost everyone for almost any reason, but that was “none of his business cards tomorrow.” These jokes made fun of some of the most bizarre and questionable behavior in society. Kermit the Frog had overtaken social media, and he wasn’t the playful Muppet. This little green amphibian helped make it possible. The internet was seemingly in decline at the start of 2014. It’s up to you whether you like it or you don’t, but it’s not mine! “But that’s None of my Business Meme” Kermit’s ‘none my business’ meme was definitely a popular meme and my personal favourite. Although the meme was popular for a brief time, it eventually died. The photo below shows him wearing the hat as a message to those who thought he couldn’t beat the Golden State Warriors, who at that time were considered the best basketball team. The meme returned to popularity when Lebron James, who won the NBA championship in June 2016, wore the hat featuring Kermit the Frog on it. The meme’s popularity was declining by 2015 and it looked like it would be a forgotten meme in the meme hall-of-fame (if one exists). It was a meme mocking people who wore fake Jordan’s shoes The first post was a picture of Kermit sipping iced tea. The tumblr blog Kermit the Snitch was created two days later. These hashtags were both used 19 000 and 11 000 times in four days, respectively. Twitter users started using Kermit and None of my Business Meme hashtags in tweets. Kermit’s popularity wasn’t just limited to Instagram. Within four days, the page had attained over 130,000 followers. The caption of this page featured Kermit’s photos with the statement “that’s no of my business”. The meme really began to gain popularity on June 20th, 2014 when the Instagram page was made. It was uploaded by kermitbelike to Instagram as a meme mocking “ratchet” women (shown here). On June 17, 2014, Kermit’s first use of the phrase “that’s none of mine business trip cheaters” was in conjunction with an image of Kermit. The meme’s origins can be traced back in January 2014, when Instagram users used Kermit images and the hashtag #kermit memes. This expression is often used to make sarcastic remarks about someone or to insult them. The most well-known meme is the “But that’s not my roofing business cards” one. Kermit has been a frequent character in Internet memes over the past few years. The Muppets and Sesame Street have made Kermit a household name. None of my Business Meme Kermit the Frog is a puppet character of frogs that first appeared on television in 1955, on Sam and Friends. Apple came out with support for MP4 on Mac and iOS devices. This topic is still highly debated since the mobile industry is so young. Sorry but your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Now let’s tweak the code above to include a fallback Flash player to support nearly every browser in existence. But also check out premium video players on ActiveDen which can go as cheap as $15-$20. JW Player and Flowplayer are two free open source solutions you can consider. These can be added using the embed or object tags to reference a third party. ![]() The best way to achieve this is through a Flash fallback player. We need to support users on older versions of Safari, Mozilla Firefox, and especially Internet Explorer. Yet we also need to consider that the world is not always at the cutting-edge of technology. The example above is perfect for all standards-compliant web browsers. If neither of these can be loaded then we display an error for the user to update their browser. We offer both MP4 and WebM formats internal to the video element. This is a common preview with many web players. I also included a poster attribute which preloads an image over the video player before streaming. Notice the controls and autoplay attributes don’t need to be set with any values. Sorry, your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. All we need is the HTML5 video tag to reference each movie URL. Let’s now take a look at the syntax required to embed some sample code. You can read a related piece on the future of video on the web written by Sean Golliher. Ogg/Ogv will be supported but will most likely lose out in popularity to WebM’s smaller file sizes. It has some big names behind the project (namely Google) and has gained a lot of traction in the HTML5 community. In my opinion I highly recommend sticking with the WebM format. MP4 for Safari/IE9 and a choice between WebM or Ogg for the rest. This means you only need to create two different video formats to support all browsers. As such, each of these browsers will embed MP4+Flash as a final resort. If you remember, earlier I mentioned that most flash video players will support MP4 files as long as they’re encoded in H.264. Internet Explorer 6-8 – No HTML5, Flash Only!.Here is a breakdown of what works for each browser: Yet this isn’t realistic, and in fact, you can cover all the bases with only two of them. So which of these file types do you need for your website? Well ideally all 3 would be great as they provide the full support spectrum. It’s still unknown by most web professionals but WebM is the leading video media format in the future of web video. ![]() The format is already supported by Opera, Google Chrome, Firefox 4+, and most recently Internet Explorer 9. WebM is a project put out by Google which you can read more about on the WebM Project website. Ogg uses Theora encoding which is based on the open-source standard audio file format. flv video copy to support a fallback method! WebM and Ogg are two much newer file types related to HTML5 video. The MPEG-4 file type is generally encoded in H.264, allowing for playback in third party Flash players. There are 3 important video types which are supported by HTML5: MP4, WebM, and Ogg/Ogv. While this does work, most FLV files cannot retain quality anywhere near the more advanced file formats/codecs. ![]() When working with a flash video player, it’s too common to associate all video formats in. Recommended Reading: HTML5 Website Showcase: 48 Potential Flash-Killing Demos 1. And the best way to get familiar is diving in head first! It will take some practice to understand the native in-browser player and all its functionality. In this guide I’d like to offer an introduction to HTML5 video for the Web. But thankfully modern standards have advanced and the inclusion of HTML5 video opens doors for dozens of new opportunities. In past years a Flash-based media player in more than sufficient for streaming on the Web and this technology is still necessary to support legacy browsers. These new features include multimedia tags for audio and video formats. The new specifications support dozens of elements and attributes for building semantic websites. The HTML5 revolution is exciting web designers from all areas of the globe. 7/24/2023 0 Comments Used invisible fence collarReplaceable Lithium Ion Battery Technology:Lithium Ion technology offers three times the gravimetric density of nickel metal hydride technology which provides lighter batteries with increased run times. Replacing batteries not only provides the ability to instantly renew the collars power supply should you forget to recharge it also provides a consistent duration for battery life as opposed to the diminishing lifespan of a rechargeable cell. Waterproof Collar Receivers: The craftsmanship that goes into every Perimeter® brand dog fence is so good they offer the only battery replaceable waterproof collar receiver on the market.Perimeter® brand receivers will continue to function without issue when completely submerged in water.Have a pool, pond or take your dog to the lake?Take your Perimeter® dog fence with you. Polycarbonate Collar Receivers:Polycarbonate plastic is a lightweight, high performance plastic which possesses a unique balance of toughness and dimensional stability.Perimeter® brand dog fence collars use polycarbonate plastic to make them resistant to damage from dog chews.Polycarbonate is frequently used in situations where safety and performance are a must such as external jet aircraft parts, the space shuttle and many military applications.Why trust the safety of your dog to anything less? Additional Rubber Comfort Contact™ tips.Metallic infused rubber Comfort Contacts™ for safety and comfort.Extremely small light weight receiver weighs in at 1.1 ounce.This collar can be used as a replacement for a lost receiver or to add an additional dog to your system. Based on this article, invisible fence transmitters use a radio carrier frequency of either 7.5khz or 10.8khz with a 30hz modulation frequency.Purchase a Perimeter® brand dog fence collar receiver to use with your 700 Series Invisible Fence® brand system. I'm really kicking myself for not getting a tile tracker and attaching it to the collar, but I'm wondering if it's possible to fashion something up with an Arduino? From what I know the collar is a receiver and can only buzz and produce a shock. A brand new microlite computer collar costs $350. Invisible Fence offered to come out with a portable transmitter and try to find it for $100 but its only got a 12 foot range and there is no guarantee that they will find it (it's possible that the cat lost it outside of the yard). ![]() Anyways, I've unfortunately stumbled upon a real technological blunder of the invisible fence brand products when my cat came home without his collar and apparently there is nothing I can do about it. I've only gotten through about half of the Arduino book that I have and only know the bare basics of electronics, but I do have experience coding. This is my first post but I've been interested in the Arduino as someone who likes the idea of innovating and often thinks about it. 7/24/2023 0 Comments Time spy benchmark rankingIf you want to make a dent in the OC community, land a place on the Port Royal Hall of Fame and you’re in. It’s great for performance testing since it consists only of GPU-related tests. This is a demanding GPU benchmark and the currently most popular 3DMark benchmark for extreme overclockers. This is a hardcore ray tracing benchmark made to punish even the most powerful graphics cards we have today. The latest 3DMark benchmark, available only in the premium version of the app. The latest version of the GPU benchmarking software comes as a free and premium edition, with the former limited to regular versions of Firestrike and Time Spy benchmarks. 3DMarkģDMark benchmarks have been the staple of the PC hardware benchmarking scene for more than two decades. ![]() Just don’t forget to perform at least three benchmark runs both before and after overclocking in order to get the most accurate results. When it comes to bragging rights Superposition is a solid benchmark but not as popular as some benchmarks from the 3DMark suite. Superposition isn’t a great choice for stress testing the GPU since the free version doesn’t come with a stress test feature. This is great for performance testing because you get to play a real-time demo with your own custom settings, much like testing performance in-games. Further, Superposition comes with an interactive demo with fully customizable visual settings. It’s great for comparing before and after performance differences since it’s a relatively short benchmark that’s free to use. This is a free DX12 GPU benchmark capable of pushing any modern GPU to its limits. Let’s start with Superposition from Unigine. Best GPU benchmarks for performance testing Unigine Superposition Most of the software is free, but some 3DMark benchmark versions (those with extreme graphic settings) are only available in the premium version of the app. Also, we’ve included a couple of important programs to use when overclocking your graphics card, such as MSI Afterburner, CPU-Z, and HWiNFO. Those wanting to test stable OC should probably get Unigine Heaven, a GPU stress test like OCCT, or test stability by playing demanding games.īelow you’ll find the best GPU benchmarking software when it comes to performance and stability. ![]() They are the best choice for extreme overclockers since you have the whole online HOF list and all that. In other words, the definition of the best GPU benchmark is changing depending on your needs.įirst of all, we have 3DMark benchmarks. If you need a daily driver OC or maybe a stable undervolt, you’ll want to test for stability first, with performance coming out second. While there are many GPU benchmarks out there, not all of them are optimized for current-gen GPUs.Īlso, testing stability and testing max performance aren’t the same. If you just bought a new graphics card and want to push it to its limits, you’ll need quality benchmarking software to check just how much extra performance you can squeeze out of it. Purchases through our links may earn LEVVVEL a commission. 7/24/2023 0 Comments Pokemon mystery dungeon switch![]() This title can be played in any mode on the Nintendo Switch-TV mode, tabletop mode, or handheld mode. Making decisions calmly and carefully considering how the opposing Pokémon are moving are the keys to successfully navigating a dungeon. If the player panics and presses a button or walks a bunch of steps carelessly, they could find themselves in a scrape they weren’t anticipating. Since opponents won’t move unless the player moves in these turn-based battles, the player will have plenty of time to think about what their next move should be. Inside dungeons, battles are turn based, meaning that for each move you make, your opponents will also make a move. Players will need to use the right items at the right time to help out Pokémon that are in trouble.ĭungeons are inhabited by many Pokémon that will attack the main character. As with the layout of the dungeons, the kinds of items and their locations will change each time players enter a dungeon. Inside dungeons, players will find various useful items-such as Seeds, Berries, and TMs-which will help them on their adventure. They’ll need to adventure through these dungeons to complete the jobs they will receive requests for one after another. Each time players enter a Mystery Dungeon the layout is slightly different. ![]() ![]() In this world, Mystery Dungeons can be found in various places, such as mountains, canyons, forests, and more. Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Rescue Team DXis a remake of Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Red Rescue Team & Blue Rescue Team released for Nintendo Switch in 2020. Black: Victini & ReshiramWhite: Victini & Zekrom.Pokémon Ranger & The Temple of the Sea!.Mystery Dungeon - Explorers of Time & Darkness.Mystery Dungeon: Blazing, Stormy & Light Adventure Squad.Pokémon Battle TrozeiPokémon Link: Battle. United allegedly applied an algorithm to identify and deny medically unnecessary services to nearly all outpatient psychotherapy services while only using a corresponding outlier technique on a limited group of medical/surgical outpatient services. The DOL’s complaint also alleged that United applied its outlier management strategy disproportionately to mental health benefits. The DOL concluded that this inconsistent approach to applying rate reductions for out-of-network mid-level providers violated the comparability and stringency requirements of the parity law. Further, United did not articulate any consistent factors that were used to determine which providers were subject to the reductions, and United hid the reimbursement rate reductions from members and providers by failing to mention them in plan documents and explanations of benefits. In contrast, United did not impose a discount for medical services for most non-physician providers of medical/surgical services, such as nurses or physical therapists. Specifically, the insurer artificially depressed reimbursement rates for nonphysician providers of psychotherapy, reimbursing psychologists 25 percent less and master’s degree-level counselors 35 percent less than physicians providing the same service. While United reduced reimbursement rates for certain out-of-network mental health treatments, the insurer did not comparably reduce reimbursement for out-of-network medical/surgical treatments. This improper behavior allegedly dated back to at least 2013. and United Behavioral Health of illegally reducing reimbursement rates for out-of-network behavioral health services and targeting mental health recipients for claim reviews, leading to many denials of coverage. United Behavioral Health, et al., the DOL accused United Healthcare Insurance Co. The DOL has enforcement authority over plans that are subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), which includes most private-sector health plans. The MHPAEA applies to plans sponsored by private- and public-sector employers with more than 50 employees, and to health insurers who sell coverage to employers with more than 50 employees. The MHPAEA is a federal law that requires health insurers and group health plans to ensure that financial requirements, such as copayments and deductibles, and treatment limitations for mental health and substance use disorder benefits are comparable or on parity with those for medical/surgical benefits. But the $15.6 million settlement is a drop in the bucket for the nation’s largest health insurance company, which earned $4.9 billion in profits in Q1 2021 alone, so it may not be enough to deter large health insurers from continuing to flout the law. The case is a win for mental healthcare providers and patients, and it sends a clear signal that the Biden administration is stepping up enforcement of the MHPAEA. Department of Labor (DOL) to enforce the parity law against a health insurer or group plan in the statute’s 13-year history. was the first lawsuit brought by the U.S. project/token/src/common/currency_token.In a landmark case, United Healthcare agreed to pay $15.6 million to settle allegations that it violated the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA). And also let's build a couple of such ledgers. Let's now implement it! Let's build a simple token canister that allows multiple ledgers to listen for various events happening in this token.
7/24/2023 0 Comments Canoeing sarlat![]() Look up and admire French châteaux as they pass you by. Enjoy lunch on the Dordogne river's shore.Įxperience an energetic journey down the Dordogne River whilst standing on a surfboard! Depart from Cénac and Saint-Julien in the Black Périgord region of the Dordogne, famous for its UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve status. ![]() Choose from routes ranging from 7km - 22 km in length. Sarlat also is a culinary hotspot world-famous for its truffles. Jean-Claude Roullet the manager of Allo Canoes is a multiple French canoeing and kayaking championship winner.ĭrift on by Château Montfort, Château Beynac and Château Castelnaud onboard a 2 or 4 person canoe and kayaks. Discover romantic chateaus, medieval villages, and the Dordogne River by kayak or boat. View the famous Dordogne town of Domme from the Dordogne River. ![]() The Dordogne River runs 300 miles from central France to the Gironde Estuary near Bordeaux.ĭiscover canoe and kayak hire companies based along the Dordogne River. At the end of your day travelling down the river, get a bus back to your vehicle. Park your vehicle and then depart from the river shore, upon either a canoe, a kayak or a stand-up paddle. Enjoy a sunny afternoon, drifting down the Dordogne River in a canoe this summer.ĭiscover the tranquility and watch the historical beauty of the Dordogne countryside pass you by from the comfort of your canoe or kayak.Ĭhoose from various points of departure along the Dordogne River. The local gourmet markets at Sarlat are also a great way to experience Dordogne culture and taste amazing produce such as duck, goose, walnuts and cheeses. 7/24/2023 0 Comments J brandon butler![]() He then got into drama and theater acting, and that voice acting is great in that it enables him to play more characters than on camera. As he was reciting and memorizing scripts, they noticed that his stuttering started to gradually disappear. Īt the Florida Supercon 2015 panel, when he was asked what was his inspiration to go into voice acting, Tatum said that when he was young he had a speech impediment and his speech coach had him get involved in theater. Tatum has been cast in several notable roles, including Kyoya Ootori in Ouran High School Host Club, Sebastian Michaelis in Black Butler, Tomoe in Kamisama Kiss, France in Hetalia: Axis Powers, Erwin Smith in Attack on Titan, Okabe Rintaro in Steins Gate, Eneru in One Piece, Tenya Iida in My Hero Academia and Rei Ryuugazaki in Free! – Eternal Summer.įrom January 2010 to January 2014, he hosted That Anime Show podcasts with friend and co-worker Terri Doty and ADR Engineer Stephen Hoff. In 2005, Tatum ran into Funimation ADR director Christopher Bevins, who cast him as Rikichi in Samurai 7. Michael Tatum is an American voice actor, ADR director and script writer working for Funimation/ OkraTron 5000 And Bang Zoom! Entertainment who provides voices for a number of English versions of Japanese anime series and video games. Frevert was released on a I-bond and will appear in Ogle County court at a later date.Voice actor, ADR director, ADR script writer Frevert was arrested by deputies on Interstate 39 near Illinois Route 64 after being stopped for speeding. On June 17 deputies arrested Colton Frevert, 24, of Baraboo, Wisconsin for driving while license suspended. following a traffic stop on Interstate 39 at mile marker 101, deputies arrested Brandon Butler, 44, of Rockford for driving under the influence, aggravated driving under the influence and aggravated driving while license revoked. Butler also received citations for no insurance, expired registration, no registration light and unlawful transportation of alcohol. Butler was transported to the Ogle County Jail and held in lieu of bond. Ruiz-Martinez, 28, of Carol Stream for no valid driver's license. Ruiz-Martinez was released on scene and will appear in court at a later date. following a traffic stop on Interstate 88 at mile marker 76, deputies arrested Walter E. Olmos was released on a signature I-Bond with a return court date. Olmos was also issued a citation for no front license plate. After an investigation, Shameika Olmos, 40, of Rochelle was arrested for driving while license suspended. deputies conducted a traffic stop in the 19,000 block of East Illinois Route 38 for an equipment violation. ![]() Balaban was released on an I-bond at the hospital and given a future court date. Balaban was transported to KSB Hospital by Oregon EMS. After investigation, Justin N Balaban, 29, from Rochelle, was arrested for driving under the influence of a combination of alcohol and drugs, driving while license suspended, operating an uninsured motor vehicle, improper traffic lane usage and failure to reduce speed. ![]() deputies responded to a single-vehicle crash in the 13,000 block of East Illinois Route 64. Babus was transported to Ogle County Jail and held in lieu of bond. After a brief investigation, deputies arrested Stephen Babus, 57, of Monroe Center for driving under the influence of alcohol and domestic battery. Illinois Route 72 in Monroe Center for a domestic battery. Updated: 1 year ago / Posted Jun 17, 2022 7/23/2023 0 Comments Crystal serenity san francisco![]() In November 2022, A&K Travel Group appointed Jack Anderson as Crystal Cruises' President. In September 2022 were hired Monique Ross (as Director of Strategic & National Accounts/previously employed by Crystal and Seabourn), Paul Girouard (as East North America's Regional Sales Director for USA and Canada/previously employed by Crystal and Mystic Cruises' Atlas Ocean Voyages), Melissa Nightingale (as West North America's Regional Sales Director for USA and Canada/previously employed by Crystal) and Jeff Herzfeld) and Jeff Herzfeld (as Director of Reservations, Sales Support & Guest Relations/previously employed by MSC and Virgin Voyages). In August 2022 were hired Matias Lira (as Senior VP) and Brandon Townsley (as VP of Sales and Trade Partnerships). In December were appointed Jacqueline Barney (Senior VP of Global Marketing), Spyros Almpertis (Director of Port Operations), Roberto Fazi (Senior VP of Marine Operations) and Julio Solvas (Finance Director). In November, the A&K Travel Group's management team joined Andrew Burrett (Group CFO/Chief Financial Officer), Fernando Delgado Vintimilla (CPO/Chief Product Officer), Camille Drevillon (Chief of Staff), Martin Froggatt (Chief Destination Officer), Kerry Golds (Chief Tour Operating Officer), Fabio Agostini (CIO/Chief Information Officer), Kim Robins Berman (Chief Legal & People Officer). In July 2022, to manage the new company were appointed Jack Anderson (President) and Bernie Leipold (Senior VP of Hotel Operations). In June 2022, the company was quired by Abercrombie & Kent Ltd. On July 24, 2020, the company celebrated its 30th anniversary. Until 2022, the company's chief officers were Tom Wolber (President and CEO) and Karl Muhlberger (COO / Chief Operating Officer). The relaunched cruise company started with the maiden voyages of its (for now only) two ships - Crystal Serenity (debut on July 31st) and Crystal Symphony (debut on September 1st). Both Crystal ships (Serenity and Symphony) are top-ranked in numerous categories and provide 5-star hotel amenities and superior services, as well as an intimate cruising experience marked by elegance and perfection in every detail.Īfter being acquired by Abercrombie & Kent Travel Group in 2022, the company was officially relaunched in February 2023 as just "Crystal", opening bookings for past guests on February 13th, and for the general public on February 22nd. It currently operates only ocean voyages with two smaller-sized vessels (full-scale refurbished in 2023) with all-inclusive travel package deals. ![]() We certainly get something out of the deal, but we also hope passengers come away with a better understanding that hunger exists everywhere – including a beautiful tourist destination like San Francisco.”Įstrada says as far as they know, Crystal is one of the only cruise ship lines that has ventured in this direction, but he thinks ‘volun-tour-ism’ will only grow as more people with the means to travel continue to recognize the power of altruism.Ĭlick here for more information on the “We Care You Care” program.Crystal Cruises (1988-founded/1990-launched/2023-relaunched) is a top-luxury travel brand and a premium passenger shipping company. “We applaud Crystal Cruises for partnering with us. “When you’re pushing out millions of pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables every year, every set of hands counts,” says Food Bank Community Engagement Manager Cody Jang. Over the past two years, the Food Bank has seen several groups from Crystal Cruises stop by the warehouse and give a few hours of their time. I like to be active and productive in my daily life, so when I learned about this opportunity while vacationing with my wife, I decided to make a go of it and come out here today to help feed less fortunate people living in San Francisco.” “I’m one of those people who can’t sit still for very long. ![]() Terry says he regularly volunteers at home, so doing so while he vacations is very natural. So far, it’s been very well-received, with hundreds of visits logged in places like San Francisco, Columbia, and Thailand.” Marco Estrada, Shore Excursion Manager with Crystal explains, “We call it ‘You Care, We Care.’ Our off-shore itinerary now includes options to visit specially-selected nonprofits, where passengers can volunteer. Even more strange, perhaps, is that his involvement at the Food Bank was courtesy of a well-known cruise ship line.įor the past 2 years, Crystal Cruises has been developing a program that encourages passengers, like Terry, to not only enjoy each port-of-call in leisure, but to also do something special to give back to the local communities in some way. Terry Hardie is a retiree, living with his wife in Boulder Colorado, so it was a little strange spotting him so far from home, bagging rice in our San Francisco warehouse. |