![]() ![]() She has made appearances as a field reporter for Armando Iannucci vehicle The Saturday Night Armistice. Perkins has appeared on several BBC shows including Have I Got News for You, Mock the Week, QI, Room 101, Celebrity Weakest Link, Question Time and Newsnight. In the same year, Perkins also provided additional written material for BBC sitcom Absolutely Fabulous. In 2003, Perkins joined Channel 4 morning television programme RI:SE. She provided the voice for Messenger Bird in Dinotopia, produced for Hallmark Entertainment. Perkins was evicted from the house on Day 9. During the series, she interacted with series winner Mark Owen from Take That, and TV presenter Les Dennis. In 2002, Perkins appeared on the second UK series of Celebrity Big Brother in aid of four charities, Centrepoint, National Missing Persons Helpline, Rethink and Samaritans. On 23 July 2017, it was confirmed that they would host a new version of The Generation Game for BBC One. In August 2015, it was announced that Mel and Sue had been cancelled by ITV. In January 2015, Giedroyc and Perkins began hosting their own daytime chat show on ITV called Mel and Sue. After a few years writing for French & Saunders (and occasionally appearing on their BBC series), they co-hosted a lunchtime show on Channel 4 entitled Light Lunch, and an early evening version, Late Lunch, which ran from March 1997 to February 1998. The duo began to gain success and were short-listed for the Daily Express Best Newcomers award at the Edinburgh Festival in 1993. Perkins and creative partner Mel Giedroyc took their first steps into television under the name Mel and Sue. She was Footlights president during the academic year 1990–91. While at Cambridge, she was a member of the Footlights, where she met Mel Giedroyc. She later studied English at New Hall (now Murray Edwards College) at the University of Cambridge, graduating in 1991. She was educated at Croham Hurst School, a nearby independent school for girls in South Croydon, Greater London, at the same time as television presenter Susanna Reid. Her father worked for a local car dealership and her mother was employed as a secretary. Perkins was born on 22 September 1969 in Croydon, London, where she grew up with her two younger siblings, and her parents. Originally coming to prominence through her comedy partnership with Mel Giedroyc in Mel and Sue, she has since become best known as a radio broadcaster and television presenter, notably of The Great British Bake Off (2010–2016), Insert Name Here (2016–2019) and Just a Minute (since 2021) on BBC Radio 4. ![]() Susan Elizabeth Perkins (born 22 September 1969) is an English actress, broadcaster, comedian, presenter and writer. ![]()
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![]() ![]() He has also mastered Spike’s languid anime gait, hands parked in the pockets of an angular blue suit that would not look out of place on a Duran Duran album cover. Here, he finds an insouciant, playful groove, and the commitment of his physical performance goes beyond hand-to-hand combat training. ![]() Pineda’s Faye is an entertainingly dismissive motormouth who reveals emotional depths as the season unfolds.īoth have excellent chemistry with Cho, an actor who radiated decency as Sulu in the recent Star Trek movies and uptightness in the Harold and Kumar franchise, but has rarely been given the chance to play the coolest person in the room. Shakir, formerly a menacing heavy in Netflix’s Luke Cage series, is gruff but convincingly big-hearted as the ex-cop who dotes over a daughter he rarely sees. Maintaining such a heightened, madcap tone is a high-wire act that relies on the charisma of the three leads. Playful groove … John Cho as Spike Spiegel in Cowboy Bebop. Most episodes involve the Bebop crew chasing down larger-than-life criminals – including hardline eco-terrorists, killer clowns and a deranged bomber in an oversized teddy bear mask – with the prospect of a confrontation between the laconic Spike and the cruel Vicious bubbling just below the surface. Spike has a complicated history with ashen-haired gang- enforcer Vicious (Alex Hassell) and songbird moll Julia (Elena Satine). ![]() The verbal fencing among the trio is almost manic – the ship’s breakout space even has a sitcom-ready scuffed yellow couch.īut all three voyagers also have painful secrets that threaten to overwhelm the present. Perhaps because of hunger, the mood on board the Bebop is usually irritable or sarcastic. They struggle to keep their heads above water even before sharp-tongued rival Faye Valentine (Daniella Pineda) gatecrashes their clunky amphibious spaceship, the Bebop. Yet, owing to bad luck and questionable personal decisions, the pair are constantly on the back foot. By rights, they should be elite bounty hunters. His imposing partner Jet Black (Mustafa Shakir) is a tough-as-nails former cop with a metal arm. Spiegel is a gifted sharpshooter and martial arts master. Freelance “cowboys” bring in villains – dead or alive – for a reward, just like in the old west. An excess of outlaws and ne’er-do-wells in these hardscrabble places has made bounty hunting a popular occupation. There are space station casinos and gleaming cyberpunk cities but also countless rickety towns and dusty outposts on far-flung moons (the series was shot in New Zealand and often looks appropriately otherworldly). An unspecified disaster on Earth has pushed humankind out into the local cosmos, creating a new galactic frontier. It is set in a vibrant but messy sci-fi future, precariously built on top of the technological and pop-culture clutter of now. The 2021 version is a fast-talking, visually amped-up space western that feels stylised and swaggering to near saturation, powered by the same jazz freakout soundtrack that helped make the original an enduring cult hit. But even if you were unaware of Cowboy Bebop’s animated origins it might not take long to twig that this 10-part series was inspired by an exuberant cartoon. The outcome involves a frantic foot chase, a rooftop fight and a memorable moment with a gigantic provocative billboard.ĭoing things “the fun way” seems to have been the mission statement for this live-action adaptation of a 1998 Japanese anime series, made with the blessing of its original creator Shinichirō Watanabe. “We can do this the easy way, or the fun way,” purrs Spiegel. The self-amused hero has an ice-cool opening line ready to go. While propping up the bar at a gaudy sex club on Mars, a rakish bounty hunter improbably named Spike Spiegel (John Cho) locks eyes with his current target: a murderous, anxious thief. ![]() ![]() These can also be used for astrophotography. With all the technological accessories such as software which integrates the telescope with your smartphone and lets you control the telescope simply by pointing your smartphone at a location or an object in the sky, compound telescopes are pretty user-friendly for beginner users. But you’ll need to make sure the corrector plate is free from dew with a collar or extension. For amateur astronomers, this means a highly portable large-aperture telescope with a long focal length.Ĭompound telescopes have a sealed tube making them dust-free even when you take them with you for summer night observing trips. With their ‘optical folding’ capability, these scopes are only two to three times in length compared to their width. These mirror-and-lens combos are usually very compact in their usual forms, such as the Schmidt-Cassegrain and Maksutov-Cassegrain. You will need to learn polar alignment which is to have the scope’s polar axis aligned with the rotational axis of Earth.Ĭompound telescopes are a recent invention from the 1930s, and they are designed to combine the best of both telescope types – refractors and reflectors. Equatorial mounts are almost mandatory for astrophotography and high magnification observations of the Moon or Jupiter or Saturn and so on. Telescopes with alt-az mounts are preferable for casual observers – especially Dobsonians. When you need to track a single astronomical object for long durations, a telescope with an equatorial mount is the best option since you will only need to adjust the scope along one axis only. A telescope with an equatorial mount will be needed for deep-sky astronomy and astrophotography. These refinements become useful when you are viewing a planet or the Moon at high magnifications.Įquatorial mounts are essential if you are considering buying the best professional telescope. Good quality alt-az mounts will have finely threaded slow-motion controls so that the scope can be moved smoothly in tiny increments. Small telescopes with alt-az mounts are a simple affair and can make for a great combo if you are looking for the best telescope for beginners. Equatorial mounts also move the telescope in two axes, one of which is aligned with the rotational axis of Earth. There are primarily two types of telescope mounts: altitude-azimuth and equatorial.Īn alt-az telescope mount can move the telescope up-or-down (‘alt’) and left-or-right (‘az’). And the telescope’s focus must not change when you let go of the focus knob. The telescope’s view should stay stable instead of wiggling when you are focusing the telescope with the focus knob. If you are observing a deep-sky object for a longer duration or doing astrophotography, which will require keeping the telescope pointed at an object for hours, the telescope mount will the telescope pointed at the right object as the Earth rotates underneath.Ī ‘stable’ telescope mount is one that will not keep vibrating for more than a second if you tap the telescope tube. ![]() The telescope mount carries the weight of the telescope and keeps the telescope pointed in the right direction. Whether you treat the telescope mount as part of the telescope or an accessory, you need a good telescope mount if you are looking for the best telescope for viewing planets. ![]() ![]() Do I need to obtain permits to have a dumpster on my property?ĭepending on where you plan to place the dumpster, you may need to acquire certain permits from your local government. ![]() It is also important to check with your rental company about any special requirements for delivering the dumpster. You may also need access to an outdoor power source to hook up the dumpster, such as a standard outlet or generator. How should I prepare for dumpster delivery?īefore the dumpster arrives, you must ensure a clear path for the truck and that all necessary permits are in order. Generally, you can rent a dumpster for anywhere from one day to several weeks, so it is important to check with your rental company for specific terms. How long can I rent a dumpster?Īgain, this will depend on your rental provider and the size of the dumpster. It is best to contact your local rental company for an accurate quote. Generally, larger dumpsters will cost more than smaller ones, and the price may also be affected by the distance the dumpster needs to travel. The cost will depend on various factors, such as size and location. It is important to check with your rental company before filling the dumpster to ensure that all of your items are allowed. However, certain hazardous or prohibited materials, such as chemicals and tires, may not be accepted. Generally, you can put most general household and yard waste into the dumpster, as well as some construction-related debris. Yes, most rental companies will have guidelines about what items are allowed in their dumpsters. Are there any restrictions on the type of materials I can put in a dumpster? It is not the official website of Budget Dumpster Rental - Westlake, OH.Īre you affiliated with Budget Dumpster Rental - Westlake, OH? Is there information that we can update to keep things accurate? Use this form to request an edit to this page. This page and website is a part of the Wastebits Locator, providing a comprehensive resource of contact information for waste handlers. Learn more about how we help people and companies each day at Asked Questions Is this the official Budget Dumpster Rental - Westlake, OH website? 67 in 2016) and one of Fortune’s Most Flexible Workplaces (2016). 966 in 2015), one of the top five fastest growing companies in Northeast Ohio by Crain’s (2015), one of the largest waste and recycling firms in North America (No. Working with over 250 local partners, Budget Dumpster sells thousands of temporary roll-off dumpsters each week for projects big and small.īased in suburban Cleveland with a growing team of over 60 employees, Budget Dumpster has been recognized as one of America’s fastest growing companies by the Inc. 966 fastest-growing private companies by Inc. magazineĮstablished in 2009, Budget Dumpster delivers affordable waste removal services in 46 states and most major markets throughout the United States. Most Flexible Workplaces, ranked #31 by Fortune.67 largest waste and recycling firms in North America by Waste360 On June 15, the Budget Dumpster co-founders were presented with the 2016 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year® Award for the Northeast Ohio Region in the Retail and Consumer Products & Services category.Īdditional recognition Budget Dumpster has received over the last 12 months: ![]() The Inspiring Scaleup CEO Award was the second award received by Fenn and Campbell over the past month. Since inception, the company has seen annual double-digit revenue growth, including 45 percent growth in 2015 and 40 percent growth through Q1 2016. ![]() “It is also extra special to be the very first winners of this award with so much talent in this region.”įenn and Campbell founded Budget Dumpster in 2009 to disrupt a waste industry niche – temporary roll-off dumpsters – that was ripe for innovation. “It’s such an honor to be recognized by Jumpstart, who does so much for Northeast Ohio entrepreneurs,” said Campbell. The first-year award was conceived to highlight the CEO of fast-growing small businesses in Northeast Ohio who are driving economic impact in the community and was presented as part of Jumpstart Inc.’s “Startup Scaleup” event on June 28 at the Capitol Theatre in Cleveland, Ohio. Westlake, Ohio – J– Budget Dumpster, one of the leading and fastest growing waste companies in the U.S., has announced that co-founders John Fenn and Mark Campbell of Budget Dumpster have been awarded the Inspiring Scaleup CEO Award by Jumpstart, Inc.įenn and Campbell were among seven finalists and selected based on company growth, job creation, positive work environment and business leadership. John Fenn and Mark Campbell are first recipients of new award ![]() ![]() ![]() Now, you want to search for something but you do not remember where to search. Universal Search: Let’s assume that you have added 3 email accounts in Polymail.You can set any time and any date in the email and the email will be sent at correct time. Therefore, the simple way to wish at perfect time is schedule email. Schedule email: Suppose, you want to wish someone on his/her birthday.Therefore, you can just snooze the email accordingly. Or, suppose you have got an email what you have to read minutely but you do not have much time on your hand. Snooze email: Sometime, we get some email that is interesting but many not be important.If you send single email to multiple recipients, you will get the timings separately. No matter, how many people get email from you, but you will still get the tracking feature for all of them. Read receipt: It will help you to track whether someone has read your email or not. ![]() Some of the most useful features are mentioned below, Talking about the features, Polymail does excel in different ways. You will get a neat and clean user interface of Polymail. Polymail for iOS Reviewįirst thing first, the interface of Polymail is truly attractive and there is no doubt that developers have spent pretty long time to design this app. The best part is it is available for free. Some features of Polymail make it even better email client for iOS. Having said that, there are many other email clients but Polymail is something different from all the others. Also, previously, Polymail needed invitation to install the app but that thing is ditched with the launch of iOS edition.Īlthough, iOS has a beautiful and very useful email client called Apple Mail but still sometime you may need a different email client which has more features and does more things than Apple Mail. However, now the other Apple users aka iOS users would be able to use Polymail on their respective device. Earlier, the developers launched this interest feature-rich email client only for Mac. The Mac based email client, Polymail, has got an enhancement and now this free email client is available for iOS as well. Many little UI bugs that appear when you try to import and edit recipients for campaigns/sequences.Polymail: Most Powerful Email Client for iOS Should have never been released to the customers like that. SO basically the message I created was altered by the system. Images that I had added to a message that was sent out to many many people were missing, simply gone by the time the sequence was sent out. This function should be disabled at this point. But go ahead and send this message and open it in another email client: the images are distorted/stretched beyond recognition. Two examples: You can no resize/scale images inside a message. I get the feeling that they are too excited to launch new functions and ignore the basics of quality control. The User-Interface is, to say it mildly, not very intuitive. ![]() The campaigns and sequences are a great promotion tool. As a subscription customer you can see who and when someone opened your mail, if the clicked a link, downloaded a file - brilliant for business use. When I really need to know if an attachment has been downloaded or when I need to get a message to many people. Excited at first and way too often frustrated with a bloated and unintuitive application. ![]() ![]() Foods high in simple sugars, like candy, soda, and alcohol, can lead to rapid weight gain, which often accumulates in the stomach area.Ĭutting back on wine can also have a ton of benefits for your mental health. Overconsumption of wine can also lead to bad decisions regarding food, disrupted sleeping patterns, and hangovers. Too much alcohol consumption can lead to liver dysfunction, which can stunt how your body processes what you eat. The liver also plays a large role in the metabolism of fats, carbs, and proteins. The liver’s primary role is to filter out any foreign substances that enter your body, such as drugs and alcohol. One of the main ways that wine consumption can affect weight loss has nothing to do with its calories. While drinks like wine and vodka can be low-calorie, there are some sneaky ways alcohol can stunt your weight loss that you may not be aware of. If you’re looking to shed a few pounds, cutting out alcohol may be the key to your success. One of the biggest reasons to cut back on wine is weight loss. But, there are a variety of reasons why it may be a good idea to cut back. Obviously, wine is delicious, and we all love drinking a glass or two. Let’s go over some of the benefits of cutting back on your alcohol consumption and find some recommendations for the best non-alcoholic wines on the market today. Luckily, there are many non-alcoholic wine options out there that will let you enjoy the taste and feeling of drinking wine without the alcohol content or the hangover. However, if you love the taste of a glass of wine or don’t want to miss out on the social aspects of drinking, the prospect of giving up wine completely may be daunting. Whether you’re trying to lose some weight, doing a dry January, or you’re just sick of waking up with hangovers, it never hurts to cut back on your drinking. There are so many reasons why cutting back on your liquor consumption may be rewarding. ![]() ![]() You’ll obviously need to enter your username and password and perhaps answer a recovery question or. Kim suggests “ounce of prevention” measures here, as in, take time now to walk through Google’s Security Checkup tool before anything bad happens to your account in the first place. The first recovery step is simply to log in and see if it lets you into your account. If you’ve already lost it, there may be cases where if you don’t have advanced security measures set up already-like using your phone as a two-factor login tool or keeping your recovery phone numbers updated-there may be no way to get it back. Of course, this all only works if you’ve set up the appropriate measures before your account gets hacked. ![]() Kim says, “The idea is to let the real user back into their Google account while blocking the hijacker.” ago SCAM WARNING If you are having a problem with your account, beware of scammers who may comment or DM you telling you to contact someone who can fix your account, or they may even ask you for money or your login information. When behavior points more toward an account hijacking or something nefarious, Google can force the account holder to go through the Account Recovery tool to verify their identity and change their password. In other words, the set-it-and-forget-it strategy often used when managing Google My Business accounts after they have been verified is not viable. ![]() Some of those patterns include signing in on a computer or new phone for the first time, changing passwords, or other events that users can also review on their account security page.Īlerts sent out in these cases allow the account owner to check first to see if something fishy is going on “and if our detection logic has not picked up on it yet,” Kim says. (Optional) To return to the user’s account page, at the top, click the Up arrow. Click the users name to open the users account page. If you need help, go to Find a user account. Kim says that different types of signals and patterns can factor into the decision to disable or flag an account, which isn’t terribly clear, but also shows how broadly the company looks at potentially damaging activity. Need help recovering a lost or forgotten Twitter password. A Google My Business suspension is when your GMB listing is no longer visible on Google and Google Maps or you have lost control of your listing (your business listing is. In the Admin console, go to Menu Directory Users. ![]() How Does Google Decide to Suspend an Account? ![]() ![]() “That's the power of our particular brand of impact investing. “We're essentially the shock absorber in the middle, the missing piece that we call the ‘but for’ money - meaning, but for our piece, they couldn't bring in the rest of the money,” she adds. Treasury Department Community Development Advisory Board and one of the founders of the Mission Investors Exchange. Vice President, General Counsel, and Secretary, MacArthur Foundation (Arc Chair) Debra D. “We can give these institutions a cushion so that when an insurance company or a pension fund wants to invest, that investor can get a market rate of return and have enough risk mitigation,” says Schwartz, who is a past presidential appointee to the U.S. MacArthur invests in these institutions with a long-term horizon, in most cases planning an exit after 10 years. ![]() There are about 800 CDFIs in the nation, some of which focus on serving individuals (e.g., by providing payday lending, bank accounts, or affordable housing) and others that focus on small businesses (e.g., by bringing credit to businesses in low-income neighborhoods). In addition to selecting the MacArthur Fellows, we work to defend human rights, advance global conservation and security, make cities better places, and understand how technology is affecting children and society. The Managing Director of Impact Investments for the Macarthur Foundation speaks with David Bank about catalytic capital, getting enterprises the kind of financing they need and how technology is driving down costs for impact solutions. The MacArthur Foundation supports creative people and effective institutions committed to building a more just, verdant, and peaceful world. Schwartz explains that, in the United States, there is an enormous need for community development financial institutions, or CDFIs. At the MacArthur Foundation, Schwartz oversees a 300-million investment portfolio that supports economic development and affordable housing organizations in. Listen to this episode from Impact Alpha Podcasts on Spotify. In fact, it’s not allowed under the IRS tax code definition of a Program-Related Investment.” “But if you do the kind of impact investing that I do, you can’t seek a market rate of return. With these investments, “there has to be some expectation of a financial return, whether it’s through a loan, equity investment or guarantee,” she says. MacArthur Foundation.Īt the MacArthur Foundation, Schwartz oversees a $300-million investment portfolio that supports economic development and affordable housing organizations in the United States. That experience set her down a path leading to where Schwartz is today, serving as managing director of impact investing at the John D. ![]() Schwartz found her answer in a class taught by Professor Donald Haider, who introduced her to the world of public finance and the ways in which industry and society could intersect for mutual benefit. “I was eager to learn how social-purpose organizations earned, raised and managed their money,” recalls Schwartz, who had worked in the nonprofit sector, mostly in human services, for several years prior to Kellogg. MacArthur Foundation, makes comments about The Bottom Line: Investing for Impact on Economic Mobility in the U.S. She earned a Master's degree from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a Bachelor's degree from Yale College summa cum laude.Contact a speaker booking agent to check availability on Debra Schwartz and other top speakers and celebrities.When Debra Schwartz ’88 came to Kellogg in the late 1980s, she had a keen interest in social enterprise - even though that term was somewhat foreign in the broader business community. A frequent speaker and guest lecturer Debra has also served on the United States Treasury Department Community Development Advisory Board and the founding board for the Mission Investors Exchange. ![]() She joined MacArthur in 1995 having worked at a Chicago-based child welfare agency. A former investment banker Debra also leads the creation of new impact investment products and platforms that foster easier more efficient and more productive connections among multiple impact investors and social sector organizations. Debra’s group serves as a Foundation-wide resource and engages deeply with selected teams to help develop strategy and devise impact investments that advance key goals. Debra serves on the Executive Leadership Team at MacArthur which has dedicated $500 million of its assets to impact investing. That experience set her down a path leading to where Schwartz is today, serving as managing director of impact investing at the John D. ![]() ![]() ![]() Otherwise, the function returns false to indicate that the arrangement is not greater than the previous, but the lowest possible (sorted in ascending order). Return value true if the function could rearrange the object as a lexicographicaly greater permutation. This can either be a function pointer or a function object. The function shall not modify any of its arguments. Problem: Implement next permutation, which rearranges numbers into the lexicographically next greater permutation of numbers. The value returned indicates whether the first argument is considered to go before the second in the specific strict weak ordering it defines. You seem to want it to mean the next permutation of a given vector in a lexicographic ordering of all permutations of that vector, which I don’t think is part of the Combinatorics. The range used is [first,last), which contains all the elements between first and last, including the element pointed by first but not the element pointed by last.īidirectionalIterator shall point to a type for which swap is properly defined.Ĭomp Binary function that accepts two arguments of the type pointed by BidirectionalIterator, and returns a value convertible to bool. A next permutation only makes sense when you have a clear definition of what next is supposed to mean. Parameters first, last Bidirectional iterators to the initial and final positions of the sequence. A permutation is each one of the N possible arrangements the elements can take (where N is the number of elements in the range). Since the string you start with ( 'xxxxxoooo') is actually the last permutation of that string's characters in lexicographic order, your loop stops immediately. std:: nextpermutation Transform range to next permutation Rearranges the elements in the range first,last) into the next lexicographically greater permutation. If that was not possible (because it is already at the largest possible permutation), it rearranges the elements according to the first permutation (sorted in ascending order) and returns false. std::nextpermutation returns the next permutation in lexicographic order, and returns false if the first permutation (in that order) is generated. Permutes range in-place to the next lexicographically greater permutation. If the function can determine the next higher permutation, it rearranges the elements as such and returns true. Permutations enumerated through std::nextpermutation form a cyclic sequence without a beginning or an end, which means that you can call std::nextpermutation indefinitely and it will cycle through the same sequence of 120 permutations again, again and again. The comparisons of individual elements are performed using either operator< for the first version, or comp for the second. ![]() Find the largest index j greater than i such that Lj > L. ![]() Different permutations can be ordered according to how they compare lexicographicaly to each other The first such-sorted possible permutation (the one that would compare lexicographically smaller to all other permutations) is the one which has all its elements sorted in ascending order, and the largest has all its elements sorted in descending order. Next permutation in Python 3.4 Find the largest index i such that Li < Li + 1. I searched a lot to find out the internal of the function but I did not find good sources. Then I searched for library function for solve a the problem. ![]() Now, reverse the array from index index until the end of the array.Rearranges the elements in the range [first,last) into the next lexicographically greater permutation.Ī permutation is each one of the N! possible arrangements the elements can take (where N is the number of elements in the range). Recently I solved a problem of permutation.Swap the two elements at indices index and j.Again scan the array from right to left until an element is found which is greater than the element found in the above step.Scan the array from right to left until an element is found which is smaller than the index at its right. std::nextpermutation generates the next permutation in just linear time, and it can also handle repeated characters and generates distinct permutations.The constraints are that we need to implement this without extra space and modifications are done only in-place. The next number that contains the same digits as 123 is 132. We will be given an array of integers, and we need to find the next possible permutation of the number that is formed by combining the elements of the array.įor e.g., if given array is nums =, the number formed by combining the elements of this array is 123. The nextpermutation() function returns true when it rearranges the elements in the next greater lexicographical permutation. ![]() ![]() Sonic will fall flat on his face, ruining his momentum and causing the loss of some rings. Similarly, chopper blocks are sort of opening spiky mouths that grab your feet if you step on them. Patches of different coloured ground (the colour varies depending on the stage) that appear on path edges will slow you down considerably when you run across them. On the arena floor, there are several other objects and surfaces to watch out for, in addition to the water. Popping this one is completely optional, and does nothing to your total number of UFO's destroyed, but it will shell out an additional 30 seconds for you when you destroy it, and they can reappear if you go down to 20 seconds again afterwards. To make things a bit fairer as far as the time limit goes, if it gets down to 20 seconds left, an additional blue UFO will appear in the center of the arena, signified by a special low warping kind of sound. Rings only serve as things that you can cash in for bonus points afterwards, and have no relation to health while in the Special stage, but for each UFO in a row that pays out rings rather than speed-ups, you'll get 20 for the first one, an additional 40 for the next, then 80, then 160, and so on. You'll know when you've hit one though, as explosions will ensue and you'll get a power up of either additional speed (the sneaker icon) or some rings. Later Special Stages get considerably harder as more water is introduced, or the UFO's become faster and develop better skills at sneaking round you in mid air. Much of the ground is made up of roads, so if you jump at and miss a UFO, you may only have a small space to turn around in. For every second you spend in the water, an absolutely and completely merciless 10 seconds is taken off of the timer, so if you land in the drink, you'll want to jump out immediately and try to make it back to dry land as quickly as possible. You start off with 100 seconds to do it, but the arena you're running around is principally made up of ground paths and water. ![]() Sounds simple, eh? Well, as always, there is a catch, and that's the foul mistress of all gaming - a time limit. The objective is to leap into the air and destroy six different purple UFO's that are floating around the arena. Sonic runs forward automatically, and you can use the left and right directions to steer him, while the camera remains behind him the whole time. The Special Stage itself takes place on a fairly small, square pseudo 3D board which you can roam freely across. Once you've made it through all seven, you'll start to revisit the Special Stages that you didn't complete, the next time you enter the giant ring. When you gain another 50 rings in a different zone and return to the Special Stage, you'll go to the second one, and so on. ![]() When you enter the first one, you'll return to the main game afterwards whether you were successful or not. There are seven Special Stages, one for each Time Stone, and you play them one at a time. Next to the signpost at the end, you'll find a giant ring floating in the air, ala Sonic 1. To gain access to a Special Stage, complete either Zone 1 or 2 (any timezone) of any of the seven levels, while holding at least 50 rings. When you complete a Special Stage, you earn yourself a Time Stone (not Chaos Emeralds this time around), and all seven Time Stones automatically grant you a Good Future for every zone, so it's up to you. The other alternative is to create Good Futures for each and every level, which I personally find to be the easier and more fun option. ![]() Fortunately in Sonic CD, completing the seven rather tough Special Stages, also known as Special Zones here, is only one of two things you can do to complete the game properly, so they are actually completely optional. Normally, the completion of all Special Stages is essential for finishing the game properly and seeing the good ending. ![]() |
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