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Adjusting to a new reality
Donations can be arranged by emailing photos of bikes to info@bikewalksavannah.org
WHILE distilleries were retooling their production lines to produce hand sanitizer, Mark Sussman and his colleagues in Washington D.C. were repurposing their smartphone app to help people find stores that had it in stock.
Launched in January, OurStreets was originally designed to serve as a “community-driven data platform through which users can report dangerous driving and shared mobility issues,” such as cars parked on sidewalks or in bike lanes.
Now the app has been augmented with “Supplies” an interface for shoppers and retailers to update stock levels, and a search feature to better understand the supply level of essential goods in their communities.
“I got a call from the DC Department of Public Works in mid-March asking if we could repurpose OurStreets to crowdsource the availability of essential supplies during the COVID-19 crisis. We of course said yes and realized quickly that this needed to be a nationwide effort,” Sussman said.
“A few hours after that call, I huddled the OurStreets team that was already working from home at that point, and we got to work that day. We went from that meeting to launch in 11 days, doing about two months of product development in less than two weeks.”
In addition to hand sanitizer, the app allows shoppers to report stock levels of toilet paper, dairy products, and fresh produce, among other items. Users can also report whether or not social distancing is being practiced inside stores.
While the Supplies function is currently driving downloads of the app, Sussman said he anticipates this will bolster interest in the original intent of OurStreets as those who downloaded the app specifically for the Supplies function are becoming aware of the app’s core mission.
“Additionally, we’ve been able to activate our existing municipal and advocacy organization relationships to promote OurStreets Supplies, this in turn is bringing more users to the platform. A portion of new users brought in through these efforts are really digging the street safety work, so when we ‘re-launch’ OurStreets street safety functionality post-COVID-19, we’re going to have a much larger user base.”
Sussman said the pandemic is also making people more aware of how much public space has been surrendered to motor vehicles now that “walkers, runners and cyclists fighting over the scraps and trying to safety social distance at the same time.”
Caila Brown, executive director of Bike Walk Savannah, has observed the same trend locally.
“As spatial distancing requirements continue, more and more people are recognizing how hard it is to do properly in the space currently allocated for people walking, biking or rolling. But they’re also recognizing the importance of the physical and mental benefits brought by that exercise, and are asking why so much space is dedicated to vehicles that aren’t going anywhere,” she said.
Brown hopes this will lead to more empathy for those who faced significant mobility challenges even before the pandemic hit. She said she senses that Savannahians are “acknowledging the difficulties faced by people getting around for transportation, and not just recreation.”
Like Sussman, Brown had to adapt quickly in response to changing conditions. Bike Walk Savannah previously worked with nonprofit organizations and social service agencies to identify people who needed bicycles refurbished by its New Standard Cycles program.
“We were prepared for more requests for bikes coming in from our existing partners, but quickly realized that they were getting overwhelmed with requests related to housing, employment and food needs. We decided it was the perfect time to temporarily open our program to working directly with individuals,” she said.
Inspired by an initiative launched in New York City by the group Transportation Alternatives, other organizations in Georgia have initiated “Bike Match” programs to pair those in need of bikes with people who have bikes they are not using.
So far Brown said she’s received nearly 150 requests for bikes and hears similar stories from those who need them.
“Many of them are people who rely on Chatham Area Transit to get around, but with the reduction of bus services they have found themselves walking hours to get to work, or their shift has changed and their carpool is no longer available, or they now have to get groceries for multiple vulnerable neighbors,” she said.
Brown needs more ready-to-ride or nearly ready bikes in good condition.
“These are bikes that, with some air in the tires or a quick dusting, you would feel comfortable giving to a family member or friend to immediately ride,” she said.
News Cycle,
Bike Walk Savannah,
OurStreets
John Bennett is Safety Education Programs Manager at Georgia Bikes.
Sandy West, longtime guardian of Ossabaw Island, dies at 108
Davenport House Museum develops new exhibit to recognize enslaved former residents
River Street’s reformation brings a whiskey resurgence at The Trade Room
Speaking of Bike Walk Savannah , OurStreets
The News Cycle is complete: Lessons learned from writing a decade of columns about transportation and quality of life
Sustaining the increase in outdoor recreation
Plan T for Trails & Tours
Bike Walk Savannah distributes bikes to people in need
More by John Bennett
Bike repair in an age of pandemic
Latest in News Cycle
More News Cycle »
By Lindy Moody
Police leaders of Chatham County discuss potential of local threats related to presidential inauguration
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India's automotive market poised for electric vehicle boom
19 August 2020 Consultancy.in
A number of factors are combining to make India’s electric vehicle (EV) market ripe for growth in the near future, according to new sector-wide analysis from Kearney.
The report shows how consumer and producer attitudes, as well as the underlying physical and regulatory infrastructure are all conducive to rapid electrification. India is urbanising at a quick pace, leading to the emergence of an expanding middle class in search of suitable mobility options.
Despite growing disposable income reserves, the cost of mobility remains a key consideration for middle class consumers, while coverage, energy-efficiency and comfort are also top of mind. According to Kearney, these priorities fit nicely within the electrification agenda.
“Urban consumers are expected to drive penetration in the early phase of adoption. Electric cars geared toward young, environmentally conscious buyers will accelerate adoption,” wrote co-author of the report and partner at Kearney Manish Mathur. Obvious environmental benefits aside, these consumers are likely to be lured in by the falling costs of EVs.
In fact, Kearney’s report shows that the total cost of ownership (TCO) of an EV is far lower than a petrol or diesel vehicle, owing to high fuel prices. This is a relatively new phenomenon, and given that the initial cost of acquiring an EV is among the biggest barriers to adoption, this scenario is likely to push EV adoption over the hurdle.
So the demand is in place, but supply has been slow to come by. High costs of equipment and an overall lack of infrastructure has so far discouraged manufacturers from giving EVs centre stage in production. Personal EVs are set to be drivers of adoption, but there are significant challenges to adoption beyond just the cost burden.
”Although the market for personal vehicles is large and has significant potential, wider adoption faces several challenges, such as lack of comparable product options, range anxiety, and lack of experience with EVs. Home charging will continue to dominate, but this could be challenging since many Indian households do not have garages. Even in high-rise apartments, setting up infrastructure can be a difficult task. There is also a lack of highway charging infrastructure, restricting use to intracity travel,” explained co-author and principal at Kearney Rahul Mishra.
These barriers have weighed on EV progress in India, to the extent that the government has fallen behind on its electrification targets by some distance. While the aim was to replace all internal combustion engines (ICEs) with EVs by 2030, a McKinsey & Company report from 2017 indicated that 40% electrification was a more realistic picture of mobility in 2030.
That being said, the government has been actively involved in developing the infrastructure and the regulatory framework required to get as close to electrification targets as possible. An Arthur D. Little report from 2018 positioned 2020 as the tipping point that would lead to a boom in electrification.
Here in 2020, Kearney points to the fact that the ecosystem is very much in favour of such a boom. One concern previously was around the power supply capacity in India, and whether it could meet the demand created by electrification. The authors report that India has “bridged the demand-supply gap in the past two to three years,” and will install another 300 gigawatts of capacity by 2030.
From a regulatory perspective, programmes such as the National Electric Mobility Mission Plan launched this year have paved the way for incentives and subsidies that will push manufacturers towards EVs. Several of India’s largest states have also implemented schemes at the local level to drive production.
What remains is the pressing issue of charging infrastructure, which requires large amounts of capital investment and is slow to produce returns. According to Kearney, members of the EV ecosystem are exploring various business models – state run, public private partnerships, aggregators and others – to help tackle this issue head on.
“The next wave of EV penetration will depend on identifying the right segments and applications, designing the right product, and shaping the appropriate business model and value proposition,” concluded the report authors.
More Automotive
Ola Electric Mobility buys the 'Dutch Tesla on two wheels' As it makes a foray into the electric two-wheeler market, Indian mobility platform Ola Electric Mobility has acquired Dutch electric scooter player Etergo.
Automotive sector sends executives home to wait out Covid-19 As factories make changes to their operations to minimise the risk of infection, India’s automotive sector is set to experience major disruption in the coming weeks.
What the latest road safety legislation means for India Following the enactment of the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act 2019 (MVA 2019) in August last year, Big Four accounting and advisory firm PwC has released comprehensive analysis of the report’s salien
More Sustainability
FTI outlines eight pillars of India's green hydrogen roadmap In a new report, FTI consulting has laid down eight strategies that India should follow to put its green hydrogen ecosystem on track.
Microsoft and Accenture team up to back social enterprises Microsoft India and Accenture Labs are set to collaboratively support entrepreneurs who are developing tech solutions that deliver a positive social and environmental impact.
Transport & Logistics news
More Transport & Logistics
RedSeer and Shadowfax join forces to launch Logistics Index Logistics platform Shadowfax has teamed up with Redseer to create the Logistics Index – a quarterly roundup of supply chain and logistics performance in the ecommerce sector.
Smart cities are ideal breeding grounds for IoT growth in India and globally As Internet of Things continues to permeate various aspects of daily life and market functions alike, analysts are now examining the value of the technology for developing solutions.
Kearney news
More Kearney
Anshuman Sinha joins Kearney's partner team in India Global consulting firm Kearney has promoted Mumbai-based Anshuman Sinha to partner.
Growing number of female executives in BSE 100 boards The global business environment has a long way to go to achieve gender parity in the workplace, although a number of major economies across the world appear to be performing better than India in this
Kaushika Madhavan new India Managing Partner of Kearney Kaushika Madhavan has taken over from Vikas Kaushal as the Managing Partner and India Country Head for global management consultancy Kearney, effective from the start of this year.
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Star Fishes In Tamworth
What is the Starfish Project?
The Starfish Project commenced as an outreach project of Tamworth Covenanting Churches. It is a Christian Charity which operates 4 drop in centres in Tamworth for the most vulnerable people in our community.
Let me tell you a story...
An old man, walking the beach at dawn, noticed a young man ahead of him picking up starfish and flinging then into the sea. The old man exclaimed, 'But the beach goes on for miles and miles, and there are millions of starfish. How can your effort make any difference?' The young man looked at the starfish in his hand and then threw it to safety in the waves, and said, 'It makes a difference to this one!'
The Starfish Project continues to help people who are vulnerable and find themselves on the margins of society.
Led by John Larkin, who formerly worked as a volunteer with Birmingham City Mission, Starfish has grown from meeting in one centre to now four centres across the town. The ethos of Starfish is Christian, though, its reach and ministry extends beyond the Christian community to everyone who needs a listening ear, support and encouragement.
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Home Events Esports debates to take place at ESI Digital Summit on May 26-27th
Esports debates to take place at ESI Digital Summit on May 26-27th
Adam Fitch
The ESI Digital Summit is the exclusive online version of Esports Insider’s industry-leading esports business conferences. Alongside brand showcases, discussions on pressing topics, and ample networking opportunities are debates.
On the first day of the event, May 26th, there will be a dedicated track just for debates. Prominent figures and behind-the-scenes pioneers will delve into numerous topics that make up the past and present of esports as part of our ‘Think’ series.
Listen in as leading luminaries from esports provide their analysis and perspectives, allowing you to be better attuned to the ever-changing circumstances of the industry. Let’s take a look at some of the topics on the agenda.
Great debates at the ESI Digital Summit
Is the esports calendar getting too crowded?
More titles, more tournaments, more players – more enjoyment? With new games entering the market and quickly meeting the demands of a competitive community – think Fortnite, Apex Legends, or VALORANT – naturally comes an increasingly-crowded esports calendar.
The competitive faction of gaming is vastly growing year-on-year, and it had already been effectively impossible to stay on top of the entire industry. Should spectators pick their favourite games and simply follow those instead of being a fan of ‘esports’ as a whole? Should there be less action so we can all stay on top of the daily occurrences?
Image credit: Riot Games
How integral is the development of media rights in esports to the industry at large?
In the past 12 months, media rights deals have become a bigger piece of the pie when it comes to revenue for tournament organisations. Despite esports being a predominantly-digital industry, we’ve observed an increase in linear TV broadcast deals.
With ESL and DreamHack coming together to forge the ESL Pro Tour, for example, the MTG-owned tournament organisers have been able to sell such rights more than ever before – and for a higher cost, too. With monetisation on the tip of every industry person’s tongue, how integral is the development of media rights to esports?
What’s next for esports-related venues of all shapes and sizes post-quarantine?
The likes of Allied Esports and Nerd Street Gamers are working hard to develop physical locations dedicated to esports in the West, but COVID-19 has shown the vulnerability of such an endeavour.
Their ambitious plans are in action, despite the ongoing obstacles in place, but what’s next for them once limitations are lifted? How will things change moving forward? Has this unfortunate situation opened their eyes to supplementary and complementary business ventures? This session will tackle all of these topics and more.
Photo credit: Nerd Street Gamers
The bubble won’t burst, but the dam is leaking – should we expect consolidation in esports in 2020?
There are a lot of companies in esports, with new ventures being launched each and every week. The industry has no major barrier to entry so it’s easy to get started, and it’s an attractive prospect for many when you listen to the narratives of esports being the ‘next big thing.’ From a competitive organisation to a media endeavour, companies of all shapes and sizes are popping up.
Some people believe that consolidation is the key to battling the lack of cashflow we see in certain sectors of the industry, with companies joining forces to strengthen their market share and cut some costs. This debate will posit the potential benefits and pitfalls of such moves.
If this small selection of debates piques your interest, the ESI Digital Summit can provide much more value for you. Secure your spot while you can!
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HomeCOMMENTARYNew York Times admits Ukraine’s Yanukovich was right not to sign EU deal
New York Times admits Ukraine’s Yanukovich was right not to sign EU deal
December 29, 2016 Pam Barker COMMENTARY, GOVERNMENT, WORLD 0
BRYAN MacDONALD
Three years after the event, the establishment media is finally issuing mea culpas for its self-interested support of ‘Euromaidan,’ the Western-backed ‘regime change’ crusade which destroyed Ukraine.
I was wondering how long this would take. But now that it’s happened let’s raise a Christmas glass to the New York Times and its reporter, Andrew Kramer. Because they’ve finally admitted that those of us who opposed Kiev’s ‘Euromaidan’ movement were right. Furthermore, America’s ‘newspaper of record’ has acknowledged how, despite its own fervent encouragement of the violent coup, former President Victor Yanukovich was correct not to sign a tightfisted free trade deal with the European Union.
Anti-government protests at the Independence Square (Maidan) in Kiev, January 30, 2014. © Gleb Garanich / Reuters
The NYT uses the collapse of Ukraine’s once lucrative agriculture industry to illustrate its climbdown. Especially the poultry business, which due to miserly EU quotas, and the loss of the Russian market, has been decimated.
“The sector accounts for about 40 percent of Ukraine’s exports. But tariff-free quotas for most agricultural products, under the trade deal, are tiny,” Kramer writes.
“Allocations for honey, for example, were so low that they were filled in the first six weeks of the year. Quotas to export eggs to the Europe Union equate to around 1.5 percent of just (one single company) Avangard’s annual output, let alone that of the entire sector.”
The ‘Gray Lady’ admits how “the deal provided a double blow to the agriculture sector: It went far enough to enrage Russia, but stopped short of immediately opening a lucrative new market.”
Accepting that the EU arrangement is bad business also kiboshes the long-held NYT narrative where Yanukovich served as Moscow’s “pro-Russian” placeholder. The fact he negotiated with Brussels until the very last moment before rejecting their association agreement has always countered this lazy supposition anyway. Yet, the simple black and white truth is that Russia offered better terms. A $15 billion loan and gas discounts, plus continued access to an economy which Kiev was already heavily integrated with.
However, back in late 2013, if you warned how the EU pact wasn’t a clever idea for Ukraine, you were called a “useful idiot” or a “Russian stooge.” This was despite the fact that such a position was the only logical analysis of the situation. There has never been a country in world history which wrecked relations with its main, nation-state, trading partner and immediately prospered from it.
Also, the EU accord wasn’t quite what it was cracked up to be. Despite all its idealistic talk, Brussels insisted upon stingy quotas on Kiev’s exports and offered no guarantee Ukrainians would promptly receive even visa-free travel from Schengen states. Indeed, more than three years on, and having bent over backward for Eurocrats, they still can’t freely enter the bloc.
As I wrote at the time: “According to statistics the benefits of acceding to the Free Trade regime amount to €490 million per annum. However, if President Putin decided to pull the plug on Ukrainian access to his market (which, ironically, Poroshenko partially later did in a sort of petulant suicide), the loss of the Russian and Belarusian outlets would amount to €16 billion annually.” Hence, the idea that Yanukovich worked in concert with the Kremlin was always preposterous. On the contrary, many Russian officials disliked him because they felt he played them off against Brussels for too long.
False promise
Of course, it was a fallacy to suggest how Ukraine’s standards of living and economic well-being could swiftly improve through ties with the EU. On the contrary, honest analysts could clearly see that even if it had been suddenly offered rapid full membership, Ukraine would go into a tailspin because its industry and workforce aren’t competitive and haven’t kept up technologically during the last 20 to 30 years. Not to mention how its education system is a shambles, where professorships are usually purchased, and it’s almost impossible to graduate without greasing a palm or a dozen. Thus, it’s impossible to be sure if younger Ukrainians are qualified to the extent their parchments imply.
Kramer’s piece highlights the economic emergency in Ukraine right now. He quotes Oleg Bakhmatyuk, owner of the aforementioned ‘Avangard:’ “We need capital investment and trade investment,” he said.
“There’s no liquidity. We are losing our export market. As an agricultural territory, we are moving backward.”
And it’s not just agriculture. Heavy industry has been choked by obstructions on cooperation with its natural Russian partners. For instance, Antonov, the iconic airplane manufacturer, found itself declared bankrupt earlier this year. This was especially sad considering Ukraine had been an aviation superpower in its own right, punching way above its size.
Meanwhile, Kramer also cites some positives from the EU relationship. Such as how the western edge (around fanatically pro-Brussels Lvov) has benefited from some investment and “niches like a ski manufacturing industry have done well.” That said, no country has ever been built on making skiing gear. And to even attempt such a thing would be the start of a slippery slope.
By finally admitting the reality on the ground in Ukraine, the NYT might have begun a process which will see it start to report the truth from there. Also, the impending arrival of Donald Trump as president has probably focused some minds.
Being right about Maidan, and the dangers it presented, didn’t make those of us who called it correctly “useful idiots.” Accurately representing the situation in Petro Poroshenko’s Ukraine won’t transform the New York Times’ editors into “Kremlin stooges” either.
ER recommends other articles by RT
Bryan MacDonald is an Irish journalist based in Russia
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2014 Ukraine coup
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Germany’s Days in the EU Sun – Will Trump End or Extend Them?
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Setting National Priorities
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Budget Choices for the Next Century
Robert D. Reischauer (editor)
Publication Date: Oct 1996
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Examines the nature of the challenges confronting policymakers, the options that are available to address these challenges, and the ramifications of the various options. This new book, which continues Brookings' highly acclaimed and influential Setting National Priorities series, will serve as a guide for understanding and evaluating proposals of the next Congress and the new administration.
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The federal policy changes that Congress and the President will have to make as we approach the 21st century will be among the most far-reaching since the enactment of the New Deal. The scope of legislation before policymakers as they continue their efforts to balance the budget will be vast and many of its elements very technical. This new, highly accessible book examines the nature of the challenges confronting policymakers, the options that are available to address these challenges, and the ramifications of the various options.
This new book, which continues Brookings' highly acclaimed and influential Setting National Priorities series, will serve as a guide for understanding and evaluating proposals of the next Congress and the new administration. It is also designed to inform the policy debate during the presidential election. Edited by Robert Reischauer, one of the nation's most noted budget experts, the book covers such critical issues as prospects for economic growth, how to reduce domestic discretionary spending, how to restructure Medicare; how much to lower the safety net, how to reshape national security for the post-Cold War world, whether to transform the tax system, and how to prepare for the retirement of the baby boom generation.
This book will be extremely useful for citizens anxious to make sense out of the campaign rhetoric, journalists attempting to explain the issues at play, and students of public policy, public health, political science, and economics.
In addition to Reischauer, the contributors include Henry J. Aaron, Barry Bosworth, Gary Burtless, David Cutler, William G. Gale, Thomas E. Mann, Charles L. Schultze, John D. Steinbruner, R. Kent Weaver, and Joshua M. Wiener.
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Home News UK temperatures to soar to a scorching 24ºC this week – hotter...
UK temperatures to soar to a scorching 24ºC this week – hotter than parts of Africa
Pepi Sappal
Temperatures are expected to reach a whopping 41 degrees on Monday across parts of Andalucia. CREDIT: Shutterstock .
THE UK’s temperatures are set to soar to a scorching 24ºC this week and predicted to be hotter than parts of Africa, according to the weather experts.
The UK is set to enjoy more glorious weather this week after Easter weekend’s record-breaking temperatures of 26ºC, reported to be Britain’s ‘hottest Easter weekend’ in 70 years.
UK temperatures are expected to reach highs of around 24ºC (75ºF) this week by Thursday and Friday. According to the UK’s Met Office, this month is also set to be the hottest April on record for 361 years. It’s also on course for being one of the driest months so far, with no April showers forecast for the rest of the month.
The warm weather front is attributed to a 2,000 mile-wide ‘high-pressure bubble,’ which means the UK will actually experience temperatures warmer than Africa. In fact, the country will enjoy warm highs in excess of 20ºC (68ºF) for most of this week, which is actually hotter than some parts of Africa, such as Morocco’s forecasted 17.7ºC (64ºF).
UK temperatures to soar to a scorching 24C this week – hotter than parts of Africa
UK weather
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Home News In France, a teenage gunman takes four women hostage in a Toulouse...
In France, a teenage gunman takes four women hostage in a Toulouse bar but is confirmed as not an act of terrorism
Damon Mitchell
Police in Blagnac just outside Toulouse Credit: Twitter
In France, a teenage gunman takes four women hostage in a Toulouse bar but is confirmed as not an act of terrorism.
A TEENAGER is being questioned by police after allegedly taking four women hostage at a bar on the outskirts of the southern French city of Toulouse.
The 17-year-old remained holed up alone in the establishment in the north-west Blagnac suburb of the city for a couple of hours afterwards before finally being arrested following lengthy negotiations.
The teen, “who is nearly 18, has a police record for incidents of violence, notably against police officers, for robbery, and also for participating in December in a ‘yellow vest’ protest during which he was arrested,” said Toulouse chief prosecutor Dominique Alzeari.
The gunman, who has not been publicly named, burst into the bar in the afternoon, firing two shots and allegedly warning he would fire on police if they approached.
He left a letter at his home “in which he seemed fairly depressive, or at least worried about his state of health, and he made mention of the ‘yellow vest’ movement but stating that the act he was about to commit would not go beyond what turned out to be not so impressive,” said Alzeari.
He was not “someone who was classed as dangerous” and the mayor’s office in Blagnac pointed out there was “no suspicion of a terrorist motive.”
The gunman released the female owner of the bar first, then a short time later the three women who some witnesses said included bar staff.
A delivery man who said he knew the father of the gunman told media outside the police cordon at the scene that the teen, named ‘Yanis,’ was a local resident from a nearby downmarket neighbourhood.
He said police had brought the mother to the scene, apparently to help with negotiations. The women were freed ‘safe and sound.’
In France a teenage gunman takes four women hostage in a Toulouse bar but is confirmed as not an act of terrorism
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From the interviewed to the interviewer
As frontman of a rock band Damon used to court the British press, now he lives the quiet life in Spain and seeks to get to the heart of the community, scoring exclusive interviews with ex-pats about their successes and struggles during their new life in the sun.
Originally from Scotland but based on the coast for the last three years, Damon strives to bring the most heartfelt news stories from the spanish costas to the Euro Weekly News.
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Meghan Markle’s baby daughter could inherit title royal first as law challenged
SHOULD Meghan Markle give birth to a baby girl, it could have the right to inherit her royal title thanks to a legal battle to overturn centuries-old hereditary laws.
By Joe Duggan
Firstborn daughters are banned from claiming 92 House of Lords hereditary peerages.
So the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s first son would inherit the dukedom - even if he has older sisters.
The Duchess of Sussex - who attended yesterday's Wimbledon women's tennis final with sister-in-law Kate Middleton - has previously said she is “proud to be a woman and a feminist”.
And now five women have mounted a legal challenge to the laws, aiming to give equal peerage rights to baby boys and baby girls.
Meghan Markle and Kate JUST like Princess Diana and Sarah Ferguson
Meghan Markle couldn't do this at Wimbledon with Kate
This is the last state-sanctioned discrimination and it needs to be eradicated.
Campaigner Charlotte Carew Pole
A crack team of lawyers, including Lord Pannick QC, has submitted a 13-page applicationto the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
It claims the Government is discriminating against the women as they can’t stand for election to the House of Lords.
Currently, only hereditary peers can stand for election to the Lords.
If successful, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex could see their daughter speak in the upper house.
New law bid could see Meghan Markle's future daughter claim hereditary peerage (Image: PA)
Campaigner Charlotte Carew Pole, from the Daughters’ Rights protest group, believes the current laws are “state-sanctioned discrimination”.
She told the Sunday Times: “It is 100 years since women got the vote and it is outrageous that women still don’t have the right of election to our upper house.
“This is the last state-sanctioned discrimination and it needs to be eradicated from the statute book.”
Following the birth of Prince George in 2013, royal laws of succession were amended to give boys and girls equal rights.
Meghan and Kate's royal visit to Wimbledon
Sat, July 14, 2018
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge enjoy the semi final between Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex smiles at Kate during Wimbledon
The move saw Princess Charlotte make history by retaining her right to the throne, despite having a younger brother, Prince Louis.
Moves to encompass hereditary laws were curtailed, meaning first-born royal daughters have inferior rights to their male siblings.
The ‘Strasbourg Five’, the daughters of peers, have launched the test case to overturn the rules.
The group hopes a legal precedent has been set by two Bosnian men who overturned a ban on standing for election because of their race in 2008.
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Commonwealth GamesUK & international sportsViral sports news
From the archive - Wolves' financial peril 30 years on
SportPublished: Jul 6, 2016
"I fear the worst and am extremely pessimistic about the future of the club."
These were the sobering words of Councillor John Bird, almost 30 years to the day, with Wolverhampton Wanderers facing the very real prospect of ceasing to exist.
You could scarcely dream up a sharper contrast with the Wolves of 2016, writes Wolves correspondent Tim Spiers.
Speculation persists that a prospective owner worth billions and billions of actual pounds is about to make Wolves the second richest club in the country.
But even in relative pauper Steve Morgan's hands the club is on a very sure financial footing.
Whatever happens, for Wolves fans it's always worth recalling the depths their beloved club fell to as a reminder, if they needed one, not to take their current status for granted.
Those depths included debts of £2.4m, a threat of being expelled from the league and the genuine possibility of extinction.
In July 1986 the situation was coming to a head.
The receivers had just been called in, and made a last-ditch plea to the Football League to bend their rules and save the club.
Receiver Adrian Stanway wanted the league to exempt Wolves from a new rule that dictated debts must be cleared before clubs could restart under new owners.
That was proving the main obstacle to efforts to sell the club.
Mahmud and Mohammad Bhatti, who had run Wolves into ruin, were nowhere to be seen.
Stanway said: "Right from the beginning I have been unable to deal with the Bhatti brothers, who just won't respond to my requests to meet them.
"This means that certain important information is being denied to me, such as proof of the debts they say they are owed by the club."
The debt of £2.4m was made up of £800,000 split three ways - to creditors, to Lloyds Bank and, allegedly, to the Bhattis.
While current Wolves boss Kenny Jackett is hamstrung by the ongoing ownership situation in that multi-million pound transfers are on hold, his 1986 equivalent Sammy Chapman had problems of a far more serious variety to deal with.
Wolves' coffers were so empty that a pre-season "tour" was announced to Southport to play a friendly Northern Premier League club, ahead of their first ever season in the Fourth Division of English football.
Chapman said: "Times are hard, so we'll have to make do with the trip to the seaside instead of a tour!"
The Bhattis then broke their silence, via a solicitor, and delivered the bombshell that they were apparently owed £4m by the club, not £800,000.
Their claim was taken with a pinch of salt by many.
"The Bhatti brothers are misunderstood," solicitor Michael Cooksey insisted.
He added they were propping up "gigantic debts" and and were "fed up being the butt of everything".
Councillor Peter Bilson, still a serving councillor today, countered: "I think this just demonstrates their attitude.
"They are jeopardising efforts to save the club.
"Nobody has been given a chance to validate any of these claims – let them show proof."
Five consortia were interested in buying Wolves and supporters rallied round to do all they could to save their club.
At a crisis meeting Supporters Club chairman Albert Bates was given a standing ovation as he outlined plans to get the Football League to charge Bhattis with bringing the game into disrepute.
A 3,000-strong petition was handed to the Football League begging for leniency, but they wouldn't budge and gave Wolves four weeks to prove they could fulfil their fixtures for the following season.
Councillor Bird didn't attempt to sugar-coat the situation.
"I fear the worst and am extremely pessimistic about the future of the club," he said.
"Nothing positive seems to be happening."
Lengthy discussions, bartering and negotiations continued for weeks. Eventually a deal was secured and the utterly calamitous Bhattis brothers era was at an end.
Wolverhampton Council, Gallagher Estates and Asda combined to save the club, with the council buying Molineux, Gallagher Estates and Asda agreeing to pay off debts subject to the supermarket chain building a store next to the ground.
A more tumultuous few weeks you could not imagine.
And Wolves supporters will never forget it.
Wolves nostalgia
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FDA’s Artificial Intelligence White Paper
In April, FDA issued a white paper announcing steps to consider a new regulatory framework to promote the development of safe and effective medical devices that use advanced artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms. We’ll discuss how FDA’s proposed approach would allow modifications to algorithms to be made from real-world learning and adaptation that accommodates the iterative nature of AI products while ensuring that FDA’s standards for safety and effectiveness are maintained.
Anisa Mohanty, Associate, McDermott Will & Emery LLP
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The New to Food and Drug Law Group (NFDL) offers young professionals with up to six years of experience an opportunity to connect, learn from their peers, and enhance their skills. Individuals affiliated with member organizations, those employed by the government, and law students are encouraged to participate.
This program is limited to those who are a part of NFDL. This complimentary program includes a light lunch. Please register by July 29 to reserve your spot.
ANISA MOHANTY is an associate at McDermott Will & Emery LLP in Washington, DC. She advises life sciences companies on regulatory, compliance, enforcement, policy, and legislative matters arising under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA). She counsels pharmaceutical, medical device, and consumer product companies on premarket pathways, advertising and promotion, and current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) and Quality System requirements. Anisa also assists clients with US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) engagement strategies and responding to FDA administrative and enforcement actions. She advises companies and investors on regulatory and compliance issues arising from mergers, acquisitions, and other transactions involving FDA-regulated products as well as issues related to disclosure and periodic reporting.
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Paul Heyman Says To Not Rule Out Brock Lesnar MMA Return, And He's Totally Right
Brock Lesnar is the new WWE Universal Champion, but if his "advocate" Paul Heyman is to be believed, his MMA career may not be over.
“Brock is, in his heart, a trained competitor,” Heyman told the Fight Society podcast last week. “Now whether that means he’s going to look at this environment and say ‘You know what, I didn’t make the Vikings team in 2004 but I bet in 2017 I can and just because I can I’m going to just to show people that I want to and I take it’. Because when we named him the conqueror, that’s what he is. He’s a legit conqueror. You put a task before him and he conquers it."
Related Article Conor McGegor Arrives On UFC Fight Island, More News | Social Media Roundup
Lesnar, a former UFC Champion, returned to the sport in 2016 after a layoff of over five years. Lesnar has since gone on to great success in his latest WWE run, incorporating aspects of his MMA career into his pro wrestling. Heyman also joked that Lesnar could play for the Minnesota Twins.
“I really can’t tell you that it’s out of the realm of possibility of Brock Lesnar to say ‘I’m taking a few months off from WWE, I want to see how many home runs I can hit for the Minnesota Twins.’ People may laugh at that, but it’s the same people that laughed at him in 2004 when he went for the Vikings camp and he was the last person cut and that’s with a broken jaw, a fractured pelvis and diverticulitis. I think what’s next for Brock Lesnar besides what’s happening in WWE. Could it be UFC? Could it be another sport? I think it’s something he’s going to look at and say ‘I bet no one thinks I can do that, all right I’m going to conquer that’," said Heyman.
Lesnar is in a particularly good situation. His WWE deal expires after WrestleMania 34, and they have shown a willingness in the past to allow him to compete in MMA fights in the contract. Before failing a series of drug tests, he won a unanimous decision over Mark Hunt at UFC 200. The fight was later overturned to a no-contest.
New UFC owners WME-IMG have been met with mixed reception since buying the company last year. Lesser known, but stellar fighters such as Ryan Bader, Lorenz Larkin, Michael McDonald, Kyoji Horiguchi and others have been granted their releases or not re-signed, as the company instead opts for big-name fighters. Lesnar certainly fits that description, something that would also catch the eye of top competitor and Viacom owned Bellator MMA. Bellator has signed the likes of Fedor Emelianenko, among others, to draw eyeballs to their show. Even at the age of 40, Lesnar would be a hot commodity in MMA.
Heyman continued, giving a glimpse at the mindset of a Brock Lesnar.
“It’s not just looking at UFC and he’ll say ‘At my worst, beating me cost Cain Velasquez 14 months of his career. When I was not 100 percent healthy, I beat the greatest heavyweight of all time, Randy Couture. When I came in for UFC 100, I was fighting a guy who had a psychological advantage because he tapped me out and is a former UFC heavyweight champion in Frank Mir and I pummeled him.’ At the same time, Brock could look at that and say ‘I want that again.’ He may do race car driving. You never know with him because something is going to trigger that. He’s going to be sitting there one day and someone is going to say can you imagine how hard that is to do? And he’ll look over and say, ‘Not for me’,” said Heyman.
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News Real Madrid
Hierro: Puyol an example
By richard - 11 March 2014, 16:29
Real Madrid legend Fernando Hierro says Carles Puyol is an example for all aspiring footballers to follow.
The Catalan defender is leaving Barcelona at the end of the season and, according to his former Roja teammate, will go down as one of Spain’s great centre-backs.
“Puyol is a great and an example to everyone,” Hierro told La Xarxa. “For his honesty and his loyalty.
“He is one of the three best centre-backs in the history of Spanish football.
“He is a guy with so much integrity. We are starting to run out of superlatives.
“It is always difficult to substitute a player like Puyol, with everything that he represents.
“He is an example on and off the pitch, with a fantastic professionalism and attitude.”
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7 October 2014, 9:14
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‘Tata won’t break Barca contract’
By andrew - 19 March 2014, 9:40
A close friend of Tata Martino has said the Barcelona Coach won’t break his contract with La Blaugrana.
It has been speculated that Martino would walk away from Camp Nou at the end of the season but Willy Albergoli told Onda Cero that his friend would do no such thing.
“Knowing him I don’t think he’ll leave Barcelona,” Albergoli said.
“I don’t think he’ll leave after signing a contract.
“He’s going to respect the contract providing the conditions are met.”
It was suggested that Martino could take over the Argentina national team after the World Cup in place of current Coach Alejandro Sabella.
Albergoli believes Martino is one of the candidates for the role with Atletico Madrid’s Diego Simeone the other.
“Tata has never said he’ll take the job although the issue is very clear,” Albergoli continued.
“When Sabella goes there are two candidates: Tata and Simeone.
“Tata though is a man of his word. I know he will respect his contract.”
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‘Correa has no fear’
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Tottenham Hotspur News
The big Harry Winks decision Jose Mourinho has to make after £40m Man City transfer links
The 24-year-old will find himself competing with a number of players for a midfield spot at Spurs.
Kristan Heneage
Harry Winks may struggle to hold down a regular starting place next season. (Photo by Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images)
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Tottenham Hotspur confirmed their first summer signing in the shape of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.
The Danish midfielder was an important signing for Jose Mourinho, with the Portuguese often putting an emphasis on the role of defensive midfielder in his teams, especially from a tactical perspective.
“He already acts like a coach when he is on the field,” Mourinho said of Xabi Alonso.
Elsewhere, he commended Esteban Cambiasso by saying, “He thinks quickly and is tactical, he knows everything about football. He encourages teammates to press and helps the defenders in the centre... he reminds of Fernando Redondo.”
It’s not just the influence on the team that is being measured with Hojbjerg’s arrival, but also the individuals. Harry Winks is considered an important part of the club’s future after rising through the academy, but the decision to sign any central midfielder is always like to force questions about his future.
The 24-year-old split last season between defensive midfield and central midfield, but it is important he secures a long-term future in one position. As his teammate Eric Dier has learned to his cost, a player’s versatility can sometimes be an inhibitor to progression as they become a back-up in several roles rather than a specialist in one.
The power of the decision rests with Mourinho. Towards the back end of the season, the Portuguese operated between two differing formations, 4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3. The latter is not a traditional 4-3-3 in the sense the midfield three is inverted, with two defensive midfielders and one more advanced central midfielder.
This is where Winks comes in. The midfielder has shown a strong ability to play as a metronome from a deeper position -- a role that now will likely be filled by Hojbjerg. Given Winks has just two goals and two assists in 143 games for Spurs it’s hard to believe he could suddenly reinvent himself as a more advanced midfielder in the final third. What could be possible is a role as a box-to-box midfielder alongside Hojbjerg or as a back-up option in defensive midfield.
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The presence of Giovani Lo Celso and Tanguy Ndombele only serves to complicate matters, with both more high-profile players. Daniel Levy did not sanction those deals for either man to sit on the bench.
Spurs commitments, both at home and in Europe, will necessitate some degree of squad rotation, but it’s hard to believe Winks will settle for that. He has aspirations of playing for England, and that will be a nigh impossible achievement if he is spending large portions of the season on the bench.
The uncertainty surrounding Ndombele’s future may ease the stress attached to that decision, but Mourinho will need to be swift with his choice. His predecessor, Mauricio Pochettino, was at times criticised for how he handled some of Spurs young players, and the fact Hojbjerg’s arrival coincided with Kyle Walker-Peters’ departure was a subtle reminder of how frustrating the right-back’s Spurs career was.
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Instant View: Existing home sales rise 3.7 percent in March
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Sales of previously owned U.S. homes rose more than expected in March, a trade group said on Wednesday, raising cautious optimism a recovery may be in sight for the housing market.
MICHAEL WOOLFOLK, SENIOR CURRENCY STRATEGIST, BNY MELLON, NEW YORK
"This data is not bad. We've seen some modest recovery from the record lows that we saw at the beginning of the year. There may be some spillover effect from the severe weather we had this winter in these numbers, with this report providing comeuppance for the slowness during the winter. But it's going to take more data to confirm we've put in a bottom in housing."
GENNADIY GOLDBERG, FIXED INCOME ANALYST, 4CAST, INC., NEW YORK
"It's still pretty much more of the same old -- still a lot of distressed sales but the number doesn't seem to be impacting the market very much. It was right on expectations after the weaker February print."
MARKET REACTION:
STOCKS: U.S. stocks maintain earlier gains.
BONDS: U.S. bond prices hold steady at lower levels.
FOREX: The dollar steady at lower levels versus the euro
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A Thought on Apple Inc. iPhone X Plus Pricing
Later this year, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) is expected to release an updated version of the current iPhone X as well as a larger version of that updated iPhone X. While there have been substantial leaks about the specifications of these next-generation devices, there hasn't been much information concerning how Apple plans to price them.
Let's assume that Apple intends to offer the upgraded iPhone X for the same price that the current iPhone X sells for -- $999 for the baseline configuration and $1,149 for the one with more storage. How, then, might Apple price the larger iPhone X Plus?
I see two possibilities.
Option No. 1: $100 premium
Apple could follow the same pricing strategy that it currently does with the standard iPhone and its iPhone Plus counterpart -- charge a $100 premium. This would translate into $1,099 for the baseline iPhone X Plus and $1,249 for the higher-end storage option.
If the iPhone X Plus truly is just a larger version of the upcoming iPhone X with otherwise identical specifications and features, then a $100 premium is probably reasonable. Remember that the current iPhone 8 Plus, which comes at a $100 premium to the iPhone 8, actually has significant specification upgrades compared to the iPhone 8 including a sharper display, more memory, and a dual-lens camera system.
My guess is that a $100 premium for the iPhone X Plus over the iPhone X is the most likely pricing scenario.
Option No. 2: Following the iPad Pro playbook
Another distinct possibility is that Apple will want to follow the iPad Pro playbook. Apple currently offers its highest end iPad Pro tablets in two screen sizes -- 10.5-inches and 12.9-inches. The baseline 10.5-inch iPad Pro sells for $649 and its larger sibling starts at $799 -- a $150 premium.
The iPad Pro 10.5-inch and 12.9-inch share identical internal specifications, differing only in screen size, and yet Apple charges a $150 premium for the 12.9-inch model over the 10.5-inch model. It wouldn't surprise me, then, to see Apple carry this pricing strategy over to the new iPhone models, especially since Apple appears to be reshaping its iPhone segmentation strategy to mirror the iPad's.
Nevertheless, I think a $150 premium for the iPhone X Plus over the iPhone X is less likely than a $100 price increase simply because a larger premium could unduly crimp demand for the larger model. Remember that the iPhone X isn't selling as well as Apple had hoped -- something that's been largely attributed to the high price of the device -- so if Apple wants the iPhone X Plus to sell in high volumes, it needs to be careful not to go too crazy on the pricing.
If Apple plans to do something interesting like offer the next-generation iPhone X at $899, or even $849, for the baseline model, then a $150 premium for the iPhone X Plus would price it around where the current iPhone X is. In that case, the premium would likely be justifiable since Apple would be delivering much more value in the form of a larger device for roughly the same price as the current iPhone X.
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New food ordering platform promises low commission for Hull takeaways
A Hull restaurateur has launched a new online ordering platform which aims to save local independent food businesses thousands of pounds by offering low commission rates.
Jack Ryan, owner of burger bar Temptations, which operates four sites in Hull, Scarborough and Scunthorpe, has developed Hull Kitchens after he saw online orders more than double during the coronavirus, leading to commission bill with Just Eat of over £21,000.
Restaurant partners that sign up to the new platform will be charged a one-off £150 fee, a 7.5% commission per order plus a 50p admin charge. The site will limit the number of restaurants and takeaways that can join to 50 initially, with other interested parties being added to a waiting list.
The platform also promises marketing support.
Jack comments: “We want to work with restaurants and takeaways on a local level to help boost their businesses while driving down commission rates charged by the big boys. They are just too high for independent businesses.
“Across the year, we’ve paid out just over £21,000 in commission to Just Eat alone. If we could have that £21,000 - or even half of that - to put back into our business that would be an extra delivery driver on a night or two extra drivers on a Friday and Saturday night, which then helps offer a better service and reduces negative reviews.
“When I looked at what other food delivery platforms there were out there, I couldn’t find anything lower than 13-14% commission or that didn’t have a monthly fee. And those that charge a monthly fee meant I had to take an EPOS system and do card transaction through that and I just didn’t want that. I just wanted something that was low commission and user-friendly.”
Jack hopes to roll out Hull Kitchens to other cities, with York being next. Jack comments: “We’re looking at targeting bigger cities, anywhere with a population of over 150,000. We’re also looking at franchising the business too."
Plans are already underway to improve the service with the 50p admin fee being scrapped shortly and branded paper takeaway bags being provided free of charge to restaurant partners.
Jack adds: “A lot of takeaways use plastic bags still so one of the things we want to do is get them to swap to paper, which is better environmentally, but it will also help promote Hull Kitchen as a delivery platform and push people to use the app rather than sites like Just Eat or Uber Eats.”
The platform goes live in January with customers able to order from the website or app.
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More Than We Remember
Christina Suzann Nelson
Christian Mystery - Large Print Standing Order Plan
Well-written, compelling historical fiction titles that appeal to all ages and feature strong spiritual themes and all the elements of Christian Fiction that readers love.
When Addison Killbourn’s husband is involved in a car accident that leaves a woman dead, her perfectly constructed life crumbles apart. Emilia Cruz is a deputy bearing a heavy burden far beyond the weight of her job. When she’s called to the scene of an accident pointing to everything she’s fighting against, she’s determined to see justice for those wronged. Brianne Demanno is hiding from reality. When her neighbors, the Killbourns, are thrown into crisis, Brianne’s solitary life is disrupted and she finds herself needed in a way she hasn’t been in a while. Can these women rise from the wreck of the worst moments of their lives to become who they were meant to be?
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World Poker Tour In Danger of Being De-Listed from NASDAQ
With the market taking a daily beating due to the global economy roller coaster and the pending US Presidential Election, things are not looking good for the beleaguered stock. Back in August, World Poker Tour CEO Steve Lipscomb received a letter from NASDAQ stating that WPT faced being de-listed from the stock exchange. This was due to the fact that their stock had traded below $1.00 for more than 30 days. WPT stock is currently trading at .50 per share.
With NASDAQ requiring stock to trade above $1.00 to remain listed on the exchange, the WPT is in real danger of being dropped from the giant stock exchange. At this time, the WPT has approximately 110 days to bounce the stock back. With the looming threat of this, they've announced a new interim CIO to help steer them back on track. Thomas Flahie comes from Intermix Media where he had a successful run in turning that company around.
The WPT is working on more strategic alliances with Fox and others in an effort to prop up the ailing company. However, the outlook for their success is somewhat dim at this point. Court battles with poker professionals like Greg Raymer and Chris Ferguson and fights over sponsors logos also provided unwanted negative press for the WPT brand. In order to turn the company around, perhaps the WPT can learn from past mistakes and work to move the company forward to profitability.
Source: www.aintluck.com
US Financial News
Business & Financial
NFL Betting Line Analysis: Home Team Dog +3.5
Gambling911.com looks at games that featured the home team as a primary +3.5 home dog.
Bookie Sports Betting Solution for UFC 257 McGregor vs. Poirier Fight in Northwest Texas
AcePerHead offers an excellent sports betting solution and full service Pay Per Head that includes live customer service and prop generation for UFC 257 and is available in Northwest Texas.
Plug Pulled on Plan to Blow Up Trump Plaza in Final Hour
An auction house trying to raise money for a youth charity by soliciting bids to blow up a former casino once owned by President Donald Trump called off the effort Monday after receiving a cease-and-desist letter from conservative billionaire Carl Icahn.
One Man Critically Injured Following Vegas Strip Shooting Sunday
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Lt. David Gordon conveyed to reporters late Sunday that the suspect in a Vegas Strip shooting had been captured at the Treasure Island Hotel and Casino.
NFL Betting Line Analysis: Home Team -10
Gambling911.com looks at games that featured the home team a a primary -3 home favorite. We look at the line moves around this number and the final results.
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The 10 hardest Hard Modes in gaming - these will destroy you
By Alan Bradley 12 April 2017
Difficulty in games has been a swinging pendulum. Back in the earliest days of gaming there was next to no hand-holding, tutorials were completely unheard of, and even toggleable difficulty settings were extremely rare. Miss an item in level one that you need to progress in level eight? Whoops, sorry, guess you’ll have to start over. And continues were for arcades, purely an incentive to force you to slot in another quarter if you wanted to preserve your progress.
But then games went mass market, and designers realized that greater accessibility could translate into greater sales, leading to the birth of the modern tutorial and an emphasis on user-friendliness and offering experiences anyone could enjoy. For years games coddled us, we grew soft, and the days of brutal, unforgiving difficulty and real challenge faded into memory. Lately, there’s been a welcome renaissance in truly challenging games; games that embrace the idea that the harder the climb, the better the summit. These are the toughest of the tough.
Read more: Games where death still actually matters
Doom - Ultra Nightmare
The original Doom was one of those games born out of that legacy I refer to in the opening, a game that didn’t hold your hand and that, on higher difficulty levels, was an absolute beast, requiring sharp reflexes, intense resource management, and an iron will to best. 2016’s Doom, on Ultra Nightmare, makes the first game look like child’s play. A mode the devs at ID famously proclaimed even they couldn’t beat, Ultra Nightmare isn’t satisfied just throwing mobs of lethal enemies at you and cranking up their damage to completely unreasonable levels, it also adds another rather significant wrinkle: permadeath. That’s right, die just once and the game permanently deletes your save, punting you unceremoniously back to the main menu to soak in a pool of your own salty human tears and indelible shame.
FTL - Hard Mode
FTL is not an easy game. Even the lowest setting, Easy, is a bit of a misnomer -- a more appropriate name would be, perhaps, Possible. Normal mode is extremely challenging, a gauntlet that tests your ability to survive until the final, brutal boss, and pray that you’ve got enough left in the tank (and the blessing of various pixel gods and goddesses) to somehow scrape out a victory. Then there’s Hard mode. Hard mode is also a misnomer, though the terms I’d suggest to replace aren’t fit for polite society (and are in fact illegal to print, even online, in several countries). Hard mode takes what is already an almost impossible trip through a savage galaxy and populates it with much more difficult (and seemingly trigger-happy) enemies, while also reducing the precious rewards that power your journey. It’s a soul-crushing vice of a mode, and makes me happy that FTL doesn’t have controller support, as it would surely lead to the rage-induced shattering of any number of them.
Resident Evil 7 - Ethan Must Die Mode
Well, this one is appropriately named. Difficult as it is to imagine, you’ll actually spend the majority of your time with Ethan Must Die doing just that: dying, over and over and over again. It’s the one game mode in Resident Evil 7 where the real terror comes not from the monstrous nature of the Baker family and their twisted history or from the main campaign’s numerous jump scares, but from the constant tension of being hunted and knowing any small mistake could be your last. Ethan Must Die mode is a section of the main campaign culminating with the boss battle against Marguerite in the greenhouse. It sprinkles a number of loot crates through the level filled with critical items like ammo and weapons, but also booby traps a number of these crates with explosives, instantly killing you if you’re caught in the blast. Since your fragile Ethan (who in this mode can only take a sliver of the damage he can normally absorb) starts equipped with only a sad little knife, survival becomes a deadly game of balancing the need for gear and ammo against the constant spectre of horrific death.
Read more: 7 movies that inspired Resident Evil 7
XCOM: Enemy Unknown - Impossible
XCOM is the kind of game where you can be cruising along enjoying round after round of flawless success, cashing in missions with no fatalities and a skyranger full of alien loot, when suddenly, BAM! Disaster strikes. One of your soldiers, who you’ve invested so much time and so many resources into ranking up and outfitting with powerful, is dropped by a single, brutal strike. In the ensuing chaos and the scramble to exfil, more of your soldiers are ruthlessly gunned down, until you’re left with nothing but an empty transport and a whole bunch of new entries on the memorial wall. Playing on Impossible raises the stakes for every decision up to 11. Rewards are smaller, costs are greater, and every choice you make has far-reaching consequences. If you're not on top of your game from day one - complete with an overall strategy in mind that'll carry you through to the final mission - things can and will unravel very quickly. As the game's Wiki so helpfully notes, "...every funding nation can be lost during the first month, depending on alien activity and the efficiency of XCOM's response.” Perhaps the speediest and most demoralizing reaction from the international community to any crisis ever, and the net result is a bankrupt XCOM and global alien domination.
Metro: 2033 Redux - Ranger Hardcore
Playing Metro: 2033 Redux on the Ranger difficulty means you and your knife are going to be close friends. This mode attempts to make the game more realistic - or about as 'realistic' as you'd want a post-nuclear-apocalyptic Russian horror game to be - by removing several modern conveniences. An abundance of health? Gone. A decent supply of ammo? Gone. Literally the entire HUD and all the valuable information contained therein? No such luck. And this is just Ranger Easy mode. Ranger Hardcore ups the ante even further. You are extremely fragile, which means stealth is basically your only shot at survival. And you can forget about having a reasonable supply of ammo. While enemies will go down from a few well-placed rounds, every bullet you fire feels like a loved one lost.
Fire Emblem: Awakening - Lunatic+
Fire Emblem is already a tough-as-nails series. When your characters die, they're gone forever; weapons degrade over time, especially the good ones, and stat bonuses are doled out randomly when you level up. But for the truly masochistic, Awakening lets you ratchet up these challenges through various difficulty options, the toughest of which is Lunatic+. This mode packs the same crippling difficulty of Lunatic, but with an added twist found only in this mode, a twist not unlike that of a hooked knife sunk deep into your torso. As it turns out, that "+" stands for a grab bag of brand-new, enemy-exclusive abilities that are randomly assigned to grunts and bosses alike. These include Luna+ (all attacks halve your defense), Pavise+ (all your attacks deal half damage), and several others with similar demoralizing effects. Early on, this can make fights flat-out impossible, forcing you to constantly reload the same battle over and over in the hopes you get a more favorable distribution of skills on the enemy team. Don't expect Frederick to bail you out of this one.
F-Zero GX - Very Hard
F-Zero GX is one of the unsung greats of the GameCube era. It offers an incredible sense of speed on par with the best in racing while keeping the F-Zero basics of vehicular combat and track memorization intact. It's a demanding, edge-of-your-seat thrill ride, and one of the most challenging racing games ever created. It’s a game gives you very little but demands a great deal in return. Learning the layout of each track, the nuances of every racer, and practicing every track over and over until they’re scorched permanently into your brain are the bare minimum requirements. But putting in the time will reward you with a genuine challenge that feels difficult because it's actually taxing your skills as a player, not because it's hitting you with blue shells seconds before you cross the finish line.
Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock - Expert
Video games often make complicated tasks look easy, whether it's piloting a spaceship or firing a gun. The Guitar Hero series in particular is notorious for this, simplifying mastery of a guitar down to the press of a few colorful buttons and a plastic switch. That is until you round the bend with Legends of Rock on expert mode: suddenly, playing a pretend guitar becomes as difficult or harder than playing the same song on a real guitar. When you watch someone play a song like The Devil Went Down To Georgia on expert is an orgy of lights and shapes and colors reminiscent of a children’s cartoon remixed for ravers. Only rote memorization and twitchy muscle memory will see you through here; trying to sight-read one of these monstrosities is a recipe for a quick failure screen. And in case expert isn't tough enough, the game offers a "Precision Mode" which makes the window for hitting a note even tighter.
Dark Souls - New Game ++++++
So, and I understand why this may come as a shock to many of you, apparently there exists a world where people’s reaction to Dark Souls was 'Sure it’s fun, but I just wish it was much, much harder'. Perhaps unsurprisingly, From Software has an answer for those people, and it comes in the form of a ridiculous number of new game plus modes, each of which ramps up the difficulty of one of the hardest games released in the last decade or so. By new game plus six (you seventh playthrough, for those keeping score), Dark Souls has ceased to be a video game and instead a digital iron maiden, a torture device so exquisite and terrible they’re normally reserved for history’s worst criminals. The most mundane, common enemies have become living gods, endless pain made flesh, and will reduce even the hardiest adventurers to soupy plasma in just a few hits. Bosses are world-shattering primordial forces whose footsteps topple empires and whose gaze is genocide.
So, yeah, it’s pretty tough.
Ninja Gaiden 2 - Master Ninja
Ninja Gaiden has built a dynasty upon the broken controllers and mournful cries of its followers. Dating back to 1988 with Ninja Gaiden on the Nintendo Entertainment System this series has been renowned for its brutal difficulty, and it’s a legacy that Ninja Gaiden 2 gleefully celebrates and expands upon. Master Ninja mode in Ninja Gaiden 2 is by far one of the series' greatest challenges, and it tasks you to your wit’s end without resorting to dirty, underhanded tricks. It's simply a fast-paced game that demands players use the entirety of Ryu Hayabusa's arsenal, make snap judgements, and watch out for exploding turtles. To give this some context, most action games get quickly 'solved' soon after their release; it’s the bedrock on which the entire speedrunning community is built. This means, just days or weeks (or sometimes hours) after a game drops, someone uploads a video of them beating the game with '100% completion, no damage, one arm tied behind their back!' Ninja Gaiden 2 has one of these videos as well, the only difference being it took the internet SIX YEARS to pull off.
Other Games/Compilations
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock
Ninja Gaiden II
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Dark Souls II - What we want to see
By Ryan Taljonick 14 December 2012
"More accessible" doesn't necessarily mean "easier"
Praise the sun!
Okay, so. Dark Souls II has been confirmed. And it's got two new directors (both new to the series) in the stead of Hidetaka Miyazaki, the previous director of Demon's and Dark Souls turned supervisor. And yes, one of them said he wants Dark Souls II to be more straightforward and understandable. So, we're thin--WHOA, HOLD ON! Before you start furiously smashing the keyboard and cranking out complaints about how the series is doomed, stop for a second and take a deep breath.
We get it, we do. We loved Demon's Souls and Dark Souls. But we also think some fresh blood on the development side might take the Souls series from capital 'A' awesome to unprecedented levels of incredible. How, you ask? Well, we've got a few ideas that might just help. Read on to see what we'd like to see from the upcoming addition to the Souls franchise.
Read more: Ashen review: "Ashen is a Dark Souls clone - but it's a really good Dark Souls clone"
Retain the connected world from Dark Souls...
Dark Souls' connected, seamless world made it feel far more alive than that of Demon's Souls. It also made playing the game a far more tense experience. Returning to the Nexus in Demon's Souls gave you a temporary reprieve--you could relax, gather your bearings, plan your next move. But in Dark Souls, constantly inhabiting a hostile world amped up the intensity a billion times over, especially considering so many of its environments were bleak enough to sap the hope straight from your bones. We'd love to revisit Dark Souls' world, provided we get to check out some new zones, of course.
What's more, Dark Souls was the kind of game you could play through multiple times without discovering all of its secrets; there were back entrances to multiple areas, tons of hidden places to find, and plenty of goodies guarded by droves of powerful demons. Ideally, Dark Souls II will build on the interconnectedness of its predecessor and give us the freedom to explore it however we wish.
...but ensure each zone is intelligently designed
One of the complaints that Dark Souls frequently garnered was that its level design wasn't consistently great. There were moments of brilliance in zones like Sen's Fortress, Anor Londo, and the Painted World of Ariamis. But areas such as the lava-laden Lost Izalith and the Crystal Cave, home to a plethora of invisible gap-spanning walkways, required more luck than skill to traverse.
Seeing as FromSoftware has had a bit of practice with building a more connected world, perhaps the development team will be able to spend more time ensuring that each and every zone in Dark Souls II is up to par with the architectural excellence we know the designers are capable of.
Keep the combat simple but punishing, and boss battles epic
The sense of discovery and achievement are arguably the most important aspects of the Souls franchise, and combat plays a huge role in both. This is a series that places an emphasis on learning the ins and outs of your preferred weapon type over button mashing. It's a lot like a fighting game in the sense that you need to learn how to read your opponents; knowing when to block, dodge, and strike is crucial, and a single misstep often means death, even when facing the puniest of enemies. This style of slower-paced, timing-based combat must remain intact.
Of course, boss fights are a huge staple of the franchise as well; we're looking forward to even more harrowing by-the-skin-of-your-teeth encounters with varied mechanics and terrifying enemy design.
Iron out the technical stuff
So, yes, combat is incredibly important to the Souls franchise--but Dark Souls suffered from a few technical hiccups that made it unfairly grueling at times. For instance, a side effect of building such a gorgeous, giant world was that a lot of processing power was required to render it. That became problematic when a mammoth undead dragon suddenly lunged at you full force while the frame rate dipped into the "oh god this is unplayable" range.
To make matters worse, the targeting system worked sporadically at best when Dark Souls launched, making already tough encounters all the more difficult. And for fans of online PvP, nothing killed that human-slaying buzz quicker than a hefty dose of lag. Thankfully, Dark Souls II will have dedicated servers, which should alleviate that issue--but ensuring the frame rate and control elements are in perfect working condition will make the game a far more enjoyable experience.
Expand the weapon upgrade system
There are tons of awesome weapons in the Souls games, most of which can be upgraded to become more effective so long as you have the required materials on hand. To boost the effectiveness of your weapon of choice, you can imbue it with one of several special properties--lightning, enchanted, chaos, etc. Not only do these often add elemental or magic damage to your otherwise physical attacks, but certain properties scale a weapon's attack damage with specific character stats. The brilliance of this system was that it allowed you to create a powerful weapon tailored to your character build, regardless of what stats you'd dumped points into. But what if that system were taken one step further?
We'd love to see some new paths for weapon upgrades--maybe ice or other elements could make an appearance here--or, perhaps, a duality system that lets you to imbue a weapon with multiple properties. This would produce nearly limitless possibilities when it comes to crafting the perfect weapon for your character.
Make the game's systems more accessible
New director Tomohiro Shibuya said that he aims to make Dark Souls II more straightforward, which could mean any number of things. While we agree that the Souls series should continue to resist hand-holding its players, we do think its vague and confusing systems could use a bit of explanation. That weapon upgrade system we mentioned before? It's a tad bit complicated; we'd wager all but the most hardcore Souls players didn't even know so many upgrade paths existed.
Any new systems that might be introduced in Dark Souls II, akin to Demon's Souls' World Tendencies and Dark Souls' Covenants, could use a bit of clarification as well, because missing out on those mechanics in previous games would mean missing out on a large part of what made them so unique. The challenge should not reside in figuring these things out, but in how to best take advantage of them.
Give us more nuggets of story, but keep them subtle
Dark Souls' approach to storytelling is vastly different than that of most games. Instead of spelling everything out in direct cinematics or dialog, it tosses players scraps of lore in the form of flavor text that accompanies some items, and, occasionally, brief conversations with NPCs.
There's a wealth of information to piece together, and uncovering nuggets of lore--whether from your interactions with items and NPCs or exploring the world--is one one of the most rewarding aspects of the Souls games. We'd love to see even more of this approach in Dark Souls II, with even more items and environments rife with brief glimpses into the world's history.
Add customization options
Awesome looking armor sets are commonplace in Dark Souls--but we want Dark Souls II to bring customization options for personalizing our character's appearance. Things like capes, emblems, and armor dyes would go a long way toward making our character stand out, especially in the online arena.
Vendors could stock the most basic of these items, but it would be cool to find rare dyes and the like while exploring deadly zones. Perhaps these could also be awards obtained by participating in competitive PvP or online co-op with others. It would be pretty cool to have more incentives to help or hinder players online.
Do right by PC gamers
After lots of petitioning by PC gamers, Dark Souls finally received a PC port--unfortunately, it shipped with virtually no settings options, and it was poorly optimized for the platform. It wasn't until player-made mods added a bevy of configuration tweaks to the game that PC players were able to tap into the game's full visual potential.
Hopefully FromSoftware has learned from its past mistakes. Seeing as the developer announced a PC version of Dark Souls II right from the start, we can only assume that the developers will spend more time creating a fully functional PC edition of the game, one that won't require player mods to enjoy.
Make a Wii U version
So far, Dark Souls II has been announced for PS3, Xbox 360, and PC, and FromSoftware has no current plans to bring the game to Nintendo's Wii U. But more than 11,000 gamers have signed a petition on Change.org in hopes of changing the developer's mind.
We think a Wii U version of the game would be a wise move. For starters, more gamers would have access to the series, which would likely result in bigger sales. But the Wii U's GamePad could be used in interesting ways; moving the inventory to the touch screen would allow for quick access to items and equipment, and the addition of easily swappable equipment sets would be a welcome treat.
Include an easy mode...
And then the internet exploded and all life on Earth came to an end. To add an easy mode to the Souls series is to miss the point of it entirely--but a TOTALLY OPTIONAL EASY MODE could be as simple as decreasing enemy damage or increasing the frequency with which players find consumable items. Doing so would make Dark Souls II more accessible to timid players more interested in exploring the game's world and seeing all it has to offer without fear of getting immediately destroyed.
But we propose another twist: Players who complete a game in easy mode cannot carry their character over to normal and beyond, meaning they have to brave the dangers hardcore fans crave should they wish to further their progress.
...but also offer a hardcore mode
Optional permadeath. In Dark Souls. Via some kind of undead...killing...thing. 'Nuff said.
So the world might be mended
Just because Dark Souls II has new directors doesn't immediately mean it's going to be a "dumb baby game." FromSoftware has two Souls games under its belt, and we seriously doubt it'd do anything to jeopardize the success of such a beloved franchise. And lets not forget: FromSoftware isn't in the habit of making "simple" or "easy" games. That's not how the developer rolls. But we want to hear from the Souls fans out there: What are you hoping to see--or to not see--in Dark Souls II? Drop us a line in the comments below.
Planning on playing through Dark Souls again in preparation for the sequel? Check out our Dark Souls boss guide and our Dark Souls Covenant guide.
prepare to die
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Home > MEDIA CENTER > News > GatesAir Intraplex® IP Networking Solution Eliminates Interference Between Two California FM Station
GatesAir Intraplex® IP Networking Solution Eliminates Interference Between Two California FM Stations
Transition to IP Link MPXp with integrated SynchroCast technology unifies two stations on a powerful new single-frequency network – and saves the operation $1700 a month in the process
Cincinnati, OH, October 18, 2017
GatesAir, a global leader in wireless, over-the-air content delivery solutions for radio and TV broadcasters, has supplied an Intraplex® intelligent IP networking and synchronization solution to KCSN(FM) for resilient signal transport across its new single-frequency network (SFN).
Broadcasting on 88.5 MHz from the campus of California State University in Northridge, KCSN has long struggled with mutual interference with another FM station, KSBR, broadcasting on the same frequency from Saddleback College in Orange County. The transition to an SFN with Intraplex IP networking brought the two stations together into a unified operation, solving the problem of interference as listeners traveled through the Los Angeles area.
“While KCSN has a clear signal in the northern metro area, it would turn into a horrible mishmash of two signals as drivers traveled south toward Orange County,” said Michael Worrall, technical director and chief engineer, KCSN. “The same happened for KSBR listeners as they drove north. The only solution was to join forces with a common format, and have the same program broadcasting from all transmitters. We wanted to utilize the best, state-of-the-art products to help overcome the obstacles that have historically hindered SFNs, so we consulted with some of the best minds in the business at GatesAir and elsewhere to find the right technical solution.”
Those consultations steered KCSN toward an SFN architecture that provided a seamless transition between transmitters as people travelled through the region. The complete system brings three transmitters—KSBR, KCSN main and a KCSN booster in Beverly Hills—together using an Intraplex IP Link MPXp codec with integrated Intraplex SynchroCast® technology to simulcast and time-lock the signals. This technique ensures that the three overlapping transmitters operating on the same frequency, and avoid interference with each other while broadening overall signal coverage.
Worrall migrated from a T1 architecture to IP based on several new efficiencies that the IP Link MPXp brought to the surface, including lower monthly costs, reduced capital investment, and support for a transparent AES192 digital multiplex composite signal. A competitive analysis of MPX codecs on the market proved that the GatesAir solution excelled in dual-domain design, network reliability and built-in dynamic SFN capability. The migration from T1 to IP has also saved the operation about $1700 each month, which uses a very wide-bandwidth, private Ethernet service from AT&T to accommodate all signal networking.
“The MPXp allows us to originate the baseband signal at our Northridge studios, and duplicate that signal within the codec, maintaining strict control of signal levels and phase across the network,” said Worrall. “We’re confident that the high-quality AES192 audio is being delivered to all three transmitters identically. It also gives us a simultaneous analog MPX composite output to route program audio to our backup transmitters, which aren’t yet capable of accepting an AES192 digital stream. We can do this all from one codec, and without the burden of adjusting audio levels in T1 frames to match modulation levels. The MPXp keeps those modulation levels identical, which eliminates the noise floor for the cleanest signal for our listeners. And we’re doing this all for about $330 per month – compared to $2,000 a month had we remained on T1 – without sacrificing any reliability associated with signal transport.”
“GatesAir has long been at the forefront of innovation in intelligent networking to problem-solve interference and coverage shortcomings in over-the-air broadcasting,” said Bruce D. Swail, CEO, GatesAir. “Our Intraplex solutions are providing the best of both worlds for KCSN by providing a far more robust signal over greater distances, and simultaneously saving our customer thousands of dollars annually.”
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Sunni Brown was named one of the “100 Most Creative People in Business” and one of the “10 Most Creative People on Twitter” by Fast Company. She is founder of a creative consultancy, an international speaker, the co-author of Gamestorming, and the leader of a global campaign for visual literacy called The Doodle Revolution. Her TED Talk on doodling has drawn more than a million views on TED.com. She lives in Keep Austin Weird, Texas.
Books by Sunni Brown
Live Your Dreams
by Les Brown, Sunni Brown
The Sacred Pipe: Black Elk's Account of the Seven Rites of the Oglala Sioux
by Sunni Brown, Black, Joseph E. Brown
Unexpected News
by Sunni Brown, Robert McAfee Brown
The Best of the Beatles: Trumpet
by Sunni Brown
The Gentle Tamers: Women of the Old Wild West
by Sunni Brown, Dee Brown
The Black Book of Outsourcing: How to Manage the Changes, Challenges, and Opportunities
by Sunni Brown, Douglas Brown, Scott Wilson
The Life of W. B. Yeats
by Terence Brown, Sunni Brown
An Introduction to Object-Oriented Analysis: Objects and UML in Plain English
by Sunni Brown, D. Brown, David William Brown
Breakthrough Customer Service: Best Practices of Leaders in Customer Support
by Sunni Brown, Stanley A. Brown
Strategic Customer Care: An Evolutionary Approach to Increasing Customer Value and Profitability
by Sunni Brown, Theodore E. Brown, Stanley A. Brown
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Hobart International: Sania Mirza, Nadiia Kichenok drawn against Oksana Kalashnikova and Miyu Kato in women's doubles first round
Sania Mirza and her partner Nadiia Kichenok have been drawn to meet of Georgia and Miyu Kato of Japan in their opening round at the Hobart International, the first tournament the Indian ace will compete in her comeback bid.
The unseeded Indo-Ukrainian team may run into Spanish fourth seeds Georgina Garcia Perez and Sara Sorribes Tormo in the quarterfinals.
The Spanish players had reached three WTA tour finals in 2019 season and won two of them.
Sania is returning to the circuit after two years, having started a family with Pakistan cricketer Shoaib Malik.
Hobart: Sania Mirza and her partner Nadiia Kichenok have been drawn to meet Oksana Kalashnikova of Georgia and Miyu Kato of Japan in their opening round at the Hobart International, the first tournament the Indian ace will compete in her comeback bid.
File image of Sania Mirza. Reuters
Meanwhile, Sania has decided to pair with compatriot Rohan Bopanna at the Australian Open as Rajeev Ram, with whom she had originally planned to play at the first Grand Slam of the season, has pulled out. Sania and Rohan had last played in the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Bopanna began the season in splendid fashion winning the ATP Qatar Open with Wesley Koolhof.
Last year also Bopanna had begun with a title win in Pune with Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan.
Hobart International 2020
Miyu Kato
Nadiia Kichenok
Oksana Kalashnikova
Australian Open 2021: Ankita Raina through to final round of qualifiers; Ramkumar Ramanathan eliminated
In the women's singles qualifiers being held in Dubai, Ankita overcame a second-set lapse to win 6-2, 2-6, 6-3 in the second round against the Ukrainian.
Australian Open 2021: Rafael Nadal's coach Carlos Moya to miss tournament due to COVID-19 travel restrictions
Nadal is aiming to clinch a 21st major title in Melbourne, which would put him ahead of Federer's 20 as the most successful men's player of all time.
Delray Beach Open: Cristian Garin, John Isner top seeds for ATP tour opener
Garin, ranked 22nd, and top-ranked American John Isner, 25th overall, lead a 28-player field at the start of a revamped schedule that will not return to US soil until the Miami Open in March.
Dr V Shanta, chairperson of Chennai's Cancer Institute, passes away at 94
Dr Shanta complained of discomfort and was taken to Apollo Hospitals where she passed away at 3.55am after attempts to remove a block in a blood vessel failed
Australian Open organisers forced to find new accommodation after hotel pulls out citing concerns from residents
Organisers of the year's first tennis grand slam confirmed they had secured new hotel accommodation after Melbourne's The Westin cancelled plans to house tennis players during two weeks of quarantine ahead of the tournament.
Antalya Open: Australian Alex de Minaur claims fourth career title after Alexander Bublik retires with ankle injury
The fourth-seeded De Minaur led the eighth seed 2-0 in the first set when his Kazakh opponent retired due to a right ankle injury he suffered in his semi-final.
WTA releases provisional tennis schedule through end of Wimbledon in July
The biggest event missing from the schedule is the joint WTA-ATP hard-court tournament in Indian Wells, California.
Australian Open 2021: Andy Murray tests COVID-19 positive, participation in doubt
Murray, who has finished runner-up in Melbourne on five separate occasions, is currently isolating at home, and is still hopeful of competing in the tournament.
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Factbox: Abuse of power, obstruction - the charges against Trump explained
(Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives will vote on Wednesday to impeach President Donald Trump on charges that he abused the power of his office and obstructed Congress in its investigation of his dealings with Ukraine. The following defines the two charges, or 'articles of impeachment,' based on historical background
(Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives will vote on Wednesday to impeach President Donald Trump on charges that he abused the power of his office and obstructed Congress in its investigation of his dealings with Ukraine.
The following defines the two charges, or "articles of impeachment," based on historical background.
In the impeachment context, abuse of power is generallydefined as using the vast powers of the presidency for personalbenefit.
Abuse of power is not specifically referred to as animpeachable offense in the U.S. Constitution, which states thata president can be removed from office for "Treason, Bribery, orother high Crimes and Misdemeanors."
But the founders of the United States intended the phrase"other high Crimes and Misdemeanors" to broadly encompass abusesof power, legal scholars said.
Alexander Hamilton, a famed American statesman, wrote in1788 that impeachment proceedings were for "those offenses whichproceed from the misconduct of public men, or, in other words,from the abuse or violation of some public trust."
Louis Michael Seidman, a professor at Georgetown Law, saidthe core allegation against Trump - that he withheldsecurity aid to Ukraine to pressure it to announceinvestigations that would benefit him politically - was the sortof conduct the founders considered impeachable.
"The U.S. has a national security interest in Ukraine, and it does appear that what the president was doing was putting that national security interest at risk in exchange for political benefits," said Seidman. "If that is what happened, that is the core of what impeachment is about."
Abuse of power was one of the articles of impeachmentadvanced against President Richard Nixon, who resigned before afull House vote on the charges. In approving the charge of abuseof power against Nixon, a House committee accused of him ofauthorizing tax audits of political opponents on his "enemieslist."
Abuse of power was advanced as an article of impeachmentagainst then-President Bill Clinton relating to his affair with a White House intern, but a majority of House members voted against including that charge. Clinton was eventually impeached on two other charges - perjury and obstruction of justice - but was not convicted by the Senate.
OBSTRUCTION OF CONGRESS
Democrats have also charged Trump with obstruction ofCongress based on his stonewalling of the House's impeachmentinquiry. The White House has refused to provide documents tocongressional investigators and has instructed top advisers andgovernment officials to defy subpoenas and refuse to testify.
A similar charge, contempt of Congress, was one of thearticles of impeachment against Nixon, who had defied subpoenasfor incriminating tape recordings.
Contempt of Congress is a misdemeanor crime under U.S. law,which defines the offense as willfully failing to providetestimony or documents to Congress. A different crime,obstruction of justice, more broadly prohibits "interferencewith the orderly administration of law and justice."
The White House has argued that the Constitution does notrequire senior presidential advisers to appear for compelledtestimony before Congress. A judge rejected that argument onNov. 25 in a dispute over a subpoena issued to former WhiteHouse counsel Don McGahn.
Trump's lawyers have also argued his refusal to cooperatewith the impeachment investigation is justified because theprocess has been unfair to him.
(Reporting by Jan Wolfe, editing by Ross Colvin and Jonathan Oatis)
Moderna raises 2021 vaccine output forecast to at least 600 million doses
(Reuters) -Moderna Inc said on Monday it would produce at least 600 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine in 2021, up by 100 million doses from its previous forecast, as the United States continues to roll-out the vaccine. The company was working to invest and hire in order to deliver up to 1 billion doses this year, the higher end of its production forecast, it said
On thin ice? Poles get creative to skate round coronavirus rules
WARSAW (Reuters) - A skating rink owner in the Polish city of Szczecin believes he has found a way to keep his business open despite coronavirus restrictions - operate as a flower shop instead. His plan is simple - the customer has to purchase access to the flower "warehouse", then chooses from a box of flowers in the middle of the rink. "You can jump, crawl or go on all fours ..
Yemeni boy, ravaged by hunger, weighs 7 kg
By Reuters Staff SANAA (Reuters) - Paralysed and severely malnourished, seven-year-old Faid Samim lies curled up on a hospital bed in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, having barely survived the journey there. "He was almost gone when he arrived but thank God we were able to do what was necessary and he started improving. He is suffering from CP (cerebral palsy) and severe malnutrition," said Rageh Mohammed, the supervising doctor of the Al-Sabeen hospital's malnutrition ward.
Google employees form labor union in United States
By Paresh Dave and Ayanti Bera OAKLAND, Calif. (Reuters) -More than 200 employees and contractors at Google parent Alphabet Inc in the United States and Canada have formed a labor union to promote workplace equity and ethical business practices, the group's elected leaders said on Monday. The "Alphabet Workers Union" will collect dues of 1% of total compensation from members, according to its website
Slack outage disrupts remote working for users
(Reuters) - Workplace messaging app Slack Technologies Inc said that users were facing connectivity issues with the platform on Monday, disrupting remote working as the new year begins.
U.S. will appeal against UK judge decision to refuse Assange extradition
LONDON (Reuters) - U.S. prosecutors have indicated they will appeal against a British judge's ruling on Monday to bar the extradition of WikiLeaks' founder Julian Assange, his lawyer said. Lawyer Edward Fitzgerald said he would apply for bail for Assange on Wednesday, pending that appeal.
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Non-Compete and Trade Secrets Blog
Posts from November 2010.
Pssst...Can Your Lawyer Keep a (Trade) Secret?
Nov. 29, 2010 by Michael Greco
The American Bar Association’s Commission on Ethics 20/20 is examining whether technological advances are placing clients’ confidential information at risk, and if so, what should be done about it. Businesses should be asking themselves, "Can our lawyer keep a (trade) secret?"
Ethics, Trade SecretsTags: Uniform Trade Secrets Act
WikiLeaks Breach: Lessons Learned Regarding Trade Secret Theft
If the recent WikiLeaks release of more than a quarter-million sensitive files is not a wake-up call to companies about the need to proactively protect confidential information, nothing is. The lesson is clear. When it comes to protecting trade secrets, preventative measures are as important, if not more important, than remedial measures.
Jury Orders SAP to Pay Oracle $1.3 Billion For Theft of Software and Documents
If you had dismissed Oracle's lawsuit against rival SAP as just one more squabble between giant IT competitors, you likely weren't alone. But on Tuesday, November 23, 2010, all that changed when a nothern California jury ordered SAP to pay Oracle a whopping $1.3 billion for theft of software and related documents.
Unfair Competition/Employee RaidingTags: Copyrights, damages
Computer Fraud & Abuse Act: Court Rejects Argument That Employer’s Corporate Policies Can Make Employee Access “Unauthorized” Under the CFAA
Nov. 23, 2010 by Brent Cossrow
Federal courts are split over whether the Computer Fraud & Abuse Act applies to a faithless employee’s misappropriation of an employer’s confidential information by means of the employer’s computer. A California federal court recently held that an employee's access to such a computer is not "unauthorized" for purposes of the CFAA even if the employer's policies preclude such conduct.
Computer Fraud & Abuse ActTags: CFAA, without authorization
Former Société Générale Trader Convicted of Stealing Proprietary Source Code; Stage Set for Goldman Sachs Source Code Prosecution
On Friday, November 19, 2010, a Manhattan jury convicted former Société Générale trader, Samarath Agrawal, of misappropriating trade secrets. The case is one of two recent criminal prosecutions undertaken by the United States Government for employee theft of source code underlying high-frequency trading platforms.
Trade SecretsTags: Criminal Prosecution
Litigation Budgets in Non-Compete Cases
Litigation budgets can be difficult to prepare under the best of circumstances. This is especially true for non-compete cases because judges have remarkably broad discretion when it comes to the procedures they require and because litigation activity is front-loaded. The key is to recognize what parts of non-compete litigation are in a party’s control, and what parts are not, and then to make realistic projections with the understanding that they likely will need frequent updating as the case evolves.
Non-competeTags: Litigation Budgets
U.S. Loses Argument that the Computer Fraud & Abuse Act Applies to Employees Who Access Work Computers
Federal courts continue to debate whether the Computer Fraud & Abuse Act applies to the misappropriation of an employer’s electronic trade secrets by departing employees. In a recent criminal case, one more court sided with employees -- and against the U.S. Government -- when it held that the CFAA does not apply in this context.
Computer Fraud & Abuse ActTags: without authorization
Georgia's New Non-Compete Law: Growing Questions Emerge
Nov. 9, 2010 by Joseph Shelton
By now, it is almost old news that Georgia voters overwhelmingly passed a constitutional amendment authorizing a new statutory framework for enforcement of restrictive covenants. But a question has quickly emerged as to when the new law is effective.
Non-competeTags: Georgia
Smart Decisions by Multi-National Companies Can Keep Trade Secret Cases in U.S. Courts
Multi-national corporations operating in the United States often question whether their trade secrets will receive adequate protection in foreign markets. With this concern in mind, multi-national companies commonly prefer to litigate in U.S. courts where legitimate trade secret rights are consistently respected. When parties and witnesses are located abroad, keeping litigation in U.S. courts, however, presents certain challenges. Smart litigation decisions can make the difference.
Trade SecretsTags: Forum Non Conveniens, Choice of Forum, International
A New Day Dawns For Georgia Non-Compete Law
In a landslide victory with 68% of the votes, the constitutional amendment authorizing a new statutory framework for enforcement of restrictive covenants in Georgia was passed by Georgia voters on November 2, 2010. The new framework goes into effect immediately, but it will only be applied to restrictive covenants that are signed November 3, 2010 or thereafter.
Non-competeTags: blue pencil, severability, Georgia
Trade Secret Protection With A Remote Workforce: 7 Practical Considerations for Employers
Pennsylvania Supreme Court Reminds Employers To Get Employee Signatures On Covenants Before They Start Work
Non-Compete Enforcement Considerations in the Context of a Reduction-in-Force
Physician Non-Compete Agreements Present Challenges, Potential Controversy
Noncompete Reform Continues in New England: Maine, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island All Pass New Laws
Maryland Joins the Bandwagon: Bans Noncompetes for Low-Wage Workers
HB 2992: Oregon’s Most Recent Attempt to Rein in Restrictive Covenants
A Company’s Facebook Snooping Didn’t Prevent Critical Trade Secrets Injunction
Contractual Employee Non-solicitation Provisions Under Attack: Employer Loses Battle in Case Involving Unique Facts
Massachusetts Employers, Non-Compete Reform is Here!—How is Your Organization Addressing It?
Duty of Loyalty
Employment Terminations
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Aleksandra "Roxelana" Sultan, Hürrem Haseki Sultan
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Aleksandra "Roxelana" Sultan (Lisowska), Hürrem Haseki Sultan
Russian: Aleksandra "Roxelana" Султана (Лисовска), Hürrem Haseki Sultan, Lithuanian: Anastazija Hiurem Sultan (Roksolana) Lisovska, Haseki Sultan, Polish: Roksolana Sultan (Lisowska), Hürrem Haseki Sultan
Also Known As: "Roksalan", "Александра Лисовска", "Анастасия Лисовска", "Анастася (Настя) Лисовска", "Хурем султана", "Hürrem", "Роксолана", "Рушен", "Roksolana"
Birthdate: 1506
Birthplace: Рогатин, Poland
Death: April 18, 1558 (51-52)
Istanbul, Istanbul, Turkey
Place of Burial:
Daughter of Havrylo Lisowski and Leksandra Lisowska
Wife of Suleiman the Magnificent
Mother of Şehzade Mehmed; Mihrimah Sultan; Şehzade Abdullah; Selim II, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire; Şehzade Bayezid and 2 others; Şehzade Cihangir and Sehzade Cihangir Cihangir « less
Occupation: валиде ханъм; хасеки
Managed by: Henn Sarv
Suleiman the Magnificent
Şehzade Mehmed
Mihrimah Sultan
Şehzade Abdullah
Selim II, Sultan of the Ottoman ...
Şehzade Bayezid
Şehzade Cihangir
Sehzade Cihangir Cihangir
Leksandra Lisowska
Havrylo Lisowski
Şehzade Mustafa
Şehzade Ahmed
About Aleksandra "Roxelana" Sultan, Hürrem Haseki Sultan
Hürrem Sultan (Turkish pronunciation: [hy%C9%BE%CB%88%C9%BEem suɫˈtaːn], Ottoman Turkish: خرم سلطان; c. 1502 – 15 April 1558; fully: Devletlu İsmetlu Hürrem Haseki Sultan Aliyyetü'ş-Şân Hazretleri; birthname unknown, according to later traditions either Anastasia Lisowska, or Aleksandra Lisowska,[5] also known as La Rossa or Roxelana) was the favorite consort and later the legal wife of Ottoman Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent and the mother of Şehzade Mehmed, Mihrimah Sultan, Şehzade Abdullah, Sultan Selim II, Şehzade Bayezid and Şehzade Cihangir.[6] She was one of the most powerful and influential women in Ottoman history and a prominent figure during the era known as the Sultanate of Women. She was "Haseki Sultan" (chief wife of the Sultan) when her husband, Suleiman I, reigned as Ottoman sultan. She achieved power and influenced the politics of the Ottoman Empire through her husband and played an active role in state affairs of the Empire.[7]
3 Life with the Sultan
4 Charities
She was known mainly as Haseki Hürrem Sultan or Hürrem Haseki Sultan; also known as Roxolena, Roxolana, Roxelane, Rossa, Ružica; in Turkish as Hürrem (from Persian: خرم Khurram, "the cheerful one"); and in Arabic as Karima (Arabic: كريمة, "the noble one"). "Roxelana" might be not a proper name but a nickname, referring to her Ukrainian heritage (cf. the common contemporary name "Ruslana"); "Roxolany" or "Roxelany" was one of the names of Ukrainians, up to the 15th century, after the ancient Roxolani. Thus her nickname would literally mean "The Ruthenian One".[8]
Modern sources do not contain information on Roxelana's childhood, limiting themselves to information about her Polish, Rusyn, or Ukrainian ethnic origin, and mentioning the Kingdom of Poland as her birthplace. In the middle of the 16th century, the ambassador of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the Crimean khanate Mikhalon Lytvyn in the composition of 1548–1551 "About customs of Tatars, Lithuanians and Moscow" (Latin: De moribus tartarorum, lituanorum et moscorum) at the description of trade specifies that "[...] the most beloved wife of the present Turkish emperor - mother of his primogenital [son] who will govern after him, was kidnapped from our land".[9]
According to late 16th-century and early 17th-century sources, such as the Polish poet Samuel Twardowski (died 1661), who researched the subject in Turkey, Hürrem was seemingly born to a father who was a Ukrainian Orthodox priest.[10][11][12] She was born in the town of Rohatyń, 68 km southeast of Lviv, a major city of the Ruthenian Voivodeship in the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland (today in Western Ukraine).[12] In the 1520s Crimean Tatars captured her during one of their frequent raids into this region, took her as a slave (probably first to the Crimean city of Kaffa, a major centre of the slave trade, then to Constantinople) and selected her for Suleiman's harem.[10][12]
Life with the Sultan
She quickly came to the attention of her master, and attracted the jealousy of her rivals. She soon proved to be Suleiman’s favorite consort or Haseki Sultan. Hürrem’s influence over the Sultan soon became legendary. She was to bear the majority of Suleiman's children and in an astonishing break with tradition, she was eventually freed. Breaking with two centuries of Ottoman tradition,[13] a former concubine had thus become the legal wife of the Sultan, much to the astonishment of observers in the palace and the city.[14] It made Suleiman the first Ottoman emperor to have a wed wife since Orhan Gazi and strengthened Hürrem's position in the palace and eventually led to one of her sons, Selim, inheriting the empire.
In the Istanbul harem, Hürrem Sultan was a very influential rival for Mahidevran Sultan. Hürrem gave birth to her first son Mehmed in 1521 (who died in 1543) and then four more sons, destroying Mahidevran’s status of being the mother of the sultan’s only son.[15] The rivalry between the two women was partially suppressed by Ayşe Hafsa Sultan, Suleiman’s mother,[16] but after her death in 1534, as a result of the bitter rivalry a fight between the two women broke out, with Mahidevran beating Hürrem. This angered Suleiman, who subsequently sent Mahidevran to live with her son, Şehzade Mustafa, in the provincial capital of Manisa. This exile was shown officially as the traditional training of heir apparents, Sanjak Beyliği.
Hürrem and Mahidevran had borne Suleiman many sons, four of whom survived past the 1550s. They were Mustafa, Selim, Bayezid, and Cihangir. Of these, Mustafa was the eldest and preceded Hürrem's children in the order of succession. Hürrem was aware that should Mustafa become Sultan her own children would be strangled. Yet Mustafa was recognized as the most talented of all the brothers and was supported by Pargalı İbrahim Pasha, who was by this time Suleiman's Grand Vizier. It has also been suggested by a number of sources that Ibrahim Pasha had been a victim of Hürrem Sultan's intrigues and rising influence on the sovereign, especially in view of Ibrahim's past support for the cause of Şehzade Mustafa. Hürrem is usually held at least partly responsible for the intrigues in nominating a successor. Although she was Suleiman's wife, she exercised no official public role. This did not, however, prevent Hürrem from wielding powerful political influence. Since the Empire lacked, until the reign of Ahmed I, any formal means of nominating a successor, successions usually involved the death of competing princes in order to avert civil unrest and rebellions. In attempting to avoid the execution of her sons, Hürrem used her influence to eliminate those who supported Mustafa's accession to the throne.[17]
Thus in power struggles apparently instigated by Hürrem,[18] Suleiman had Ibrahim murdered and replaced with her sympathetic son-in-law, Rüstem Pasha. Many years later, towards the end of Suleiman’s long reign, the rivalry between his sons became evident. Furthermore, both Hürrem Sultan and the grand vizier Rüstem Pasha turned him against Mustafa and Mustafa was accused of causing unrest. During the campaign against Safavid Persia in 1553, because of a fear of rebellion, Sultan Suleiman ordered the execution of Mustafa.[19] According to a source he was executed that very year on charges of planning to dethrone his father; his guilt for the treason of which he was accused has since been neither proven nor disproven.[20] After the death of Mustafa, Mahidevran lost her state in the palace (as being the mother of the heir apparent) and moved to Bursa and lived a troubled life.[15] Her last years, however, were not in poverty, for Selim II, the new sultan after 1566 as well as her stepson, put her on a salary.[20] Her rehabilitation may have been possible only after the death of Hürrem in 1558.[20] Cihangir, Hürrem's youngest child, is said to have died of grief a few months after the news of his half-brother's murder.[21]
After Suleiman executed Mustafa in October 1553, there appeared some sort of dissatisfaction and unrest among soldiers who blamed Rüstem Pasha for Mustfa's death. Then Suleiman dimissed Rüstem Pasha and appointed Kara Ahmed Pasha as his grand vizier in October 1553. But almost two years later, Kara Ahmed Pasha became the victim of vicious calumnies brought against him by Hürrem Sultan who wanted her son-in-law, Rüstem Pasha, to become the grand vizier again. Kara Ahmed Pasha was strangled in September 1555, and Rüstem Pasha became the grand vizier once more.
Suleiman also allowed Hürrem Sultan to remain with him at court for the rest of her life, breaking another tradition—that when imperial heirs came of age, they would be sent along with the imperial concubine who bore them to govern remote provinces of the Empire; the concubines were never to return unless their progeny succeeded to the throne (Sanjak Beyliği).[22] Hürrem also acted as Suleiman’s advisor on matters of state, and seems to have had an influence upon foreign affairs and international politics.[7] Two of her letters to King Sigismund II Augustus of Poland have been preserved, and during her lifetime, the Ottoman Empire generally had peaceful relations with the Polish state within a Polish–Ottoman alliance.
Under his pen name, Muhibbi, Sultan Suleiman composed this poem for Hürrem Sultan:
"Throne of my lonely niche, my wealth, my love, my moonlight.
My most sincere friend, my confidant, my very existence, my Sultan, my one and only love.
The most beautiful among the beautiful...
My springtime, my merry faced love, my daytime, my sweetheart, laughing leaf...
My plants, my sweet, my rose, the one only who does not distress me in this world...
My Constantinople, my Caraman, the earth of my Anatolia
My Badakhshan, my Baghdad and Khorasan
My woman of the beautiful hair, my love of the slanted brow, my love of eyes full of mischief...
I'll sing your praises always
I, lover of the tormented heart, Muhibbi of the eyes full of tears, I am happy."[23]
Aside from her political concerns, Hürrem engaged in several major works of public buildings, from Mecca to Jerusalem, perhaps modeling her charitable foundations in part after the caliph Harun al-Rashid’s consort Zubaida. Among her first foundations were a mosque, two Koranic schools (madrassa), a fountain, and a women's hospital near the women's slave market (Avret Pazary) in Constantinople. She commissioned a bath, the Haseki Hürrem Sultan Hamamı, to serve the community of worshippers in the nearby Hagia Sophia. In Jerusalem she established in 1552 the Haseki Sultan Imaret, a public soup kitchen to feed the poor and the needy.
Some of her embroidery, or at least that done under her supervision, has also survived, examples being given in 1547 to Tahmasp I, the Shah of Iran, and in 1549 to King Sigismund II Augustus.
Esther Handali acted as her secretary and intermediary on several occasions.
Hürrem Sultan died on 15 April 1558 and was buried in a domed mausoleum (türbe) decorated in exquisite Iznik tiles depicting the garden of paradise, perhaps in homage to her smiling and joyful nature.[24] Her mausoleum is adjacent to Suleiman’s, a separate and more somber domed structure, at the Süleymaniye Mosque.
Hürrem Haseki Sultan, or Roxelana, is well-known both in modern Turkey and in the West, and is the subject of many artistic works. In 1561, three years after Hürrem's death, the French author Gabriel Bounin wrote a tragedy titled La Soltane about the role of Hürrem Sultan in Mustafa's death.[25] This tragedy marks the first time the Ottomans were introduced on stage in France.[26] She has inspired paintings, musical works (including Joseph Haydn’s Symphony No. 63), an opera by Denys Sichynsky, a ballet, plays, and several novels written mainly in Ukrainian, but also in English, French, and German.
In early modern Spain, she appears or is alluded to in works by Quevedo and other writers as well as in a number of plays by Lope de Vega. In a play entitled The Holy League, Titian appears on stage at the Venetian Senate, and stating that he has just come from visiting the Sultan, displays his painting of Sultana Rossa or Roxelana.[27]
In 2007, Muslims in Mariupol, a port city in Ukraine, opened a mosque to honor Roxelana.[28]
In the 2003 TV miniseries, Hürrem Sultan, she was played by Turkish actress and singer Gülben Ergen. In the 2011-2014 TV series Muhteşem Yüzyıl, Hürrem Sultan is portrayed by Turkish-German actress Meryem Uzerli and at the series last season she is portrayed by Turkish actress Vahide Perçin.
О Aleksandra "Roxelana" Султана, Hürrem Haseki Sultan (русский)
Александра или Анастася (Настя) Лисовска ( 1510 - 18 април 1558) е съпруга на султан Сюлейман Великолепни, управлявал Османската империя, известна с турското си име Хурем (на турски: Hürrem - Веселата), но също така и с имената Роксолана и Рушен (Сияеща). Родена е, в градчето Рогатин (по онова време Полша), днешна Украйна, в семейството на православен свещеник. През 1520 г. е пленена и отведена в Истанбул като робиня, но по-късно е избрана за султанския Харем. Там тя успява да се превърне в любимата куртизанка на султан Сюлейман Великолепни. Дарява го с пет деца, едно от които е Селим, наследил империята. Хурем е била активен съветник на султана в държавните афери и международната политика. Наред с това, Хурем е първата жена ангажирала се с изграждането на няколко значителни публични сгради, от Мека и Йерусалим и първата направила дарение за построяването на джамия в Истанбул.
Погребана е заедно със своя съпруг в тюрбе намиращо се край Сюлеймановата джамия в Истанбул.
Aleksandra "Roxelana" Sultan, Hürrem Haseki Sultan's Timeline
Baptism of Aleksandra
Birth of Aleksandra
Рогатин, Poland
Birth of Şehzade Mehmed
Birth of Mihrimah Sultan
Birth of Şehzade Abdullah
Istanbul, İstanbul, Turkey
Birth of Selim II, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire
Birth of Şehzade Bayezid
Birth of Şehzade Cihangir
Birth of Sehzade Cihangir Cihangir
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Geo-Bergstrasse-Odenwald Nature Park
UNESCO World Heritage Site Lorsch Monastery, Carolingian Gate Hall, Benedictine Abbey ©Lookphotos (Günther Bayerl)
The charming cultural landscape between the River Rhine, the Odenwald hills and the River Neckar has been shaped by over 500 million years of geological history, diverse natural surroundings and good old-fashioned hospitality.
At the Geo-Bergstrasse-Odenwald Nature Park, rocks, plants and water have fascinating tales to tell, revealing, for example, where primeval horses once lived. Rangers are on hand at the Geo-Nature Park to provide visitors with all kinds of information. And there's plenty more to learn at the information centres, on the countless themed trails and at the educational installations dedicated to the environment. The area designated a UNESCO Global Geopark is also home to the Messel Pit Fossil Site and Lorsch Abbey, two World Heritage Sites. This is a landscape rich in contrasts: the Bergstrasse region to the west is characterised by historical sites, a mild climate and a tradition of wine-growing, whilst the Odenwald region to the east boasts hills, vast wooded areas and striking valleys.
www.geo-naturpark.net
Albrecht Dürer's House Nuremberg
Art Museum in the Monastery of our Lady Magdeburg
Art Palace Museum Düsseldorf
BMW World Munich
Built by the water: Brandenburg an der Havel
Brandhorst Museum Munich
Cathedral and Diocesan Museum Mainz
Chemnitz: the discovery of the modern
Young Museum Frankfurt am Main
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Popular Indian restaurant faces a potential fine of up to £100,000 in illegal workers investigation
The Rajdoot in Stroud was visited by immigration enforcement officers
Melissa JonesSenior Digital Reporter
One of the dishes at the Rajdoot in Stroud (Image: Northcliffe Media Ltd 2014)
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A popular Indian restaurant faces a potential fine of up to £100,000 in an illegal workers investigation.
The licence of The Rajdoot is being reviewed after a visit from a Home Office team found 'five Bangladeshi men who had no permission to work.'
An immigration enforcement team carried out checks at the premises on Gloucester Street, which is rated four out of five on Trip Advisor.
Acting on intelligence, they arrested one person deemed an 'overstayer' on April 26.
A spokesman for the Home Office said: "Acting on intelligence, Immigration Enforcement officers visited the Rajdoot at around 5.30pm.
"Immigration checks identified five Bangladeshi men who had no permission to work.
The Rajdoot on Gloucester Street in Stroud (Image: Google)
"A 29-year-old man who had overstayed his visa was detained pending his removal from the UK.
"A further four men, aged between 33 and 73 – who have ongoing immigration cases, but no permission to work - must report regularly to the Home Office while their cases are dealt with.
"Rajdoot was served a Civil Penalty Referral Notice warning that a financial penalty of up to £20,000 per illegal worker will be imposed unless the employers can demonstrate that appropriate right-to-work document checks were carried out, such as seeing a passport or Home Office document confirming permission to work.
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"If proof is not provided, this is a potential total of up to £100,000."
A spokesman for the business said the manager was unavailable for comment at this time.
The local authority confirmed their part of the investigation.
“The Immigration Enforcement Team at the Home Office has asked us to review the premises licence to sell alcohol and late night refreshment (hot food and drink after 11pm)," a Stroud District Council spokeswoman said.
"There is now a 28 day period when any other responsible authority or any other person can make representations about the premises in relation to the application for review or any other matters relating to any of the licensing objectives.
"After this time the Licensing Panel will consider the application by the Immigration Enforcement Team and any other representations about Rajdoot and make a decision whether to revoke the licence or put conditions on it.”
Stroud District Council
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C&G 18 May 1997
#18 May 1997 -
» #18 May 1997
THE GOODIES CLARION AND GLOBE
THE OFFICIAL NEWSLETTER OF 'THE GOODIES RULE - OK' FAN CLUB
Issue No. 18 12th May 1997
IN THE C&G THIS MONTH...
What's Graeme Garden up to? What's it like to meet Tim Brooke-Taylor? - A survivor tells ;) And has Bill Oddie ever played the vacuum cleaner? All this answered this month...PLUS more crazy quiz questions and the lyrics of The Goodies theme song.
3. GOODIES TRIVIA QUIZ by David McAnally
4. QUOTE REQUESTS
HOMEPAGE HAPPENINGS
Thanks to all those people who've visited and commented on our newly relocated homepages. At the moment the pages are just updated versions of our old ones, but in the next couple of months we'll be extending them and putting up more pictures and more information. You can visit the new pages at:
http://www.geocities.com/TelevisionCity/2934/index.html
Also, don't forget our Bookpages page, up and running thanks to Rastous. This page allows you to buy books written by or about The Goodies, with part of the money you spend going towards our Convention 2000 fund. The Bookpages page is at:
http://light.iinet.net.au/~rastous/bookpage.htm
If you want any more info about the new pages or have any suggestions or corrections please e-mail <carrot@olis.net.au>.
GOODIES CONVENTION 2000 - AUSTRALIA
Thanks to all those who've shown interest in our Convention in 2000. If you think you'd like to attend, please register your interest by filling out the form below and returning it to me. The purpose of the form is to work out what city we should hold the convention in and how much money you're prepared to spend to attend.
---8<----SNIP----8<----SNIP----8<----SNIP----8<---
1. Put a * in the [ ] next to your answer.
2. Send this form to <carrot@olis.net.au>.
1. In which city would you prefer the convention to be held?
ADELAIDE [ ]
ALICE SPRINGS [ ]
BRISBANE [ ]
CANBERRA [ ]
DARWIN [ ]
HOBART [ ]
MELBOURNE [ ]
PERTH [ ]
SYDNEY [ ]
2. If the convention is not held in your preferred city would you be willing to travel to another city to attend the convention?
YES [ ]
NO [ ]
3. What is the *maximum* amount of money you'd be willing to pay for entry to the convention and accommodation?
less than $50 [ ]
$50-100 [ ]
$100-150 [ ]
over $200 [ ]
*Your answers will be kept in strictest confidence *
Don't forget that we're looking for people to help us plan the convention. If you'd like to join the convention committee (meetings would be held on IRC), please e-mail me <carrot@olis.net.au>.
A GOODIES IRC SESSION?
by Santhia Keiller <santhia@tne.net.au>
Is there any chance of another IRC session on the Goodies? I have just worked out the basics of IRC (hell, I only just worked out what IRC stands for!) and having checked out various IRC servers have found a dearth of people interested in chatting about the Goodies. How can that be??????
Editor's Reply: Great idea Santhia, we all had a great time last time we got together on IRC. The problem is that we can't really find a time to suit everyone. With well over 500 members all over the globe, it'd be impossible to link everyone up at once. So what we could do is select a day and get a channel going called #goodies and people can come and go as they please. I'm not really up with IRC servers and I know that a lot of other people aren't either, so if someone could suggest a good server, that everyone can get to, then I can e-mail everyone later in the month with the details.
GOODIES RE-SCREENING PETITION - AUSTRALIA
The word is spreading and there are hundreds of people all over the country who have either signed or are collecting signatures. Remember when you've collected as many signatures as you can please return the completed forms to me at:
Alison Bean
7 Sharpes Ave
Fulham Gardens
S.A. 5024
I'd like to send the petition to the ABC within the next six months. DON'T FORGET if you want to sign the petition or get involved in the campaign, visit the petition homepage at:
http://www.geocities.com/TelevisionCity/2934/petition.html
And speaking of which, here's someone else who agrees with us:
from Matthew K. Sharp <kirseval@werple.net.au>
There was a letter in The Age Green Guide (24 April 97) from Marina Carpirelli of Seaford, headed "Bring back oldies". It reads: "I miss the old shows that the ABC used to run in the 5-6pm timeslot. Now there're only gameshows, news and cartoon repeats on all the channels at this time. I appeal to the ABC to bring back the old classics such as Doctor Who, The Monkees, and The Goodies. I am sure this would increase your ratings greatly."
Seen a Goodie recently? Mail <carrot@olis.net.au> with the details...
THE ONE-MAN BAND
or THE LOST FILMS OF TIM BROOKE-TAYLOR
or ALL'S WELLES THAT ENDS WELLES
by Matthew K. Sharp <kirseval@werple.net.au>
On Friday 25th April, SBS-TV Australia screened a documentary "Orson Welles - The One-Man Band", which appears to be the same programme as that broadcast in the UK in February under the title "The Lost Films Of Orson Welles" (see Keith Topping's article in C&G 15); although my impression is that the UK version was subtitled whilst the Australian screening had a new, English language narration added by SBS (and in the process screwed the sound in the first half hour).
Of interest to Goodies fans is that two of the film snippets used in the programme featured Tim Brooke-Taylor. One, "One-Man Band" (duration 2'25"), has Welles in a number of roles including a busker, a policeman, two old ladies and a Chinese strip joint owner. Tim is seen as a bowler-hatted British gent providing commentary for a travelogue film talking about swinging London (It says "Official Guide To London" on the clapper board in which Tim gets his nose caught). At one point we can see a poster behind Tim which reads "Annual Garden Fete - Saturday 23rd August". Aug 23 was a Saturday in 1969, but my guess is that the film is more likely to have been made in early 1970. (It is certainly before the end of 1971, by which time Welles was bearded; see "Marty Feldman's Comedy Machine", incidentally a series for which Tim Brooke-Taylor contributed additional material. Incestuous, ain't it?).
Of equal if not greater interest is the fact that the song Welles "sings" (if that's not too strong a word) is "Here Comes The One-Man Band", a Bill Oddie composition, performed by Bill on I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again (Episode 6/5, 12 May 1968) and Broaden Your Mind (Episode 2/4, 8 December 1969).
The other film, "Stately Homes" (duration 2'00"), sees Welles as Lord Plumfield, with Tim Brooke-Taylor in a short cameo as his son Algy, a flannelled, straw-boatered compilation of every stereotypical upper-class British noise ever uttered. Lord P throws mints at him, which Algy catches in his mouth.
As presented in the documentary, this film also sees an older, bearded Welles edited in as an interviewer, and the narration makes the point that the footage of Welles interviewing was shot and edited into the film years after it had first been shot.
However, in two instances (the opening voice-over: "In England's green and pleasant land, few stately homes have entered the hectic hurly-burly of showbiz more recently than Plumfield Manor", after which the vision cuts to the older Welles asking the first question; and the final comment, "But then you'll have nowhere to live," the only question done as a voice-over rather than as a cut to the older Welles), there is a different voice saying lines which more properly (especially in the second example) belong to the interviewer. This other voice is that of Graeme Garden; and I would not be surprised to learn that before Welles re-edited the film, Garden was featured as the interviewer (although Garden's more extensive presence, I should point out, is pure speculation on my behalf).
Both films contain some great gags and are highly amusing. Another short, "Tailors" which seems to have been made around the same time, is also quite funny. All three are well worth digging out, as in addition to the Goodies links noted above, they show Welles to have a considerable comic talent, one which sadly saw the light of day only too infrequently.
CALLING GRAEME'S BLUFF
by Daniel Graaskov <en5dg@bath.ac.uk>
I have just remembered that, although I hardly recognised him (due to his lack of either his sideburns or his glasses), I saw Graeme Garden some time last week on the BBC program "Call My Bluff" on which he spoke about an obscure Middle Eastern game involving two men batting a dead cat around with spoons. In order to avoid people writing in and complaining he did make it absolutely clear that of course they didn't use a real spoon!
IF GRAEME RULED THE WORLD
by David Balston <david.balston@virgin.net>
I thought you might be interested to know that Graeme Garden has recently been involved in the recording of a pilot TV show called 'If I Ruled The World', a sort of panel game show with two teams of two players, acting as two political parties try to score points off each other by mud slinging and back stabbing in true political style. Graeme was teamed up with comedian Jeremy Hardy and the show was hosted by Clive Anderson of 'Whose Line Is It Anyway' fame. The other team was Tony Hawks and a comedian whose name I forget. The show was recorded in London on 20th April 1997. As it is a pilot it might not get shown on TV, but as he has made so few TV appearances recently I thought you might be interested.
BRUSH WITH TBT
by Arnaldo Lay <arnie@nt-tech.com.au>
Somewhere between the months of Sept - Dec 1990, my housemate Paul, was on HMAS Darwin during Operation Desert Shield (out in the Gulf of Oman). His ship was on 3 days Rest and recreation (R&R) in the port of Muscat in the country of Oman. (This is during the gulf war!). Paul and some of his buddies decided to go and stay at the Intercontinental hotel during which period they were lazing around the poolside (during a war!) when they decided to have lunch. It was at this time , that one of his buddies spotted TBT, and they all decided to promptly 'hassle' him for his autograph. And from here, TBT invited the 3 of them to join him for lunch. THE BIG QUESTION : Paul and his friends asked him what he was doing in Oman (with all the fun things going on), and TBT said that he was involved in a play at the time and that was the reason he was there (we all know he was fighting the Iraqis though).
They all had a nice lunch and all discovered that he was a very nice person and not full of himself, didn't act like a big celebrity and was a very interesting and polite person to speak to. And so readers, that is our brush with fame.....
But DOH! my friend Paul had his autograph on the back a business card and somehow one day he threw away this business card (cos it was one he didn't need and didn't realise he had earlier got the autograph on it) , and now kicks himself for doing so.
But YES, this is a true story. so you better believe it.
HERE'S AN OBSCURE SPOTTED!!! FOR YOU
Bill Oddie is credited as one of the vacuum cleaner players in "A Grand, Grand Overture", part of the Hoffnung Festival Of Music, recorded on 12 & 13 February 1988 at the Royal Festival Hall, London, and issued on double CD Decca 444 921-2.
CHEAP GOODIES VIDEOS
by Andy Williamson <andywilliamson@cableinet.co.uk>
Thought you would like to know that the BBC in the UK have reissued the 2 Goodies videos at a lower price (sadly no new ones available yet). They are part of the new "Right Price Comedy" series of mid-price videos, and are on sale in my local W.H.Smiths at £5.99 (the old ones were £10.99).
The videos have new reference numbers, but the contents plus the front and back of the sleeves remain the same. The spine is different and the reverse of the sleeve now advertises other BBC comedy videos (so sadly we've lost the "Who Are The Goodies" and the Trandem specifications from the earlier release).
BBCV 5829 is Kitten Kong / Scatty Safari / Scoutrageous (formerly BBCV 5391) BBCV 5830 is The Goodies And The Beanstalk / The End / Bunfight At The OK Tea Rooms (formerly BBCV 5370)
3. GOODIES TRIVIA QUIZ
Test your Goodies knowledge with this month's brain-teasers, written by David McAnally <dsm@maths.uq.edu.au>
1: How was the Giant in "The Goodies and the Beanstalk" different to other giants?
2: What was Bill's name when he appeared on 'Mastermind' in "Frankenfido"?
3: What effect did the American Army's mysterious 'Tomato Soup' have on every person it came in contact with?
4: Which famous TV astronomer appeared, as himself, in some Goodies' episodes?
ANSWERS TO LAST MONTH'S QUESTIONS
Q: Two "Dr. Who" lead actors have appeared in Goodies` episodes. Who were they - and what were the episodes in which they appeared?
A: Jon Pertwee (The Third Doctor) who appeared as the Druid Priest in "Wacky Wales" and Patrick Troughton (The Second Doctor) who appeared as Dr. Petal in "The Baddies"
Q: What is the name of the Goodies' trandem?
A: Buttercup.
Q: In "Football Crazy", when spectators were banned from attending soccer matches because of hooliganism, what became their replacement 'sport'?
A: Ballet.
Q: At the end of the song 'I'm A Teapot' (from 'The New Goodies LP') Tim changes his mind. What is he instead?
A: A coffee percolator.
4. QUOTE REQUEST
Forgotten the exact wording of your favourite Goodies quote? E-mail <carrot@olis.net.au> and we'll publish it for you next month.
from Jo Madge <joanne.madge@chrysalis.org>
Is it possible to get the lyrics to the Goodies theme song printed in a future newsletter? (The one where they spell out "GOODIES" and end with, "Here we come into town, getting up, falling down.") ?? I've *never* been able to understand all the words to that!
Editor's Reply: All right Jo, you asked for it, here's the lyrics to the Goodies theme song INCLUDING the mysterious second verse, which did not appear in the show. This is the version of the theme song on 'The New Goodies LP' and the one used in shows made between 1975 and 1980. (The lyrics were changed slightly for the LWT series.)
THE GOODIES THEME SONG
G - you need a helping hand
O - you know we'll understand
O - we're with you right to the end
Goodie, Goodie, Goodie
D - we'll show you definitely
Y - you should employ us three
We - can take on any old line
Anything anytime
Goodies - goodie goodie yum yum
Goodies - we're coming for you
Here we come into town
Getting up, falling down
Hey - why don't you give a shout
Man - we can work it out
Aaaah - come on and don't be shy
We'll lead you to a better life
Goodie Goodie Goodie
Do - you want to sing our song
You - can learn right along
We - can show you all what to do
So you can be a Goodie too
Up down, in out
Right in, fall about
Goodies - goodie goodie yum yum - Goodies
The Goodies - goodie goodie yum yum - Goodies
<fade>
That's all folks! Tune in at the same time next month.
Cheerio,
<carrot@olis.net.au>
This is an archive newsletter of The Goodies Rule - OK! International Fan Club (copyright The Goodies Rule - OK! 1997). Some of the information in this newsletter may now be incorrect. Current information can be obtained from http://www.goodiesruleok.com
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4 Models to Operate Geriatric Emergency Departments
The four different approaches to establishing geriatric emergency department services vary in the amount of resources required.
Over the past five years, four primary models for geriatric emergency departments have emerged, according to a new journal article.
The number of Americans over age 65 is expected to double to nearly 100 million by 2060. With multiple chronic conditions and high costs of care at end of life, older adults have relatively higher healthcare costs compared to younger Americans. In 2010, citizens over age 65 were 13% of the population but accounted for 34% of healthcare spending.
In 2014, guidelines were published for the formation of geriatric emergency departments based on consensus reached by the American College of Emergency Physicians, The American Geriatrics Society, Emergency Nurses Association, and the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine.
"The guidelines were developed to help every ED improve its care of older adults. The geriatric ED guideline recommendations span the care continuum from out-of-hospital care, ED staffing, protocols, infrastructure, and transitions to outpatient care," the co-authors of the new journal article published by Annals of Emergency Medicine wrote.
The article presents four models that serve as "practical examples" for establishing geriatric EDs.
1. Geriatric ED unit
A geriatric ED unit is a dedicated space within an emergency department that can include enhancements such as flooring and beds that are designed for older adults to reduce risks, including falls and delirium.
Screening assessments are used to determine which older adult patients should be treated in a geriatric ED unit, the co-authors of the journal article wrote. "Screening tools or criteria for the unit are required because for most EDs the volume of older adults is higher than the capacity in these units, and ED resources must be focused on patients who will most benefit."
Advantages of geriatric ED units include having the expertise of a dedicated staff, which often features geriatric practitioners, social workers, physical therapists, occupational therapists, palliative medicine consultants, and pharmacists. In addition, training costs are relatively low because education is focused on a single team rather than the whole ED staff.
Limitations of geriatric ED units include the potential for limited operating hours because of staffing constraints and disparities of care when the unit is closed.
2. Geriatrics practitioner model
This model provides geriatric care throughout an ED rather than in a specialized unit within an ED, the journal article co-authors wrote.
"The entire ED adopts a geriatric-focused approach that may include structural changes, screening with geriatric assessment tools, or both. A geriatric nurse, nurse practitioner, allied health specialist, geriatrician, or all four are available in the ED. Evaluation by these geriatric practitioners occurs concurrently with routine ED care."
Geriatric practitioners work with social workers, case managers, or nurses who are adept at care transitions and matching patients with community resources such as home health care.
Advantages of this model include geriatric assessments provided by caregivers with specialist training as well as lower costs and increased flexibility compared to the geriatric ED model.
Limitations of this model include the potential for long ED length of stay to accommodate interdisciplinary geriatric evaluations.
3. Geriatrics champion model
In this model, there is no geriatrics clinician in the ED, but a geriatric champion plays a leadership role in initiatives and establishing care pathways.
"This model may be chosen because of small patient volumes or staffing costs of a geriatric practitioner. Instead, the model relies on initial assessment in the ED and close ties to outpatient resources and outpatient geriatric assessment for patients. The geriatric champion is a physician or nurse with expertise in geriatric ED care," the journal article co-authors wrote.
A key role of the geriatric champion is to provide staff training and to develop protocols that improve ED care.
When ED physicians determine that a patient needs a geriatric assessment, the patient is either hospitalized or is referred for timely follow-up with a geriatrician in an outpatient setting.
An advantage of this model is improving geriatric care at low cost.
A limitation of this model are barriers to outpatient care coordination. "Outpatient care coordination can be challenging to initiate during an ED visit if appropriate resources are not in place, and clinicians may revert to traditional care practices on high-volume days or when time is limited," the co-authors wrote.
4. Geriatric-focused observation unit model
This approach is a combination of the geriatric ED unit and the geriatrics practitioner models.
"An ED observation unit is a unit within the ED (typically 10 to 20 beds) that divides patients into cohorts for evaluations longer than a 4-hour ED stay but not requiring an inpatient stay beyond 48 hours. The targeted 8- to 24-hour observation period allows a full interdisciplinary geriatric assessment," the journal article co-authors wrote.
With the potentially long ED length of stay, patients can be held overnight then receive geriatric assessments from in-hospital consultants or interdisciplinary teams the next morning.
"This model can be used with a dedicated geriatrics team in the observation unit or in conjunction with the hospital's inpatient geriatric consultation service, eliminating the need to hire ED-specific staff. This model adapts and repurposes already existing inpatient services (geriatrics, physical therapy, speech therapy, occupational therapy, pharmacists, case managers, and other consultants) for ED patients," the co-authors wrote.
Advantages of geriatric observation units include decreasing return ED visits and hospitalizations, research shows.
Identifying patients who can benefit most from a geriatric observation unit can be difficult, the co-authors wrote. "High-risk patients may require greater resources than those available within a 24-hour stay, or may need a full qualifying admission for nursing facility placement."
In 2014, guidelines were established for the formation of geriatric emergency departments.
The geriatric ED unit model features a dedicated space within an ED and is relatively resource intense.
The geriatrics champion model features care coordination with outpatient geriatricians and requires relatively low resources.
5 Telehealth Takeaways from Former Senator William Frist
Are Public Health Ads Worth the Price? Not if They're All About Fear
Post-ICU Care for COVID Recovery
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Illuminae to release debut album “Dark Horizons” on February 12th 2021
Submitted by newseditor on Fri, 11/27/2020 - 14:32
Immrama Records and Gonzo MultiMedia announce the release of “Dark Horizons”, the debut album from Illuminae, the brand-new project from Ian Jones (Karnataka, Chasing The Monsoon) and Agnieszka Swita (Caamora).
The album features special guests Steve Hackett (Genesis), John Helliwell (Supertramp), Troy Donockley (Nightwish), Craig Blundell (Steven Wilson), Luke Machin and Gonzalo Carrera.
The album was mixed by Joe Gibb, highly regarded as a world class mix engineer and who has worked with many prestigious artists including Massive Attack, The Cure and Leftfield.
Watch the video for the first single “Blood On Your Hands” below. Stream the new single here.
From dark, twisted symphonies to sweet lullabies, the collective writing talents of Ian Jones (Karnataka, Chasing The Monsoon) and Agnieszka Swita (solo, Caamora) combine in their powerful new musical collaboration Illuminae. Embracing symphonic, progressive and Celtic influences, bitter sweet melodies intertwine with lush harmonies to create a majestic towering cathedral of sound, songs which traverse the dividing line between darkness and light, life and death, solitude and hope. Shards of light piercing a subterranean labyrinth.
“Dark Horizons” (out on on February 12th, 2021) will be available in the following formats:
• CD deluxe digipak
• Double vinyl gatefold sleeve
• USB card in digipak
• Download – WAV, FLAC and MP3
Pre-order “Dark Horizons” here.
2. Blood On Your Hands
3. Edge of Darkness
4. Lullaby
5. Twice
6. Heretics and Prophecy
7. Sanctuary
8. Black Angel
9. Sign of Infinity
10. Dark Horizons
London based Welshman, Ian Jones, is a founder member, composer and multi-instrumentalist with British symphonic rock band Karnataka and Chasing The Monsoon. Karnataka have released several critically acclaimed and award-winning albums, including The Gathering Light and Secrets of Angels. Vocalist, pianist and composer Agnieszka Świta, hailing from Poland and living in London, released her self-penned debut solo album “Sleepless,” a modern symphonic rock album, to critical acclaim and has released several albums with Clive Nolan in their collaborative project Caamora.
www.illuminae.net
www.facebook.com/illuminaemusic
prog pop
melodic prog rock
atmospheric prog rock
modern prog rock
avant-prog
dream-prog
female-fronted
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Finding Dora Maar: An Artist, an Address Book, a Life (Paperback)
By Brigitte Benkemoun, Jody Gladding (Translated by)
ON HAND in at least ONE of our stores. Click through or call for up-to-the-minute availability.
Green Apple Books on Clement
(ART)
“[A] spirited and deeply researched project…. [Benkemoun’s] affection for her subject is infectious. This book gives a satisfying treatment to a woman who has been confined for decades to a Cubist’s limited interpretation.” — Joumana Khatib, The New York Times
Merging biography, memoir, and cultural history, this compelling book, a bestseller in France, traces the life of Dora Maar through a serendipitous encounter with the artist’s address book.
In search of a replacement for his lost Hermès agenda, Brigitte Benkemoun’s husband buys a vintage diary on eBay. When it arrives, she opens it and finds inside private notes dating back to 1951—twenty pages of phone numbers and addresses for Balthus, Brassaï, André Breton, Jean Cocteau, Paul Éluard, Leonor Fini, Jacqueline Lamba, and other artistic luminaries of the European avant-garde.
After realizing that the address book belonged to Dora Maar—Picasso’s famous “Weeping Woman” and a brilliant artist in her own right—Benkemoun embarks on a two-year voyage of discovery to learn more about this provocative, passionate, and enigmatic woman, and the role that each of these figures played in her life.
Longlisted for the prestigious literary award Prix Renaudot, Finding Dora Maar is a fascinating and breathtaking portrait of the artist.
This work received support from the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Cultural Services of the French Embassy in the United States through their publishing assistance program.
Brigitte Benkemoun is a journalist and writer. She is the author of La petite fille sur la photo (2012) and Albert le Magnifique (2016).
Jody Gladding is a poet and translator. She has translated some thirty books from French, including, most recently, Roland Barthes’s Album: Unpublished Correspondence and Texts (2018), Michel Pastoureau’s Yellow: The History of a Color (2019), and Jean Giono’s Occupation Journal (2020).
“Part detective story, part social history, part excellent gossip, Finding Dora Maar uses the miracle of a found address book to reconstruct the life of an important woman artist who knew everyone."
—Francine Prose, author of Peggy Guggenheim: The Shock of the Modern, and the New York Times bestselling Reading Like A Writer
“With a novelist’s eye for detail, Benkemoun takes readers on a journey full of surprises as she researches and reimagines the landscape of Dora Maar’s life in Surrealism and its aftermath. Guided by the scant details in Maar’s address book, which came into the author’s hands by chance, she reweaves the mesh of avant-garde artistic life in mid-twentieth-century France, taking us along with her as this serendipitous tale unfolds. It’s well worth the trip, an informative, enjoyable read.”
—Carolyn Burke, author of Lee Miller: A Life; Foursome: Alfred Stieglitz, Georgia O’Keeffe, Paul Strand, Rebecca Salsbury; and other books
“To follow this mesmerizing interrogation of a vintage address book is to watch Brigitte Benkemoun stir to life an ardent, unexpected, and achingly human Dora Maar.”
—Patricia Albers, author of Joan Mitchell, Lady Painter: A Life and Shadows, Fire, Snow: The Life of Tina Modotti
“This enthralling study of Paris and its artistic avant-garde should be required reading for Surrealist and modern art lovers.”
—Publishers Weekly **Starred Review**
“Finding Dora Maar is a fascinating account of serendipity, the joy of research, and a complicated woman artist who moved in the best circles.”
—Dr Alice Violett
“Art history meets detective work: what could be more thrilling?”
— ARTnews
“[A] spirited and deeply researched project…. [Benkemoun’s] affection for her subject is infectious. This book gives a satisfying treatment to a woman who has been con?ned for decades to a Cubist’s limited interpretation.”
— Joumana Khatib
“Deliciously acerbic, dishy, fascinating, intelligent.”
— Lucy Kogler
“In Benkemoun’s version of art history we imagine the rooms where painters lived out their adventures, the colors of their fingernails, and the lunch special served at the café on the day Picasso dined with one mistress and met, for the first time, his next. Using a humble phone book as a starting point, Finding Dora Maar is a joyful reminder of the people behind some now-iconic names.”
— Karen Chernick
“The marvel here is that a chance encounter with a seemingly insignificant object could yield such a world of personal discovery and excitement—an excitement that Benkemoun, in the best Surrealist, and biographical, tradition, often manages to convey.”
— Mark Polizzotti
"It’s marvelous. . . . A unique portrait through snapshots, scenes from parties and iconic cafes, and striking snippets of her poetry and poetry written about her by lovers.”
— What’s Nonfiction
“A compelling blend of memoir, biography and history.”
— Apollo
“An especially and unreservedly recommended addition to personal, professional, community, and academic library Art History collections and supplemental studies reading lists. It should be noted for students, academia, and non-specialist general readers with an interest in the subject that Finding Dora Maar: An Artist, an Address Book, a Life is also readily available in a digital book format.”
— Mary Cowper
“Eschewing chronological or alphabetical order, documenting her own wrong turnings and sudden breakthroughs, Benkemoun crafts a sinuous narrative in which chapters are bridged by chance encounters and association of ideas. . . . Benkemoun uncovers interesting archive material and she sketches a vibrant gallery of portraits.”
— Peter Brooks
“Fascinating insights. . . . Conveys the excitement of discovery and the drama of Maar’s life.”
— Alexander Adams
“Most certainly, Benkamoun’s patient sleuthing of the leads furnished by an otherwise diminutive document convinces the reader that Maar’s universe was complex and stimulating and that art remained for her—and for some time—a means of direct engagement with her world.”
— Eilene Hoft-March
Publisher: Getty Publications
Publication Date: May 19th, 2020
Photography / Individual Photographers
Art / History / Contemporary (1945-)
Art / Individual Artists
Art / Women Artists
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Progressive Web App
We helped the RNLI save lives at sea by transforming their communications
The RNLI is the largest charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.
When the RNLI Callout and Messaging System (RCAMS) was first created and piloted to 50 stations around the UK, the overriding feedback from users is that the system was very difficult to use and therefore impacted the operation of Lifeboat Stations around the country.
A survey established that user-adoption appears to have faltered. Of the 41 stations surveyed, only 22 were using it properly, 16 weren’t using it at all, and nearly half said usability was an issue.
RCAMS is a fundamental platform for the RNLI, as its main purpose is to contact crew members, around the country to respond to an emergency. The system also allows crew members to manage their availability so that the Lifeboat Operations Manager (LOM) can track crewing levels and run station operations in the most efficient way.
Greenwood Campbell looked at several options to re-platform RCAMS. We conducted in-depth research on the user requirements against the business KPIs and consequently identified a Progressive Web App (PWA) as the most effective platform to create.
Speed of development and reactivity to feedback when developing a PWA is incomparably better to building native apps. Working closely with the RNLI teams and remote testing user groups, we had to make sure that all processes and deployment pipelines are set to the highest standards.
We split the project into sprints and created prototypes in which we were able to test with volunteers and crew members across the country. We needed to ensure that designs were both user-friendly and functional, allowing station managers and crew to manage their time/station more efficiently.
The prototypes went through several rounds of iterations to incorporate the feedback gathered from key users and were then signed off ready to move into the development phase.
We pushed the capabilities of PWA’s to the limit. From homescreen ‘installable’ shortcuts, through advanced caching strategy, offline mode handling, to push notifications and compatibility alignments between multiple operating systems and devices - we’ve covered them all.
Single Page Application architecture and dealing with near-real-time API’s forced the decision of building custom components for almost every section of the app. Detailed UI design, thoroughly planned user experience and weeks of internal testing, resulted in an application that was welcomed by the end users with positive feedback starting with the very first deployment.
The first feedback comment came into the RNLI from one of their Helms.
The crew member was highly impressed with the system as he had added his wife as his ‘additional notification person’. He was due to pick up his children from a childminder when his RCAMS Alert went off for an Emergency Lifeboat Call. He attended the call and because his wife was alerted on her mobile phone, she went to collect their children instead of him.
This is a great example of one way RCAMS can assist crew members and their families to manage any domestic commitments, and be on call for the RNLI.
After we rolled out RCAMS on 9th April, the RNLI had all crew members registered by the following morning, which was timely, as they received a ‘shout’ on day 2.
Even more importantly, the shout occurred whilst many crew members were at a funeral in Newcastle for a long-serving lifeboat volunteer and RNLI employee. The LOM was in a town nearby and couldn’t get to the station, but through RCAMS he could see which crew were near the station and was able to delegate launching duties to them. They could also confirm “we have enough people to launch so we’re launching without waiting for others”.
"RCAMS has given us the ability to understand our availability and our response levels in real time. Now we’ve got one unified way across the whole of the RNLI. One system makes it easier for everybody. Ultimately this is going to help us with our goal of saving lives at sea."
Dave Turnbull
RNLI Coxswain/Mechanic
We revolutionised the way that the Dixons Carphone team communicate
We transformed the way Abbeyfield showcase their available retirement properties through clever UX and sleek design
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Can COVID-19 Really Cause Permanent Hearing Loss?
Emerging evidence suggests there may be a connection
Julia Métraux
Health Writer
There’s no doubt that COVID-19 has triggered fear in all of us. “Will I get it?” and “How will I fare?” are questions that have flickered through most of our minds at one time or another. Yet as more people contract the illness and survive it, we discover new concerns, like the symptoms that afflict people known as “long-haulers” — those who cope with symptoms weeks or months after they recover.
It’s been well-documented that some patients lose their sense of smell and taste. But, one open question remains about COVID-19’s effects on the senses: Can coronavirus cause hearing loss? Specialists who spoke to Hearing Tracker shared that while evidence is preliminary, and inconclusive, early data suggests there may be a link.
What the Research Reveals
A recent study in the International Journal of Audiology found that 16 adults — out of a group of 121 hospitalized with COVID-19 — reported experiencing changes in hearing or tinnitus after hospitalization. However, the findings may not be generalizable to the general public, according to lead researcher Dr. Kevin J. Munro, Director of the Manchester Centre for Audiology and Deafness (ManCAD) and Deputy Director of the NIHR Manchester Biomedical Research Centre.
Many of the patients who experienced changes in hearing had co-morbidities like diabetes, which Dr. Munro believes could underlie the development of more serious symptoms and complications from COVID-19. “They’ve been more susceptible to damage because their body has these other health problems,” Dr. Munro explained. Due to the small sample size, Dr. Munro cautioned against over-generalizing his findings.
Dr. Stefania Koumpa, an otolaryngology trainee at the Royal National Throat Nose and Ear Hospital in England, documented the case of a 45-year-old patient with no history of hearing loss who experienced a sudden sensorineural hearing loss (meaning due to damage to the inner ear or the nerve from the ear to the brain) after spending a week in the ICU for COVID-19 treatment. The patient had left-sided tinnitus and sudden-onset hearing loss which sadly did not improve after taking oral steroids.
“Even one-sided hearing loss can have a significant impact on quality of life,” Dr. Koumpa explained. “It affects many functions we rely on such as hearing conversation in noisy environments, being warned by alarms and moving vehicles, and being able to tell from which direction a sound is coming.”
Too Soon to Know the Full Story?
While cases like these are certainly sobering, the medical professionals we spoke with say it’s too early to draw conclusions. Understanding of COVID-19 is still in its early stages, despite the hunger for intel and answers. As Dr. Nicholas Reed, an assistant professor of epidemiology at Johns Hopkins Medicine, says, “The media climate and everything with COVID-19 is so demanding that you’re seeing a lot of things come out and people might make conclusions before we really know anything,” Dr. Reed said. “It’s not that the research is bad, it’s informing the next step. It’s not that COVID doesn’t cause hearing loss. We don’t know.”
For COVID-19 patients who self-report hearing loss, Dr. Munro also questions whether the fatigue that COVID-19 long-haulers may experience could contribute to perceived hearing loss. “I have wondered that when they have got a hearing problem or it’s really because they are so tired and fatigued and not able to concentrate,” Dr. Munro said.
If Sudden Hearing Loss Strikes
For now, the advice is that if someone experiences sudden hearing loss during or after a bout with COVID-19, they should follow the same steps they would under any other circumstances. “Report it to a physician so it can be medically managed first,” says Dr. Reed, stressing the importance of a professional evaluation. “I would say that any audiologic considerations like hearing aids come second.”
Typically, a hearing assessment like an audiogram would be a critical step, according to Dr. C. Matthew Stewart, associate professor of otolaryngology at Johns Hopkins Medicine, to detect the degree of loss before treatment is started. “The known treatments for sudden sensorineural hearing loss involve a high dose of steroid, typically in the form of an oral medication like prednisone,” Dr. Stewart explained. “Work from the United Kingdom has shown hearing recovery in patients with COVID-19.”
This promising news is part of a “don’t panic” outlook on whether there is a correlation between hearing loss and COVID-19. Dr. Stewart does not believe there should be undue alarm over what appears to be an uncommon complication. “I don’t think there should be unnecessary worry, but if a person has any evidence of hearing loss, do seek treatment.”
Julia Métraux is a health and culture writer with hearing loss whose work has appeared in Narratively, The Tempest, BUST, and Poynter. Check out her portfolio.
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Robert Mugabe estate out, no will found
Mrs Bona Nyepudzai Mutsahuni-Chikore,
Daniel Nemukuyu Investigations and Special Reports Editor
THE family of Zimbabwe’s founding President, the late Cde Robert Mugabe, has failed to locate an inheritance will for the distribution of the national hero’s estate, a development that has prompted the Master of High Court to call for an edict meeting this week to appoint an executor.
Cde Mugabe died in Singapore on September 6 this year after battling prostate cancer for at least 13 years.
His daughter, Mrs Bona Nyepudzai Mutsahuni-Chikore, notified the Master’s Office on October 21 and disclosed that her father had US$10 million in a CBZ Bank nostro account and a number of immovable and movable properties.
The properties declared by Mrs Mutsahuni-Chikore are:
* House Number 129 Forbes, Road, Waterfalls
* Villa Number 65, Gunhill, Harare
* Number 27 Quorn Avenue, Mt Pleasant
* Lot GB Helensvale and Lot 1 of subdivision B of Sub G of Helensvale
* Highfield Farm
* Zvimba rural farming plot (about 5 acres)
* Zvimba rural home (one hectare)
* Zvimba orchard (about five acres)
* 10 cars
Mrs Grace Mugabe was listed as the sole surviving spouse while Bona, Robert, Bellarmine and Russel Goreraza were listed as Cde Mugabe’s surviving children.
The Mugabe family lawyer Mr Terrence Hussein of Hussein Ranchod & Company wrote to the Master of High Court Mr Eldard Mutasa asking him to register the death of Cde Mugabe.
Mr Hussein indicated that no will had been found and messages had already been sent to other law firms in town to establish if the late former President had not left a will.
“Kindly register the estate. Thus far, we have not been able to locate a will, but have sent out inquiries to other law firms, although the family members are not aware of any.
“In this regard, perhaps the estate may be treated as intestate for now,” reads the letter.
To that end, the Master’s Office has invited the Mugabe family members and their lawyers to an edict meeting on Thursday to discuss the appointment of an executor.
Legal experts said the initial inventory by the informant at the registration of the estate can be amended at any stage in the event that the informant would have either deliberately or mistakenly left out some assets relevant to the estate.
Mr Wellington Pasipanodya of Manase & Manase Legal Practitioners said deliberately leaving out some assets in the inventory was criminal.
“If the assets are left out intentionally, that is fraud and it is imperative upon any of the beneficiaries to bring that information to the attention of the Master.
“The fraudster will be liable for criminal prosecution. Further, in terms of Section 13 of the Administration of Estates Act, the culprit will forfeit all benefits arising from the omitted assets,” said Mr Pasipanodya.
Another expert, Mr Caleb Mucheche of Caleb Mucheche & Partners Law Chambers, explained the procedure that is followed when handling an estate that does not have a will.
“The Master of High Court convenes an edict meeting for the relatives of the deceased to appoint an executor.
“If they fail to agree on an executor of their own, the Master will choose a neutral professional executor from a list kept at his office,” he said.
Mr Mucheche said siblings of the deceased or any other members of the extended family have no legal right to claim a share of the estate in the absence of a will including them as beneficiaries.
“An estate of a person who dies without a will is distributed to beneficiaries made up of his or her children and surviving spouse, under a monogamous civil marriage or surviving spouses if he was in a polygamous marriage under customary law.
“Brothers or sisters are not legally entitled to inherit if a person dies without a valid written will,” said Mr Mucheche.
He added: “Brothers and sisters can only inherit under a third tier if a person dies without a wife or children (primary beneficiaries) and his or her father or mother (secondary beneficiaries) are also late.”a
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12 lady riders from around the globe draw for Abu Dhabi Championship
November 6, 2012, Abu Dhabi ~ Top professional Australian lady jockey Linda Meech who comes to UAE with 1000 wins, partners A’nnabak W’Rsan as 12 lady riders from around the globe launch their claims in the final leg of the HH Shaikha Fatima bint Mubarak Ladies World Championship (IFAHR) at the Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club on Sunday evening.
Shathra Hajjaj, representing UAE, who’s seeking her first win in the series starts from stall three astride Ragdan. But shelooked confident to strike after nine unsuccessful attempts where her best finish was third in Germany.
“I would prefer to start from stall five or six, but gate three in Abu Dhabi racetrack is not very bad. The race has attracted the attention of all lady jockeys in the world, including those who are not taking part in the final leg, and they have showed great determination on the Facebook and Twitter to make it a very special event,” she said.
But, Abu Dhabi-based French trainer Eric Lemartnel is of the opinion that AF Sanadek, ridden by Alison Massin from France, will be hard to beat in the ladies challenge.
In the meantime UAE upcoming apprentice jockey Saeed Al Mazrooei will jump on Jameel W’rsan to carry the country’s hopes in the inaugural edition of the HH Shaikha Fatima bint Mubarak EARS Apprentice Jockey Race.
Al Mazrooei who scored eight wins in his two-year career said: “I expect the race to be very fast and inexperienced riders may lose ground in the early stages as the riders begin to sort themselves out. The winner will be the one who does the better work in the final furlong. I took part in a similar race in Qatar, but there’s a very big difference between Arabians and Thoroughbreds as regards the structure and speed of the horses. I don’t know my horse, but I trust our national trainer Bakhit Al Ketbi and hopefully I will be thereabouts,” he said.
Full Race Card here:
The draw ceremony was held on Tuesday at the Mangrove Hotel in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday and attended by Mubarak Al Muhairi, director general of the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority, Lara Sawaya, director the HH Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan Global Arabian Flat Racing Festival and head of IFAHR ladies racing, Dr. Nader Saab, Adnan Sultan, director general of the Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club and Stephen Bowey, Executive Director (Corporate Development) Invest AD.
The draw was conducted by Annebella Hillal, 2006 first runner up of Miss Lebanon and 7th runner up of Miss World and MBC presenter besides the Channel Four famous presenter Derek Thompson.
Both events, which have attracted strong fields of 12 runners each, are held under the directives of Shaikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, as part of the Shaikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan Global Arabian Flat Racing Festival which is organized by the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority and co-ordinated by Abu Dhabi Sports Council in association with Emirates Racing Authority, IFAHR and Emirates Arabian Horse Society, supported by General Authority for Youth and Sports Welfare and Fegentri with Emirates airlines as the official carrier and sponsored by Invest AD, Al Rashid Investment, Areej Al Ameerat, Mauzan, Al Awani General Enterprises, Kabale, the UAE’s General Women’s Union, the HH Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak Ladies Sports Academy, Abu Dhabi International Hunting and Equestrian Exhibition 2012, Dr. Nader Saab Switzerland, Wathba Stud Farm and Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club.
Tags:European Association of Racing Schools HH Sheikh Mansoor bin Zayed Global Arabian Flat Racing Festival International Arabian Racing Sheikh Mansoor Global Arabian Flat Racing Festival
← New Read ~ The Purebred Arabian Horses of Iraq
Preparations for HH Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak Lady jockeys Championship →
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Mozart: Serenade No. 10 'Gran Partita' - Ogrintchouk
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Otis Taylor: Hey Joe Opus | Red Meat
Santana: Abraxas | Downunderman - December 23, 2020
....Do you have a preference between the MoFi stereo SACD and the stereo JSACD? I'm imagining that they will sound a little different.
Mahler: Symphony No. 6 - Boulez | Steven Harrison - January 7, 2021
Tony, Wow, thanks for that truly interesting post. Pity that the proper remastering was not done here. Of course if Esoteric requested that in the licensing agreement, the fee ...
Ravel: Bolero - Boulez | Tony Reif - January 9, 2021
This is a very beautiful performance, with Ma mère l'Oye ballet being the standout. It was also very well recorded by Tonmeister Helmut Burk. According to EBS's Rainer ...
Patricia Barber: Higher | Roadster-S - December 31, 2020
67 Euro??? The cost of Hi-Rez discs has just gone plain crazy over the last few years.
The Clifford Brown Box | Steven Harrison - December 16, 2020
From the Clifford Brown Box, "This 'Original EmArcy Collection' has been newly mastered by master tapes which were directly copied digitally from the 'original tapes' never ...
Patricia Barber: Higher | Tony Reif - January 1, 2021
It's $35 in the US, so JPC's price seems out-of-line. But they may not order from Impex - so ad in distributor or one-stop markups and shipping/customs charges.
Enrico Rava Quartet: Renaissance | SteelyTom - December 18, 2020
I think your comments about the sonics of most, if not all, Venus recordings are on target. It's a pity, because the label has recorded a number of excellent artists, some ...
John Williams Live in Vienna 'Live edition' - Mutter, Williams | john hunter - Yesterday 03:52 pm
Looking forward to the comparision. Should be interesting
Bach: Goldberg Variations - RCO Camerata
Barcanova Records BNP1701 (2 discs)
Stereo/Multichannel Hybrid
Classical - Chamber
Bach: Goldberg Variations
RCO Camerata
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Johann Sebastian Bach: Goldberg Variations, BWV 988 (Clavier-Übung IV)
Review by Adrian Quanjer - August 1, 2020
BarcaNova Records is a relatively new Dutch label. On their stylishly ‘cool’ website, BarcaNova founder, Hubert Koekenberg, outlines the label’s adage as follows: “Passionate and devoted to classical music, we aspire only perfection. Putting our all into producing only the best music”. Surely a stimulating statement invoking immediate curiosity among dedicated Hi-Res classical music fans like me. All the more reason to sample their first release: Bach’s Goldberg Variations.
Although originally written for the harpsichord, several other versions exist. Best known is, of course, Glen Gould’s piano version. And there are also some great organ versions around. But there’s a whole lot more. Some even as far-fetched as a re-composition for choir & baroque ensemble. More down to earth are transcriptions for solo guitar as well as several other for combinations of different instruments, one of them being Sitkovetski’s arrangement for string trio. It is this version that has been chosen for BarcaNova’s first release. For detailed information, I refer to the liner notes, which you will find well worth reading.
The trio are members of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, and more in particular of its inner circle, the Camerata RCO. All playing on historical instruments. Annabeth Webb, a one-time pupil of the famous Dutch violin pedagogue, Coosje Wijzenbeek, plays a beautiful 1711 violin built by the Neapolitan instrument builder Nicolo Gagliano, on loan from a private foundation; Jeroen Woudstra performs on an original viola, built in 1767 by the French luthier, Jean Baptiste Lefèbvre. Honorine Schäffer plays on a violoncello built in 1840 by Georges Chanot, another famous French Maître Luthier. The musically weathered character of these historical instruments does allow the musicians to produce a beauty of tone in each of the variations that can hardly be matched by modern siblings. Especially the warm sound of the cello caught my ear. The result is a delicately animated reading with a great deal of attractive musical expression.
I’m furthermore pleased to confirm that my listening tests made it unmistakably clear that these young musicians can easily live up to the standard of other, similar transcriptions of the Goldberg Variations, like for instance the one with Trio Zimmermann (BIS). Charmingly high spirited and technically perfect though they are, I find them a shade too superficial and at times even as ‘mechanical’ as a harpsichord. Surely a matter of taste, with which I won’t quarrel, but with three stringed instruments one can do so much more. Experience learns that in many arrangements and transcriptions - and not just this one - interpretative flexibility of Bach’s music can be stretched a long way as long as its nature remains intact.
And last but not least, there is the surprise of the recorded quality. BarcaNova has solicited the services of Bert van der Wolf for sound engineering and mastering, with the predictable result that home listening will get as close as is possible to the real thing.
A brilliant start for this label, and I shall be looking forward with much anticipation to following releases.
Blangy-le-Château, Normandy, France.
Copyright © 2020 Adrian Quanjer and HRAudio.net
Sonics:
Comment by Adrian Quanjer - July 29, 2020 (1 of 4)
Ther is now a second release of this relatively new label which is just as good as the first: Bach, Cellosuiten BWV 1007-1012,
Quirine Viersen, available at JPC. Bert van der Wolf signs for sound engineering.
Comment by SteelyTom - August 19, 2020 (2 of 4)
The work is split over two SACDs, I take it?
Comment by Adrian Quanjer - August 20, 2020 (3 of 4)
Goldberg = 2 SACD's and the other one Suites = 2 SACD's
Comment by breydon_music - August 21, 2020 (4 of 4)
Once more I am in your debt Adrian for bringing the Suites disc to our attention. I have tried some movements of Viersen's performance on Spotify - this gives an idea of her approach if not the recorded quality - and on that basis have ordered it and am looking forward to its arrival.
Click here to report errors or omissions in the music details.
Super Audio CD, SACD, DSD and their logos are trademarks of the Sony Corporation
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Apple is a trademark of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. Apple Music is a service mark of Apple Inc.
Copyright © 2003-2021 Stephen Best / Bitware Australia Pty Ltd. All rights reserved.
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12:25 pm EDT, October 7, 2015
Review: The ‘Harry Potter’ Illustrated Edition brings back the magic
By Andrew Sims | 12:25 pm EDT, October 7, 2015
Those of us who’ve read the Harry Potter series fell in love because of the wonder of it all. This week’s release of the first Illustrated Edition brings back that magic.
I visited a bookstore bright and early Tuesday morning to pick up a copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone’s Illustrated Edition. It’s the first time I’ve been in a bookstore to purchase a Harry Potter book since July 2007.
Eight years may have passed, but I was no less excited than I was those many summers ago when I picked up new J.K. Rowling books.
In a way, these Harry Potter books are new. Paging through the Illustrated Edition brings back the magic and wonder you felt while reading the series for the first time. Jim Kay’s illustrations are simply gorgeous — they’re peppered throughout the story in different shapes and sizes, and perfectly blend with Rowling’s words.
Our suspicions leading up to this release were correct: This Illustrated Edition is wider and taller than other versions of the Potter books in order to accommodate the combination of Rowling’s words and Kay’s illustrations. Printed in full color with a slight gloss, turning each page is an exciting prospect: What will I find when I move forward?
The publishers say there are over 100 illustrations in the book, and I found them nicely distributed throughout the story. Some pages hold only text, but most of them have some sort of illustration to break up the words.
I’m starting to think that I won’t read the “old” editions of the Potter books now that illustrated counterparts are becoming available. Why would I? The illustrations are so beautiful in this new edition that to go back to the originals would feel like downgrading my phone. Sure, those original books will always hold sentimental value, but as people who’ve already read those copies numerous times, it’s time for something new — and yet completely familiar.
I’m so glad Scholastic and Bloomsbury have teamed up to this see the Illustrated Editions through. Remember: They’ve previously announced that they’ve intended to release one new Illustrated Edition every year.
I can’t wait to see all of these books lined up on my book shelf around the year 2022. And can you imagine how big the later books will be?
Skimming through Sorcerer’s Stone I found a few illustrations in particular that really stand out to me. Kay’s interpretation of Nearly Headless Nick makes me wish he had a little more color in him in the movie:
And these two illustrations depicting Harry with Hagrid and Dumbledore remind you of the wonder Sorcerer’s Stone beholds: Harry is a new, young wizard being introduced to a complicated, beautiful, magical world for the first time.
Grab the Illustrated Edition here via Amazon (for about $22 – the cheapest price we’ve seen so far) or visit a local bookstore.
One quick warning for Americans: Barnes & Noble, the country’s only remaining bookstore chain, is selling the Illustrated Edition for the full $40 price tag in their stores. You can grab it for about $15 cheaper on their own website, but they won’t bend on the price in store. They told me they don’t price match their own website which I think is a bad move.
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INSIGHT: Mexico mulls tougher import permits for fossil fuels, chems
Author: Claudia Espinosa
30 Dec deadline for public comment on controversial draft
Implementation might be as early as Jan ‘21
Base oil importers would be subject to stricter import terms
Draft says government could cancel permits early
HOUSTON (ICIS)--Dozens of Mexico-focused fuels and petrochemical market stakeholders have commented on a controversial draft regulation from Mexico's economic ministry and energy ministry (SENER) that could give the government much greater discretion in granting import and export permits requested in 2021.
For the import permits, the products covered include olefins, aromatics, crude oil and refined products such as gasoline and base oils.
For the export permits, the products include oil, refined products and natural gas.
If adopted, the changes would give the Mexican government more discretion to cancel the permits.
Article 57 of the draft, for example, would allow SENER to cancel an import or export permit that has not been used in 30 calendar days. This could be highly problematic for seasonal markets.
Article 47 would allow SENER to withhold permits if it determines in its energy-balance analysis that granting the permit would affect energy security or a product's supply level in Mexico.
Energy attorneys said that “energy security” is a legally undetermined term, which would give SENER a broad margin of discretion evaluating applications.
Mexico's current federal administration has been consistent in promoting a nationalistic energy agenda that puts state-run energy producer Pemex and the state utility (CFE) at the centre of the country's economic development.
A former SENER official who reviewed the draft said the proposal duplicates requirements already requested by other ministries involved in vetting companies involved in Mexican import and export processes. The former official also said it is generally broad enough in many parts to leave it open to interpretation, including the definition of “energy balance”.
"The [draft] regulation is so bad, it is left to be interpreted by government officials and the evidence an applicant can present," the former official said.
Market sources said two changes that stood out to them from the draft were the exclusion of a previously available 20-year permit for certain products and a requirement that applicants for a five-year permit provide detailed customer information.
Among the products affected by the proposal are base oils. Currently, they do not currently require a permit to import.
Within the regulation framework, base-oil importers would need to show intended use of the material, including logistics and storage plans, customer contracts and volumes.
Lubricant blenders are working to gather documentation, but the timeline is tight.
Base-oil market players remain uncertain on what to expect, but many importers in Mexico could face permit obstacles if the regulation is passed as is.
Most of the light-viscosity base oils imported into Mexico are used as a diesel extender rather than to produce finished lubricants, which could prevent securing a permit.
For US base-oils suppliers, this would cut off a relief valve for surplus inventories.
The draft regulation was posted on 1 December and current rules require it remain posted for comment for 20 business days or until 30 December. This means it could mostly be made official upon publication in Mexico's federal official gazette (DOF) as early as the first full week of January.
The draft says it would not affect existing permits, though the potential new regulation would apply to new permit requests.
The current federal administration has previously pushed its draft regulations for early DOF publication. This has proven helpful for market participants involved in subsequent lawsuits challenging the regulations, where some favourable rulings have been based on such grounds.
It is currently unclear whether this draft regulation would violate the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) or World Trade Organization (WTO) trade rules.
The list below shows some of the products that would be affected by the proposed changes to Mexico's import permits. It is subject to change.
Orthoxylene (OX)
Mixed xylenes (MX)
Butylene
Butadiene (BD)
NGLs
Mixtures of butane and propane
Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG)
FUEL AND REFINED PRODUCTS
Ammonia in aqueous solution
The list below shows some of the products that could be affected by the proposed changes to the export permits.
Insight by Claudia Espinosa
Additional reporting by Amanda Hay and Al Greenwood
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Flipkart sees tier 3+ markets as the new frontier for e-commerce
It clocked 65 per cent new user growth from tier 3+ markets during Unlock.
18 Dec, 2020 - 02:17 PM IST | By indiantelevision.com Team
KOLKATA: With the need for social distancing and prioritising safety, the pandemic has led to millions of people turning to e-commerce this past year, not only in metros but in tier-3 regions and beyond as well. Etailers have focused on ecosystem partnerships, technological advancements and new tools that enable ease of experience for first-time users and to meet the needs of consumers this year, while ensuring business continuity for millions of MSMEs and sellers.
Flipkart has witnessed interesting demand patterns across India in 2020 as it catered to an array of consumer requirements in this unprecedented year. The company focused on consistently addressing the needs of aspiring customers in tier-3+ regions, who seek the latest products but have limited access, and customers in metros who seek new products with a minimum delivery time frame.
From changes in category preferences, the emergence of the ‘new essentials’ category, to the adoption of native languages, and surge in new-age forms of payments, 2020 has borne witness to an array of unique consumer trends.
‘Bharat’ consumers lead the race in a post-pandemic world
E-commerce established deep inroads in different regions of the country this year. As people turned to online shopping to meet daily necessities as well as non-discretionary purchases, Flipkart witnessed a new user growth of close to 50 per cent right after the lockdown, with tier-3+ regions registering the highest growth of 65 per cent during the Unlock (July-September) phase. Consumers from tier-2 and tier-3+ regions also spent the most time on the platform, signalling a continuing rise in user engagement and a shift in shopping preferences.
Increased adoption courtesy voice assistant and vernacular interface
To ensure that first-time users are at ease while shopping, Flipkart introduced two new capabilities to handhold them through the purchase journey – a voice assistant in grocery, and vernacular interfaces across multiple languages including Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada. As more consumers joined the e-commerce bandwagon this year, a growing preference to shop in their local language was seen. This year, the adoption of native languages saw a 2.5X increase from pre-Covid to the festive period (January to November 2020).
Digital transactions reach new heights with UPI surge
This year, consumers across India embraced and increasingly relied on the convenience of online financial transactions. UPI adoption on the Flipkart platform increased nationally by 4.5X from January 2020 to August 2020, with Maharashtra taking the lead with a 5.2X growth. Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu were the other states that were at the top of the list for UPI adoption on the platform.
MSMEs and micro-businesses become atmanirbhar
E-commerce, over the last few years, has played a significant role in accelerating the growth of MSMEs, micro-businesses, artisans, weavers and handicraft makers across the country. This year, e-commerce played an even more essential role in extending livelihood opportunities and a chance of operational revival as these businesses were hit severely due to the pandemic.
Flipkart saw close to a 35 per cent increase in sellers onboarded in 2020, in comparison to the same period last year. These sellers came from tier-2 and tier-3 regions such as Tirupur, Howrah, Zirakpur, Hisar, Saharanpur, Panipat, and Rajkot. They primarily catered to categories such as household needs, women’s ethnic wear, grooming, home decor and toys and school supplies.
To ease the transition of MSMEs to online retail, Flipkart has offered working capital support, constant counsel to leverage unique benefits on its marketplace model, analytics and market intelligence to support business decisions as well as on-ground support to ensure smooth movement of goods.
The emergence of ‘new essentials’ in 2020
The term ‘essentials’ got a whole new interpretation in 2020, as consumer needs evolved dynamically throughout the year. Moving beyond what was previously perceived as critical goods, the definition has now shifted to include daily items that a consumer needs, not just for food or health, but also for work and even remote learning. Pre-Covid, the most searched products included personal care, men’s clothing, footwear and women’s clothing. During the lockdown, food and nutrition, household, toys and audio products witnessed the highest demand.
In fact, this year has been marked by catering to evolving consumer preferences, said Flipkart Group chief corporate affairs officer Rajneesh Kumar said.
“The emergence of ‘the new essentials’ has seen the creation of greater opportunities and partnerships on our marketplace. This past year, we have strived to expand our offerings across categories to ensure our consumers are well-equipped with everything that they need. We have consistently worked towards creating an ecosystem that serves consumers’ growing needs and also helping Indian sellers and MSMEs access the pan-India market more effectively and efficiently,” Kumar added.
FlipkartE-commercecovid20192020online shopping
Nimisha Pandey to head Hindi originals for Zee5
MUMBAI: ZeeL has roped in National award-winning writer and director Nimisha Pandey to head the Hindi originals for its digital entertainment platform, Zee5. In this role, she will be responsible for creating quality original content for the OTT.
iWorld Over The Top Services
Delhi HC on WhatsApp privacy: ‘It’s voluntary, user can delete it’
KOLKATA: Amid the controversy surrounding WhatsApp’s updated privacy policy, the Delhi high court has remarked that it is a voluntary app and one can choose not to use the platform. The court was responding to a petition filed against the Facebook-owned messaging app following changes to its terms...
OTT summit Vidnet returns with first virtual edition
KOLKATA: Indiantelevision.com’s flagship OTT summit Vidnet is back with its latest edition. Like other large industry summits in the post-pandemic era, Vidnet is also going virtual this year. Contiloe has come on board as the supporting partner, Bitmovin and Pallycon are the technology partners;...
Two senior Zee5 executives step down
KOLKATA: Rajneel Kumar and Jay Pandya, two senior executives at Zee5, have put down their papers. Kumar joined Zee5 in 2018 as head - expansion projects & head of products, and was entrusted with expanding the consumer offering to increase users and revenue by building new business verticals...
WhatsApp delays its privacy policy update
WhatsApp is having an extremely eventful start to 2021. It began with a massive furore over its new privacy policy that was set to be implemented from 8 February this year. The overwhelming criticism has forced the messaging app to take a step back and in the latest development, it has delayed the...
iWorld Social Media
The breakneck speed of OTT growth currently underway across the globe, improvements in internet speeds, and the addition of improved technology have been advantageous for millions of users to gain access to content on the go.
With everything going digital in 2020 combined with the lockdown in most countries, going to the Masjid was tough. Shemaroo came up with a solution for that – the Ibaadat app.
Puneet Tripathi joins Times Internet programmatic division
KOLKATA: Times Internet has appointed Puneet Tripathi as programmatic strategic planning & solutions head. He took on his new role in December 2020. Prior to this, Tripathi was associated with Alibaba group as monetisation strategy & programmatic director. His experience spans over 17 years...
iWorld eNews
Petition filed challenging WhatsApp privacy policy
KOLKATA: In the wake of controversy over its updated privacy policy, Facebook-owned messaging app WhatsApp is facing legal suit in India. The new policy verges on user surveillance and threatens India’s security, a petition filed against the messenger said. After a brief hearing today, the matter...
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Commission on Global Economic Transformation Announcement
From the collections Global Commission, #INET2017
Several founding CGET members announce the ambitious project and respond to questions from the press.
Press Conference Featuring
Rohinton Medhora
President, The Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI)
Following the dramatic political shocks to the industrialized world in 2016, worsening global poverty and inequality, and inadequate public and private sector responses to the challenges that continue to plague the world’s economy 10 years after the financial crisis, the Institute for New Economic Thinking (INET) has initiated a Commission on Global Economic Transformation (CGET), with support from the Center for International Governance Innovation (CIGI). The effort will be led by Nobel Prize-winning economists Joseph Stiglitz and Michael Spence.
Read the full release here
Commission on Global Economic Transformation
Research Program Led by Joe Stiglitz and Andrew Michael Spence
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Back to InsideSources
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OPINION: Our Future Can’t Be Bought
Posted to Politics October 13, 2020 by Guest Op-Ed
Forest Lake State Park, one of the 10 original state parks, was created in 1935.
The park spans 397 acres and its 200-foot sandy beach lies on the shore of Forest Lake. Popular activities in the park include swimming, picnicking, mountain biking, fishing and boating. It is prime example of why people live, visit and appreciate New Hampshire.
Vermont-based Casella Waste Systems wants to put a landfill near Forest Lake and Forest Lake State Park, where 60 percent of the proposed landfill trash will be from out of state.
This project is not in the local town or region’s best interest.
Casella is looking to build a new landfill in Dalton, one proposed to have a 137-acre footprint, after Bethlehem voters twice rejected the company’s proposal to expand Bethlehem’s current 61-acre landfill district by another 100 acres. Casella will benefit greatly from this business opportunity.
People can presume Dalton will benefit from Casella’s proposed payment of $71million over 25 years to mitigate the trucking of trash to New Hampshire (for 40 years). But the long-term costs to the North Country are so much greater. And anyone who knows how to look at a balance sheet can understand that this is not a smart long-term economic deal.
What are the long-term costs and why do they pose a threat to our way of life in the North Country? Here are just five of many more examples:
Wastewater runoff from a landfill can permanently damage a lake and its aquatic life. So much for dropping a line for some fresh lake trout.
The environmental impact of a landfill will compromise the area, harming plants and wildlife. Do we really want to do that to our state parks?
The toxic odors from the landfill will drive away anyone interested in leisure pursuits on the lake or its bucolic surroundings. It may also impact tourism dollars. Just ask our neighbors in Bethlehem. They will experience more trash truck traffic and it will increase in Whitefield and Littleton.
A landfill will reduce property values for the hundreds homeowners around Forest Lake and throughout Dalton.
Finally, a landfill in Dalton will set a precedent that New Hampshire’s North Country is for sale for environmentally destructive ventures.
We understand that trash needs to get disposed of.
The Mt. Carberry municipal trash facility in Berlin, N.H., exists for this purpose. Municipal facilities should be the way New Hampshire handles trash. In fact, Carberry plans to handle trash disposal for at least another 25 years.
So we already have one solution to the problem. We don’t need new landfills. But we also have to look at what we put into landfills like Carberry to make sure they last even longer.
The best way to manage our trash is to rethink what we put into it — from the garbage cans in our kitchens to garbage disposal in our landfills. Here’s a few thoughts on that topic:
Let’s not put trash from out of state in our landfills. It’s bad practice that makes bad neighbors.
Let’s be pragmatic. Why shouldn’t N.H. have a bottle bill, for instance? Redemption would take cans and bottles out of the trash and put money into state reserves for things like fish & game, search & rescue and park trail management. What’s more, with redemption you can always get your nickel back.
Let’s be innovative. Modern science is turning fossil fuels plastics. It’s taking fewer fossil fuels out of the ground and putting plastics to work. Modern home design is giving new life to repurposed building materials. Modern manufacturing is turning denim into home insulation. The list goes on and on.
Let’s protect our investments — our homes, our playgrounds, our livelihoods. Let’s create a larger municipal trash management approach, where the jobs and revenue stay in N.H. And we get to watch out for ourselves.
Let’s protect our environment. It’s the only one we’ve got. There’s no PLANet B.
We need to preserve and protect the North Country. We need smart economic development, sound eco-tourism and safe waste management. We can’t let our backyards get turned into dumpsters for out-of-state trash.
We can’t jeopardize our environment and the tourism economy it generates. And we must work to manage our own trash infrastructure.
The North Country needs to stay unified in our priorities, and the best way to do that is to work on and pass a revamped House Bill 1319 (excluding the Appalachian Trail), tabled due to the pandemic, that would prohibit the siting of non-municipal landfills within two miles of a state park.
Support us on November 3rd, so we can continue to support New Hampshire’s proudest asset — our environment.
The North Country Democratic Caucus of the NH House of Representatives: Tim Egan – Grafton 2, Sue Ford – Grafton 3, Elaine French – Grafton 14, Linda Massimilla – Grafton 1, Denny Ruprecht – Grafton 15 & Jerry Stringham –Grafton 5.
Guest Op-Ed
By Staff Writer on January 06, 2021
Below is the text of Vice President Mike Pence's letter to the members of Congress…
No Shirt, No Shoes, No Shots — No Service? Vaccination Cards Are Coming To Your State
By Michael Graham on December 07, 2020
A CNN report on the Department of Defense's aggressive plan for distributing COVID-19 vaccines included…
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Is it safe to visit the dentist?
November 25, 2020 [email protected]_84 dentist, Safe, Visit
It has been more than eight months since the coronavirus pandemic forced lockdowns, which means it is past time for most people to get their regular dental exam and cleaning.
The pandemic has created fear about a slate of normal activities, particularly ones that require close contact indoors, like going to the dentist.
But dentists are doing their part to reassure people that it is safe to come to the office.
“The transmission of COVID in the dental office is practically nonexistent,” said Dr. Richard Nagy, president of the California Dental Association on KCBS Radio’s “Ask An Expert” program Wednesday.
That is because dentists are well-versed in infection control policies.
“Ever since the mid-eighties when the HIV scare came, dental offices were the leaders in infection control policies for blood borne pathogens,” explained Dr. Nagy.
He says between state of the art PPE, face masks, face shields and disinfectants, the likelihood of transmission is low.
And if you really feel concerned, talk to your dentist about their safety practices and give them the chance to assuage your worries. Dr. Nagy says while it might feel strange, you could even ask the dentist about their COVID status.
“I think that’s a valid question for the dentist and I think most dentists would be very happy to answer that because again, the answer would be, ‘no I don’t have COVID as well as my staff or my office has not seen COVID patients’.”
And with many more months to go before the majority of Americans have access to a coronavirus vaccine, Dr. Nagy says it is time to stop putting off seeing the dentist.
New program is launched for safe medicine disposal
November 25, 2020 [email protected]_84 Disposal, launched, medicine, Program, Safe
The Medication Education & Disposal Project has launched a statewide program to offer free services to dispose of expired, unwanted and unused medicines.
Safe Medication Return is operated by MED-Project, which is the Washington State Department of Health’s approved program operator.
Drug manufacturers fund the program at no cost to taxpayers.
MED-Project provides state residents with year-round medicine drop-off locations such as at pharmacies, medical facilities and law enforcement offices. Along with existing operations in several counties, MED-Project has activated about 150 additional drop-off sites.
Residents who prefer mailing back unwanted medicine for disposal can request free prepaid and preauthorized packages. Information is at med-project.org, or people can call (844) 633-7765.
MED-Project also is launching a public awareness campaign about safe disposal of unwanted medicine. A mobile-friendly website provides drop-off location information and instructions, as well as downloadable educational materials.
“We want to encourage Washington state residents to take their medication as prescribed, store it safely and dispose of unwanted or expired medicine securely,” said Dr. Victoria Travis, MED-Project’s national program director, in a news release.
For more information about the MED-Project drug takeback program and available services in Washington state, including accepted types of medication, call (844) 633-7765 or visit the website.
Dentist offices remain ‘extremely safe’ during coronavirus pandemic
November 23, 2020 [email protected]_84 coronavirus, dentist, extremely, Offices, pandemic, remain, Safe
Cesareo Contreras
| MetroWest Daily News
ASHLAND – More than nine months into the coronavirus pandemic, many local businesses are still struggling to get by. But for Dr. Sandra Cove, who owns a dental office at 37 Main St., business has been great.
“People are knocking the door down,” she said.
The anxiety of the pandemic is weighing down on many. And that is often reflected on oral health, Cove said.
It’s not uncommon for Cove to see people around the holidays come in with problems, given the stress during this time of year. She is seeing patients with major dental issues at a rate she has never seen in her career.
From cavities and inflamed gums to chipped and infected teeth, the issues are various.
“We have this phenomenon in dentistry. Whenever people are under a lot of stress, a lot crazy things happen – a lot of root canals and broken teeth,” she said. “A lot of this stuff happens around Christmas time and Thanksgiving and it only lasts for a week or two, but this going on for six months, where every day, I must have two or three broken teeth due to stress or people gums are completely on fire because they are overreacting to the bacteria because their defenses are down.”
Dr. MaryJane Hanlon, president of the Massachusetts Dental Society, said she isn’t surprised by number of patients Cove has seen with new and serious dental problems.
“Sandra, I know, is very busy, and many practices are busy,” she said. “Some practices never slowed down. They saw a lot of emergency care. … The bottom line is that we are seeing a breakdown because people were very concerned about going to the dentist. ”
While some dental offices are doing well, others have been hit hard.
Hanlon is the dean of operations at Tufts University and manages all of the school’s clinical operations. Unlike Cove, she said she has seen a decline in the number of people visiting the clinic. Before the pandemic, the college would see around 600 people a day. Now they are seeing half of that.
In June, the association conducted a survey to better understand how dental offices in the state were faring during the pandemic. The survey was taken by more than 400 dental practice owners.
More than half of responders said they expect it to take between seven months to over a year to get the number of patients they had before the pandemic hit.
Nearly 90% of dental practices are spending between $8 – $29 or greater per patient on personal protective equipment, according to survey.
Moreover, more than half or respondents said the pandemic has cost their practice $225,000 in office upgrades and loss in patients.
Cove said she thinks a big reason why people are coming to her office is because they feel reassured that the appropriate measures are in place to keep them safe from the coronavirus.
After the start of pandemic in March, Cove
Residents gear up for a safe, sanitised Dubai Fitness Challenge
October 29, 2020 [email protected]_84 challenge, Dubai, fitness, Gear, residents, Safe, sanitised
© Provided by Khaleej Times
Armed with a packed calendar of over 200 virtual sessions and 2,000 classes across 150 locations, Dubai residents are all set to welcome a ‘safe and sanitised’ fourth edition of the Dubai Fitness Challenge (DFC).
Most of the residents have already made fitness a big part of their lifestyle this year, due to the pandemic. While several people have taken up running and yoga, there has also been a big boost people using YouTube and other video portals for at-home workout routines.
Tanya Zag, a Dubai-resident said being indoors amid the curfews took a toll on her mental well-being. “I began running a few months ago and it has become the best stress buster for me. It empowers me and even if I have had a tough day at work, running takes all my worries away.”
“I am really looking forward to the DFC this year. The entire city is buzzing with electrical energy, which is fantastic,” she added.
Jhona Meryl, a fitness influencer said: “It’s really exciting because it’s a collective effort, and the best part is that when people do something continuously for 30 days, it becomes a habit and enforces positivity, which is something people really need right now.”
Day 1 of DFC
Starting today, residents are all set with their athletic wear, yoga mats, personal exercise tools, and of course, their face masks for outdoor activities. To ensure social distancing, prior booking has been made essential for all events on www.dubaifitnesschallenge.com.
The annual event, launched in 2017 by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council, is one of the most sought events where families and individuals break a sweat, irrespective of their fitness levels.
The hybrid event has promised to make fitness easy and accessible to all – from young adults, teenagers, families, older residents and people of determination, to businesses and schools.
Saeed Hareb, Secretary-General of Dubai Sports Council, has promised the event will maintain strict safety and hygiene regulations, social distancing guidelines and sanitisation requirements.
“For us, sports are an essential activity at all times, but it has become even more important in this period of Covid-19. Exercising and staying fit strengthens your immune system and a strong immune system is your best defence against illness,” he said.
What to look forward to?
Residents can look forward to a packed calendar of free fitness events, sports activities, health and wellness programmes and virtual sessions, including three dedicated Fitness Villages, ten community-centric Fitness Hubs.
Participants can unlock free 30-day programmes from leading global apps – Fitbit Premium, NEOU, Steppi, Sweat, Sworkit, Daily Burn, FIIT and Les Mills on Demand.
This year, the challenge is placing an elevated focus on at-home sessions with the Find Your 30 virtual content hub. Free-to-access, the facility is being hosted on the DFC website, allowing participants
Are Outdoor Fitness Classes Safe During the Coronavirus Pandemic?
October 28, 2020 [email protected]_84 classes, coronavirus, fitness, outdoor, pandemic, Safe
In addition to the fact that instructors and class participants weren’t required to wear a mask during their workouts, health experts believe that the large class size, small space, and intensity of the workout were all factors that played into the high rates of transmission. (In fact, no class participants in a low-intensity yoga class ended up testing positive.)
“Granted, people weren’t wearing masks and it was in an indoor space,” Dr. Wong says. “These people were just dancing, but they were breathing heavily, which made the risk of transmission very high.”
Are outdoor fitness classes any safer?
Just like outdoor dining, health experts say that outdoor fitness classes are much safer than indoor ones because they allow for better airflow and ventilation. This can better disperse respiratory droplets, potentially reducing the risk of them landing on your mouth or eyes, or on surfaces that you may touch and then transfer to your mouth, nose, and eyes. It also likely reduces the risk of airborne transmission as well.
Humberto Choi, M.D., a pulmonologist at the Cleveland Clinic who treats COVID-19 patients in the intensive care unit, adds that the breeze—which aids airflow—also plays a role in making outdoor classes a safer option.
That’s why many gyms and studios have begun offering outdoor offerings. For example, the Fhitting Room, a HIIT studio based in New York City, recently started hosting outdoor classes in Central Park, Fort Greene Park in Brooklyn, and on the rooftop at Showfields.
Plus, SoulCycle is offering its indoor cycling classes outdoors in Hoboken and Short Hills in New Jersey; Hudson Yards, Bridgehampton and Montauk in New York; Union Market in Washington, D.C.; downtown L.A., Santa Monica, and Manhattan Beach in California, among others. And if you’re in the mood to dance, 305 Fitness has 45-minute outdoor group classes in New York City, Boston, and Washington, D.C.
Health experts say that while the risk of transmission isn’t completely eliminated with outdoor fitness classes, it’s significantly lower.
“If you’re outdoors, the risk is not zero, but it is much lower than indoors,” Dr. Weisenberg says. “Exercise and heavy breathing may increase this chance, but it should still be low, as long as you are outside and social distancing is maintained. Mask wearing can further reduce this risk.” (More on this later.)
How can you stay safe in an outdoor fitness class?
While generally speaking, an outdoor fitness class is going to be a safer option than an indoor one, all outdoor classes are not the same in risk level—and there are some things in your control (and some in your gym’s) that can make them safer or riskier.
Location and setup is one of these factors. For example, some classes might claim to be outdoors on a rooftop, but it’s actually on a rooftop that’s semi-covered, Dr. Wong says—which brings up the whole ventilation issue again. “That may not be as safe as a completely open rooftop, so people need to be mindful of those,” she says.
The smaller
Is it safe to go to the dentist right now? What to know before you go
October 26, 2020 [email protected]_84 dentist, Safe
Deciding if you should go to the dentist now is a personal choice — here’s what the WHO and the ADA have to say.
For the most up-to-date news and information about the coronavirus pandemic, visit the WHO website.
If you’ve never been a fan of going to the dentist, then you may have an excuse to skip your routine visit this year — depending on your views about COVID-19 safety. Dental cleanings and check-ups are important to keep your mouth healthy and avoid costly procedures, like a root canal, down the line. But because of the coronavirus pandemic, there is conflicting guidance out there about whether or not you should still go to the dentist for non-emergency appointments.
The WHO released a statement in August recommending that people skip routine dental check ups and cleaning during the COVID-19 pandemic. It said you should only visit the dentist for necessary procedures, including if you have pain, an infection or need emergency attention. In the meantime, the WHO recommends using “remote consultations” if you’re not sure if you should see a dentist or not.
Our Health & Wellness newsletter puts the best products, updates and advice in your inbox.
In response, the American Dental Association released a statement saying it “strongly” disagrees with the WHO’s advice on dental care and that going to the dentist is essential. “Dentistry is essential health care because of its role in evaluating, diagnosing, preventing or treating oral diseases, which can affect systemic health,” ADA president Dr. Chad P. Gehani, DDS said in the statement.
Although you should talk to your own dentist before making any swift decisions, safety concerns around visiting the dentist are not clear-cut this year. I talked to an orthodontist to get more information on navigating this complicated (and personal) decision.
Why going to the dentist may be risky
“The relative safety of visiting the dentist right now is very state and individual-specific. For those states with surging numbers of cases of COVID-19, I would advise to see your dentist only in the case of emergency (severe pain or infection),” Dr. Heather Kunen, DDS, MS and cofounder of Beam Street said.
According to the WHO report, the nature of oral health visits creates a risk of contracting the coronavirus for both patients and health care workers, because of the ways experts believe the virus is transmitted. First, there’s evidence that respiratory droplets produced by coughing, sneezing and talking spread the virus. Because they are working in your mouth and are in close contact with you (far closer than 6 feet), your dental provider will be exposed to those droplets — along with blood and saliva.
Second, the WHO suggests that the coronavirus can be spread through aerosol transmission. Many common dental procedures, such as a teeth cleaning, generate aerosols, which puts the workers at risk of contracting the virus.
It’s important to talk to your dentist before you make any decisions about oral health care.
Relieved to Be Back at the Gym, but Is It Safe?
October 24, 2020 [email protected]_84 Gym, Relieved, Safe
The coronavirus has made a routine trip to the gym feel like a health threat.
Many epidemiologists consider gyms to be among the highest-risk environments, and they were some of the last businesses to reopen in New York City in early September.
Now gyms must comply with a long list of regulations. Checking in requires a health screening; masks are mandatory, even during the most strenuous workouts; only one-third of normal occupancy is allowed; and everyone must clean, then clean some more.
At a Planet Fitness in Brooklyn, Dinara Izmagambetova, who wore a floral black face mask and had a sheen of sweat after completing a two-hour workout, said she was thrilled to be back in a gym. But safety measures had made it a less sociable experience, she said.
“I could ask someone” how to use a machine before the outbreak, Ms. Izmagambetova said. “Now I’m doing a lot of Googling.”
Despite all the safety guidelines, some fitness enthusiasts are reluctant to go back and many have adapted to virtual workouts and exercising outdoors. Sales of fitness equipment like kettlebells and Peloton bikes have skyrocketed as people brought their workouts home.
Christopher Carbone plans to cancel his membership at a Planet Fitness branch near his home on Staten Island because of concerns about people who touch “the same equipment many times and excess sweat and breathing in range of others.”
Instead of going to the gym, Mr. Carbone will keep working out at home with a small set of hand weights.
In normal times, gyms often served as places of solace, where fitness buffs and casual exercisers could sweat out the stresses of the day.
Many former patrons are eager to return to their routines, and gym owners desperately need their business.
But even as gyms have reopened, their future remains unclear. Some of them have had to shut down again after Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo recently designated parts of Brooklyn and Queens coronavirus hot spots.
A Retro Fitness location in Rego Park, Queens, formerly in one of Mr. Cuomo’s “red zones,” expressed regret about closing on its Facebook page.
“We have done our best to stay open as long as possible to serve you,” the post said, adding, “We support the city/county’s decision as being in the best interest of our members, staff, and community to help curb the spread of Coronavirus.”
The gym was recently allowed to reopen as some restrictions were eased.
Despite scientists’ concerns, infection clusters connected to gyms in the United States have been relatively rare so far, though they have been reported in Hawaii and California.
“We’re not seeing outbreaks tied to gyms as heavily as something like a bar or school,” said Saskia Popescu, an epidemiologist from George Mason University.
Still, a number of the 2,000 or so gyms in New York State and fitness centers across the country face a fight for life. At least one-fourth of the more than 40,000 gyms in the United States could close by the end
A travel group report says flying is safe. The doctor whose research it cited says not so fast.
October 23, 2020 [email protected]_84 cited, doctor, Fast, flying, group, report, research, Safe, travel
The International Air Transport Association (IATA), a global airline trade group representing 290 carriers in 120 countries, published a report this month aiming to reassure grounded travelers about the future of flying. The group collected medical journal data on in-flight coronavirus cases and used it to declare that commercial flights have a “low incidence of inflight COVID-19 transmission” when masks are worn.
(Illustration by Woody Harrington for The Washington Post)
Following an abundance of new research, the report says, only 44 cases of coronavirus have been linked to a flight, during a period when 1.2 billion passengers traveled.
But a doctor whose work was cited in the report says that the group is misrepresenting his findings by only counting proven flight-linked cases that were published in medical journals.
“IATA is taking it to an extreme saying there’s ‘little’ risk in flying,” says David Freedman, an infectious-disease specialist at the University of Alabama whose study is cited in the IATA report. “What they want is to throw this number on the risk of flying … and we don’t know what that risk is yet. I’m not saying the risk is high, but there is some risk. It just looks like masks help a lot.”
Is it safer to fly or drive during the pandemic? 5 health experts weigh in.
The bottom line, Freedman says, is that cases linked to air travel are very difficult to scientifically prove because passengers are not usually monitored after flying and therefore are not tallied if they become sick. It’s also nearly impossible to determine whether sick passengers picked up the virus on a plane as opposed to in an airport or on the way there, he says. “And if you can’t prove it, it doesn’t end up in a journal.”
Freedman’s cited study, published in September 2020, says that “the absence of large numbers of published in-flight transmissions of SARS-CoV-2 is not definitive evidence of safety.”
While an abundance of in-flight research on covid-19 has recently come to light, Freedman is not alone in his assessment that it’s unclear if flying is a low-risk endeavor amid the pandemic.
Brad Pollock, the associate dean of public health sciences at the University of California at Davis, agrees with Freedman’s assessment of IATA’s report, calling it an “overreach.” Studies do not account for unpredictable passengers who board planes every day, he says.
“There’s movement in the cabin to consider, but also so many people improperly wear a mask below their nostrils,” Pollock says. “That’s more of an issue than what kind of mask they’re wearing. If everyone wears their mask properly on the plane, we’re going to be much better off.”
In September, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that nearly 11,000 people have been potentially exposed to the coronavirus on flights. The CDC told The Washington Post that of those in-flight exposures, “an absence of cases identified or reported is not evidence that there were no cases.” On Monday, it updated its guidance to
Stellarex Paclitaxel Coated Balloon Safe, Durable in PAD
October 23, 2020 [email protected]_84 Balloon, Coated, Durable, Paclitaxel, PAD, Safe, Stellarex
A long-term real-world experience with Stellarex (Philips) drug-coated balloons (DCB) in the periphery strengthens the mass of recent evidence largely acquitting it and other paclitaxel-coated devices of any special mortality hazard.
A 4-year analysis based on the ILLUMENATE Global postmarket registry suggested that the DCB was safe and effective in a broad population of patients with often complex femoropopliteal lesions, fewer than one-third of whom required stents on a provisional basis.
Their target-limb amputation rate was only 0.8% and all-cause mortality was 8.1%, “very low for a cardiovascular patient group with claudication,” said Andrew Holden, MB, ChB, Auckland City Hospital, New Zealand, reporting the results during TCT Connect, the virtual edition of Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) 2020.
The findings were consistent across prospectively defined subgroups by sex, diabetes, and target-lesion length, as well as the broader ILLUMENATE trial experience encompassing more than 2000 patients, he said.
And they impressed observers at TCT Connect, who called for an end to any stigma against paclitaxel-coated devices in peripheral vascular disease (PAD) and for tighter focus on randomized trials to refine their selection and targeted use.
As chronicled at length by theheart.org | Medscape Cardiology, a controversial meta-analysis published in December 2018 upended clinical trials looking at paclitaxel-coated devices for PAD revascularization by tying them to an almost 70% jump in relative risk (RR) for mortality at 2 years and a 93% RR increase at 5 years.
The findings led to a warning letter regarding the alleged risk from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), followed by a comprehensive public analysis by the agency and its independent advisors in June 2019, which acknowledged the existence of a safety signal.
Four months later, the FDA approved two sizes of the Stellarex for de novo and restenotic lesions in the superficial femoral and popliteal arteries. They joined other Stellarex DCBs and paclitaxel-coated peripheral devices already on the market, all of which account for the safety signal in their labeling.
“The mortality at 4 years is strikingly low. Normally, in a population like this, we would expect it to be at least 10% to 20% at 4 years,” Peter A. Schneider, MD, University of California, San Francisco, said as an observer of ILLUMENATE-Global at a media briefing.
“So, far from a doubling of mortality risk with paclitaxel, actually this appears to be less than what we would expect for a population like this.”
At the same press conference, Robert Lookstein, MD, MHCDL, said the findings represent “just really spectacular data in a real world subset — high degrees of severe calcification, high preponderance of diabetics. I think this just further reinforces the broad consensus among vascular specialists that DCB has really become the go-to therapy for patients with lifestyle-limiting claudication.”
ILLUMENATE-Global “is just another valuable contribution to the literature suggesting that this Stellarex balloon is a safe and effective technology in a real-world population,” said Lookstein, Ichan School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City.
“I think right now, many of us are
Are Nursing Homes Safe Now? Kansas Facility Sees All Residents Test Positive For COVID-19
October 20, 2020 [email protected]_84 COVID19, Facility, homes, Kansas, nursing, positive, residents, Safe, Sees, test
A Kansas nursing home has seen all 62 of its residents test positive for COVID-19 along with an unspecified number of staff members.
The coronavirus outbreak at the Norton County, Kansas-based Andbe Home nursing home resulted in the death of 10 residents and one hospitalization, with the remaining patients being treated at the facility, the Norton County Health Department confirmed on Monday night.
The health department said in a statement that the residents were being quarantined in their rooms and were not being allowed outside visitors.
Kansas has reported an average of more than 700 new positive cases of the coronavirus and probable cases of the virus a day – the largest reporting since early March, CBS News reported.
With the risk of contracting the coronavirus higher in elderly adults, many nursing homes are seeing cases spike as the pandemic continues to wage on. At the height of the outbreak at the Life Care Center nursing home in Kirkland, Washington, was an epicenter for the virus, with nearly two-thirds of its residents testing positive for the virus, KIRO, a Fox affiliate out of Seattle reported. At least 37 people died at the nursing home from the outbreak.
Just this week, a Rensselaer County nursing home in Texas reported that 10 residents tested positive for the virus, with 14 staff members also confirmed to have COVID-19, the Houston Chronicle reported.
A study in the journal JAMA indicated that while the coronavirus has a fatality rate of 1% to 2% overall, but in older patients in China, it was as high as 8% to 15%. The rapid spread of the coronavirus can make elderly adults more susceptible to the virus, which can cause more severe complications, NPR reported.
The news outlet also said that because elderly people have a reduced immune response, they become more vulnerable to spreading viruses such as the coronavirus. This becomes further complicated at nursing homes that are short-staffed and have personal protective equipment shortages, AARP said.
The U.S. has reported over 8.2 million positive cases of the coronavirus, with over 220,000 COVID-19 deaths, according to data from John Hopkins University.
Health workers — from cleaning crews to doctors, in hospitals and nursing homes — have been hit hard by the pandemic Photo: AFP / Dimitar DILKOFF
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jersey shore artists
June Ann M. Sullivan
< return to artists
June Ann M. Sullivan is a native of Princeton and currently makes her home in South Jersey where she is the owner of the Watermark Gallery in Tuckerton. June has a B.A. in Fine Art from Winthrop University and an M.A. in Art History from New York University. She was the founder of the Piermont Fine Arts Gallery in Piermont, NY. June is a signature member of the Northeast Watercolor Society and a member of the National Association of Women Artists and the Oil Pastel Association. She has won awards in national exhibitions, including the Northeast Watercolor Society and the Catherine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club, and is listed in Marquis Who’s Who in American Art. Her paintings can be seen at La Bottega of Art in Millville, NJ.
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LBI Vacation Guidebook & Map 2010
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Investor Banks turn to virtual property inspections amid COVID-19
Banks turn to virtual property inspections amid COVID-19
Necessity is pushing lenders toward technology that allows for contactless site visits
The coronavirus is presenting the opportunity for some industries to test long-held ideas.
Banks and other lenders have been relying on video calls to conduct property inspections as lockdowns and social-distancing rules prevent valuations being carried out in person.
In Australia, at least 5,000 residential and commercial properties have been valued using virtual inspections, including remote properties in the government’s defence portfolio, according to JLL.
The idea isn’t new, but the increasing activity has been born out of necessity.
“Lockdowns were rolling out and banks and other lenders immediately recognised that inspections would be a problem,” says Bart Mead, executive director, valuations and advisory, JLL. “Because if a bank can’t get a valuation, it can’t lend, and that would be a huge problem for global economies.”
More on 'Industrial'
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Live-streaming inspections
Virtual inspections require property owners to connect with valuers through a secure live-streaming platform on their mobile device. They tour the property, discussing all the details they would in a face-to-face inspection. Per usual, the valuer then compiles a report, and submits it to the bank presiding over the loan.
In the past banks have been reluctant to accept anything other than an on-site valuation inspection to avoid the risk of inaccurate or incomplete information.
A turning point in Australia came during the pandemic when the Australian Property Institute – an industry body for the property profession – issued a state of emergency protocol in March as lockdowns hit. It allowed for alternative inspection methods that would protect the health and safety of valuers and property owners, while allowing financial institutions to continue lending.
“There are a lot of people assessing their financial situation, and accessing property equity to get themselves to the other side of this economic downturn,” says API Chief Executive Amelia Hodge. “Stakeholders, including banks and professional indemnity insurers, have been very helpful in formulating a framework that could work for virtual valuations, and support the economic recovery of our country.”
With similar protocols introduced in other countries, virtual valuations are now being accepted by banks across the world, including New Zealand, Spain and the U.S., with the potential to continue indefinitely, says Mead.
“To me the most important part of all of this is that the borrower has confidence in what they're doing and that they are making the right decision for their, or their business’s, own financial position and future,” he says.
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For banks, the protection of data remains a key consideration.
Despite the most reputable virtual-valuations platforms encrypting their live-streaming videos, which aren’t stored, companies remain wary about the sophistication of cybercrime.
Recent data breaches of property valuations and peoples’ personal information has heightened banks’ focus on data security.
Nevertheless, the valuations sector is moving towards a data revolution. There is a belief among 87 percent of people and organisations – including banks – that data and technology will increasingly influence the actual value of a property, according to a 2019 survey by LiquidREI, a UK-based organisation which helps real estate companies capitalise on digital transformation.
The survey also found strong appetite among purchasers of property valuations to consider new solutions, with 72 percent open to lower priced, technology-based alternatives.
Products such as automated valuation modelling for residential properties, and artificial intelligence desktop assessments for agricultural property, are already in the market and adoption is expected to accelerate, with COVID-19 impeding the movement of valuers, says Mead.
“Data and technology are now playing an increasingly important role in determining the value of a property,” Mead says. “Combined with human expertise we’ll find a consistency in valuations that has been difficult to achieve in the past. It’s satisfying to see how COVID is accelerating acceptance of these new methods.”
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Hong Kong SAR, China | Cities | January 18, 2021
Falling retail rents in some of Hong Kong’s premier districts have made way for spaces where shoppers can do more than just buy: they can play first.
Asia Pacific | Investor | January 15, 2021
Beyond the Rebound: The New Asia Pacific Real Estate Cycle
Asia Pacific | October 12, 2020
Hotels Recovery Guide Seychelles & Mauritius
The Seychelles and Mauritius have enjoyed strong growth in hotel performance over the last decade, buoyed by robust growth in international arrivals. In 2019, we begun to see this trend slow and anticipated this to continue into 2020.
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Workplace Transforming old habits into new ways of working
Your current selection: Macau SAR, China
Move into your first workspace, find a new one with room to grow or develop a complete location strategy.
Breathe life into old space or create something brand new to help your people thrive. Turn your ideas into reality.
Take your business beyond its existing limits. Implement tools, processes and strategies that improve the value and performance of your real estate.
Wharf wins The Peak plot with record-breaking price
JLL: Retail rental bottomed out; likely to be the first to rebound once the pandemic is contained
Transforming old habits into new ways of working
Many people don't like change- whether it's a new way of doing things they've done quite happily for years or revamping their office space.
JLL Staff Reporter
Unfortunately in today’s fast paced world, change is inevitable – no more so than in the workplace where new technology and an increased focus on collaboration are having a huge impact on the use of space.
With staff work habits holding a great power in the structure of the office, how does a company roll out a new workplace strategy or even move a desk without upsetting employees?
“Many staff have long-ingrained habits relating to their work space, and the power of habit is the single biggest risk to workplace change programs,” says JLL’s Associate Director of Workplace Strategy, Nathan Sri. The longer individuals are in a certain workplace arrangement, the more entrenched their habits relating to that space become.”
Sri compares die-hard work habits with an athlete’s routine training: brain scans show that elite athletes use significantly less of their brain than their non-elite counterparts. In fact, extensive research has found that the cognitive side of the brain is used less and less as athletes begin mastering actions and movements, he says.
“Practice makes permanent, not perfect. This idea can also be applied to the knowledge worker when they are transitioning to a new work space,” explains Sri.
Organizations are increasingly looking for tools and approaches to sustain and grow their business performance. When it comes to rolling out a new workplace strategy it needs to be done in a way that facilitates change without causing staff anxiety that will detract from their ability to do their job.
Facilitating a change in people’s habits relies on two critical success factors; how they relate to space and technology, according to Sri. “It’s about the ability of staff to adopt the new space according to their work tasks and business drivers, and their ability to utilize the technology to drive congruent values and behaviors.”
He adds that it was important for companies to realize that the organizational change process can start a number of months before a company moves into a new space, and that this was a key factor in mitigating risk. “The fallacy is for companies to think that they need to wait for their brand new office before they can affect behavioural change among staff,” he says.
Staging behavioral changes helps break down the change into chunks that allow staff to adapt and adjust their habits in a more gradual process – preparing them for the transformation when it officially arrives.
While many leading organizations invest heavily in conceiving a new workplace design, they tended to spend far less time thinking about how the desired organizational changes will be sustained or evolve over the longer term
Dinesh Acharya, JLL’s Director of Workplace Strategy, says: “In our experience, the success of a workplace program depends largely on a well-conceived change program that considers the needs and experiences of employees and in particular, managers, in order to inspire new conversations and behaviors over time.
“Too often, change management programs focus on communicating to employees, assuming that if we inform people of the change, they will ultimately embrace it. While strategic communications are effective in many situations, the more complex initiatives that aim to drive new collaborative ways of working require a more subtle and continuous approach to managing change,” he adds.
As the change process can be complex, “training the trainer” is a successful approach to ensure changes are sustained over time.
“This typically means defining what success looks like for each business unit and tailoring the change program and activities to suit the specific needs of the business – recognizing that not everyone is at the same stage of the change journey,” says Acharya.
“This tailored approach allows business leaders to drive the cultural change going forwards which is far more effective than having an outside consultant tell people why they need to change at a single point in time,” he concludes.
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Home | Search | Ahead of print | Current Issue | Archives | Instructions | Subscription | Reader Login The official journal of AMPI, IOMP and AFOMP
Dosimetric evaluation of Acuros XB dose calculation algorithm with measurements in predicting doses beyond different air gap thickness for smaller and larger field sizes
Suresh Rana, Kevin Rogers
In this study, dose prediction accuracy of Acuros XB (AXB) dose calculation algorithm beyond air gap thickness (range 2, 4, and 6 cm) in simple inhomogeneous phantoms was investigated. The evaluation of AXB was performed by comparing the doses calculated by AXB with the doses calculated by Anisotropic Analytical Algorithm (AAA) and the measured data for different field sizes (3 × 3, 5 × 5, and 10 × 10 cm 2 ) of a 6 MV photon beam. The dose computation was performed within Eclipse treatment planning system, and measurements were acquired with a cylindrical ionization chamber. Central axis depth dose comparisons were done in solid-water material region up to 5 cm distance from air/solid-water interface. The results of AXB had better agreement with measurements at all measured points than that of AAA. The discrepancies between AXB and measured data were seen from − 3.81% to + 0.9%, whereas the AAA differences with measurement from − 3.1% to − 10.9%. The combination of the smallest test field size and the largest air gap produced the highest range (1-5 cm distance from air/solid-water interface) in dose difference (AAA: −4.0% to − 10.6% and AXB: −3.8% to + 0.6%). The AAA computational time was about 8 times faster than that of AXB. In conclusion, AXB is more appropriate to use for dose predictions, especially when low-density heterogeneities are involved.
Evaluating the effect of ultrasmall superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles for a long-term magnetic cell labeling
Saeed Shanehsazzadeh, Mohammad Ali Oghabian, Barry J Allen, Massoud Amanlou, Afshin Masoudi, Fariba Johari Daha
In order to evaluate the long-term viability, the iron content stability, and the labeling efficiency of mammalian cells using magnetic cell labeling; dextran-coated ultrasmall superparamagnetic iron oxide (USPIOs) nanoparticles with plain surfaces having a hydrodynamic size of 25 nm were used for this study. Tests were carried out in four groups each containing 5 flasks of 5.5 × 10 6 AD-293 embryonic kidney cells. The cell lines were incubated for 24 h using four different iron concentrations with and without protamine sulfate (Pro), washed with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) and centrifuged three times to remove the unbounded USPIOs. Cell viability was also verified using USPIOs. There were no significant differences in the cell viability between the control group of cells and those groups with iron uptake at the specified iron concentrations. The average iron uptake ratio compared to that of the control group was (114 ± 1). The magnetic resonance images (MRI) at post-labeling day 1 and day 21 showed (75 ± 4)% and (22 ± 5)% signal decrements compared to that of the control, respectively. The Perl's Prussian blue test showed that 98% of the cells were labeled, and the iron concentration within the media did not affect the cell iron uptake. Magnetic cellular labeling with the USPIO-Pro complex had no short or medium term (3 weeks) toxic effects on AD-293 embryonic kidney cells.
Dosimetric comparison of intensity modulated radiotherapy isocentric field plans and field in field (FIF) forward plans in the treatment of breast cancer
Zakiya Salem Al-Rahbi, Zahid Al Mandhari, Ramamoorthy Ravichandran, Fatma Al-Kindi, Cheriyathmanjiyil Antony Davis, Saju Bhasi, Namrata Satyapal, Balakrishnan Rajan
The present study is aimed at comparing the planning and delivery efficiency between three-dimensional conformal radiotherapy (3D-CRT), field-in-field, forward planned, intensity modulated radiotherapy (FIF-FP-IMRT), and inverse planned intensity modulated radiotherapy (IP-IMRT). Treatment plans of 20 patients with left-sided breast cancer, 10 post-mastectomy treated to a prescribed dose of 45 Gy to the chest wall in 20 fractions, and 10 post-breast-conserving surgery to a prescribed dose of 50 Gy to the whole breast in 25 fractions, with 3D-CRT were selected. The FiF-FP-IMRT plans were created by combining two open fields with three to four segments in two tangential beam directions. Eight different beam directions were chosen to create IP-IMRT plans and were inversely optimized. The homogeneity of dose to planning target volume (PTV) and the dose delivered to heart and contralateral breast were compared among the techniques in all the 20 patients. All the three radiotherapy techniques achieved comparable radiation dose delivery to PTV-95% of the prescribed dose covering > 95% of the breast PTV. The mean volume of PTV receiving 105% (V 105 ) of the prescribed dose was 1.7% (range 0-6.8%) for IP-IMRT, 1.9% for FP-IMRT, and 3.7% for 3D-CRT. The homogeneity and conformity indices (HI and CI) were similar for 3D-CRT and FP-IMRT, whereas the IP-IMRT plans had better conformity index at the cost of less homogeneity. The 3D-CRT and FiF-FP-IMRT plans achieved similar sparing of critical organs. The low-dose volumes (V 5Gy ) in the heart and lungs were larger in IP-IMRT than in the other techniques. The value of the mean dose to the ipsilateral lung was higher for IP-IMRT than the values for with FiF-FP-IMRT and 3D-CRT. In the current study, the relative volume of contralateral breast receiving low doses (0.01, 0.6, 1, and 2Gy) was significantly lower for the FiF-FP-IMRT and 3D-CRT plans than for the IP-IMRT plan. Compared with 3D-CRT and IP-IMRT, FiF-FP-IMRT proved to be a simple and efficient planning technique for breast irradiation. It provided dosimetric advantages, significantly reducing the size of the hot spot and minimally improving the coverage of the target volume. In addition, it was felt that FiF-FP-IMRT required less planning time and easy field placements.
Evaluation of target dose based on water-equivalent thickness in external beam radiotherapy
Behnaz Ghanbar Moghaddam, Masoud Vahabi-Moghaddam, Alireza Sadremomtaz
In vivo dosimetry was carried out for 152 patients receiving external beam radiotherapy and the treatment sites were divided into two main groups: Thorax, Abdomen, and Pelvic (120 fields) and Head and Neck (52 fields). Combined entrance and exit dose measurements were performed using LiF: Mg, Cu, P thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs). Water-equivalent (effective) thicknesses and target dose were evaluated using dose transmission data. The ratio of measured to expected value for each quantity was considered as an indicator for the accuracy of the parameter. The average ratio of the entrance dose was evaluated as 1.01 ± 0.07. In the diameter measurement, the mean ratio of effective depth divided by the contour depth is 1.00 ± 0.13 that shows a wide distribution which reflects the influence of contour inaccuracies as well as tissue inhomogeneities. At the target level, the mean ratio of measured to the prescribed dose is 1.00 ± 0.07. According to our findings, the difference between effective depth and patient depth has a direct relation to target dose discrepancies. There are some inevitable sources which may cause the difference. Evaluation and application of effective diameter in treatment calculations would lead to a more reliable target dose, especially for fields which involve Thorax, Abdomen, and Pelvic.
Software safety in radiation therapy
Greg Salomons, Diane Kelly
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Tharmarnadar Ganesh
Peripheral dose measurements with diode and thermoluminescence dosimeters for intensity modulated radiotherapy delivered with conventional and un-conventional linear accelerator
Rajesh Kinhikar, Poonam Gamre, Chandrashekhar Tambe, Sudarshan Kadam, George Biju, Suryaprakash , CS Magai, Dipak Dhote, Shyam Shrivastava, Deepak Deshpande
The objective of this paper was to measure the peripheral dose (PD) with diode and thermoluminescence dosimeter (TLD) for intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) with linear accelerator (conventional LINAC), and tomotherapy (novel LINAC). Ten patients each were selected from Trilogy dual-energy and from Hi-Art II tomotherapy. Two diodes were kept at 20 and 25 cm from treatment field edge. TLDs (LiF:MgTi) were also kept at same distance. TLDs were also kept at 5, 10, and 15 cm from field edge. The TLDs were read with REXON reader. The readings at the respective distance were recorded for both diode and TLD. The PD was estimated by taking the ratio of measured dose at the particular distance to the prescription dose. PD was then compared with diode and TLD for LINAC and tomotherapy. Mean PD for LINAC with TLD and diode was 2.52 cGy (SD 0.69), 2.07 cGy (SD 0.88) at 20 cm, respectively, while at 25 cm, it was 1.94 cGy (SD 0.58) and 1.5 cGy (SD 0.75), respectively. Mean PD for tomotherapy with TLD and diode was 1.681 cGy SD 0.53) and 1.58 (SD 0.44) at 20 cm, respectively. The PD was 1.24 cGy (SD 0.42) and 1.088 cGy (SD 0.35) at 25 cm, respectively, for tomotherapy. Overall, PD from tomotherapy was found lower than LINAC by the factor of 1.2-1.5. PD measurement is essential to find out the potential of secondary cancer. PD for both (conventional LINAC) and novel LINACs (tomotherapy) were measured and compared with each other. The comparison of the values for PD presented in this work and those published in the literature is difficult because of the different experimental conditions. The diode and TLD readings were reproducible and both the detector readings were comparable.
Monte Carlo N Particle code - Dose distribution of clinical electron beams in inhomogeneous phantoms
HA Nedaie, MA Mosleh-Shirazi, M Allahverdi
Electron dose distributions calculated using the currently available analytical methods can be associated with large uncertainties. The Monte Carlo method is the most accurate method for dose calculation in electron beams. Most of the clinical electron beam simulation studies have been performed using non- MCNP [Monte Carlo N Particle] codes. Given the differences between Monte Carlo codes, this work aims to evaluate the accuracy of MCNP4C-simulated electron dose distributions in a homogenous phantom and around inhomogeneities. Different types of phantoms ranging in complexity were used; namely, a homogeneous water phantom and phantoms made of polymethyl methacrylate slabs containing different-sized, low- and high-density inserts of heterogeneous materials. Electron beams with 8 and 15 MeV nominal energy generated by an Elekta Synergy linear accelerator were investigated. Measurements were performed for a 10 cm × 10 cm applicator at a source-to-surface distance of 100 cm. Individual parts of the beam-defining system were introduced into the simulation one at a time in order to show their effect on depth doses. In contrast to the first scattering foil, the secondary scattering foil, X and Y jaws and applicator provide up to 5% of the dose. A 2%/2 mm agreement between MCNP and measurements was found in the homogenous phantom, and in the presence of heterogeneities in the range of 1-3%, being generally within 2% of the measurements for both energies in a "complex" phantom. A full-component simulation is necessary in order to obtain a realistic model of the beam. The MCNP4C results agree well with the measured electron dose distributions.
The assessment of cytotoxic T cell and natural killer cells activity in residents of high and ordinary background radiation areas of Ramsar-Iran
Sajad Borzoueisileh, Ali Shabestani Monfared, Saeid Abediankenari, Amrollah Mostafazadeh
The effective radiation dose of human from natural sources is about 2.4 mSv/y and the dose limit for radiation workers is 20 mSv/y. Ramsar, a city in Iran, has been the subject of concern in the last forty years for a high level of radiation measured in some spots as high as 260 mSv/y. Carcinogenesis is one of the most studied effects of radiation especially in high doses. Recent studies showed that the high level of natural radiation received by inhabitants of this area, paradoxically don't have significant health effect. Natural killer (NK) cells and cytotoxic T cells are the most important cells in tumor immune surveillance and CD107a is a widely expressed intracellular protein located in the lysosomal/endosomal membrane. CD107a transiently located on the cell membrane can be used as a marker of CD8 + T cell degranulation following stimulation. It is also expressed, to a lower extent, on activated NK cells. In this study, 60 healthy people were selected randomly and their consent obtained and confounding factors such as sex, age, life-styles was matched then the count of activated NK and CD8 + cells was compared in high and normal background radiation areas inhabitants of Ramsar. After filling the questionnaire and measurement of background radiation, blood samples of 30 healthy people from each region were analyzed immediately by means of flowcytometry. The leukocytes and their subsets were not significantly different between two groups and the count of active cells was higher in control group. The result shows that the changes in immune system occur due to radiation and maybe it is as a result of higher radiosensitivity of activated cells.
SCIENTIFIC NOTE
Uncertainty concerning the 4-field box technique for Stage-IB2 carcinoma of the uterine cervix
Priyanka Thakur, Swaroop Revannasiddaiah, Madhup Rastogi, Manoj Kumar Gupta, Rajeev Kumar Seam, Manish Gupta
Radiation Therapy (RT) plays a pivotal role in the curative approach for carcinoma of the cervix. Inspite of the emergence of various new conformal techniques in RT, conventional techniques still hold vital importance. Majority of the patients worldwide are treated with 2D-RT techniques. 2D-RT techniques have been proven to be non-inferior and simpler in comparison to 3D-RT in the context of carcinoma of the cervix. However, inadequate target volume coverage with improper portal design can preclude the chances of cure. We demonstrate the need for abolishing guesswork in terms of target volume determination through the example of a patient's sagittal magnetic resonance image showing a case of the retroverted uterus which would have been likely to be missed from the treatment portals if they were designed using definitions based on bony landmarks.
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© 2006 - Journal of Medical Physics | Published by Wolters Kluwer - Medknow
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Iowa Newspapers: GOP Rep. Steve King Should Resign
January 16, 2019 Politics, Racism
From the editorial board of the Des Moines Register:
Congressman Steve King should resign. He has lost even the potential to effectively represent his Iowa constituents because of his abhorrent comments about white nationalism and white supremacy.
The move by House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to strip King of his committee assignments leaves Iowa without a seat on the vital House Agriculture Committee, as well as judiciary. It also leaves King with far less opportunity to work for his constituents on critically important rural development issues.
Not that King has seemed particularly interested in working for his district in recent years. Instead of holding town-hall meetings with his constituents, King spent many congressional breaks globe-trotting to Europe and hobnobbing with hard-right, nationalist leaders. These meetings apparently served to reinforce his own warped views of cultural purity and immigration.
Politico reports:
Late Tuesday night, the Sioux City Journal, a Western Iowa newspaper that is located in King’s 4th Congressional District, also joined the push in calling for the nine-term incumbent to resign. The Journal editorial board wrote it was “hard for us to summon words that will properly convey how repugnant we view that remark,” in regards to King’s recent racist comment to the Times.
The Journal editorial added that there is a sense of disbelief with King’s comments given that his past history “contributed in no insignificant fashion to the narrowest re-election victory of his career.” King won reelection in November by just three percentage points.
Following the controversy around his statement, King was removed from his committee posts, including on the House Agriculture Committee. His removal marks the first time in 120 years that an Iowan hasn’t been a member of that committee.
Tags GOP Iowa Steve King white supremacists
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News Sports Packers Business Communities Nation / World Obituaries E-Edition Legals
After three years, Chicago run of 'Hamilton' will end in January
The Chicago production of the musical "Hamilton" will close Jan. 5, 2020, after running there for more than three years, according to its producers.
“More people have seen 'Hamilton' in Chicago than any other city, including New York,” said producer Jeffrey Seller in an article at Playbill.com.
Lin-Manuel Miranda's bold reimagining of the Founding Fathers began running in Chicago in September 2016, making it the first production of "Hamilton" outside New York.
When the Chicago production closes, it will add up to 1,341 performances during its 171-week run in the Windy City, according to The Associated Press.
The national touring company of "Hamilton" will perform Oct. 1 through Oct. 20 at the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center in Appleton and Oct. 22 through Nov. 17 at Milwaukee's Marcus Center as part of its Broadway series. The Marcus Center run will include 32 "Hamilton" performances.
At this point, no individual tickets are on sale for "Hamilton" in Milwaukee. For subscription information, call (414) 273-2787 or visit marcuscenter.org.
Contact Jim Higgins at jim.higgins@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @jhiggy.
RELATED:Marcus Center announces 2019 dates for 'Hamilton' in Milwaukee
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Yuan dynasty porcelain bowl could hold $150,000 value in New York auction
The Yuan dynasty porcelain bowl is auctioning alongside an extraordinary carved jade brushpot
We've already enthused about the likely top lot of an Asian Art and Antiques auction taking place in New York during Asian Art week: a wonderful Ming Xuande 15th century porcelain sprinkler.
However the sale is expected to be the biggest of the year for the Californian-based auction house, (with four fluent Mandarin speakers on hand to greet bidders and man the phones) and there are several other spectacular highlights - and the consignment deadline has not quite been reached.
One almost mesmerising piece is an intricately carved spinach jade brushpot. In fact auctioneer Isadore Chait describes it as "one of the most exquisitely carved brushpots we've ever seen."
Crafted from a single piece of jade, the piece depicts scenes in relief with an extraordinary layered effect. It shows a continuous landscape scene with sets of scholars playing chess amid bamboo, pine and rockery.
The beautifully crafted Spinach Jade Brushpot
Chait noted that the object is deeply and intricately carved from a single piece of jade, a method that requires great artistic skill. The carvers technique masterfully rendered a three-dimensional, layered effect to the piece. The presale estimate has been set at $40,000-$50,000.
Sourced from an estate collection near the Californian auction house's gallery, it is listed at $40,000-$50,000, but we suspect it may go even higher.
The bright, clean Yuan dynasty blue andwhite porcelain bowl
Perhaps more valuable still is a 14th century Yuan Dynasty blue and white porcelain bowl which has the rare privilege of having belonged to the celebrated T.T. Tsui Museum of Art Collection in Hong Kong.
The beautiful 14th Centurypiece presents the classical design of Mandarin ducks in a lotus pondon the interior, whilst the exterior has a meandering lotus motif above petaled clouds. The lot has expectations of reaching $120,000-$150,000 in the March 21 auction with previews for four days beforehand.
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Helping every child and family find their "just right" school, helping every family have a voice.
SCHOOL SELECTION
From your first tour to your final decision, Parodi Educational Consulting will be with your family every step of the way. An educator with over eighteen years experience in private and public schools, Mariana Parodi McCormick is well versed in every facet of school life, including school selection, admissions, instruction, special services, advancement, marketing, and development. Mariana uses her extensive experience in working with children, her knowledge of individual school programs, school cultures, curricula, and communities available to guide and advise families in the school selection process. Our goal is to find the perfect home for your child: a place where she or he will thrive as a student and as a valued member of a school community.
It truly is a joy matching a family with their “just right school,” and we look forward to working with you!
Services include assisting families with discerning between the many PreK-12th grade programs available in the greater Washington, D.C. area, assisting families with arranging tours, understanding the application and financial aid process, taking into consideration a child’s social-emotional, academic, physical, and geographic needs, evaluating your student’s academic record, establishing attainable goals, interpreting test scores, selecting tutoring or educational testing services, interview preparation, making recommendations for schools and programs, and reviewing school decisions.
INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL GUIDANCE
Moving to Washington, D.C.?
Assisting overseas or families new to the D.C. Metro area with finding housing and schools in D.C., Maryland, or Virginia. English, Spanish, Italian, Chinese, and Sign Language interpretation is available for school selection help.
Parodi Educational Consulting, LLC
4701 Sangamore Road, Suite 101N #104
mp@justrightschool.com
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The Tortured
The Interrogation
The Portal Natatorium
“It is the tortured who turn into torturers.”
Art: Mike Debalfo & Sanju Nivangune
Temptress, Karnal Sin
“You’re not in a position to make demands of me, lieutenant,” Protium’s mechanical voice spoke with a disconcerting upbeat tempo that never seemed to fit any situation he was asked to converse in.
“Besides, I already granted permission to your little lamb to follow her.”
Sicarius, careful to choose his words, and to keep his body in a state of serenity, took a slow breath in knowing that Protium’s bio-mechanical suit could read him like an open book, “If by lamb, you mean Samuel, the Vanguard are very grateful for your gift."
He paused licking his lips involuntarily, “However, according to my subordinate Daxia…” Sicarius intentionally used his second in command as a point of placing himself in a position of authority to the Consul, “neither have been seen in days...”
Protium waved away the suggestion, “These things take TIME. Science always takes time! Trial. Error. Sometimes those errors are more erroneous than others…” It was as though the olive-suited man shifted from talking to Sicarius to talking to himself. Many had speculated that Protium’s time working with the fourth-dimension had caused him to lose a part of his mind. He dove too deeply into the knowledge of something he was never meant to know and paid the price – Dimensional Derangement.
“But the risks are always worth it,” Sicarius said. He wanted to encourage this type of self-conversing. “And no one is questioning the risk of these endeavors. I simply want to follow up on how your experiment, and my team member, is fairing.” At this point, Sicarius wasn’t even sure if he was making any sense. Daxia’s side-eye glance did not help his confidence.
“She isn’t YOUR anything,” while Protium’s voice didn’t sound angry, it did sound assured and matter-of-fact. “You try to put ownership on her, but don’t you see? Not I, not you, not Overseer can do that…” He began once again descending into self-talk, “She listens to no one!” He was practically laughing, “You cannot control a storm! When your ship faces the hurricane’s wrath, you turn into it. You ride that wave face on…”
“That one…” Protium continued, “That one…will be a great instrument of the future…”
Sicarius interjected, “I do not claim to own her, sir, only that she has been assigned as my teammate, and really I was referencing the ‘minion’ as you stated earlier.”
“Hm?” It was like Protium was interrupted in his train of thought by Sicarius’s voice, “What is your inquiry, dull one?”
“I need to follow up with my comrades, sir.” Sicarius answered, ignoring the insult.
“Well why didn’t you just say so!” The Praetor and second in command to ‘God’ responded overenthusiastically. Sicarius bit his tongue to correct him.
“I sent her to your home, lieutenant. To find your white-eyed monster.”
Daxia turned to Sicarius, her eyebrows tilted in curiosity, “Monster?”
Sicarius had no time to address her and kept his eyes on the goggled, would-be robot in front of him, “My…home world? Auxidian?”
Protium nodded vigorously in response, as if accepting Sicarius would process this information slowly.
“White-eyed…” As he said the words, his own eyes lowered, unfocused, searching the seams of the metallic flooring of Protium’s lab to give him some insight.
“Monster,” Protium finished for him. Walking towards the pair of Vanguard by his laboratory doorway.
“It was through a haze of smoke and fire, but it was large…demonic looking…it’s humanoid, whatever it is, but I just remember the eyes…they glowed…white, fiery, looking at us as we ran. It was like it was staring right through us.” She felt the memory of the words wash over her, but she could barely make them out.
What she could remember clearly, was the voice of her friend, her Consul, the man she had embraced as her caretaker.
“Find me that creature.”
The voice of Protium rang in her head, bouncing off the walls of her mind and crystallizing as a clear concept in the center of her consciousness.
Her eyes opened, barely, the light of the room blinding her as she adjusted to the brightness.
With her arms bound behind her, she lay suspended in air, her feet wrapped and keeping her at a forty-five-degree angle from the floor. Her senses were dulled, and she could tell she had been drugged. As her consciousness cleared, she realized she was still in the throne room of the Pyre. The muggy day creept in from the open atrium of the beams above her which were the anchors for her imprisonment.
There were several bodies standing in the room with her. As her mind began to become lucid, she recognized two men in a heated debate standing a few feet from her.
“You don’t get a say in this matter.” One of them said, as she tried to align what she was hearing to what she was seeing.
“But we have no idea of what her intentions really are.” Another voice explained. “If she was sincere about her motives, this is needlessly cruel.”
She recognized the voice as Jaus’s.
“Does it matter?” the other voice asked.
There was no response, and she heard footsteps coming closer to her. They stopped in front and she lifted her head to face the person.
“She’s awake.”
Jaus could be heard starting to make another objection.
“We have our orders.”
A rough gesture brought a hand under her chin, jerking it upwards to more clearly look the offender in the eyes.
“Who are you. And don’t tell me your name is Vita, we already know you killed Vita in Sarem.”
Kathryn opened her mouth to speak before stopping herself.
Kathryn awakes, bound and captured by the Chosen.
She was in the impossible position she had always feared – bound, incapable, completely vulnerable. She was at the mercy of these Chosen, these men and women tasked and sworn to protect their absent ruler. Trained from the moment of their ascension to now, with only one she had made any semblance of connection with, but who had ultimately followed his upbringing, she knew she had no path of release.
“I am,” she began, moistening her lips as she continued, “Vanguard. Alpha Squad, Dominion.”
The hand under her chin shifted to grip her jaw bone, “What is Vanguard?”
Praedus’s voice was cold and distant, the kind of separation drilled into a soldier who is meant to view any outside force as hostile and subhuman. Kathryn recognized that style of speaking.
This would not end well for her.
“I am…” she spoke, her voice raspy from dehydration, the forced arching of her neck making it difficult to speak, “Vanguard...”
She blinked her eyes slowly, allowing the moment between the words to expand as long as she could get away with, “Alpha Squad. Dominion.” Like her captor, Kathryn had been trained for this, though this was the first time her training had ever been truly tested. The value of the intelligence she housed in her head was worth much more than her life – but only in that if she were to tell all, she knew they would kill her. The only card she had left to play was to hold onto her wits and her secrets.
Kathryn knew that this had been a possibility, although she couldn’t help but chastise herself for not suspecting it sooner. She knew her gambit of playing the guards to get into the Pyre was risky, but it had less risk for her than a full-on solo assault of the fortifications. At the end of the day, she expected it. The outcome would have been the same – but at least, she knew, she was inside the building, and thus, close to the Deltria she so desperately wanted.
“Not what I asked, you harlot…” and with that simple statement, a thick, solid hand came across her face, striking her hard enough to cause her ears to ring and her skin to break at the point of contact, but she was still conscious.
“Praedus!”
The opposite hand of her assaulter gripped her throat, making breathing a struggle.
“Jaus, I suggest you either accept your duty or leave the room and deal with those consequences,” her immediate captor said through gritted teeth.
After that, Jaus didn’t say a word. And it was a violent battle of wills as Kathryn stuck to the script that had been taught to her, and Praedus and company levied their justice upon her deception.
A knee in her back at excruciating intervals started her off, as they pushed more questions at her. With each passive refusal, they arched her more and more.
“What is Vanguard?”
Using her flexibility to her advantage, Kathryn relaxed and breathed out with each added pressure, until the pain became so unbearable and she stuttered out, “I-I am…Vanguard…”
At the pull of the restraints on her wrists and feet, the rough material burned deep cuts into her flesh, she could feel the fibers in her joints objecting as they began to slowly split and separate away from one another.
It was then that Kathryn screamed. Her scream bounced off the empty walls of the room and only escaped via the pillared chamber’s exposed ceiling.
“I know the D.I.A. trained you in pain provisions.”
The memory of Sicarius’s demands rushed over her as if on cue.
“You’ll have to show me one day. We could really use that skillset.”
Triggering her, Kathryn called upon another part of her training, as if by habit at the request of her commander who was not there with her. She dug into her psyche, deep. Closing her eyes, they unfocused in the eclipse behind her lids. She found a spot beyond herself as she reached into the dark corners of her mind to hide.
“No, you don’t…”
A hand reached out to her and grabbed at her consciousness, pulling her back from the recess of comfort she had found.
“You will feel this…” The line punctuated an onslaught of large hands thrashing her in her restraints, thick and solid fists landing blow after blow against her body. They were tactfully sure to avoid too sensitive locations like her kidneys but they laid waste to her face, causing the skin in her mouth surrounding her teeth to rupture.
A spray of blood erupted from her mouth involuntarily landing onto the dark marble floor beneath them.
“Confess yourself to Neros. Neros is love, if you’d only accept his light and fire. He burns for you.”
The voice speaking these words was coming from a gentler source, the woman who had been in their party, she guessed. Though she had no real idea if the group she had entered the Pyre with was the same one she was with now.
Kathryn spit, emptying her mouth of the superficial blood. Taking a deep breath, she kept on verbalizing her training, the true part of her mind seeking refuge in the dark abyss of her subconscious, “Vanguard…Alpha Squad…Dominion.”
A man’s hand gripped her jaw painfully again. His thumb was on one side of her face, his grouped fingers on the other, and he pressed so hard as to force open her mouth. The fresh open wounds compacted against the hard, immobile surface of her teeth. The agony jolted through her body, causing her eyes to open and look at her assailant.
“Wrong again…”
The three of them stood outside of Orthus’s chambers, and Daxia couldn’t shield her concern as she searched her commander’s eyes for guidance.
“If you wish to bring this to appropriate authorities, Vanguard,” Protium’s words were leading Sicarius to the obvious conclusion and he didn’t know how to respond, “Here we are.”
The silence was deafening, as Sicarius searched himself for an answer, but it was Daxia’s voice that responded.
“Great Praetor,” she said, “we came to you.”
Sicarius lifted his head, looking first to his second in command before boldly staring at the Consul who tempted his fate.
She continued, her voice stilted by nerves, “You granted Samuel access to Kathryn’s whereabouts…neither have made contact…”
Protium made a noise of passive acknowledgement.
“Would you not prefer your great experiment be watched over by someone more capable than a simple minion?” Daxia offered this explanation to Protium, many tiers her sire.
“Is that what you want, Sicarius?” Protium addressed him directly. The Consul’s body language was completely relaxed, leaning against one of the redundant pillars that flanked the doors to Orthus’s war room.
Finally finding his own voice, with the urging of Daxia’s intent gaze at him, “Yes, sir.”
“Very well!” Protium exclaimed loudly and with vigor, as if attempting to taunt the barrier between Sicarius and his potential destruction, “You think you pick the lesser of two evils…”
Motioning the pair to follow him, they walked back towards the landing foyer where the opalescent black and shimmering statue of Overseer separated the two Consuls’ dwellings. They walked beyond it, to the third untraveled corridor.
“Sir?” Daxia’s voice was suddenly timid.
Still in shock trying to make sense of what he had just learned, Sicarius grunted in acknowledgement. He let Daxia take lead and guide him in Protium’s footsteps as they traversed the would-be labyrinth of hallways in the Vigil.
Sicarius’s mind raced with rationalizations as to why Kathryn would have gone to his home world to chase his addled memories, and as he walked the corridors of the Vigil, no explanation made sense to him. But it didn’t matter – she was his responsibility and she was, by the very nature of where she was, in danger.
As they entered a room he had never been in before, it was Daxia’s audible gasp that broke the silence.
“Where are we?” Her voice would have sounded nonchalant to anyone but someone who had spent any significant amount of time with her. To Sicarius, it sounded odd, and it echoed in the vast and empty room, its floors a neatly organized shimmering darkness.
“Wherever you want to be.” Protium answered.
Her assailants had progressed from body blows and blunt force trauma to more intimate measures of pain. Over the last few hours of her insolence they had begun stripping her of her clothes and cutting into her flesh with finely sharpened blades, so much so that they had gauged out pieces of her and what she wore into strands of a bloody mess directly beneath her suspended body.
By timing their machinations, they disallowed her to escape into the recesses of her mind, keeping her mind aware of the pain at the forefront of her consciousness.
“Van…” she managed out, “guard,” beginning to repeat the one line she could, despite their efforts to change her response.
The hours, perhaps days, she spent in either solitude of healing, assisted by the hands of an on-ready medic, to the excruciating torture she endured between, didn’t help her much in terms of keeping track of time. Force-fed meals, and with her own body healing her at a faster than human rate, she couldn’t will herself into the quiet place of amnesty without the direct stimulus. Her implants, fully activated, were working against her this time. They had since moved her, from Neros’s throne room to another, perhaps to keep her out of sight, but she at least knew she wasn’t outside of the palace.
Kathryn’s only saving grace was the intensive training that the Dominion, no – Protium – had put her through in her years of becoming the head of the Dominion Intelligence Agency.
However, the Chosen of Neros Two were clearly aware of any interrogation-abating tactics and kept her at the threshold of crossing over into the euphoria of pain as a way of escaping their methods.
The sick sing-song quality of Praedus’s voice plagued her mind in the short reprieves she was granted as her body went into overdrive to recuperate from the onslaught of violence against her.
Suddenly, two hands grabbed a clump of her hair, arching her neck up, fresh blood beginning to drip from newly separated wounds, their fledgling scabs tearing open at the force. The cough she would have had got caught in her throat, causing her eyes to water.
“Are there others with you?” It was a woman’s voice again.
Kathryn tried to respond with her usual response, but she was so tired and weakened that she couldn’t make her mouth form the words.
“Did you think that you could so easily tempt a Chosen with your whoring?” The woman’s voice was thick with contempt, and as she spoke, she lowered her face to come mere inches from Kathryn’s - a sneer seared into her expression.
“Using your sin to gain access? Was that your plan?”
Kathryn felt a small amount of warm liquid land on her face, she had spat on her.
Whore.
She hated that word. On some planets, it didn’t exist, but on more than she’d like to admit, it was readily in use. It was a word that had been lobbed against her multiple times in her life, though when she was younger it had much more of a sting. On her home world, women were held at such a high expectation of behavior that it was impossible for any to ever reach. Even as her society had begun to crumble from crippling economic devastation and overpopulation, the woes were placed on the shoulders of women who held less rights and opportunity to make changes. Many women had turned to whoring to survive, as even at the lowest depths of human suffering, men were still driven by their biological imperative to rut like animals. For some women, it was their only option. For others, it was a chosen field to exploit the weakness of man.
Opening her eyes wide and in defiance, Kathryn got a good look at the woman trying to rip her hair out. She was broad, without any feminine trappings. Ashy blonde hair, colder and waxen compared to Kathryn’s own warm blonde locks, was pulled back into a tight, unforgiving bun at the back of her head. Pinched features and dull brown eyes narrowed aggressively at the battered would-be spy. Kathryn had dealt with women like this her whole life. Dowdy and unattractive, they harbored deep rooted hate for women they deemed had it easier due to their looks. They failed to see that the two were inherently interconnected – that the judgement of unattractiveness was the same as to what gave those with subjectively better features a leg up. Each side of the spectrum came with its own poison. And it was only ever men that benefitted from that sickness.
Kathryn smiled, sweat and blood not taking away from her natural beauty as that smile melted into a sadistic grin, “Just because he doesn’t want to fuck you doesn’t make me whore.” She started to chuckle.
A thick, blunt object hit the back of her head, the searing pain causing her to thrash in her restraints, as if the movement would dissipate throughout her whole body instead of just her skull. The force of the blow caused her tunnel vision and stars to appear in her eyes. Small, beautifully colored streaks of light danced across her field of vision and the sound in the room was replaced by the rushing of the blood in her ears. The blow opened a volley of attacks, emotionally driven and unstable, from the interrogating woman as she raged against her captive.
“Sin! How DARE you speak of such things of a Chosen!” Kathryn’s ears began to ring with a violent, open-palmed slap across her already bruised face that punctuated the accusation.
“Only cropper trash debase themselves with carnal desire!” This time she felt a solid, armored boot hit her in her gut, aptly hitting her lower abdomen.
“You Carnal WHORE!” And as she heard the scream, followed by a rush of steps and male voiced objections, she knew her tactic had worked. This was unregulated abuse and she welcomed the push beyond her limits. She sought the sweet release.
“Ladari, STOP!” Both Jaus and Praedus said in unison, to no avail, as a final hard blow to her abdomen jerked Kathryn hard enough to lift her momentarily from the bounds of gravity. Her restraints suddenly feeling light, the pressure on her joints and muscles releasing a potent cocktail of endorphins, hormones, and serotonin into her flimsy frame.
It was strange, watching her body succumb once more to the force of gravity, crashing against the restraints, Kathryn watched the meat of her flesh tear again as her weight displaced her. It was stranger still, seeing the room from a vantage point her mind had created for herself from all the sensory information she had consciously ignored. There were still dark spots, like the area directly behind her hanging form, but generally, she had a good assessment of this room.
It was roughly twenty feet by twenty feet, and with all the fashioned chairs lining the wall, it appeared to be some form of a waiting room. Perhaps a room where the people sat in interim to being called to the Neros’s throne room. The ceilings, while high, were not as vaulted as main Pyre pillars. The walls were decorated with elegant embroideries of landscapes, and even the furnishings looked elaborately designed with what she assumed were hand carved trim and golden latches and hinges.
Kathryn thought it odd that they’d choose this room to carry out their bloody interrogation. Maybe they liked the juxtaposition. The group, except for Jaus, seemed to really enjoy themselves. She could hardly blame them – from what she gathered by their verbal attacks, the Chosen were not only plucked from obscurity from a young age and trained into this life relentlessly for years, they also seemed to be virginal. Violence was often the go-to replacement for sexual frustration. Sometimes they even went hand in hand.
Unlike her last, recent excursion into pain management, the stakes were much higher this time and beyond just numbing herself, she actively engaged in an out-of-body method. She dissociated herself completely from her tortured flesh and bone.
The men and women in the room become inconsequential, decorative in nature, and part of the furniture. Kathryn’s entire focus was, paradoxically, on herself.
“You really are just a little girl, aren’t you?” She was bent over, judging herself, her hands resting on her knees, as if her mind’s eye followed the laws of physics. Looking into the dazed and glassy eyed body, she wasn’t expecting an answer.
Not anymore than you.
Taken aback by the response, Kathryn’s consciousness stepped, literally, back. But there was no light behind those eyes…she was the light that should be there. Who was talking to her?
“Maybe my implant has gone haywire…”
Does it sound like a technical issue?
She watched in horror as her physical body began to contort in pain with bone-breaking methods from her captors. Suddenly, the identity of the intruder into her consciousness didn’t matter.
“I’m going to die, aren’t I?”
No. We are going to exist for a very long time.
“What, so now a part of my mind is psychic?”
I am not a part of your mind.
“I’m projecting myself out of my body, so unless I’ve discovered the first telepath the Dominion has run across…”
I am you.
The you that you forget, every time you Jump.
“Oh fuck.”
One of Kathryn’s worst fears was Dimensional Derangement. Nervous about making the Jump alone, she had no idea what the side effects of bearing that burden would have on her.
Now she could report one. Assuming she survived.
Does the promise of madness and immortality scare you? Maybe you really are a child…
“I’m not scared.” She lied.
She could feel the presence’s disbelief.
You can’t lie to me, but it doesn’t matter. None of this matters. None of this matters because none of this means anything to you.
“My life means quite a lot to me…” Kathryn countered with herself.
If your existence mattered to you, you wouldn’t have risked it coming here.
“That’s fairly black and white…me.” She had no idea how to address herself.
Call me Red.
“Cute, my favorite color.”
It suits us.
“Very well, Red,” Kathryn stepped back from her body, wincing involuntarily as a would-be final violent blow made contact with the trunk of her, the restraints rattling against themselves. She was thankful she couldn’t feel anything right now. Observing the room, she saw the same doctor come in who had helped her days before, keeping her just alive enough to restart the cycle of interrogation.
As she watched the Chosen exit the room, allowing for the ministrations of their healer, she felt Red inch closer to her, the warmth of her making her mind tingle.
In her mind’s eye, time passed quickly as Red’s voice invaded her thoughts.
Aren’t you tired of the struggle? It was like two gentle hands came down and rested on her shoulders as the thoughts teased the corners of her mind.
You’ve been in a constant battle throughout your life, wasted and stagnant in their limited expectations, and their own self-indulgence.
Kathryn listened, watching as her body was mended to a tolerable level.
This…It was clear Red was referencing the torture, This is nothing compared to what you’ve already endured at the hands of those in power.
Kathryn resisted, “But I used to be in power.”
But were you?
The question made her stiffen.
Weren’t you always just at the beck and call of yet...another man?
Kathryn looked around her suddenly, as if she’d be able to see this penetrating voice invading her mind’s space.
Even before the Dominion.
I AM you, Kathryn. I know the truth.
An out-of-body experience is to be eerie, and odd, but this was giving her a level of discomfort she had never been warned about.
How many men did you have to contend with and satisfy before you had scraped out any semblance of control for yourself, back on Theta-Seven?
Kathryn couldn’t help but listen. She couldn’t shut out the voice.
How many times did you defer your thoughts to get by, to make it easier on yourself? How many times did you bite your tongue because otherwise you’d jeopardize whatever current arrangement you had?
“STOP.” Kathryn shook her head, the ethereal strands moving around her slowly, ghost-like and airy.
If you can’t be honest with yourself, little girl, who can you be honest with?
“I did those things because I knew I could control those people.”
Did you? Or is that what you keep telling yourself?
“I had to SURVIVE.”
So it wasn’t really a choice then, was it?
Kathryn had no response to that. Her eyes began to well up at the brutal honesty she was being subjected to – a much more torturous experience than anything the Chosen could inflict upon her.
You hate the word whore so much because you were one.
“ENOUGH!!!” Kathryn mentally screamed at herself. A mental cry so loud that she felt it ripple through her physical body as a shudder before her corporeal body went limp again with unconsciousness.
“I think she’s waking up again.” A voice penetrated the silence she had cast for herself in the room.
They were back.
“Has the little carnal vice decided to rejoin us?” Yet another voice chimed in, tsking at her like a dog.
“Carnal…” it sounded like yet a third voice, but by her vantage point, she couldn’t see the figures behind her own prostrated form hanging precariously in tatters.
“Chosen are taught to face the temptations of the world…perhaps we should really face your sin.”
Heavy, thudding footsteps came closer to her body, the sound of metal being unsheathed a noise that burrows into the ear and stays there long after the fact. She watched, as her clothes, her paltry disguise she had used on this planet, were stripped away, made into tatters and pulled from her.
Never one to be humiliated by her naked form, Kathryn examined herself through the ripped and torn clothing precariously draped across her body, exposing more of her than covering.
Her tender and soft skin, free of blemish and scarring, would bear new markings after this experience. Her normally supple and inviting flesh was laid to ruin in dark contusions, multiple sloppy lacerations, burnt edges, and general misuse.
But she couldn’t help but smile. In place of the pain receptors were a deluge of feel-good chemicals ravaging her body in a bid for self-preservation. She knew that with each further excess of pain, she would feel better, and better. She almost welcomed it.
Even now, you’re still at the will of men.
Red was back, insidiously invading her mind.
You can’t even get yourself off without a man dictating the terms.
“I’m surviving.”
Again, with the excuses. All you do is make excuses for yourself, and for them. These bastards have done nothing but complicate and control your life.
Her thoughts couldn’t help but start to catalogue her words, finding examples to substantiate Red’s claims.
Your father, your clients, Overseer, Protium, Orthus, Sicarius, and now Jaus and his little party of sick fucks.
She wasn’t wrong.
Aren’t you tired of listening to them prattle on and on about what they want? Aren’t you tired of them only valuing you based on what you can do for them? Aren’t you just fucking tired?
And Kathryn was tired. She was tired of the adrenaline-driven existence she had come to expect from her lifestyle – in or out of the Vanguard. Her entire life to this point had been, in some capacity, in service to others. She may have claimed a certain amount of indulgence along the way, but ultimately, the purpose of her day, her mission, it was all about someone else. Not in some bullshit altruistic way, but in a way that Red made sure she felt to the core of her being.
Kathryn once again felt the warmth of Red’s words and touch on her ethereal presence.
“But…” her mind began to rationalize once more, “These have all been my choices…”
You can’t lie to me, Kathryn. Remember, I am you.
She knew the words were a lie before she even thought them. None of this had been her choice. Not really. Her entire life had been her desperately clinging to the illusion of control, convincing both herself and others that she was sincere. She was a flimsy lean-to raft in a crazed torrent of actual choice and conviction of men who dictated her life.
Even now, she wasn’t seeking Neros because it was something she wanted to do. She was seeking Deltria as proof of Neros to gain favor with Overseer, something that Sicarius’s lowly treatment of her had driven her to. She was a cavalcade of reaction.
Her attempt at trying to escape the pain of her torture had brought her face to face with her own self-inflicted abuse. She would find no reprieve here, as the deceptively comforting arms of Red wrapped around her, cooing at her in her mind.
All is not lost, Kathryn…I can help us.
Emotionally and mentally, Kathryn was exhausted and pushed to her limit. The frayed edges of her mind licked and played with fresh wounds. Her ethereal form was curled into a ball, hiding her face in the crook of her arms, her knees brought up to support her. Her body, still splayed and bare for the entertainment of others did its best to stay together, trying not to allow for the injuries to bring the house of cards down.
Praedus knelt, the brilliance of the white of his uniform soaking up her aged and fresh blood readily as his knees touched the floor beneath her.
“An individual without a name, is an individual defined by his or her actions.” He said.
A rough hand traced over her bare shoulder, sweeping away the fragments of her disguise that kept her arm hidden, “And you…you are without a name.” The touch of his hand turned into a lurid caress as he spoke.
Kathryn had always felt in control of her own sexuality, she had always made the choice to use it, enjoy it, employ it.
This was not her choice.
“To define…” the hand crept to her neck, languishing at the center of her collar bone before drifting lower still, “You…such a beautiful and knowing temptress…”
Tell him your name, pet.
“You are your sin, lust and carnal, complete…” His breath made her clench her swollen eyes tighter.
Tell him your name…
“What should we call you, then?” Praedus sounded as if he were taking a poll from his compatriots, “Harlot? No, that’s far too common for someone like you.”
His thumb began to brush back and forth across the pout of her lips.
“Wanton Temptress?” A male voice offered. She thought it was Jaus.
“Carnal Temptress,” the unnamed fourth Chosen offered, though in question.
“Carnal Sin. A fitting name for a whore.” This time it was Ladari, the woman, who finished the thought.
Despite keeping herself as disconnected to her body as she could, it was clear that during the time the doctor had been sent in and now, the group had been drinking. Her anger became tangible at the moment his entitled mouth touched hers.
“Kathryn. My name is Kathryn…”
Tell HIM.
As she tried to open her mouth to object to the label, her body gave out, succumbing to the outside pressure, forcing her consciousness once more to the ethereal.
Once again, you are dictated to by the men in your life.
Kathryn began to shrink into herself, letting Red envelope her, to dominate her.
Aren’t you just fucking tired of it?
Red wooing Kathryn's mind during an out of body experience during
her interrogation, looking over their corporeal form.
© 2020 Sorah Suhng
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Are 'at-home' COVID-19 test kits a good option?
Nathan O'Neal
Updated: October 19, 2020 10:15 PM
Created: October 19, 2020 08:47 PM
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. —At-home COVID testing kits are becoming more prevalent across the country as the companies that make them offer a testing option that’s administered from comfort of their own home.
Everlywell is one of several companies authorized by the FDA to provide at-home COVID testing kits. Customers can order the kits online after a screening process, administer the nasal swab themselves and mail in the order. The results are made available within 72 of the lab receiving the completed test.
"This is safe. It exceeds FDA standards. It's delivered right to your home," said Everlywell President Andy Page, adding that it's a great alternative to going to get a test in a clinical environment.
However, Page concedes if you're on a strict timeline for results, the at-home test may not be the best option.
"For people that want immediate results—perhaps they're showing severe symptoms or they have a particular requirement that they're going to be flying the next day, then it makes sense for them to find an alternative," said Page.
In New Mexico, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has long held that COVID testing is key to her strategy for fighting the virus.
"Particularly now with our case numbers, I need to know who's positive, where you are... and I need to get you quickly isolated so we can stop the transmission of this virus," said Lujan Grisham during her COVID-19 update last week.
When asked about "at-home" COVID-19 testing kits, state health officials encouraged other methods.
"The state recommends anyone getting tested for COVID-19 go to reputable testing sites. i.e. State Public Health offices, designated testing locations or in-person providers. This ensure the tests are reliable and tests are performed correctly," said Marisa Maez, communications director for the New Mexico Department of Health.
To view a list of FDA authorized tests, click here.
Copyright 2020 - KOB-TV LLC, A Hubbard Broadcasting Company
New Mexico legislators convene for 2021 session
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Home/About us/Competencies/The evolution of the piezoelectric measuring chain: added value for industrial manufacturers/New Features
The new charge amplifier from Kistler features analog and digital modes – and it also speaks the language of IO-Link!
By launching its new miniature charge amplifier with IO-Link, Kistler is opening up a vast range of applications for piezoelectric sensor technology in digital production environments. Robotics, packaging and the food and beverage industry are just some of the sectors that will benefit.. This extremely compact device combines analog and digital technologies, paving the way for Industry 4.0.
Kistler is launching the 5028A – a charge amplifier that uses IO-Link technology to output analog signals from piezoelectric sensors as digital measurement data. Customers benefit from the strengths of piezoelectric measurement technology (such as compact design, rigidity and a wide measuring range), but they still have the digital advantages of resistance to interference and end-to-end communication. IO-Link technology provides users with real-time data to monitor plant status – all the way down to individual sensor or measuring chain level. This opens the way to predictive maintenance: for example, users can initiate maintenance tasks on a plant if data is regularly outside of the setpoint range.
By incorporating a digital interface into the 5028A, Kistler is taking another step towards the smart networked factory in keeping with the goals of Industry 4.0. The raw analog signal is already digitized in the amplifier. This avoids interference due to inductive or capacitive couplings. Likewise, complex and costly individual cabling for analog and control signals is eliminated. As required, the 5028A can also be used as an analog charge amplifier with a reset/operate input. In this mode, it delivers the performance needed to control very fast processes with low latency and jitter. Stefan Affeltranger, Product Manager in Kistler's Production Monitoring section, is a firm believer in the 5028A's potential: "The 5028A is the world's first amplifier for measurement data from piezoelectric sensors that offers communication based on IO-Link. This device will fit easily into almost any industrial application that calls for lightweight components and simple solutions."
The solution of choice for highly automated environments
The 5028A 1-channel-charge amplifier is a lightweight, compact device that is ideal for use in highly automated environments – on robot arms, for example, or on other moving parts. Thanks to its standardized interfaces, the 5028A can be integrated into virtually any manufacturing environment with IO-Link capability. The new device can be used generally in mechanical engineering and plant construction applications; it is also highly suitable for strictly regulated sectors such as medical technology, because all changes to settings are saved and can be verified at any time. And by no means least, the 5028A makes it easier for users to start out in the world of piezoelectric sensor technology: the investment costs are low, and IO-Link delivers extra added value – an aspect that is also highlighted by the IO-Link Consortium.
The new miniature charge amplifier from Kistler offers a choice of analog or digital modes, and it communicates with the production environment via IO-Link.
Kistler launches the new 5028A charge amplifier with IO-Link: one more step towards digitization of the piezoelectric measuring chain from sensor to cloud.
Success Story, 4/23/2020
Measurement technology from Kistler helps Rosenberger to achieve efficiency and top quality
How Rosenberger deploys solutions from Kistler to optimize production, ensure quality and save resources
Market Trends, 4/23/2020
Driving the optimization of production ahead with new measurement components
Digital charge amplifiers and advanced process monitoring systems generate added value
Latest trends to your mail
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1999 pt 4 lyrics
Google's free service instantly translates words, phrases, and web pages between English and over 100 other languages. That's right, c'mon, sing the song (Party), (Party) But when I woke up this mornin' 1999 Pt. this and CNBT are my favorite OPs for sure – i’ll always have an attachment to bloody stream though :,), killler queen has already touched this comment section. Listen to 1999 Pt. Learn more about P&G brands, types of products including family, personal and household care products, and also product safety, corporate & social responsibility and environmental protection. We're runnin' outta time (Tonight I'm gonna) oops out of time Two thousand zero zero party over, oops out of time Unbekannte Nummer ruft an und ich geh' ran ab den Situationen (Alo, alo? U know I didn't even care, 'Cuz they say two thousand zero zero party over, With music streaming on Deezer you can discover more than 56 million tracks, create your own playlists, and share your favourite tracks with your friends. Ltd. Pt. So tonight we gonna (party like it's 1999) we gonna, oww. If U didn't come 2 party, Thanks to darkk_pegasus666, daniel.jpa, arielmeri.hyvonen for correcting track #5 lyrics. HMAS Vendetta (D69/I69) (formerly HMS Vendetta (FA3/F29/D69)) was a V class destroyer that served in the Royal Navy and the Royal Australian Navy (RAN). Yeah, Lemme tell ya somethin' The song was transformed into a march by John Philip Sousa in 1917 and renamed âThe Field Artillery Song.â So tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999 I was dreamin' when I wrote this So sue me if I go 2 fast But life is just a party, and parties weren't meant 2 last War is all around us, my mind says prepare 2 fight So if I gotta die I'm gonna listen 2 my body tonight Yeah, they say … Alright, it's 1999 You say it, 1999 1999 1999 don't stop, don't stop, say it 1 more time Two thousand zero zero party over, oops out of time Yeah, yeah (Tonight I'm gonna) So tonight we gonna (party like it's 1999) we gonna, oww Yeah, Don'tcha wanna go (1999) Don'tcha wanna go (1999) ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. ©2000-2020 Lyrics Planet, LyricsPlanet.com. Country music is a wildly popular genre, but there are other sub-genres that could exist beneath it, such as Christian country music (CCM). Attach your best sound system and enjoy this impossible voice. 1999 is a English album released on Nov 2015. Songaah.com is a searchable lyrics database featuring 447,579 songs and lyrics from 104,004 artists. List of Songs having Songfacts entries and released in 1999. Popular Song Lyrics. One of 25 V class ships ordered for the Royal Navy during World War I, Vendetta entered service in 1917. The Harpooneer Lyrics: 8. “Great Days” is the third opening song for JoJo’s Bizarre Diamond is Unbreakable. Keyword-Based Approach for Lyrics Emotion Variation Detection Ricardo Malheiro1,2, Hugo Gonçalo Oliveira1, Paulo Gomes1 and Rui Pedro Paiva1 1Center for Informatics and Systems of the University of Coimbra (CISUC), Pólo II, Pinhal de Marrocos 3030-290 Coimbra, Portugal 2Miguel Torga Higher Institute, Largo Cruz de Celas 1, 3000-132 Coimbra, Portugal we gonna, oww, Say it 1 more time 1999 Pt. CURRENTS "The Way It Ends" THE GHOST INSIDE "The Ghost Inside" ALESTORM "Curse Of The Crystal Coconut" OLD MAN GLOOM "Seminar IX: Darkness of Being" PARADISE LOST "Obsidian" Yeah, everybody's got a bomb, 1999 The…. Diamond Is Unbreakable (Japanese: ãã¤ã¤ã¢ã³ãã¯ç ããªã, Hepburn: Daiyamondo wa Kudakenai, sometimes translated as Diamond Is Not Crash) is the fourth story arc of the Japanese manga series JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, written and illustrated by Hirohiko Araki.It was serialized in Weekly ShÅnen Jump from 1992 to 1995, with the 174 chapters collected into eighteen tankÅbon volumes. 1999 Album has 1 song sung by Prince. Identify the media playing around you, explore the music you love. 4908301571: THOMAS THE TANK ENGINE ft. DONALD TRUMP (remix) 488472970: ADHD. The album was published at 13, so the song was recorded at 12 or … Top Lyrics of 2011. 7 days a week. Phone Hours Mon - Fri / 6 AM - 5 PM PST. C'mon, c'mon, U say (Party) we gonna, oww C'mon now, U say party Glock 'n' Roll Lyrics: 7. I'm a real Cleveland legend, I'm a ride 'til the day I die. Billboard Hot 100. As the leading youth entertainment brand, mtv is the best place to watch the network's original series, see the latest music videos and stay up to date on today's celebrity news. 1999 is the fifth studio album by American recording artist Prince, released on October 27, 1982, by Warner Bros. Records.It became his first album to be recorded with his band the Revolution. KILLER QUEEN, DAISAN NO BAKUDEN: BITES ZA DUSTO! A7s: 8: Head & Heart lyrics Joel Corry feat. Billboard Hot 100. 1999 Pt. Sub-Part 4 Remedies and Relief 99. Lyrics. With Jim Carrey, Danny DeVito, Gerry Becker, Greyson Erik Pendry. Alo, alo? Application of this Sub-part to customary leases. The life and career of legendary comedian Andy Kaufman. Thanks to timmyduke, deadphoenixsong for correcting track #6 lyrics. Alo, alo? Charli XCX & Troye Sivan Lyrics "1999" I just wanna go back, back to 1999 Take a ride to my old neighborhood I just wanna go back, sing, "Hit me baby, one more time" Wanna go back, wanna go Yeah, I just wanna go back Nike Airs, all that CD, old Mercedes Drive 'round listening to Shady like, oh HMAS Vendetta in 1943. Transferor or assignor of lease released from liability to pay rent and observe covenants thereafter. A study published in 1997 by DuRant et al 76,82 described an analysis of 518 music videos on 4 television networks (MTV, VH1, CMT, and BET). Genesis XIX - Lyrics 1. Top Lyrics of 2009. Phone Number 1 (855) 347-2779. All Lyrics displayed by LyricsPlanet.com are property of their respective owners. Alo, alo? Slipknot lyrics - 112 song lyrics sorted by album, including "Snuff", "Psychosocial", "Unsainted". YourMechanic Auto Repair Service Hours 7 AM - 9 PM. Lyrics from Animelyrics.com Kodoku demo hitori janai sa Umaretekita koto ni kanarazu imi ga aru: Lyrics from Animelyrics.com Even when you're alone, you're not on your own. I was dreamin' when I wrote this Back that ass up like it's 1999. Upcoming Lyrics. © 2020 METROLYRICS, A RED VENTURES COMPANY. 201, Sumadhura Symphony, Sai ⦠Lyrics. we could all die any day Yeah, yeah (Tonight I'm gonna) 1999 Lyrics by Active Child on album 1999 - Single I think about you all the time Wonder if when you think of me you smile Because from the moment we met it was out of our hands I know So the story goes A man and a woman linger alone Thinking that you and baby he's ready 2 roar Shop for Vinyl, CDs and more from Ruff Ryders at the Discogs Marketplace. The song is used in two different ways. What a performance! So tonight we gonna (party like it's 1999) We could all die any day (1999) “Great Days” is the third opening song for JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable. As a 1999 Toyota Tacoma owner, you know you can depend on your Tacoma for many miles to come. Soundtrack lyrics for any movie, cartoon, TV, game, Broadway musical. No, no (Tonight I'm gonna) Get it as soon as Thu, Dec 3. Am 21. That's right, everybody say (Party) Label: Rock Brigade Records - RBR/LCR 1930,Laser Company Records - RBR/LCR 1930 ⢠Format: CD Album, Enhanced ⢠Country: Brazil ⢠Genre: Rock ⢠Style: Speed Metal, Heavy Metal So tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999 I was dreamin when I wrote this So sue me if I go 2 fast But life is just a party, and parties werent meant 2 last Armor All 78840ZN 4-Piece Black All Season Rubber Floor Mat. out of time War is all around us, my mind says prepare 2 fight I just wanna go back, back to 1999 Take a ride to my old neighborhood I just wanna go back, sing, "hit me, baby, one more time" Wanna go back, Gentleman. Coulda sworn it was judgment day Popular Song Lyrics. “Great Days” is the third opening song for JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Diamond is Unbreakable. You say it, 1999 Back that ass up like it's 1999. Sing it 4 your nation y'all Dehumanized Lyrics: 9. Nicht mehr mein Land Lyrics: 6. Directed by Albert Hughes, Allen Hughes. Top Lyrics of 2010. Alo, alo?) 4.5 out of 5 stars 11,177. Thanks to f-15, crandalor for correcting track #11 lyrics. Genuine 1999 Toyota Tacoma Parts have been engineered to meet Toyota’s safety, reliability, and functionality standards. Veja créditos, avaliações e faixas e compre a edição de 1999 CD de Interlude no Discogs. Alo, alo? So sue me if I go 2 fast Prince - 1999 Lyrics. ... July 1983, and at number 25 in the UK in January 1983 (reaching number 2 in the UK when re-released in January 1985, as part of a double A-side with "Little Red Corvette"). 99. Ich simulier' âKrrrk-krru-krrrkâ Kannst du mich hören? Tell me what you're singin', baby say (Party) Don't worry, I won't hurt you I only want you to have some fun I was dreamin' when I wrote this Forgive me if it goes astray But when I wok. Directed by Milos Forman. Unfortunately, we are not authorized to show these lyrics Contact: +91 939 123 2727 Email: info@macelearn.com MAC e-Learning Revolution Pvt. Alo, alo? All Rights Reserved. So tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999 I was dreamin' when I wrote this So sue me if I go to fast But life is just a party And parties weren't meant to last War is all around us My mind says prepare to fight So if I gotta die I'm gonna listen to my body tonight Yeah, they say two thousand zero zero Party over, oops out of … 98. The Mockingbird Foundation. If your car begins sputtering or refusing to start, the problem could lie with a faulty camshaft sensor. So if I gotta die I'm gonna listen 2 my body tonight, Yeah, they say two thousand zero zero party over, Black $29.99 $ 29. Yeah, Yeah, East Side for life. In light of the ongoing pandemic situation, the staff has decided to dedicate the site server's computational resources entirely to the [email protected] and [email protected] distributed computing projects for biomedical research, until such time as a cure/vaccine for COVID-19 is found. I don't wanna die, The special tribute concert will feature an all-star lineup performing hits from Princeincluding Beck, Gary Clark Jr., Common, Earth, Wind & Fire, Foo Fighters, H.E.R, Juanes, John Legend, Chris Martin, ⦠Tryin' 2 run from the destruction, 4 Land 1999 97. Street pimps, all of them African-American, discuss their lives and work: getting started, being flamboyant, pimping in various U.S. cities, bringing a woman into their group, taking a woman from another pimp, and the rules and regulations of pimping. View R. Kelly song lyrics by popularity along with songs featured in, albums, videos and song meanings. Genesis XIX Lyrics: 5. We have 21 albums and 475 song lyrics in our database. Search the world's information, including webpages, images, videos and more. Pipe it up and drop it for me, one mo' time. Lyrics from Animelyrics.com Shining justice mebaete Brand new bed town kousa suru ibuki Misaki kara shiokaze TONNERU nuke tettou e hikareai komichi ni mayoikomu Kokoro ni tokekomu kage terasu ougon no "Sprits" sore wa mamorinuku hikari Let the voice of love take you higher Atsumaru chikara de toki sae koete 1999 Bizarre Summer Don'tcha wanna go (1999) Listen to 1999 song in high quality & download 1999 song on Gaana.com Related Tags - 1999, 1999 Songs, 1999 Songs Download, Download 1999 Songs, Listen 1999 Songs, 1999 MP3 Songs, Prince Songs Price may vary by color. Got a lion in my pocket mama, say (Party) 1999's critical and commercial success propelled Prince to a place in the public psyche, and marked the beginning of two years of heightened fame via his following releases. Top Lyrics of 2010. Blind Superstition Lyrics. Sat - Sun / 7 AM - 4 PM PST. But life is just a party, and parties weren't meant 2 last No. Telephone's a-ringin', mama (Party) The original lyrics reflect routine activities in a horse-drawn Field Artillery battery. Your birth definitely has significance. Work it down 2 the ground, say (Party, Party) I'll dance my life away, Oh, they say two thousand zero zero party over, Come on, take my body, baby (Party) During World War I, Vendetta participated in the Second Battle of Heligoland Bight, and operated ⦠Lead us out with an angelic smile! When established in 1997, the original mission was to field a team of robots capable of winning against the human soccer World Cup champions by 2050. RoboCup is an international scientific initiative with the goal to advance the state of the art of intelligent robots. Other options New and used from $22.49. benny blanco: 7: Breaking Me lyrics Topic feat. 1999 Lyrics: Don't worry, I won't hurt you... / I only want you to have some fun / (I was dreamin' when I wrote this / Forgive me if it goes astray) / But when I woke up this morning / I could So tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999 I was dreamin' when I wrote this Forgive me if it goes astray But when I woke up this mornin' Could of sworn it was judgment day The sky was all purple There were people runnin' everywhere Tryin' to run from the destruction You know I didn't even care 'Cause they say two thousand zero zero Party over, oops out of time So tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999 I was dreamin' when I wrote this So sue me … Oh--and he's ready 2 roar (Party). Girl, you're working with some ass, yeah, you're bad, yeah. But before I'll let that happen, I said keep puttin' on, Ray been puttin' on. Top Lyrics of 2011. Read or print original Tomorrow lyrics 2020 updated! Browse song by artist or soundtrack title. Good news, music fans: "Let's Go Crazy: The GRAMMY Salute To Prince" will be broadcast Tuesday, April 21 from 9â11PM ET/PT on CBS and streaming on CBS All Access. I'd rather dance my life away (1999) Euthanasia Lyrics: 4. Explore releases from Ruff Ryders at Discogs. 1999 don't stop, don't stop, say it 1 more time That's right (Party) don't bother knockin' on my door Ay, Bleed, keep puttin' on. Thanks to antonia175 for correcting track #7 lyrics. oops out of time 1 = Built in United States by DiamlerChrysler 3 = Built in Mexico by DiamlerChrysler De Mexico Make C = Chrysler 4 = Multi-purpose Passenger Vehicle Less Side Air Bags Vehicle Type 8 = Multi-purpose Passenger Vehicle with Side Air Bags Other F = 1815 - 2267 KG (4000 - 5000 lbs.) Submitted by Eagles Last modified by Eagles. Forgive me if it goes astray 4 (AloAlo) by Haftbefehl on Deezer. So tonight we gonna (party like it's 1999) In der 1999-Trilogie schildert Haft sein Leben im Jahr 1999, zu diesem Zeitpunkt war er 14 Jahre alt. Mommy--why does everybody have a bomb?. Lyrics to 1999 by Prince from the 1999 album - including song video, artist biography, translations and more! 1999 Lyrics: I just wanna go back, back to 1999 / Take a ride to my old neighborhood / I just wanna go back, sing "Hit me, baby, one more time" / … Lyrics to '99' by Toto. Sodom & Gomorrah Lyrics: 3. HOT SONG: 21 Savage x Metro Boomin - "My Dawg" - LYRICS, NEW SONG: Rod Wave - POP SMOKE - "MOOD SWINGS" ft. Lil Tjay - LYRICS, NEW SONG: AC/DC - "Shot In The Dark" - LYRICS, NEW SONG: Shawn Mendes - "Wonder" - LYRICS, HOT SONG: BLACKPINK – "Lovesick Girls" - LYRICS. Mommy--why does everybody have a bomb? So tonight we gonna (party like it's 1999) Lyrics. Everybody, (Party) The Saturdays. The Mockingbird Foundation is a non-profit organization founded by Phish fans in 1996 to generate charitable proceeds from the Phish community.. And since we're entirely volunteer – with no office, salaries, or paid staff – administrative costs are less than 2% of revenues! Listen 2 what I'm tryin' 2 say The sun'll come out / Tomorrow / Bet your bottom dollar / That tomorrow / There'll oops out of time A gentleman is so 1995, so hard for a girl to find A real husband is so 1999… März 2016 wurde schließlich über die RedBull-Webseite das Musikvideo Girl, you're working with some ass, yeah, you're bad, yeah. Lyrics from Animelyrics.com You're awakening as you tread the earth. 4 (AloAlo) Songtext von Haftbefehl mit Lyrics, deutscher Übersetzung, Musik-Videos und Liedtexten kostenlos auf Songtexte.com Two thousand zero zero party over oops, Can't run from the revelation, no (Party) 1999 Toyota Tacoma OEM parts will give you both peace of mind and total confidence for all those miles. Don'tcha wanna go (1999) Application of this Sub-Part to non-customary leases. No 9-7-60/61, Flat No. With John S. Dickson, Antonio Fargas, Heidi Fleiss, L. Hammond. Lyrics from Animelyrics.com Recently Added. Dynamite lyrics BTS: 2: Blinding Lights lyrics The Weeknd: 3: You Broke Me First lyrics Tate McRae: 4: positions lyrics Ariana Grande: 5: Take You Dancing lyrics Jason Derulo: 6: Lonely lyrics Justin Bieber feat. The second half of the song is played in reverse done to accompany the theme of the second version for the third opening. 4 (AloAlo) Haftbefehl | Length : 01:57 Writer: Haftbefehl. Recently Added. CCM, sometimes called country gospel or inspirational country, blends the style of country with biblical lyrics. Transferee or assignee as lessee. The sky was all purple, 4 (AloAlo) Lyrics: Alo, alo? there were people runnin' everywhere I got a lion in my pocket, Discover song lyrics from your favourite artists on Shazam. we gonna, oww, Alright, it's 1999 2725621620: asimo3089 , badcc, KreekCraft - You're WeLcome Dark Lyrics is the largest metal lyrics archive on the Web. Thanks to matca484, nirajpandya for correcting track #8 lyrics. Alo, alo? Paroles du titre 1999 - 1999 avec Paroles.net - Retrouvez également les paroles des chansons les plus populaires de 1999 Featuring song lyrics to all the latest and greatest Hip Hop and Rap hit songs. Alo, alo? Make a nigga spend his cash, yeah, his last year. What is Procter & Gamble company? Great Days, 4th Opening Theme, JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken: Diamond wa Kudakenai; JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Diamond Is Unbreakable, lyrics,song lyrics,music lyrics,lyric songs,lyric search,words to song,song words,anime music,megumi hayashibara lyric Alo, alo?) Upcoming Lyrics. Everybody, everybody say party In the plug, put 'em on, yeah. Composer: Bazzazian. Camshafts are connected to your engine's crankshaft and cause the valves to compress. "1999" lyrics. See, I bossed wit' my mans wit' the plug, put 'em on. This study revealed that the percentage of violence in music videos ranged from 11.5% to 22.4%, with the ⦠As a result, the site will be taken offline completely effective 24:00 EST today. / Unbekannte Nummer ruft an und ich geh' ran, hab' 'ne Situation / (Alo, alo? 4.2 Average Rating. Click here and find out! Blind Superstition Lyrics: 2. Top 100 Songs of 1999 Year: All Time 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 1995 1994 1993 1992 1991 1990 1989 1988 1987 1986 1985 1984 1983 1982 1981 1980 1979 1978 1977 1976 1975 1974 1973 1972 1971 1970 1969 1968 1967 1966 1965 1964 1963 1962 1961 1960 1959 1958 1957 1956 1955 1954 1953 1952 1951 1950 So tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999, I was dreamin' when I wrote this Use Songaah to find your favorite singers and song lyrics. ( if you're looking for rock/pop lyrics, go here) NEW ALBUMS. FREE Shipping by Amazon. The song is used in two different ways. R Kelly lyrics - 356 song lyrics sorted by album, including "I Believe I Can Fly", "The Storm Is Over Now", "Same Girl". Get high, bury me with my chrome .45. Address We come to you at no extra charge Guarantee 12-month/12,000-mile warranty Google has many special features to help you find exactly what you're looking for.
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Mary Claire Patton, Digital Journalist
Tags: Animals, Pets, Houston, Crime
Man shot, killed during argument that escalated after Loop 1604 crash, police say
Texas woman clings to speeding car for 10 minutes after couple steals $10,000 exotic puppy
Video shows woman clinging to car while trying to save stolen bulldog
HOUSTON – Update: Houston authorities have arrested 21-year-old Royshana King and charged her with aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon, according to KPRC.
A Houston woman was miraculously left with just scratches and bruises after clinging to the hood of a speeding car on Nov. 4 in an attempt to save a $10,000 exotic bulldog.
KPRC first broke the story of the woman, Alize James, who works at Bully Kamp in Harris County.
In an interview with KPRC, James said a man and a woman came into the store looking at different dogs and landed on a $10,000 exotic bulldog puppy who was 7-months-old at the time.
However, James said the pair took off with the puppy when she went upstairs to grab paperwork for a UPS driver.
Surveillance video shows the couple leaving with James running after them. She told KPRC that the puppy had surgery just days prior and was in need of special medication.
That’s when things took a turn for the worse and James said the couple hit her with their car when she demanded the puppy back.
James explained that the man was driving the vehicle and when he “very aggressively” lurched the car forward in her direction the bumper “kind of like slapped me on top of the car.”
KPRC reported that James was on the hood of the car for roughly 10 minutes as the man drove recklessly around the Houston area.
When the man finally came to a stop, James said he grabbed her by her feet, grabbed her chest and started hitting her.
James told KPRC that while she was able to fight back, the couple still ended up getting away with the puppy.
Video of some of the incident can be seen in the video player at the top of the article.
Houston police have not been able to identify the man, but KPRC reported that the woman has been identified as 21-year-old Royshana King.
Officials in Harris County say King is facing charges of aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon but is still on the run.
More animal stories:
Texas corgi adopts 4 orphaned Labrador puppies after she was rescued from puppy mill
From fluffy to toothy, these are the best wildlife, animal stories on KSAT.com in 2020
Have you seen this chicken? Reba took an accidental field trip to San Antonio Costco
Mary Claire Patton
Mary Claire Patton has been a journalist with KSAT 12 since 2015. She has reported on several high-profile stories during her career at KSAT and specializes in trending news and things to do around Texas and San Antonio.
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Acadiana Symphony Season (September 11, 2020- April 16, 2021)
By Lafayette Travel on Aug. 18, 2020
For more than 35 years, the Acadiana Symphony Orchestra has shared its passion for music through world-class live performances. They have stood the test of time in this community, through moments of celebration and moments of despair. Earlier this year, they announced our 36th season - ASO36 REVIVAL…
GRAMMYs in Acadiana: Music Goldmine
By Laura Lee on Oct. 08, 2019
GRAMMY award-winning and nominated musicians from Acadian Music has been the soul of Acadiana since…
Cajun & Creole Instruments: Triangle
By Rien Fertel on Apr. 30, 2019
The triangle is a simple, percussive, rhythm instrument central to Cajun music. Consisting of two…
Cajun & Creole Instruments: Frottoir
The frottoir — sometimes spelled froittoir — is a percussive, rhythmic instrument omnipresent in…
Cajun & Creole Instruments: Fiddle
A bowed string instrument, the fiddle is central to the sound, culture, and history of Cajun music…
Cajun & Creole Instruments: Accordion
A relatively recent invention, the bellows-driven, vibrating reed squeezebox known as the accordion…
Playlist: Lafayette Weekly (April 8-14, 2019)
By Philippe Billeaudeaux on Apr. 08, 2019
For close to 20 years the Louisiana Crossroads Series has given our local artists an opportunity to…
Playlist: Lafayette Weekly (April 1-7, 2019)
Though the Po-Boy is almost always linked to its birthplace of New Orleans, Lafayette and the…
Playlist: Lafayette Weekly (March 25-31, 2019)
By Philippe Billeaudeaux on Mar. 25, 2019
Through the years Downtown Alive has made an effort to showcase the area’s diverse styles of music…
The Celtic Bayou Festival has made a name for itself for filling the void for an authentic St…
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Home News Liberia’s Ebola Workers Seek Hazard Benefits
Liberia’s Ebola Workers Seek Hazard Benefits
This week, Liberia could be declared Ebola-free for the third time. But as some Liberians prepare to celebrate what they hope is finally the end of the outbreak, many of the men and women who risked their lives to stop the deadly virus are demanding the Liberian government pay benefits they say they were promised, the VOA has reported.
Dozens of angry burial workers have been demonstrating since last week at the Disco Hill Safe Burial Site, on the outskirts of Monrovia. They yell out in protest, holding signs that read, “We need our risk benefits.”
Some of them are former Ebola burial team workers who were employed during the outbreak; others were hired after the virus ended to continue safe burials as a precaution.
They are accusing the government of failing to give them $1,500 in promised hazard pay.
Timothy Kai, who has been helping to bury the dead since December 2014, says it is only fair that the burial workers be compensated for the risks they took. He recalled his first shift with the Safe and Dignified Burial Team.
“That night we used car lights [headlights], just imagine, to bury,” he said. “They brought more than 10 dead bodies that very night and we were using car lights just to carry on this safe burial. And these people really they are not treating us well. We have been doing well. As I speak to you right now, we have buried more than 3,000 dead bodies.”
Mark Slewon, a 38-year-old father of six, was also on the frontline burying Ebola victims. He stayed away from his wife and children for six months during the height of the outbreak, to keep them safe and avoid stigma.
“Even now our community people avoid us because we are still associating with Ebola work … Are we not Liberians? We are permanent Liberians, we deserve whatsoever benefits they are having,” he said. “We have children, we have futures, you understand? So we cannot be taking this risk. People are stepping on our rights. We need our benefits.”
Many women were part of the teams. They would disinfect the burial workers and the equipment at the end of each day, as well as clean the burial sites.
Felicia Kollie, a 30-year-old mother of three, is a gravesite cleaner.
“All the stuff they use, we clean them up and throw them away. That is our own work, but it is risky,” she said. “Between the grave grasses growing even when the body is decaying, you smell the scent. And there are a lot of Ebola bodies. So it is a risk that we are taking; and we need our money.”
In reaction to the former Ebola workers’ claims, the Minister of Health, Bernice Dahn, said the government has paid $23.2 million to all former Ebola workers and does not owe them any money.
“The ministry will no longer tolerate any form of street protest and warn those involved to peacefully pursue whatever claims they may have,” she said.
More than 10,000 Liberians contracted Ebola following the outbreak which began in 2014 and more than 4,000 died. If no new cases are found, the World Health Organization (WHO) will again declare the country free of the deadly virus tomorrow, January 14.
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PimaLib_Reviews
View all cards in Humor
View all cards in Mystery & Thriller
Carrie Mathison is back to save democracy in Season 7 of “Homeland”
That Doesn’t Mean What You Think It Means
The most disturbing show on television?
In Love With Love, Simon? Check These Out!
Bitter Side of Sweet by Tara Sullivan
Book Review: Time’s Up by Janey Mack
by PimaLib_Reviews September 2, 2015
Due to a psych test revealing "a pathological need to be liked," Maisie McGrane has been kicked out of the police academy. Stunned, and in a desperate attempt to prove her mental fortitude, she takes a job working for her brother's girlfriend as a Parking Enforcement Officer. Obviously, this is a big step down for Maisie. But having the public pour milkshakes on your head and pee on your golf cart is not nearly as bad as confessing to your family why you didn't graduate.
Maisie's family is one of the spectacular aspects of this debut mystery. With five older brothers who are all either cops or lawyers and her parents, one a cop and one a lawyer, the reader develops great appreciation for this group. The familial harassment, interference in private lives, and dinner competitions regarding ticketing violations (the better to catch criminals), is very relatable. I laughed aloud at Maisie's internal commentary because I too would like to share my brother with someone else, forever.
In Time's Up, opens a new window, the entire cast of characters, from Maisie's training officer, to the sketchy ex-Army Ranger she dates, are highly entertaining, bringing to mind Evanovich's Stephanie Plum series. But Maisie is not a walking accident. On Day One of what she hopes will be a short parking enforcement career she finds a dead body, which is turned over to her brothers and found to be mob-related. Then, while acting as the designated driver for another brother, she ends up in bar fight against her academy nemesis. Between ticketing the mayor, finding more dead bodies and booting vehicles all over the town, Maisie keeps this title moving.
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LAS BODEGAS
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Oh Really? Another Siren Song
By Mark Graban On Nov 2, 2006 Last updated Jul 28, 2011
Burt's Bees Selects i2 Solutions to Streamline the Supply Chain for Lean Manufacturing
Another “Siren Song” in the world of manufacturing software. Once again, it's i2 Technologies claiming their software is “Built on the principles of lean manufacturing and constraint-based planning, the solutions enable companies to reach the best throughput and customer service at the lowest inventory level and cost.”
Argh, but they continue…
“i2‘s factory panning solutions are used by companies around the globe looking to move into lean manufacturing,“ said Steve Estrada, senior vice president of Consumer Industries at i2.
The “siren song” is that some software companies really expect you think that all that's missing from your successful lean transformation is the proper software. If you're “looking to move into lean” — as opposed to actually working on it — I think you'd be better off focusing on your people and your processes.
I just noticed there is a typo in the second quote (it's really there in the press release) — “panning” instead of “planning.” I guess i2 would have kwality if they only had, oh I don't know, maybe some software for that? Oh right, it's called spell check. I guess technology can't do it all for you, can it?
There's no silver bullet software that will make brilliant decisions for you, decisions that will make you lean.
I'm not “anti-software.” Neither is Toyota. But, the software vendors lose credibility with messages like this, that the software makes you lean.
Please check out my main blog page at www.leanblog.org
The RSS feed content you are reading is copyrighted by the author, Mark Graban.
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Siren SongSoftware
"Art of Lean" Website
One Doctor’s View on Lean
Lean Podcast #393 — @WoodyZuill on Mob Programming and the Power of Flow
Lean Podcast #391 — Mary and Tom Poppendieck on #Lean Software & More
What I Overheard About What Sounds Like “Fake Agile” or “Agile…
Podcast #351 — Joel Tosi and Dion Stewart, “Creating Your Dojo”
Anonymous says 14 years ago
The typo in the quote is quite humorous. You raise some thought provoking issues that are worthy of discussion rather than single sided rant.
Yeah, you are correct that the software itself won’t make you lean… but there IS software which can COMPLIMENT lean… and i2 is best of the bunch IMHO.
Have you ever USED i2 planning software?
Lean theories and practices in and of themselves can’t deal with or help you avoid all of the complexities for full forecasting, supply chain planning and factory scheduling. Those are necessary evils in many non-MTO environments.
BTW, many of the truest lean companies run i2. Toyota, Dell, Herman Miller just to name a very few.
Yes, you are right that the software does not make you lean.
Mark Graban says 14 years ago
Well, I’d consider the i2 press release to be a “single sided rant”, or at least single sided.
YES, I have used i2 planning software, I helped put it in at Dell in 2000. I wouldn’t go bragging about what the “i2” software did, because there was a lot of expensive custom code that had to be written, to the point that the i2 software itself wasn’t really doing anything very special.
I understand that Toyota uses software. I recognize that MRP can be helpful even, but for PLANNING, as the name indicates. MRP used for execution doesn’t work… and some of the same complications occur with an i2 type constraint-based system if you’re trying to run every little detail of your plant floor execution based off of it.
I’d like to know how i2 is “built on lean principles.” That’s recent marketing spin, so I’d tend to NOT believe it. Please help us understand, if you can, Mr. Anonymous
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The Learned Owl Book Shop
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Audio Cassette)
By J.K. Rowling, Jim Dale (Read by)
The Dursleys were so mean and hideous that summer that all Harry Potter wanted was to get back to the Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. But just as he's packing his bags, Harry receives a warning from a strange, impish creature named Dobby who says that if Harry Potter returns to Hogwarts, disaster will strike.
And strike is does. For in Harry's second year at Hogwarts, fresh torments and horrors arise, including an outrageous stuck-up new professor, Gilderoy Lockheart, a spirit named Moaning Myrtle who haunts the girls' bathroom, and the unwanted attentions of Ron Weasley's younger sister, Ginny.
But each of these seem minor annoyances when the real trouble begins, and someone--or something--starts turning Hogwarts students to stone. Could it be Draco Malfoy, a more poisonous rival than ever? Could it possibly be Hagrid, whose mysterious past is finally told? Or could it be the one everyone at Hogwarts most suspects...Harry Potter himself?
"Surely the vilest household in children's literature since the family Roald Dahl created for Matilda. Harry himself is the perfect confused and unassuming hero." --School Library Journal, starred review
"A brilliantly imagined and beautifully written fantasy." -- Booklist
Publisher: Listening Library
Publication Date: December 1st, 1999
Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Magic
Kobo eBook (December 8th, 2015): $9.99
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Paperback (French) (October 12th, 2017): $26.95
Paperback, Large Print (September 1st, 2003): $20.95
CD-Audio (December 1st, 1999): $49.95
Prebound (August 1st, 2000): $21.80
Prebound (September 1st, 2000): $21.80
Hardcover (October 25th, 2016): $275.00
Paperback (Japanese) (May 1st, 2014): $25.20
Kobo eBook (Japanese) (December 8th, 2015): $8.99
Prebound (August 27th, 2013): $24.50
Hardcover (August 1st, 2002): $30.04
Hardcover (German) (December 1st, 1999): $43.95
Paperback (Spanish) (March 1st, 2001): $9.99
Hardcover (February 1st, 2000): $42.95
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Mum-of-three told she will have to leave popular caravan site as her motor home is 'too old'
'I was in tears when they told me - I haven't slept since'
Peter Hennessy
There are a number of changes at Kingfisher Caravan Park (Image: Lincolnshire Live / Getty Images)
A woman says she has been left devastated after being told she will soon have to move out of a caravan site as her motor home is too old.
The woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, has three children and has been at Kingfisher Caravan Park on Sea Lane in Ingoldmells for a number of years.
It is part of a new policy at the popular park on the coast, which means that any caravans more than 20 years old automatically have to leave the site.
Alongside this, any caravan more than 15 years old will be subject to a inspection and may be removed if they are not deemed to pass.
'I can do without this stress' - Terminally ill man ordered to remove old caravan from Ingoldmells site
The mum-of-three told Lincolnshire Live: "I was in tears when they told me - I haven't slept since.
"My caravan will be too old by 2021 and I've been told that I then have to go. There will be an inspection every year and if I don't fix any problems they find, I've got to go too.
"We can't get on there until March 1 so it makes no sense - we can't get on there to actually fix the problem if there is one.
"There are people who have been on site for decades who will now be removed for no good reason.
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"I have spent £2,500 refurbishing this caravan and for what? We have never broken any rules or caused any trouble."
Others who have holiday homes at Kingfisher have also complained that they too will have to be off-site soon due to the age of their caravan.
A letter obtained by Lincolnshire Live, addressing caravan owners at Kingfisher, alludes to the changes made as part of a 'review' recently carried out.
Kingfisher Caravan Park (Image: lincolnshire echo)
"The changes aim to bring the site in line with how most other caravan parks operate along the coast," it says.
"As your caravan is more than 15 years past its manufacture date, the change in policy means, it would have to undergo and pass an inspection to qualify for an Extension of License Agreement for a further one year stay on Kingfisher Caravan Park.
"This practice will continue until your caravan passes its 20-year point of manufacture date.
"After the 20-year point, your caravan must leave our site."
Main road in Skegness will be closed until late December after works delayed by wet weather
The letter continues: "We would like to thank you for your custom over the time you have spent with us at Kingfisher Caravan Park and wish you well for the future."
It comes as Coastfields Leisure has announced that it will no longer operate caravan sales at Kingfisher Caravan Park.
The company has worked as a third party agent, selling caravans on the site for more than a decade.
Free parking may be scrapped at this car park in Skegness
A message posted online reads: "Coastfields Leisure would like to thank the many customers on Kingfisher Park who have purchased caravans from us over the past 14 years.
"East Lindsey District Council have taken the decision that from 1st January 2020, they will not be re-tendering the contract to operate caravan sales through any third party agent.
"Coastfields Leisure have appreciated the opportunity to work with East Lindsey District Council over the last 14 years and to provide our customers on Kingfisher with access to our swimming pool and entertainment facilities as well as the popular road train service, all of which will be discontinued at the end of the 2019 season.
"We wish ELDC every success with their new venture and any owners on Kingfisher Park who wish to know more about the new plans should direct their query to ELDC or Kingfisher Park Site Office rather than Coastfields."
A spokesperson for East Lindsey District Council said: "Changes are being made to the operation of Kingfisher Caravan Park.
“The decision to introduce the new multiyear licences has been taken firmly with licensees and the continued sustainability of the site in mind. The longer length of the licence offers our licensees a greater peace of mind around the viability of what is a significant investment – much more so than the annual licence previously offered. Those individuals whose caravans no longer meet the requirements for one of the new licences are free to move their caravan to another site, we are in no way saying they must get rid of their caravan.
“Our licensees will also benefit from an increase in the residual value of their caravan at the end of the licensing period, compared with what they would have at the end of 25 to 30 years – meaning they will see a greater return should they choose to sell or part exchange it. This will also remove situations we currently see where licensees are having to pay to dispose of their old caravans or are simply walking away from them which leaves us to chase them to recover the debt. The park management will also be in a better position to help or assist the licensees with making better informed decisions about their caravan.
“Owners with caravans over 20 years old will be granted a further one year licence providing they pass a safety test or carry out repairs requested, in order to give them a year to consider how they would like to proceed.
“Alongside these changes, we’re also going to be investing heavily in making some improvements to the Park itself. In addition to our new sales showground, we’ll be working to modernise the caravan bays and will soon be looking to increase the facilities available onsite, as well as investing in existing facilities. All these changes are hugely positive for Kingfisher Caravan Park and to the benefit of our licensees, with the ultimate aim of achieving 5 star accreditation from Visit England.”
East Lindsey District Council
8 people fined after weekend of camping and partying in Lincolnshire woods
East LindseyA council leader has branded the rule-breakers 'selfish idiots'
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Event: Magnetic Presents Kerri Chandler + Interview [Halcyon SF]
We chat with the house legend before he breaks in the new Atmos system
On Wednesday, we announced that Halcyon SF has become one of the only clubs in the world to feature Dolby's Atmos system, and to kick things off, we invited none other than Kerri Chandler. But, ahead of our party tonight, we caught up with him for a nice little chat.
You are the founder of not one, not two, but THREE music labels featuring music some of our favorite world-renowned acts such as Dennis Ferrer, Waze & Odyssey and Jamie Jones. What’s it like having all these artists on your roster?
Everyone is like family to me, I’m very happy to have so many wonderful and inspiring friends that love music as much as I do.
Speaking of said labels, Madhouse Records will be releasing its 25-year anniversary album in September mixed by you! Can you tell the readers what emotions this evokes from you given that it’s been 25 years?
I opened my mail and there was a huge wall display from the main office with the official 25-year logo on it. Kind of in a flash I kind of saw the history in my head. And had a smile and kind of remember when my partner Mel and I did his anniversary party for Champion Records. What a ride it has been.
You’ve been in this industry since the early 90’s. What’s something you miss about the 90’s?
The Record stores, there were so many great ones in NYC, Dance Tracks, Vinyl Mania, Kim’s, Movin Records, Black Market are a few that come to mind. All of these weren’t just a place to buy records. Each of these places was a place to meet, hang out and learn music.
San Francisco has its own unique and interesting history too. Will you get chance to check anywhere out during your time here? If so, where will be your go-to?
I have a few things planned with my friends at Dolby Labs for the Atmos system and Also Meeting with my a friend, Douglas from METI especially. I started coming to San Francisco in the early 90s Mighty was one place I really enjoyed, Migs and the parties I did with Said early on especially.
Out of all the places you’ve traveled to around the world on tour, what’s one of the best shows you recall?
Sir Henry’s in Cork Ireland stands out to me, I have always had such incredible times in Ireland and also infamous ones. Sub Club Scotland, Yellow and Air in Japan, MoS in London, Sankeys in Manchester, New York way too many to Name, DC10 Ibiza, Bar a Thym, La Grange and Rex in France, Echos, Wall and Red Zone in Italy come to mind. Southport Weekender and Suncebeat UK, Blitz and Watergate in Germany, Supermarket and D club in Switzerland. You Name a Country I can just keep Naming places. I love them all and I feel very blessed. to have kept returning again and again, but honestly, it’s more about the people than the places for me.
Halcyon has a reputation for its dusk ‘till dawn philosophy and some impromptu marathon sets have happened at the club. What’s the longest set you’ve ever played?
I average about 15 hours each time I played in Japan or New York it was kind of standard.
We hear you will be giving us a taster of the new Dolby Atmos set up at Halcyon too! How did you first find out about Atmos and how do you think it will affect the industry as it develops?
The Team at Dolby are incredible and very creative I’m happy to be on the team working with them. I think once you kind of hear what it can do, normal stereo will sound as similar or as a comparison like watching black and white and then your exposure to an HD color television for the first time. Or hearing movies with no surround sound when you're used to it, you would be yelling at the owner of the theater if they had 2 speakers on. Kind of like that, is my opinion on it.
We already know we are going to be in for a treat when you play at Halcyon. As an experienced producer/DJ who’s continually at the top of his game, are there any tracks that have become secret weapons in your sets?
The Dolby Atmos content I have made exclusively for that system is what I’m really looking forward to.
One of our favorite tracks of yours is titled “So It Begins Again”. What was the vision behind this track?
It’s my thought that new generations of music lovers cycle in about every 7 to 10 years. when I see it happening it feels like it’s starting all over again. That new excitement, the new music the new DJs. It's starting again.
What are you looking forward to most about playing in SF and at Halcyon?
All of it, my first time at Halcyon and I’m really looking forward to it.
We can’t wait to have you!
Thank You for having me
Tickets: www.halcyon-sf.com
Halcyon SfKerri ChandlerDolby Atmos
Event: Magnetic Presents Lee Foss [Halcyon SF] + Interview
Magnetic Live: Rebuke At Halcyon SF + Interview
Event: Magnetic Presents Dennis Cruz [Halcyon SF] + Interview
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Home BREAKING NEWS R&B and Hip-Hop at the Grammy’s
Credit to: pitchfork.com
R&B and Hip-Hop at the Grammy’s
Music’s biggest night is headed our way as the 55th Annual Grammy Awards will be live this Sunday night at 8pm eastern time on CBS. Some of music’s biggest names will be performing, from Taylor Swift to Frank Ocean and most recently Justin Timberlake, who is not riding high so much on his failed first single “Suit & Tie”.
So who will be the biggest winners of the night? We already divulged into Record of the Year, but who will be crowned king in the rap and R&B fields? Here are my predictions as to who will win, should win, and was left in the dust. Leave comments if you agree or disagree!
Best R&B Performance-
Credit to- hiphop-n-more.com
Miguel- “Adorn”
Usher- “Climax”
Luke James- “I Want You”
Estelle- “Thank You”
Robert Glasper Experiment Featuring Ledisi- “Gonna Be Alright)”
Who will win- This should be an easy win for Miguel as “Adorn” got a coveted nod for Song of the Year, and that it pretty much is the best of the bunch. Grammy darling Usher could give him a run for his money, but this is a sure fire win for Miguel.
Who should win- Miguel. Repeat what I said before.
Who was left out- UMMMMMMMMMMMMMM “Thinking About You” by Frank Ocean. WTF. How is this in the Record of the Year category and not in this one? It makes no sense. Such a phenomenal R&B record and his vocals are haunting.
Best Urban Contemporary Album-
Frank Ocean- “Channel Orange”
Chris Brown- “Fortune”
Miguel- “Kaleidoscope Dream”
Who will win- Frank Ocean should be the only nominee here as far as I am concerned, and this will be his guaranteed win if he doesn’t get Album of the Year.
Who should win- Ocean.
Who was left out- Let’s rephrase this with “Who should’ve been left out”. Chris Brown’s homophobic ass. Please go away.
Best Rap Performance-
Drake Featuring Lil Wayne- “HYFR”
Credit to- Straighttothea.com
Nas- “Daughters”
Jay-Z & Kanye West- “Paris”
Kanye West, 2 Chainz, Big Sean & Pusha T- “Mercy”
Young Jeezy Featuring Andre 3000 & Jay-Z- “I Do”
Who will win- God this really is a tough one, no joke. It’s between three- Nas, Jay-Z and Kanye. All three songs are strong in their own way. The Grammy’s love all three, but I think “Paris” will nudge the other ones.
Who should win- Not really a fan of “I Do” or “HYFR”. Lyrically, “Daughters” is amazing and one of Nas’ best songs ever, so that would be my pick.
Who was left out- Don’t kill me for saying this, but I happened to love “Beez In The Trap” by Nicki Minaj featuring 2 Chainz. The album sucked but this was a shining example of a rather dull album.
Best Rap/Sung Collaboration-
Credit to: wikipedia.org
Jay-Z & Kanye West featuring The Dream & Frank Ocean- “No Church In The Wild”
Nas Featuring Amy Winehouse- “Cherry Wine”
John Legend Featuring Ludacris- “Best You Ever Had (Tonight)”
Flo Rida featuring Sia- “Wild Ones”
Rihanna Featuring Jay-Z- “Talk That Talk”
Who will win- It’s video was just as stirring as the song, so I would go with “No Church In The Wild”. Ocean’s voice is very subtle yet powerful for a song of this magnitude.
Who should win- Either “Church” or “Talk That Talk”.
Who was left out- SHOCKED and I’ve said this before, nothing for “Take Care” by Drake and Rihanna. Such a phenomenal record. I would’ve chosen the Chris Brown remix of “Birthday Cake” by Rihanna over “Talk That Talk” personally as well.
Best Rap Album-
Drake- “Take Care”
Lupe Fiasco- “Food & Liquor- The Great American Rap Album, Pt.1”
Credit to: Businessinsider.com
Nas- “Life Is Good”
The Roots- “Undun”
Rick Ross- “God Forgives, I Don’t”
2 Chainz- “Based on a T.R.U. Story”
Who will win- This is somewhat of a weak category, but Drake will finally earn his first Grammy after 9 nominations.
Who should win- Drake or Nas, the only two that I really think are that good for this category.
Who was left out- Either Macklemore or Kendrick Lamar. God knows why 2 Chainz got in here, good lord.
Previous articleChatty Talk with Elise
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I have been a freelance writer for seven years now, and have happily been part of the Manhattan Digest family for four of them! Hope you enjoy my foodie reviews, celebrity interviews and more!
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#Apple#China#Coronavirus#LG#Qanta Computer#Hon Hai Precision Industry#iPhone#iPad#iWatch
Apple suppliers aim to resume full China production February 10
Apple Inc.’s major suppliers in China, including iPhone-makerHon Hai Precision Industry Co., plan to resume full-scale production in the country Februar...
Daniel Brightmore
|Feb 5| 16 min read
Apple Inc.’s major suppliers in China, including iPhone-maker Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., plan to resume full-scale production in the country February 10, despite the coronavirus that has infected thousands and limited travel.
Foxconn’s Hon Hai, the most important manufacturer for the U.S. company, said Tuesday it still expects to be able to restart facilities throughout China on schedule, according to a text message sent to Bloomberg News. Suppliers such as Quanta Computer Inc., Inventec Corp. and LG Display Co. also said they would go back to work next week in China.
While Chinese officials and companies have targeted Feb. 10 as the date to resume work in much of the country, doubts about the timing have grown in recent days as the virus death toll rises, workers find themselves stuck in municipal lockdowns and the transport of people and goods has been hampered. More than 20,000 people have been infected with the virus and more than 400 have died.
Virtually all of the world’s iPhones are made in China, primarily by Hon Hai at its so-called iPhone City in Zhengzhou and by Pegatron Corp. at an assembly site near Shanghai. Each of those locations is more than 500 kilometers away from Wuhan in central China, the epicenter of the viral outbreak.
Manufacturing Profile: Foxconn - Apple’s premier production partner
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C3.ai: accelerating digital transformation
Read the latest issue of Manufacturing Global here
“The main variable is whether the government will push back the time for resuming production, though it is not very likely given the complexities of organizing transportation for the returning migrant workers,” said GF Securities analyst Jeff Pu. He added that any potential labour shortage is a serious issue that weighs on the minds of suppliers.
Apple said this week that it would close its corporate offices, stores and contact centers in mainland China through February 9, out of an “abundance of caution and based on the latest advice from leading health experts.”
Last week, Apple reported holiday-quarter revenue that beat Wall Street expectations on rebounding iPhone demand, sending its shares to a record. It issued a forecast that was wider than usual due to uncertainty created by the spread of the virus.
An Apple spokesman referred questions to Cook’s remarks last week that the company is monitoring developments in China closely and working with employees and partners in the region.
Manufacturing Global Magazine is the ‘Digital Community’ for the global Manufacturing industry. Manufacturing Global Magazine covers smart manufacturing, digital factories, factory of the future, lean manufacturing, ERP, manufacturing technology, AI & Automation - connecting the world’s largest community of manufacturing and operational executives. Manufacturing Global Magazine focuses on manufacturing news, key manufacturing interviews, manufacturing videos, the 'Factory of the Future Podcast' series along with an ever-expanding range of focused manufacturing white papers and webinars.
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437 - Biden vs Bernie
On this Episode of The Q, For the first time in a long while, Mark Bland is SOLO on the show. With nobody to interrupt him, Mark lays out the current situation in the presidential race on the Democratic side of things.
It's finally come down to Bernie and Biden for who will be the DNC nomination. Now a lot of time will pass between the DNC decision and now....so who will inspire the people to follow them to the promise land. Also, which one would serve the best in a race against President Trump in November? All these things are up in the air and Mark is here to discuss ideas and thoughts on how this can fallout and help you make the best choice.
Finally, former congressman and presidential candidate Joe Walsh comes on the Q to bury the hatchet and talk politics with Mark. What started out as arguing and disagreeing on the internet years ago when he was, as he admits, uncool....Joe Walsh comes on the Q as a former Trump supporter to plead the case against Trump and put his two cents in on Biden and Bernie in the democratic race. Also Joe discusses the stereotypes and ideas behind being a republican in 2020 and what virtues he maintains versus the ones he gave up.
All this and much more on this episode of The Q!
http://traffic.libsyn.com/theqnow/Epsiode_437_-_Biden_or_Bernie.mp3
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University of Technology Troyes - UTT
UTT's core missions are to conduct research, deliver education & training and facilitate technology transfer. UTT is a French institution of higher education established in 1994. It is today one of the largest engineering schools in France. Over 2,500 students are registered at the University, enrolled in undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral study programs. In the renowned yearly ranking of the French magazine “L’Etudiant”, UTT takes in 2011 an enviable 6th position among 65 French engineering schools.
Customized study programs
The standard five-year engineering degree, which is accredited by France's independent engineering degree accreditation body, CTI, can be tailored to each student's individual career objectives as from the first year. UTT offers five engineering degrees, a master's program with the choice of nine specializations, a Ph.D. research program in five specialist areas, as well as work-integrated learning (WIL) modules which combine academic study with paid workplace learning (leading to either a vocational degree, an engineering degree or a master's).
Researching excellence
Research activities at UTT are conducted by eight teams within the Charles Delaunay Institute (ICD). The Institute pursues an interfaculty approach to the central theme underpinning all research efforts: risk management science and technology (RMST), one of the major challenges facing modern society.
Strong ties with industry
UTT develops and maintains proactive relations with industry through joint research programs with businesses and long internships for its students. UTT is a member of the Carnot Institute Network (along with the Compiègne University of Technology) and actively encourages the creation of new businesses.
Innovative management approach
The University's commitment to project-based management and analytical accounting, coupled with innovative human resources practices, allowed UTT to figure among France's first "independent" institutions as of January 1, 2009, following the government's University reform bill aimed at granting greater autonomy to universities to manage their budget and staff. The University has also established a partnership-based Foundation to support its efforts and long-term development.
Thriving partnerships
UTT is part of the French network of universities of technology (UT) alongside Compiègne (UTC) and Belfort-Montbéliard (UTBM). This unique engineering degree model, fostered by scientific research and close interaction with the business community in France and beyond, has also been emulated in China. In 2005, the three French universities of technology set up the Shanghai Sino-European University of Technology (UTSEUS), which currently counts 1,000 Chinese and French students.
UTT key facts & figures
180 Ph.D. students
24% of foreign students
3,000 graduate engineers
5 engineering degree programs
1 master's degree program with a choice of 9 specializations
1 Ph.D. program with choice of 5 specializations
2 vocational degree programs
2 work-integrated learning master's programs
165 lecturers and researchers
210 administrative and ancillary staff
8 research teams based at the Charles Delaunay Institute
60 technology transfer contracts per year
140 international university partnerships
3,000 business partners
35,000 m² of facilities
40 student clubs and associations
90% of students are active members of sports clubs
1994: Founding of UTT
1996: First UTT degree awarded
1997: UTT relocated to its own purpose-built campus
2000: Inauguration of the School of Doctoral Studies
2004: First master's level study programs introduced
2006: Creation of the Charles Delaunay Institute (ICD)
2007: First extension of the UTT campus unveiled (sports hall, industrial work platforms, student leisure facilities, classrooms, and offices)
2009: UTT officially recognized as an "autonomous" university following the government's University reform bill.
2010: UTT accounts approved and certified by a statutory auditor
A window to the world
UTT prides itself on being a truly international university that is open to the world and actively encourages cross-cultural exchange at all levels. The University has adopted a full-fledged international strategy anchored in academic agreements with world-class partner universities and participation in international research programs. UTT is also a member of the European University Association (EUA). To give our graduates the edge in an increasingly competitive job market, we allow them to explore new cultures at every level of study, from first-year undergraduates to Ph.D. students. All students enrolled in our five-year engineering programs are required to spend a mandatory period abroad. UTT offers 16 international double degrees in partnership with universities abroad. Student mobility is handled by the University's dedicated International Relations Office. The Center provides information and support for UTT students preparing for their international period of study or internship as well as for international students wishing to enroll at UTT. To help them get the most out of their time at UTT, non-French speaking students receive intensive French language instruction when they first arrive, and they can also attend classes delivered in English. 24% of our students are international and more than 40 different nationalities are represented within the student body.
12 rue Marie Curie - CS 42060
10004 Troyes CEDEX, France
10004 Troyes, Grand Est, France
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Working to Help the Native
Mayan Children of Belize
Preservation - Education - Culture
View Cart: (0)
MAYA FIRST HOME
SHOP MAYA FIRST
Mr. Canto, a Mayan "Bush Doctor" conducts a tour of native plants and medicines with Ethnobotanist Elizabeth Moriarty and Mr. Jose Magana
Ethnobotany is described as the scientific study of the relationships between people and plants. Maya First seeks to document, describe and explain complex relationships between cultures and their uses of different plants Focusing primarily on how plants are used, managed and received across human societies. This includes use for food, clothing, currency, ritual, bush medicine, dyes, construction, cosmetics and of greatest importance to Maya First, the cultivation and uses of what is often described as “Bush Medicine” Though the term "ethnobotany" was not coined until 1895, the history of the field begins long before that.
In the 20th century, the field of ethnobotany shifted from the raw compilation of data to a greater methodological collection and cataloging previously unavailable, due to a lack of known principles and usages of many plants whose primary purpose was in ritual healing. Today the field of ethnobotany requires a variety of skills: botanical training for the identification and preservation of plant specimens; anthropological training to understand the cultural concepts around the perception of plants. Maya First is also concerned not just with the healing properties of many plants, but with the spiritual aspects as well.
This is not just Herbology, as that field has often touched on the healing aspects and uses of many plants, but a greater understanding of why certain plants or plant products are believed to have properties that heal not just the body, but the mind and the spirit as well. A great deal of information about the traditional uses of plants is still intact with the Mayans. But the native healers are often reluctant to accurately share their knowledge to outsiders. Visiting acupuncturists have been able to access levels of Mayan medicine that anthropologists could not because they had something to share in exchange. Native American medicine priests have described how they would invent nonsense to satisfy visiting anthropologists. On our most recent trip to Belize, our own ethnobotanist, Ms. Moriarty was welcomed by local Shaman and Bush Doctors who have given her a wealth of information that Maya First intends to document and preserve for the use of the local Mayan people as part of our ongoing program to preserve and promote all aspects of Mayan culture and history.
Copyright © 2014 Maya First. All Rights Reserved.. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2015 Maya First. All Rights Reserved. All rights reserved.
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One Small Blow Against Encroaching Totalitarianism
by Jane Wong
From now until at least the midterm elections in November, we’ll be featuring essays from powerful cultural voices alongside one simple thing, chosen by the author, that you can do to take action against the paralyzing apoplexy of the daily news. Maybe it’ll be an organization that deserves your donation; maybe it’ll be an issue that deserves greater awareness. Whatever it is, our aim is to remind you, and ourselves, of the big and small things we can do to work toward justice and change.
In the first grade, I brought wonton soup to my class to share with everyone. My family owned a Chinese American takeout restaurant a few miles down the road in a Jersey strip mall. Pork and chive wontons my mother and grandmother had folded, dusted with flour, warmed in their palms. I remember telling myself to be careful, to not spill the soup. Everyone started eating and loving the soup, until one classmate — a bully; he was white — took a bite and spit it out: “I feel sick. It’s poisoned!” And one by one, my classmates turned to him and, in this moment, decided to agree with him (which most did) or to turn away quietly. As I started to cry, and my classmates started to laugh, I realized deep within that I had known this was going to happen. I had seen it coming. This bullying. This meanness, this joy in hurting others. This othering. At the time, I was afraid. My peers of color were also afraid to say anything.
I’ve been thinking about why I don’t like to say his name. Or hear it, for that matter. It’s a violence each time I hear it in conversation, in passing, in the news that spits forth nonstop. How it’s easy for some to say his name in passing, for people who still make jokes — as if this were a laughing matter. This was never a laughing matter. Not before the election and not after. White supremacy has never been a laughing matter. Not before the election and not after.
What are the consequences if this is not put to an end? What change do we want and need to see? How can we move away from fear and toward action? How can we voice our anger (because yes, this is anger)? I want to know, to see what a country based on kindness looks like. A country with reparations, voice, and visibility. What it looks like to leverage your and my privilege for people in more precarious positions. To break down borders. To support my DACA students, to fight for Black Lives Matter. For them, for myself as a first-generation woman of color. What we have — as a unified coalition against the president and his administration — is based not in fear but in necessity and our refusal to be complacent. The dismantling of white supremacy, of fear-based policies, and of bullying must occur in order for the people we care about to survive. To say is to survive. To celebrate our survival is to survive. From Lucille Clifton: “come celebrate / with me that everyday / something has tried to kill me / and has failed.”
Take action today:
Support Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, which promotes justice by defending and advancing the rights of immigrants through direct legal services, systemic advocacy, and community education.
Jane Wong is the author of Overpour and a professor at Western Washington University.
One Small Blow Against Encroaching Totalitarianism: The Widening Gyre
One Small Blow Against Encroaching Totalitarianism: Never Forget, Never Remember
Lest We Forget the Horrors: A Catalog of Trump’s Worst Cruelties, Collusions, Corruptions, and Crimes: Atrocities 1 to 111
by Ben Parker and Stephanie Steinbrecher
A Conversation Between Jose Antonio Vargas and Yosimar Reyes on the DACA Supreme Court Decision
by Adrián Escárate
One Small Blow Against Encroaching Totalitarianism: He Builds Walls
by Sarah Gerard
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Resources Resource library Case of the month High smile
High smile
...The letter alleges that not only was the crown lengthening treatment inappropriate but the dentist also failed to inform Mr B of the benefit-versus-risk involved in the procedure...
Resource type Case study
BACKGROUND: Mr B has long been dissatisfied with his "gummy smile" and attends the dental surgery to discuss possible cosmetic improvement. Dr P examines the patient and notes a high smile line with the upper lip 4mm above the gingival margins of the upper anterior teeth. A treatment plan is devised involving surgical crown lengthening around the patient’s upper ten teeth and then the provision of porcelain veneers.
The crown lengthening surgery is undertaken and the veneers are fitted a few months later. Mr B is pleased with the outcome but two weeks later he re-attends the practice complaining of bleeding gums and sensitivity in the upper right quadrant, with pain on biting. Dr P treats the cervical areas with a desensitising paste and reassures the patient that the pain will settle.
A few weeks later Mr B is back at the dental surgery with persistent pain and difficulty eating. Dr P discusses possible treatment options and it is decided to replace the veneers at UR45. However, over the next year, Mr B continues to suffer pain, bleeding and food packing.
Conservative treatment proving ineffective, Dr P carries out a gingivectomy on the patient in order to alleviate gingival inflammation. Mr B registers with a different dental practice and is later referred to a periodontal specialist.
Six months later a letter from solicitors is received by Dr P claiming negligence in his treatment of Mr B. The letter alleges that not only was the crown lengthening treatment inappropriate but the dentist also failed to inform Mr B of the benefit-versus-risk involved in the procedure. The same allegation is made in regard to the subsequent gingivectomy.
It is also alleged that the Dr P failed to refer Mr B for an opinion from a specialist periodontist.
ANALYSIS/OUTCOME: MDDUS commissions an expert report from a GDP and he observes that the reason for providing the crown lengthening surgery was to improve the length-to-width ratio of the teeth being treated by the placement of veneers, thereby improving the appearance of Mr B’s smile – thus it was an appropriate treatment to have offered for the outcome desired.
The expert also points out that there are very few risks associated with crown lengthening surgery, apart from a poor aesthetic result immediately post-procedure, transient tooth mobility if considerable periodontal bone is removed, and a risk of tooth sensitivity if the cementum is left exposed on root surfaces. The records show that Dr P removed very little periodontal tissue and that the purpose of the procedure was again to achieve an optimal aesthetic result. None of the other risks were applicable in this case and Dr P was therefore not negligent in failing to discuss them prior to treatment.
However, in regard to the gingivectomy, the expert points out that the records show that Dr P’s stated intention was to reduce the interdental papillae width and periodontal pocket depths. Nothing in the records show that Mr B had increased pocket depths or needed papillae width reduction, and it is probable that the gingival bleeding was associated with irritation at the veneer margins. The expert opines that Dr P should have advised the patient on adequate oral hygiene and/or the removal of the veneers adjacent to inflamed gingival tissue. He concludes that in these circumstances there was a breach of duty in providing a gingivectomy and that Dr P should have considered referral to a periodontal specialist. This lead to unnecessary bleeding and discomfort to Mr B subsequent to the procedure.
A decision is made by MDDUS to settle the case in agreement with the member.
Ensure patients understand the risk-vs-benefit of procedures.
Discuss relevant risks.
Ensure treatment decisions can be adequately justified.
Refer onwards when a case goes beyond your level of expertise.
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Immune Signaling and Antimicrobial Peptide Expression in Lepidoptera
10.3390/insects4030339
Herrero-Galán, E.
García-Ortega, L.
Olombrada, M.
Lacadena, J.
Del Pozo, Á. Martínez
Gavilanes, J. G.
Oñaderra, M.
Hirsutellin A: A Paradigmatic Example of the Insecticidal Function of Fungal Ribotoxins
Elías Herrero-Galán
†,
Lucía García-Ortega
Miriam Olombrada
Javier Lacadena
Álvaro Martínez Del Pozo
José G. Gavilanes
Mercedes Oñaderra
Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular I, Universidad Complutense, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Present address: Departamento de Estructura de Macromoléculas, Centro Nacional de Biotecnología, (CSIC) 28049 Madrid, Spain
Insects 2013, 4(3), 339-356; https://doi.org/10.3390/insects4030339
Received: 8 May 2013 / Revised: 21 June 2013 / Accepted: 24 June 2013 / Published: 9 July 2013
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insect Pathology)
The fungal pathogen Hirsutella thompsonii produces an insecticidal protein named hirsutellin A (HtA), which has been described to be toxic to several species of mites, insect larvae, and cells. On the other hand, on the basis of an extensive biochemical and structural characterization, HtA has been considered to be a member of the ribotoxins family. Ribotoxins are fungal extracellular ribonucleases, which inactivate ribosomes by specifically cleaving a single phosphodiester bond located at the large rRNA. Although ribotoxins were brought to light in the 1960s as antitumor agents, their biological function has remained elusive. Thus, the consideration of hirsutellin A, an insecticidal protein, as a singular ribotoxin recalled the idea of the biological activity of these toxins as insecticidal agents. Further studies have demonstrated that the most representative member of the ribotoxin family, α-sarcin, also shows strong toxic action against insect cells. The determination of high resolution structures, the characterization of a large number of mutants, and the toxicity assays against different cell lines have been the tools used for the study of the mechanism of action of ribotoxins at the molecular level. The aim of this review is to serve as a compilation of the facts that allow identification of HtA as a paradigmatic example of the insecticidal function of fungal ribotoxins.
Keywords: insecticidal proteins; ribotoxins; a-sarcin; hirsutellin; ribonucleases; cytotoxic proteins insecticidal proteins; ribotoxins; a-sarcin; hirsutellin; ribonucleases; cytotoxic proteins
Toxins are molecules affecting vital physiological systems. Many toxins have been explored and developed into drugs for the treatment of many different diseases and others are still under study with the same purpose. But one question to answer is why do organisms need to produce toxins?
All living beings develop several strategies to survive, including a variety of mechanisms for defense, preying, and feeding. Fungi have traditionally been a major source of toxins for study and biotechnological application. They are a rich source of nitrogen and phosphorous and suffer constant attacks by fungivorous animals such as mites, insects, and arthropods [1,2,3]. Thus, fungi secrete a wide variety of toxins with quite different purposes [4]. Fungal ribotoxins were discovered in the 1960s during a screening program searching for antibiotics and antitumor agents. A protein inhibitory to sarcoma 180 and carcinoma 755 induced in mice was found in the culture filtrates of the mold Aspergillus giganteus, isolated from a sample of farm soil. The protein responsible for these effects was named α-sarcin after its anti-sarcoma activity [5]. A few years later it was demonstrated that their mechanism of action was based on their ability to inhibit protein biosynthesis [6,7]. This fact prompted the molecular characterization of ribotoxins as a widespread group of highly specific ribonucleases produced by filamentous fungi, which induce cell death by ribosome inactivation. They are extracellular proteins, which behave as potent inhibitors of protein biosynthesis in almost any organism [8,9,10]. They cleave one single and unique phosphodiester bond located within the universally conserved sarcin-ricin loop (SRL) of the large rRNA [6,11,12], leading to cell death by apoptosis [13].
Nowadays, four of these ribotoxins have been thoroughly studied and characterized: α-sarcin, the first one to be discovered [5,9]; restrictocin, with similar activities to those of α-sarcin [9,10]; AspF1, a major allergen in Aspergillus related diseases [14,15]; and more recently, hirsutellin A, the smallest ribotoxin known. Although ribotoxins were initially discovered as antitumor molecules, further studies revealed an unspecific cytotoxicity of these proteins, which limited their potential clinical uses [16] and caused the abandonment of their study as toxic molecules.
The biological function of ribotoxins has been a matter of speculation since their discovery. Apart from the generalized idea of being involved in defense or predation, the assignment of an insecticidal function for fungal ribotoxins has been pointed out [17,18]. In this sense, it has been suggested that they could protect the ribotoxin-producing fungi by deterring insect feeding on their phialides [17]. Accordingly, it was proposed that ribotoxin production would be related to fungal protection against arthropods, mainly mites and insects. For example, beetles of the Carpophilus freemani species that are able to feed on Aspergillus restrictus, the restrictocin-producing organism, could not feed upon this fungus during conidia maturation. On the other hand, beetles were not able to feed on Aspergillus nidulans genetically modified to produce the ribotoxin by transforming the fungus with the cDNA of restrictocin placed under the control of the glucoamylase promoter [18]. This protection was not observed in the wild-type fungus in which the genome does not contain any ribotoxin gene [17]. Accordingly, it was also observed that ribotoxins were accumulated on the conidia surface upon maturation of A. restrictus [19,20].
In relation to ribotoxin biosynthesis, little is known about the mechanisms by which the producing fungi might protect themselves from their own toxicity. Lamy and Davies [21] suggested that prorestrictocin might be inactive until the protein is processed during secretion, but Yang and Kenealy [22] showed that neither the leader sequence nor the putative prosequence inhibited the action of the cytotoxin under in vitro or in vivo conditions. These authors suggest that restrictocin could be sequestered in membrane systems and transported to certain locations or secreted outside. Immunofluorescence studies on the localization of restrictocin in A. restrictus support this idea. An alternative hypothesis to the active secretion is that an inactivating protein could bind restrictocin until its liberation, but no evidence exists to support such a system in A. restrictus.
The fungal genus Hirsutella has over 50 species that are able to colonize a wide variety of insects. Several studies have reported that crude filtrates of a particular species of this genus denominated Hirsutella thompsonii were toxic to various groups of arthropods as moth, fly and mosquito larvae, aphids, and mites [23,24], causing their death. This fungus is a specific fungal pathogen of Acarina inhabiting citrus and other plants in most subtropical and tropical regions [25] and had been previously developed as a microbial insecticide for use against the mite Phyllocoptruta oleivora [26]. The insecticidal action of this invertebrate fungal pathogen has been extensively documented [27,28]
The insecticidal protein HtA was originally detected in 1995 while looking for the effective toxic agents produced by Hirsutella thompsonii [28,29]. It has been reported that HtA preparations are highly toxic in vivo to the adult citrus rust mite, Phyllocoptruta oleivora, the natural host to this parasitic fungus [26]. Moreover, HtA is lethal to Galleria mellonella larvae [29] and produces cytopathic effects on certain insect cell lines such as Spodoptera frugiperda cells [27]. HtA also inhibits the protein synthesisof the Brome mosaic virus in both rabbit reticulocyte and wheat germ in vitro translation system [27].
Recently, evidence has been found that HtA is able to reproduce the specific ribonucleolytic action and other abilities of ribotoxins, and so it has been included as a new member of the α-sarcin/restrictocin family. Although the question of whether HtA is just an exception within the ribotoxin family has been proposed, both its insecticidal and its ribotoxin activities have been clearly demonstrated [26,28,29,30,31]. The discovery of this smaller HtA ribotoxin has revived the old proposal that insecticidal ability could be the long searched for natural function of the fungal ribotoxins family. The studies performed comparing the activities of HtA and α-sarcin against insect larvae and cells [31] have shown that HtA could be the demonstration that invertebrate pathogenic activity is the biological function of the ribotoxins family. In this regard, the study of HtA represents an important milestone in the knowledge of the structure, function, and diversity of fungal ribonucleases.
2. Ribotoxins Evolution: Role of HtA
Ribotoxins are an intriguing group of proteins regarding their evolution and structure-function relationships [32,33]. They belong to the barnase superfamily, formed by small ribonucleases consisting of only one polypeptide chain [34]. This superfamily also includes non-toxic unspecific RNases of the T1 family. The high degree of sequence and structural similarity between ribotoxins and T1-like RNases has led to the suggestion that both families could have a common ancestor [32,33]. This similarity includes the active site responsible for the phosphodiesterase activity of these enzymes [35]. RNase U2, produced by the fungus Ustilago sphaerogena, stands out as the unspecific fungal extracellular RNase most closely related to ribotoxins [36,37]. It displays 34% sequence identity with the α-sarcin family, and it is 10 residues longer than other T1-like RNases (114 vs. 101). Ribotoxins also share, with RNases of the T1 family, their main structural core, but they present a number of characteristics that make them unique within the whole superfamily. Ribotoxins are basic proteins, and they are around 40 residues longer (140–150 amino acids). The main structural differences between ribotoxins and RNases of the T1 family are the length and arrangement of the non-ordered protein loops and the N-terminal β-hairpin, which are positively charged in ribotoxins. Thus, these regions are supposed to be the determinants of the extra activities of ribotoxins, such as their specificity and cytotoxicity [38]. The ability to enter cells and to display specific ribonucleolytic action against a single phosphodiester bond in the whole ribosome distinguishes ribotoxins from non-cytotoxic relatives of the T1 family. That is to say, ribotoxins are extremely specific ribonucleases when compared to the non-toxic counterparts of the T1 family of fungal extracelular ribonucleases.
Ribotoxins are considered to be naturally engineered proteins that evolved from nontoxic ribonucleases [10]. They exhibit a high degree of identity (above 60%), including two disulphide bridges conserved along the whole family (Figure 1) [9,37,39,40]. Interestingly, HtA shares this characteristic, although it is 20 residues shorter than the other ribotoxins and shows only 25% sequence identity with previously known members of the family [37]. These were the reasons why HtA appeared initially after its discovery as a feasible candidate to be an evolutionary intermediate between T1-like RNases and ribotoxins (Figure 2). However, the further characterization of HtA showed that it maintains all the ribotoxin abilities, proving that these can be accommodated into a shorter amino acid sequence [30,41]. Thus, it has been suggested that HtA could actually be a refined ribotoxin that would have evolved further in order to become smaller and more economical.
Figure 1. (a) Alignment of the amino acid sequences of α-sarcin, restrictocin, hirsutellin A, RNase U2, RNase T1, and Barnase. Conserved residues (light grey boxes) in at least four sequences are enlightened, as well as the cysteine residues (dark grey boxes). Residues implicated in the active site are highlighted in black and essential catalytic residues are remarked by (*). Elements of secondary structure are displayed by colors: β-hairpin, (dark blue boxes), residues at the helical portion, (red boxes) and residues in loops 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 (yellow, green, light blue, pink, and orange boxes, respectively). (b) Comparison of the disulfide bridges arrangement in the Barnase superfamily.
Figure 2. Phylogenetic analysis [42] for the most important members of the Barnase superfamily. Numbers shown in the phylogram are distances corresponding to the amino acid sequence alignment of Figure 1.
3. Structural Features
Ribotoxins and non-cytotoxic ribonucleases of the RNase T1 family show high structural homology but different specific activities. Although classic ribotoxins, such as α-sarcin and restrictocin (about 150 amino acids), are larger than non-toxic RNases (about 96–110 amino acids), they share a similar central structure region, including a conserved β-sheet core composed of five strands connected by loops of different lengths. Structural differences between both families are mainly concentrated at these loops and the N-terminal β-hairpin. Consequently, they have been proposed to be the structural determinants responsible for ribotoxin toxic properties [35]. The three-dimensional structures of restrictocin [43] and α-sarcin are known [35,44]. Furthermore, the characterization of a high number of α-sarcin mutants, including bidimensional nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies [45,46], have been the means used to make a very detailed map of its structural and functional properties.
After its discovery as the molecule responsible for the insecticidal activity of the entomopathogenic fungus Hirsutella thompsonii, the cDNA of HtA was cloned and sequenced [47]. The corresponding amino acid sequence alignment with other microbial RNases and ribotoxins suggested that the common structural core was also conserved in HtA, the most significant differences being again the length of the loops connecting the α-helical and the β-sheet regions [37]. These loops in HtA were predicted to be longer than the corresponding ones in small microbial RNases, but shorter than those in ribotoxins. In addition, the four cysteine residues involved in two disulfide bridges [35,37] as is the case for α-sarcin, were conserved in HtA (Figure 1b).
From the clone of the cDNA of HtA, plasmid pTac-TacHtA was constructed for the expression of mature HtA in E. coli [30]. HtA was purified both from its natural source and also as a recombinant protein. Spectroscopic analysis determined that the fungal protein and the recombinant one were indistinguishable. The exhaustive characterization of both forms of HtA reveals an E coefficient (0.1%, 280 nm, 1 cm) of 2.00 for both proteins [30]. The mid-point of the thermal denaturation transition (Tm) determined by circular dichroism (CD), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) was 62 ºC. This value was 10 ºC higher than that reported for α-sarcin [30] but closer to 61 ºC and 59 ºC, the Tm values for the ribotoxins AspF1 and restrictocin, respectively [48]. In 2009, the elucidation of the three-dimensional structure of HtA in solution by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) [41] confirmed that the overall protein fold of ribotoxins is maintained in this smaller polypeptide chain, but some important differences apart from size-derived variations were observed. The structure consists of one α-helix, one helical turn, and seven β-strands that form a β-sheet and a N-terminal hairpin, with a characteristic α + β fold and a highly positively charged surface. The most relevant structural differences when compared to its larger homolog, α-sarcin, are the shorter lengths of loop 2 and the N-terminal β-hairpin, which is also less positively charged (Figure 3). This truncation and reduced charge of the N-terminal hairpin in HtA may be compensated by the extension and different orientation of its loop 5, which exhibits a higher amount of positively charged residues.
Figure 3. Three-dimensional structures of the ribotoxins α-sarcin and hirsutellin A (HtA) Spatial orientation of the N-terminal β-hairpin and loops 2 and 5 in HtA and α-sarcin. Positively charged residues are depicted. Color code is the same as in Figure 1. The diagrams were generated using MOLMOL [49].
As far as the active site is concerned, that of α-sarcin is well known (Figure 4). Among these residues, His 50, Glu 96, and His 137 form the catalytic triad. The equivalent residues in HtA (His 42, Glu 66, and His 113) have been identified by comparison of its three-dimensional structure with that of other ribotoxins (Figure 4). The essential residues for ribonuclease activity are conserved, but some other features are closer to T1-like RNases (like the presence of a Phe residue instead of α-sarcin’s Leu 145) or even completely new in the whole superfamily (an aspartate group at a position equivalent to α-sarcin’s Tyr 48, for example) [41]. Several substitution mutants of this region were studied regarding their implication in the functionality of the protein, in order to shed new light on the requirements for ribotoxin activity [50]. Within this idea, a region was found to exhibit significant differences with α-sarcin, related to Trp 71 and Trp 78 in HtA. Studies with single and combined mutants of these two residues revealed that this region seems to be involved in the higher membrane permeabilizing activity of HtA when compared with the other members of the ribotoxins family. The W71/78F mutation in HtA resulted in a loss of cytotoxicity, but maintained the ribonucleolytic specific activity [51]. These residues are not conserved in α-sarcin. It has been postulated that a β-structure region comprising residues 116–139 could be involved in the hydrophobic interaction of α-sarcin with membranes [52].
Figure 4. Three-dimensional structures of the active sites of ribotoxins α-sarcin and hirsutellin A (HtA) and the non-toxic fungal RNase T1. The structures were fitted to the peptide bond atoms of the active site residues of α-sarcin (His 50, Glu 96, and His 137) and RNase T1 (His 40, Glu 58, and His 92) and those at homologous positions in HtA (His 42, Glu 66, and His 113).
4. Functional Properties
It is well known that ribotoxins are cyclizing ribonucleases that exhibit a two-step enzymatic mechanism [9,30,53]. First, they form a 2’,3’-cyclic phosphate intermediate via a transphosphorylation reaction and then hydrolyze this intermediate to the corresponding 3’-phosphate [53].
Their toxicity arises from their ability to cross cell membranes and, once inside the cell, impair ribosome function by cleaving a single phosphodiester bond, that between G4325 and A4326 in 28S rRNA (rat ribosome numbering) at the sarcin/ricin loop (SRL) [9]. This cleavage interferes with the function of elongation factors, producing protein biosynthesis inhibition and cell death by apoptosis [13,54]. This highly specific ribonucleolytic activity of ribotoxins has been extensively studied and a wide collection of mutants has been well characterized. Thus, the reaction mechanism, as well as the roles of most of the active site residues, have been elucidated [55,56,57,58,59,60].
HtA produces the same cleavage as α-sarcin but shows two-fold higher specific activity when assayed against eukaryotic ribosomes. HtA is also able to cleave 35mer synthetic SRL-RNA, liberating 14mer and 21mer oligonucleotides, with identical activity values than those of α-sarcin [30]. Residues forming the catalytic triad of HtA (His 42, Glu 66, and His 137), as well as the outstanding Asp 40 (Figure 4), have been studied in order to shed new light on the requirements for ribotoxin activity. Seven substitution mutants, H42Q, E66Q, and H113Q, as well as double and triple mutants in all possible combinations, were produced and characterized regarding their ribonucleolytic activity and cytotoxicity [50]. Implication of these three residues in the ribotoxin activity of HtA was confirmed, though none of them resulted strictly essential for ribosomal cleavage. An Asp residue (Asp 40 of HtA) is now highlighted as a novelty in this field. It has been clearly established that the catalytic process in ribotoxins is extremely dependent on a precise structural and electrostatic environment of the active site [55,58,59,61]. Studies with mutants D40N and D40N/E66Q demonstrated an important role for Asp 40 in the activity of the protein and revealed a new set of electrostatic interactions quite different from the one described for already known ribotoxins [50], giving to this Asp residue a unique role among the other members of the family.
Although passage through the cell membrane is the first and limiting step for ribotoxin cytotoxicity [62], knowledge about the mechanism of cell entry is scarce. The most relevant data concerning this topic have been obtained for α-sarcin and HtA. This ability to enter cells is also the main functional difference between ribotoxins and their non-cytotoxic relatives microbial RNases from the T1 family. After internalization by endocytosis, ribotoxins reach the cytosol by clathrin-independent transport via acid endosomes and the Golgi [13]. The positively charged surface of ribotoxins seems to be a key factor for this cytotoxicity through interaction with the lipid membrane components since no protein receptor has been found [63,64,65,66]. Studies with vesicle-model systems have shown that α-sarcin specifically interacts with acid phospholipid vesicles of phosphatidylserine or phosphatidilglycerol at neutral pH [8,66,67,68] and promote their aggregation, with the protein acting as a bridge between lipid bilayers [69,70,71]. This fact would be in agreement with the preference exhibited by ribotoxins for virus-infected or tumor cells, with a higher exposure of acid phospholipids to the extracellular medium due to a loss of symmetry in the plasma membrane [72,73,74,75,76] or a higher content of negatively charged phospholipids, such as phosphatidylserine [77,78]. The involvement in malignant transformation of the enzymes responsible for phosphatidic acid synthesis (diacylglycerol kinases) seems to further support this hypothesis [79,80,81]. All previous observations are consistent with a membrane interacting mechanism involving an intercalation of the ribotoxins into the lipid matrix, which would promote fusion and permeability changes in the bilayers, processes that would presumably be involved in the ribotoxin passage across the membranes of its target cells [8].
The ability to interact with lipid membranes has been associated with the non-ordered protein loops and the N-terminal β-hairpin of ribotoxins (Figure 3), where the main structural differences between ribotoxins and non-cytotoxic RNases of the T1 family are located. In this regard, deletion of α-sarcin’s N-terminal β-hairpin produces an active ribonuclease with altered membrane interaction properties [82,83]. Close to this region, the structure of HtA presents two Trp residues, the above-mentioned Trp 71 and Trp 78, which seem to be taking active part in its higher membrane permeabilizing activity. Studies with single and combined mutants of these two residues provide evidence that cell membrane passage and internalization, as well as substrate specific recognition, require the participation of this region. Additionally, mutant W71/78F has been the first non-cytotoxic but specific ribosome-cleaving ribotoxin obtained to date [51], which has revived the old interest for the potential biomedical application of ribotoxins. One of the classic goals of the study of ribotoxins has been the construction of immunoconjugates with a tumor-specific targeting moiety [84,85], but the non-specific toxicity exhibited by ribotoxins against non-tumoral cells has always been a major concern for researchers in this field. Therefore, HtA W71/78F, which retains the specific ribonucleolytic activity of ribotoxins without their unspecific ability to enter cells, appears as a feasible candidate for the construction of specific and safer immunotoxins, as their in vivo cytotoxicity would only be manifested against cells targeted by the conjugated antibody.
5. Insecticidal Activity
The assignment of an insecticidal function to fungal ribotoxins has been suggested before [17,18]. Several studies have demonstrated that Hirsutella thompsonii is able to infect arthropods [23,24]. Under in vivo conditions, conidia contact the host, attach to the cuticle, germinate, and penetrate through it [27]. The potential of Hirsutella thompsonii as a biological control agent of the parasitic mite Varroa destructor, a honey bee parasite, has also been shown [86,87].
Insect cells have a different plasma membrane composition from mammalian cells, with a higher content of phosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylinositol and a significant lower cholesterol/phospholipid ratio [88]. Thus, insect plasma membranes show different permeability. Probably these membranes are thinner and more fluid than those in mammalian cells, being better candidates as ribotoxin targets.
The insecticidal activity of hirsutellin has been well documented [29]. However, no proven data of this activity have been obtained for any of the other members of the ribotoxin family although some studies had suggested that insecticidal activity could be the natural function of ribotoxins [17,18]. Therefore, a study comparing HtA and α-sarcin has been recently performed with the goal of elucidating this idea [31]. The results obtained show that both α-sarcin and hirsutellin A are highly toxic against G. mellonella larvae (Figure 5). Injection of α-sarcin or HtA caused larvae death and pupation delay. Virulence was dependent on ribotoxin concentration. Data analysis revealed that there was statistically significant difference between the treatment with α-sarcin and HtA, being HtA more effective in terms of less amount of protein needed to produce the same death levels. Indeed, injection of the catalytically inactive α-sarcin H137Q mutant [56] had an almost negligible effect on survival for identical incubation times and doses, correlating toxicity with the ribonucleolytic activity of these proteins.
Figure 5. (a) Galleria mellonella larvae; (b) Histogram representing the survival of G. mellonella larvae after ten days of being injected with 8 μL of 0.9% NaCl containing different (μM) concentrations of wild-type α-sarcin, a catalytically inactive mutant (H137Q) or wild-type HtA. The initial number of individuals in each group represented was 15. Results correspond to the average of three independent experiments. Bars represent the standard deviation error.
This result suggests that the insecticidal lethal action of ribotoxins is dependent on their highly specific RNase activity. Injection of the toxin produced loss of larvae mobility followed by larvae death, being the differences in larvae survival more evident after 10 days of incubation at 30 ºC [31]. Larvae coloration changed from brownish to dark brown or even black upon death (see complementary video material). These color changes were most probably a consequence of the overactivation of the phenoloxidase cascade, a process that has been proposed as one of the most important defense mechanisms against pathogens in insects [89]. The toxic effect of both ribotoxins was also evident in the observed pupation delay.
Both ribotoxins are also highly toxic against insect cells in culture (Figure 6). Two different insect cell lines have been assayed, Spodoptera frugiperda (Sf9) and Trichoplusia ni (High Five). Both α-sarcin and HtA cause a dramatic effect on both inhibition of in vivo protein biosynthesis and decreasing cell viability (Table 1). It is remarkable that the IC50 values were almost two orders of magnitude smaller than the corresponding values obtained for these ribotoxins against human rhabdomyosarcoma cells [13,30,62], the tumor cell line commonly used as the reference assay for evaluating the antitumoral activity of ribotoxins.
Figure 6. (a) Protein biosynthesis inhibition in Sf9 insect cells cultured in the presence of increasing HtA (open circles) or α-sarcin (dark circles) concentrations. Semilogarithmic plots are the average of three different sets of experiments. Bars represent the standard deviation. (b) Toxic effect in Sf9 insect cells after the addition of different HtA (grey bars) or α-sarcin concentrations (black bars), expressed in terms of percentage of cell viability after 60 hours of incubation with the protein.
Table 1. IC50 values obtained for α-sarcin and HtA when assayed against insect cell lines in culture.
Protein biosynthesis inhibition
α-sarcin 0.010 µM 0.100 µM 0.04 µM
HtA 0.010 µM 0.025 µM 0.07 µM
Moreover, the insect killing activity of both ribotoxins is related to their specific ribonucleolytic action on insect ribosomes. The characteristic activity of ribotoxins is manifested by the production of a 400 nt fragment (α-fragment) upon degradation of the target ribosomes. In fact, the production of α-fragment was observed in treated insect cells. The results revealed the cleavage of 28S rRNA by both ribotoxins with an identical pattern as that described for isolated ribosomes [54]. These data support the idea that the specific ribonucleolytic activity of HtA and α-sarcin is the reason of their toxicity against this insect cell lines. Corroborating that specific ribotoxin action involves the passage of the protein across the membranes of its target cells, both toxins also retained the membrane interaction ability when tested against model vesicles made of insect plasma membrane lipids [31].
Finally, the long studied antitumoral activity of ribotoxins could be a side effect of their insecticidal action and ribotoxins could be considered host-defense proteins and thus included in the new generation of bioinsecticides [90,91].
Hirsutellin A (HtA) has been recently demonstrated to be the smallest ribotoxin known to date [30]. It is 20 residues shorter than previously described ribotoxins (130 amino acids compared to 149/150) and exhibits only 25 percent sequence identity to other members of this family. However, it exhibits all the ribotoxin abilities. HtA is able to specifically degrade ribosomes releasing the 400nt α-fragment typically detected after ribotoxin activity. As its larger relatives, it also produces this single cleavage on short synthetic oligonucleotides mimicking the sequence and structure of the SRL [9]. Like these ribotoxins, HtA is highly basic, possesses cytotoxic activity and inhibits protein synthesis [28]. In conclusion, HtA seems to be a more evolved ribotoxin displaying all the functions of ribotoxins in a shorter polypeptide chain [30].
In addition, HtA displays a well-characterized insecticidal biological action [27]. Interestingly, several studies relating ribotoxin expression and conidiophore maturation suggest that ribotoxins may play a defensive role against arthropods like insects or mites [17]. Thus, the characterization of HtA as a ribotoxin may support the theory that they are involved in defense mechanisms for either the producing mold or the plants where they live in symbiosis. We have unequivocally confirmed the insecticidal properties of ribotoxins [31]. First, the interaction of α-sarcin and HtA with insect ribosomes, isolated from Spodoptera frugiperda Sf9 cell cultures showed specific ribonucleolytic activity. Second, their insecticidal activity against two different insect cell lines (Spodoptera frugiperda Sf9 and Trichoplusia ni High five) has been proved and directly related to the catalytic production of the α-fragment. Finally, both ribotoxins exhibit high toxicity when injected at low doses into G. mellonella larvae. According to this, it seems reasonable to think that ribotoxins evolved from non-specific RNases driven by the necessity of fungal defense against insects. In this regard, it is very interesting to consider the fact that insect cell membranes show many of the characteristics of transformed cells and, thus, the insecticidal biological role of ribotoxins could also explain their intriguing antitumoral properties.
In relation to the production of potential insecticidal agents based on ribotoxins, further work must be carried out. Pure restrictocin (1000 p.p.m.) added to the diet of Carpophilus freemani, a fungus-feeding beetle, killed 38.5% of larvae in 48 h. Adult C. freemani were not affected, but they exhibited an aversion to restrictocin in their diet [17]. In this sense, HtA and α-sarcin could be used as insecticidal agents, but new studies must be established in order to assess a suitable way of toxin administration based on feeding habits. Ribotoxin concentration and digestion control of the proteins ingested should be considered.
Although the unspecific cytotoxic action of ribotoxins could limit their potential use as insecticidal agents, the present accumulation of data about their mechanism of action allow an optimistic view. In this regard, the development of immunotoxins based on these fungal ribonucleases stands out as an alternative in the mid-term future. Nowadays, second generation immunotoxins, based on the fusion of ribtoxins to a single chain containing only the variable domains needed for antigen recognition, have been already obtained [92]. In this sense, a colon cancer-specific immunotoxin, based in α-sarcin, has been recently produced and characterized [84]. These studies also open a new way to solve the potential disadvantages of the application of ribotoxins as insecticides, as conjugation of the toxin to an insect-specific antibody would avoid damage to the beneficiary species. On the other hand, the design of adequate mutants and chimaeric ribotoxins with convenient activities must also be considered.
Supplementary File 1
This work was supported by projects BFU2009-10185 and BFQ 2012-32404 from the Spanish Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, and ESFUNPROT-UCM, from Universidad Complutense. M. Olombrada is recipient of a FPU predoctoral fellowship from the Spanish Ministerio de Educación. Javier Merino provided the G. mellonera picture.
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Windley, M.J.; Herzig, V.; Dziemborowicz, S.A.; Hardy, M.C.; King, G.F.; Nicholson, G.M. Spider-venom peptides as bioinsecticides. Toxins 2012, 4, 191–227. [Google Scholar]
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© 2013 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/).
Insects, EISSN 2075-4450, Published by MDPI Disclaimer
The statements, opinions and data contained in the journal Insects are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publisher and the editor(s). MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
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sesame seeds Archives - Megala's Kitchen
Tag: sesame seeds
Sesame seed squares
Women of all virtues are regarded as goddesses in our society even today, it is a common sight in some families here that men treating his worldly wise mother as Sarasawathi, the goddess of wisdom & knowledge, his caring wife as Durga Devi, the goddess of strength & protection, and his lively daughter as goddess Lakshmi who brings in prosperity. Even our prime minister, a devotee of goddess Durga, inducted a righteous woman into his cabinet of ministers as the national defence minister. Ironically we could find several references in our ancient literature which stress the need for the respect of women in unequivocal terms. Thiruvalluvar, an enlightened sage lived in 300 BC, wrote about the eternity of values to be followed by kings, men & women in all walks of life in Tamil (the oldest language in the world) and compiled Thirukkural, the greatest Tamil literary masterpiece known till today. Interestingly he did not miss to highlight the women power in his classic text 2000 years ago as below:
Continue reading “Sesame seed squares”…
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Tomorrow´s Executive - series
Ten Statements on Leadership
By Richard Moore
As part of our Tomorrow's Executive series of articles we bring you: an insight into what defines good leadership.
Glendower:
"I can call spirits from the vasty deep."
Hotspur:
"Why, so can I, or so can any man; But will they come, when you do call for them?"
– from Shakespeare's King Henry IV part 1.
Leadership is one of the most important topics in the human sciences. It has been studied since Plato wrote about its importance, its determinants and its outcomes. Although some authors have lamented that leadership is poorly understood, today there is a growing body of knowledge on the subject.
The following ten statements show how Mercuri Urval defines, conceptualises and understands leadership. We do not pretend to know all the answers to questions about leadership. But we do have clear convictions based on our extensive experience and research...
1. Leadership matters
With good leadership, employee wellbeing and performance are enhanced, and consequently, organisations thrive and prosper. Research has proven time and again that leadership is a critical determinant of organisational effectiveness, as the following facts indicate:
A recent study shows that CEO turnover affects a firm's performance (Khurana & Nohria, 2000)
Performance is approximately 20% higher and satisfaction 50% higher for subordinates who enjoy better quality relationships with their supervisors, according to one study (Uhl-Bien, 2003)
In a comprehensive study of 732 manufacturing firms in the US, UK, France and Germany "management practices are significantly associated with higher productivity, profitability, Tobin's Q, sales growth and firm-survival rates" (Bloom & Van Reenen, 2007)
Furthermore studies on management derailment show that 65 – 75% of employees in any given organisation report that the worst aspect of their job is their immediate boss. This causes employee engagement and performance to deteriorate (Hogan & Kaiser, 2005).
In spite of the fact that we live in a knowledge economy, there is nonetheless a mismatch between what science knows and what business does. Organisations should still look carefully at whether they invest enough, in the right way, in building there current and future leadership capability.
2. Leadership is defined by results
There are many definitions of leadership, and no single definition is right. Therefore one has to choose which definition to use. We believe a results-based definition of leadership is the best. This means that the essence of leadership is building and maintaining a team, and guiding that team towards desired results. Leadership is about achieving desired results (Hogan & Kaiser, 2005; Ulrich et al., 1999). Or as Ridderstråle & Wilcox note: "Deliver exceptional output – or you become an output" (Ridderstråle & Wilcox, 2008).
Dave Ulrich has made a strong case for the need to align desired results with strategy, and to balance them across the key stakeholders (employees, organisation, customers and owners). To achieve results, leaders must create value in each of these areas. Serving only employees, for example, yields engaged employees, but organisations that fail to serve customers or to meet investor goals will not be successful (Ulrich et al., 1999).
Overall this value creation can be seen in four areas: forming strategy, implementing strategy, managing operations and stakeholder leadership. In each of these areas leadership must deliver results in order to be successful.
3. Leadership effectiveness should focus on group performance
In line with this results-based approach, leadership does not primarily concern individuals, called leaders. Rather leadership is primarily concerned with the performance of the collective for which the leader is responsible.
So an evaluation of leadership effectiveness should focus on the performance of the group or organisation and the leaders contribution to that performance, not simply – as is often the case – on leader emergence or how the individual leader is regarded (Drucker, 2000; Kaiser et al, 2008). This distinction is important because the factors associated with leading a successful team or organisation are not necessarily the same as those associated with having a successful career in management. How a team performs and how its leaders are perceived are two different things (Kaiser et al., 2008).
One study claims that measures of team performance and measures of career success are unrelated. Less than 10% of a of general managers had both effective teams and successful careers (Luthans, 1998)1. In an ideal world career
success and leadership capability would go hand in hand. However, we live in the real world.
4. Leadership is a collective phenomenon
Leadership implies a following. If there are no followers, there are no leaders and vice versa (Locke, 2003). Leaders have to get other people to follow them. Remember Hotspur's question: "Will they come, when you do call for them?"
Leadership is a relationship-based concept. Leaders act with followers rather than on them. Today, work gets done in an environment where an increasing number of employees have to be managed as if they were volunteers. As Peter Drucker has said; "They are paid to be sure. But knowledge workers have mobility. They can leave... One does not "manage" people. The task is to lead people" (Drucker, 1999).
5. Leadership is a behaviour, not a formal role
Leadership occurs when individuals use influence to create change. Anyone may act as a leader (not just those in formal managerial roles) when they demonstrate leadership behaviours. Placing a person in a management position does not turn that person into a leader. There are people in management positions who do not behave as leaders. And there are people who are not in management positions, who nonetheless demonstrate leadership qualities (Hogan, 2005; Locke, 2003; Uhl-Bien, 2003).
Decide what needs to be done
Create networks of people and relationships that can accomplish an agenda
Ensuring that those people actually do the job
Envisioning is itself an intellectual exercise. To envision and engage and execute is to demonstrate leadership. Work today gets done in an environment where the indirect levers of influence are of great importance – and perhaps of greater importance than the direct exercise of power (giving instructions or making decisions personally).
Indirect influence can be defined as shaping the context, so that team members can independently make good decisions, take appropriate action, and behave in a desired manner. The key to the leader's job is not what he or she does personally, but what he or she gets done with others in the organisation (Porter & Nohria, 2010). Almost a century ago, the leadership pioneer Mary Parker Follett said that leadership is not defined by the exercise of power, but by the capability to increase the sense of power amongst those being led.
7. Leadership is a function of specific leader capabilities
Who we are determines whether we lead, and if we do, how we do it. Some people have the capabilities to envision, engage and execute, and they will in all probability demonstrate leadership. Other people do not have these capabilities and will not be able to demonstrate leadership (Hogan & Kaiser, 2005; Judge et al., 2002). As Kirkpatrick & Locke put it: “Leaders are not like other people… They do need to have “the right stuff” and this stuff is not equally present in all people” (Kirkpatrick & Locke, 1991).
Furthermore, a large study of leadership in 62 societies showed that the characteristics associated with an effective leader and with effective leadership are to some extent similar across cultures (House, 2004). In this sense a leader is a leader is a leader (Hogan, 2007).
8. Leadership capabilities consist of skills, motivation and personality traits
Leadership capabilities – or having “the right stuff” – are certain skills, motives , cognitive abilities and personality traits with each contributing to the influence of the other (Antonakis, 2011; Zaccaro et al., 2004).
Leadership represents complex patterns of behaviour as illustrated in statement six above. Therefore leadership is explained by multiple capabilities. Some of these leadership capabilities – like intelligence and personality – have a strong hereditary and genetic basis (Arvey & Chaturvedi, 2011). They are hardwired into our DNA, and are relatively fixed over time.
The genetic basis is documented in studies of twins. Identical twins, who share all their genes, resemble each other much more than fraternal twins do, whether or not they are raised in the same family. About half of the observed variation in trait scores appears to be genetically based (McCrae & Costa, 2008).
Trait stability is documented in longitudinal studies in which personality is assessed twice, many years apart (Mc-Crae & Costa, 2008).
Other leadership capabilities are less fixed and can be developed through work, educational experiences and training (Avolio & Vogelgesang, 2011). For example, a recent study showed that charisma can be taught (Antonakis, In press). The common question regarding whether leaders are born or made can be answered: Yes! And, we can add, that it is the interaction between genetics and environments that explain human development (Chaturvedi et al., 2011). We can see the relationship between capability, behaviour and results in more detail as shown on the following page:
9. Leader capabilities can be measured, and leader emergence, leadership behaviour and group performance can be predicted
Leadership capabilities can be identified and measured, and can even predict who will emerge as leaders (managerial role occupancy) and who will be effective leaders.
A comprehensive meta-analysis documents correlations between conscientiousness, extroversion, openness and emotional stability with leadership (Judge et al., 2002).
A recent study measures the relationship between personality and leadership criteria, with a twelve-year span between trait predictors and leadership criteria, and reports a relationship between extroversion, leader emergence and transformational leadership (Reichard et. al., 2011).
Leadership capabilities can consistently and reliably differentiate leaders from nonleaders, and consequently can serve as a basis for leader assessment, selection, training and development (Zaccaro, 2007). Using valid leader capability models has important economic as well as ethical implications (Antonakis, 2011).
“If you measure personality well, it has enduring effects on almost every aspect of work and life,” says Timothy Judge. What is more, as the work environment becomes less rigid, less routine and more autonomous, personality becomes more important (Stewart & Barrick, 2004).
Overall, the above nine statements can be summarised in the following model:
Read from left to right, the model illustrates leadership value creation: how leadership capabilities are put to purposeful work; how they are transformed into behaviour, and how this creates desired results. Read from right to left, the model shows how desired results are translated into leader behaviours and required leader capabilities.
It is important to stress that this, like all models, is a simplification. And that leads on to the last statement…
10. Leadership does not take place in a vacuum
In general, behaviour is a function of personality and situation, and this goes for leadership behaviour as well. There are situational attributes that moderate the capability-behaviour-results relationship illustrated above. In some ituations capabilities are not transformed into behaviour, and in other situations, behaviour does not create results. Some organisational structures and social arrangements will facilitate human performance and foster leadership. Other such structures and arrangements will degrade human performance and hinder leadership.
The kind of organisation, culture and context in which leaders function, the relationship between leader and superiors, subordinates, external constituencies, peers and the kind of product or service provided by the organisation – are all situational attributes that matter.
Leadership matters – it affects the value and performance of organisations
Leadership is defined by results – there is no “right” approach, but there are “right results”
Leadership is about groups – its effect on the performance of a collective
Leadership requires followers – and followers choose to follow, or not
Leadership is a behaviour – it is not a formal role
Leadership is envisioning, engaging and executing
Leadership is a function of a person’s capabilities – personal qualities and specific competencies
Leaders are both born and made – some capabilities are inherited (emerging over time) and others are learned through experience
Leadership ability can be measured – and therefore predicted and developed
Leadership does not happen in a vacuum – the environment is relevant to performance
This means that leadership selection and development:
Must be driven by insight into behaviour
Can focus on general capabilities, building on strengths and mitigating for weaknesses
Needs to happen in the individual’s current context or future situation
Should be focused on changing behaviour to improve results
Is about improving the performance of teams as well as leaders
CEO and Partner
Other articles in the Tomorrow's Executive series
How to successfully play the Russian game
The first step to M&A is you; An executive´s guide to successful mergers and acquisitions
Emailcontact.be@mercuriurval.com
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Yemen War
Yemen air strike kills nine family members: Witnesses
House struck was next to a college Houthi rebels converted into an arms depot
Yemenis amidst the rubble of buildings hit by Saudi air strikes in the Yemeni port of Hudaida on 21 September, 2016. (AFP)
Published date: 26 September 2016 08:15 UTC | Last update: 4 years 3 months ago
A Saudi-led coalition air strike in Yemen killed nine members of the same family, including several children, on Sunday in the southwestern rebel-held city of Ibb, witnesses and medics said.
Eleven neighbours were also wounded when the family's house, on the southern edge of the mountain city, was hit during a night of intense air strikes, witnesses said. Medics at the city's main hospital confirmed they had received nine bodies, including those of women and children.
The house was next to a vocational college that Iran-backed Houthi rebels have converted into a military base and arms depot, witnesses said.
The air strikes came amid growing international criticism of the Arab coalition over the mounting toll of civilian casualties in its campaign against the rebels. Houthi rebels and troops loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh control Ibb and swaths of Yemeni territory including the capital, Sanaa, which they seized in September 2014.
Since the coalition intervened in March last year, government forces have pushed rebels out of five southern provinces, including the port city of Aden.
More than 6,000 people have been killed in Yemen since the start of the Saudi-led campaign, more than half of them civilians, according to the United Nations.
The UN warned on Friday of rising civilian casualties, saying that 180 people were killed and 268 injured in August, a 40 percent rise on the previous month.
On Wednesday, at least 20 civilians died in air strikes on the rebel-held Red Sea city of Hudaida that the coalition said targeted "Houthi leaders". UN chief Ban Ki-moon condemned the strikes on Hudaida, calling for "urgent measures to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure".
Incoming Biden official calls for reversal of Houthi terror designation
Yemen: UN condemnation of Houthi terror designation sparks campaign against envoy
US blacklisting of Houthis could 'tip Yemen into huge famine', warns UN
Third Yemen drone strike in a week kills 5 al-Qaeda suspects
Yemen's exiled government return to Aden
Fatwa forbids work of female activists in Yemen's Taiz
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Neighborhood watch shooter George Zimmerman to stand trial next June 10 in Trayvon Martin slaying
Oct. 17, 2012 Updated: Aug. 17, 2017 3:32 a.m.
FILE - In this Thursday, April 12, 2012 file photo, George Zimmerman, charged with killing 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, right, stands next to a Seminole County Deputy during a court hearing in Sanford, Fla. A judge on Friday, June 1, 2012 revoked Zimmerman's bond and ordered him returned to jail within 48 hours. Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester said Zimmerman misled the court about how much money he had available when his bond was set for $150,000 in April. Prosecutors claim Zimmerman had $135,000 available that had been raised by a website he set up. (AP Photo/Gary W. Green, Orlando Sentinel, Pool)AP
SANFORD, Fla. -- A judge has set a tentative trial date next year for a Florida neighborhood watch volunteer charged with fatally shooting an unarmed teenager.
Judge Debra S. Nelson set June 10 as the tentative start for George Zimmerman's trial. But his attorney noted there are still several unresolved pretrial matters to complete. Another status hearing is set for December 10.
Zimmerman is charged with second-degree murder in the shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in February. The 29-year-old has claimed self-defense and is pleading not guilty.
Attorney Mark O'Mara estimated he expects the trial to last three weeks.
They'll be back in court Friday for what is expected to be a lengthy hearing for arguments on several motions, including the defense asking for more time to interview state witnesses.
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Home Security US forces move 1,500 Daesh women from Syria to Iraq amid Turkish offensive
US forces move 1,500 Daesh women from Syria to Iraq amid Turkish offensive
US military forces have reportedly transferred more than 1,500 female members of the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group from Syria to neighboring Iraq in the wake of a ground offensive by Turkish troops and their allied militants against Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria.
Syria’s official news agency SANA reported that the US troops have moved the Daesh women from al-Hol refugee camp, which lies in Syria’s northeastern province of al-Hasakah and close to the Syria-Iraq border,
The report came only a few days after SANA reported that US forces had transferred 230 foreign Daesh terrorists from al-Malikiyah prison to a detention center in al-Shaddadi town in southern Hasakah.
Since October 9, SANA said, US forces have transported hundreds of Daesh extremists and their relatives from Syrian territories to Iraq in six batches. The date is when Turkey and its allied militants launched a ground offensive against Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria.
According to the report, American forces have also turned their illegal base in Shaddadi, Hasakah, into a place of accommodation for Daesh terrorists and their families, who are being brought from al-Hol camp and prisons across Syria to the base in order to be transported on board military helicopters to Iraq.
US forces have been airlifting Daesh terrorists from one place in Syria to another, under the cover of darkness, in order to save them in the face of advancement and territorial gains by Syrian government forces, and prevent revelation of their alliance with the Takfiri extremists.
Turkish military forces and Ankara-backed militants launched the long-threatened cross-border invasion of northeast Syria in a declared attempt to push Kurdish fighters from the People’s Protection Units (YPG) away from border areas.
Ankara views the US-backed YPG as a terrorist organization tied to the homegrown Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which has been seeking an autonomous Kurdish region in Turkey since 1984. The YPG constitutes the backbone of the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
The Kurdish-led administration in northeastern Syria says the Turkish offensive has killed 218 civilians, including 18 children, since its outset. The fighting has also wounded more than 650 people.
Turkish authorities say 20 people have been killed in Turkey by strikes from Syria, including eight people who were killed in a mortar attack on the town of Nusaybin by YPG militants on October 11.
On October 17, US Vice President Mike Pence said Washington and Ankara had agreed on a five-day ceasefire in Turkey’s attacks on Kurdish fighters in the region.
The agreement followed negotiations between Pence and Erdogan at the presidential palace in Ankara.
Pence said Ankara would pause its offensive, dubbed Operation Peace Spring, for 120 hours in order to allow YPG militants to withdraw 30 kilometers from the Turkey-Syria border.
Once the withdrawal is complete, “Operation Peace Spring will be halted entirely,” Pence told reporters.
Iraq,ISIS,Kurds,SDF,Syria,terrorist,Turkey,US_ARMY,USA
Powerful explosion reported in northern Aleppo town
Iran reveals why it confronted a US submarine in the Persian Gulf
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Quartet of Bees make history in Burlington
Soriano, Robinson, Yan, Sykes work overtime in 10-inning no-no
Parker Joe Robinson, Jose Soriano, Hector Yan and Chad Sykes tossed the Minors' 31st no-hitter of 2019. (Bees Media Relations)
By Michael Avallone
Jonathan Van Eaton had watched similar scenes unfold a few times this season. The Class A Burlington pitching coach wasn't about to get ahead of himself until the game was officially over.But Angels No. 10 prospect Jose Soriano, Parker Joe Robinson, 17th-ranked Hector Yan and Chad Sykes combined to throw a
Jonathan Van Eaton had watched similar scenes unfold a few times this season. The Class A Burlington pitching coach wasn't about to get ahead of himself until the game was officially over.
But Angels No. 10 prospect Jose Soriano, Parker Joe Robinson, 17th-ranked Hector Yan and Chad Sykes combined to throw a 10-inning no-hitter as the Bees walked off for the third straight game in a 1-0 win over the Snappers.
Gameday box score
Danny Duffy and Juan Abreu tossed the last no-no for the Bees against Peoria on Aug. 7, 2008.
"We've taken three [no-hitters] into the ninth this year and couldn't close it out," Van Eaton said. "I wasn't taking anything for granted until that last out was made. Or in our case, the last hit. After that it was pandemonium, which isn't a word that's used very much."
Despite walking five, Soriano spearheaded the Bees' efforts on the mound by fanning four in 3 2/3 innings to start the evening. Robinson retired all four batters he faced before giving way to Yan, who struck out two and walked one in three innings. Sykes (1-1) closed things out by fanning a pair and walking one over the final two frames.
The 28-year-old pitching coach was pleased with all his hurlers, who he felt handled a tough lineup with aplomb.
"Soriano really has learned how to use his arsenal," Van Eaton said. "He's gotten into a good rhythm repeating his delivery and is using the right pitches in the right count. When he's able to work ahead, it's a different ballgame. Not many hitters in this league will touch him if that's the case. [The five walks] is a credit to Beloit. They're a patient offense and they made him work for it."
Beloit moved designated runner Skyler Weber to third base with one out in the top of the 10th, but the 23-year-old induced a pair of groundouts to give his team a chance at history.
Nonie Williams lined a two-out single up the middle that brought home Livan Soto with the winning run to complete the first extra-inning no-hitter in the Midwest League in more than 14 years. Sean Gallagher, Walt Nolen and Joe Hunton helped Peoria edge Cedar Rapids, 3-2, on April 20, 2005.
Van Eaton took special pains to ensure the man behind the plate -- Keinner Piña -- got all due credit for calling the historic night.
"I handed the game ball to him," he said. "He did an outstanding job tonight and I told him that after the game. This is the second year I've been with Keinner and he's made such great strides. It all starts with him and the way he handles the pitchers. He knows what their strengths and weaknesses are and works hard at learning the hitters' tendencies. He deserved this tonight."
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Snappers starter Aiden McIntyre matched the Bees on the mound with five hitless innings. The right-hander walked one and struck out two before leaving after throwing 28 of 47 pitches for strikes. Richard Guasch (0-3) was saddled with the loss after yielding three hits while striking out five in 4 2/3 innings.
"You have need to credit Beloit's pitching," Van Eaton said. "It was back and forth the entire game. Who was going to get that first hit? Who would score? The innings were quick and the pitchers didn't have time to really think about what was going on. Everyone was rolling along and our guys kept filling up the zone. Thankfully, it worked out."
Pina notched the game's first hit on a leadoff single in the sixth and took second on a fielding error by second baseman Nick Ward. But the catcher was picked off at second by Guasch in front of a strike-'em-out, throw-'em-out double play.
Michael Avallone is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter @MavalloneMiLB.
Chad Sykes
Parker Joe Robinson
Hector Yan
Jose Soriano
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Ronnie O'Sullivan adds latest 147 break at English Open - days after criticising "hell-hole" venue for urine smell
The Rocket rattled in the magnificent effort to close out a 4-0 win over Allan Taylor at the English Open in Crawley’s K2 leisure centre
Hector Nunns
Ronnie O’Sullivan made his 15th career 147 maximum break today – in the venue he branded a “hell-hole” earlier in the week.
The Rocket rattled in the magnificent effort to close out a 4-0 win over Allan Taylor at the English Open in Crawley’s K2 leisure centre.
Five-time world champion O’Sullivan, 42, is set to share the £17,000 prize with Thailand’s Thepchaiya Un-Nooh, who made one on Tuesday.
But the defending champion was still downbeat after his magnificent feat and century No956.
O’Sullivan has unleashed a volley of criticism at the K2 for smelling of urine, unhappy with facilities and the fact he comes into contact with swimmers and indoor bowlers.
Ronnie O'Sullivan plays a shot (Image: Visual China Group)
He said: “It was a bang-on break for me – and I fancied it after the first red. I thought I had to do something in the match to get myself excited, and I went for it.
“From about 30-40 odd I was in bits and twitching all over the gaff, my back arm was like a fish flapping all over the place.
“It all went quiet and then they stopped playing on the other tables to watch the match which is the worst thing that can happen.
“You want them to make some noise or do something, when it went too quiet the pressure was on even more. I didn’t even fancy potting the last black to be honest, I was feeling it.
O'Sullivan looks on (Image: Visual China Group)
“But the max just wins you one frame, but my game is far from really great.
“I haven’t really played well since this tournament last year and that is why I started working with SightRight. I thought I had to try and do something.
"Winning matches and tournaments, and playing well, are two different things. You don’t have to play well to win tournaments. I have won events playing quite poorly.
“But for me to enjoy it and really get a buzz, I have to cue well and play well, then you can really get into it and take pleasure from it.”
mirrorsport
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Spied! Modified BMW 1 Series Charges the Nurburgring - Is it an M Car?
Nate Martinezwriter
A few days ago, we spotted what could be the BMW 1 Series M trotting around the Nurburgring with some intricate camouflage hiding its massaged bodywork. Its bigger wheels, lowered stance, and cross drilled rotors were clearly evident. The only thing not entirely clear is whether this performance-tuned 1 Series will be a new 'is' trim level or a bona fide M car.
Today, we bring you our latest shots of the highly anticipated ride, sans camo and charging hard on the 'Ring while undergoing high speed testing. Look close, and the majority of its body remains true to the current model, except, of course, for the massive front and rear fenders. Also new on the prototype is a carbon fiber roof, similar to the one on this car's big brother, the M3.
It's anyone's guess as to when this souped-up 1 Series will hit dealers (or its expected performance stats), but given that its out running the 'Ring, we'd say it's well into development by now.
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by J.T. Ellison
I was at the bank the other day, which is always a trip, because our bank branch is staffed with characters. There’s the comedian chick, the brooding manager, the upbeat and chipper trainee, and the artist. The artist and I get on well, because he’s a writer. He’s done songs, he’s done poems. But lately, he’s been working on a movie script.
You don’t expect to get enlightened at the bank. If anything, that’s about the last place I’d ever go. But the artist dropped a bomb on me, just a simple term that he used to describe what he was responsible for with the script he’s co-writing.
He’s the world builder.
Now I’m sure all you screenwriters just rolled your eyes and said DUH! but I’ve never done any screenwriting, nor worked in Hollywood, and this termed concept of world building was a new one to me.
Of course, I understand that I already have an intrinsic grasp of world building. I do it every time I sit down, open my laptop and create. Each story, each character, each setting, all goes into the world I’m building. I’m the God of my own land, the High Priestess of the Page.
I make the rules.
Oh, heady day!
Science fiction and fantasy writers do a bang up job of world building. Hobbits become heroes, dragons befriend young slayers, vampires turn vegetarian. Trees can speak and witches float around in soap bubbles. Lions rise from the dead and the labyrinth of our subconscious fears are realized. Good and evil have Janus faces, and nothing is as it seems.
In these alternate realities, there are fairy godmothers, guardian angels, and every possible incarnation of death. In Stephanie Meyer’s TWILIGHT series, the books work not because of the vampires, but because of the underlying story – a teenage girl who is uprooted and ends up in a faraway land where normal rules don’t apply. This transportation into a new world allows for a willing suspension of disbelief – that’s the trick. That’s the key.
It’s the driving force behind our culture’s creativity.
If you build it, they will come.
Historical romances sweep us into a land unknown. As a little girl, I remember getting lost in Karleen Koen’s THROUGH A GLASS DARKLY, only to emerge on the other end with a fascination for all things historical. Diana Gabaldon’s OUTLANDER series is completely transcendent. I am there. I am present. I am so entranced that I can see and smell everything the characters do. I’m not reading a book, or a story, I’m plowing through an alternate universe.
J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books did that for me also. I still lament that I wasn’t able to attend Hogwarts, with all its bizarre idiosyncrasies and history.
Imagination in the hands of a competent world builder is something to be treasured, read and watched over and over again, striking a resonate chord with all who fall under its spell. It’s just plain bliss.
The mythology behind these grandiose otherworlds are evident. They all have one thing in common: A hero, called to a journey. I’ve been reading Joseph Campbell and Christopher Vogler, (I’ve got a post coming on why I’m mad at Vogler…) and the whole concept of mythos and world building are foremost in my mind as I sit down to write a new Taylor Jackson novel. How am I going to bring Taylor’s world alive for you? What parts of Nashville have I missed in past novels that will give a real flavor to her world? It’s more than character, it’s using setting to define your story. I’ve always said Nashville is a character in my books. I want to show the essence of the city, the piquancy that comprises its hodgepodge cosmopolitan nature.
But I run smack into a brick wall rather quickly. My world? Already built. I’m using real places, real people, real streets and sights and smells. I can’t deviate from what we know this town to be without causing a fervor – and that’s rather limiting.
I started a standalone a few years ago, between my non-published novel and All the Pretty Girls. It’s about a female assassin named Cassiopeia with a chip implanted in her head that can be turned off and on, activating and deactivating her for duty. Sound familiar? Yes, Joss Whedon just released a television show, DOLLHOUSE, with a similar premise. I haven’t watched it because I don’t want to be influenced, because I’m still writing this book. From what I’ve heard, the brain chip is the extent of our similarities, so I’m not worried about finding a market for it once it’s done.
But it’s fun to write, because it expands reality a bit. I’m hoping this book allows me a chance to build a world outside of the careful construct of Nashville. It will take place all over the world, and I have the opportunity to make that world whatever I want it to be. Look at Michael Chabon’s THE YIDDISH POLICEMAN’S UNION. Sitka, Alaska becomes a world unto itself, with its own rules, its own idiosyncrasies. The characters live inside the construct Michael has laid out, and it works because we’re in the hands of a master manipulator, a writer who knows exactly how to twist the world to his own image.
But even the most humble story, if done well, can transport us into another’s life, into their world. We see through the characters eyes, feel their disappointments and frustrations. Whether the setting is as massive as Narnia or as small as a trailer park, if the author has done their job, we can lose ourselves in another world, at least for a time.
So let’s hear it, ‘Rati faithful. Who are you favorite world builders?
Wine of the Week: Sebecka Cabernet Pinotage An absolutely luscious South African wine with the cutest cork (yes, I said cutest cork) It’s cheetah print!
PS: I have a guest blog up on Criminal Brief today! Come over and show their crew some love too!
This entry was posted in JT Ellison on April 24, 2009 .
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24 thoughts on “World Building”
Chuck April 24, 2009 at 12:25 pm
Hi JT…interesting topic today! Most of what I read, and almost everything I write, is based in real places. That being said, some authors are so very good at giving me a sense of that place. Carsten Stroud is one I enjoy; Ken Follett does a great job too.
Not sure if you’ve ever read it, or would want to, but Dan Simmons, a fantasy writer, turned out a horror book in the early nineties titled SUMMER OF NIGHT. I’m not a big horror fan, but this one sucked me in because of Simmons’ Ray Bradbury-esque nostalgia. It quickly swept me back to long summer days spent with my buddies, throwing dirt clods and riding our bicycles until nightfall finally crept in and our mothers screamed for us to get in the house. He created a world in that novel that I have to go back to every now and then, typically in mid-summer, just so I can float back to my childhood and relive it for a few brief moments.
Dana King April 24, 2009 at 1:00 pm
Ed McBain was the first name that jumped into my head. YEs, Isola is New York, but I’m not big on New York, and have no more knowledge than anyone else inundated with news from the Big Apple. McBain creates a world based on reality that I feel much more familiar with than I do the real thing.
R.J. Mangahas April 24, 2009 at 1:25 pm
Good post J.T.
Even though I’m not really into fantasy, there are two particular "world builders" I really enjoy reading. Terry Pratchett and his Discworld series. What’s great about the series is Pratchett takes aspects of the real world and weaves them into his own. One example I relly thought was great was in the book Soul Music. He’s got a band in there called Definitely Dwarfs modled after They Might Be Giants.
The other author is Neil Gaiman. The worlds that he creates are described so well that you really get transported there while reading.
Incidentally, Pratchett and Gaiman co-authored one of my favorite books Good Omens.
Zoë Sharp April 24, 2009 at 1:49 pm
Hi JT
Interesting post, and I was going to mention Terry Pratchett, RJ!
Another sci-fi writer who does an amazing job mixing what we know of now, with what might be in the future, is Peter F Hamilton. He did a trilogy about a gland-enhanced pyschic PI, Greg Mandel, starting with MINDSTAR RISING, which is set in a post global warming UK. I picked it up by chance in an airport bookshop, read the opening page, and was totally hooked.
The second in the series is A QUANTUM MURDER, which is a new twist on the closed country house murder plot. A noted professor is butchered in his country house, during a storm that has cut the place off from the outside world, surrounded only by his apparently devoted students. Mandel’s abilities give him acute emphathy – he can tell if someone is lying – but all the students are telling the truth. It’s a great book, with just enough futuristic bits to appeal to sci-fi and mystery readers alike.
And finally, off the top of my head, JD Robb’s futuristic New York of Homicide Lt Eve Dallas is extremely well realised and keeps me following this series.
Rashda April 24, 2009 at 2:49 pm
Two of my favorites got mentioned — Terry Pratchett and J.D. Robb.
Another is Thomas Harris. He makes his fictional world so real that I’ve to sleep with the lights on every time I read his books. And I was really glad for digital cameras that allow us to develop our own pictures. 🙂
Louise Ure April 24, 2009 at 2:52 pm
Even in non-science fiction books, world building can be so much more than setting. Take James Lee Burke. He’s given us New Orleans but also this whole new world embodied in the thoughts, back story and mores of his cast of characters.
Stephen Blackmoore April 24, 2009 at 2:55 pm
Favorite world-builders is a tough one. Mostly science fiction and fantasy authors come to mind because the world building is so much a part of the story rather than just a setting; John Scalzi, China Mieville, Emma Bull, William Gibson and on and on.
I was at a science fiction convention, because I’m a geek that way, where a panelist was going on about how writing sci-fi is harder than writing fiction rooted in reality because of all the world building one has to do.
I wanted to punch him.
I don’t think it’s harder or easier, just different. Creating a compelling world is damn difficult whether you’re writing about aliens or 1880’s Whitechapel or downtown San Francisco in 2009. I think the trick is not just being imaginative, but being consistent, and for something rooted in the here and now, being accurate. I wonder if some fantasy and science fiction writers have it a little easier, actually. They don’t have to worry about being burned in effigy because they got their facts on Victorian corsetry wrong.
Zoe, Peter F Hamilton is amazing. There are scenes from The Reality Dysfunction that still stick with me and I haven’t read it in almost 10 years.
And Pratchett just goes without saying.
JT Ellison April 24, 2009 at 3:03 pm
Hi Chuck! You’ve mentioned the Simmons book before, haven’t you? Is it terribly scary? I’m such a wuss, horror really freaks me out. I tried to read Joe Hill’s HEART SHAPED BOX and had to stop 1/2 through. And Follett reminds me of Michener. I wonder how Michener fans feel about his world building?
Hi Dana – great suggestion. It’s definitely up to the author to build the world in ways readers can connect to.
Hi RJ – I have to read Gaiman. I’m following him on Twitter and find him rather fascinating as a person, so I imagine his books would be entrancing as well. Any suggestions on where to start?
Afternoon, Z!
Hope you’re having good weather over there. I second JD Robb’s futuristic New York, and definitely want to add Hamilton – that’s an intriguing set up. I’ve always wanted to write a country house murder, mostly because I want to have a country house that I can do the research in. Not murder anyone, just hang in the house.
Hi Rashda!
Agree completely about Thomas Harris. His crime scenes are something I aspire to – the detail, the ambiance, the very nature of the killer shown through his lair… Perfection.
Louise, an excellent point. I probably neglected to go into enough detail about world building – it IS more than setting, or character, or story. It’s the whole stew that transports. Hope the tour is going well!
Hi Stephen! Good to see you.
I’ve always though that sci fi and fantasy writers have it easier too. They can make anything up, create alternate realities, allow the impossible to become possible, and so long as they keep track and don’t let the real world slip in, they’re golden.
Of course, no real, significant fictional world can work without the adept hands on the keyboard, breathing it to life, so in that I postulate that we’re all equal.
James Scott Bell April 24, 2009 at 3:24 pm
JT, I have to mention the Los Angeles of Chandler–stylized, but all the more true because of it. You come away "feeling" the city in ways you never could with a guide book.
Murderati April 24, 2009 at 3:37 pm
Jim, I’ve not read Chandler. Or Hammett. I know, I know…. I just wanted to try my hand at crime fiction without being influenced by the same influences as everyone else. Develop my own style. I think I’m finally ready.
Great to hang with you at the So Ky Bookfest (and Nashville hotspots) last weekend! Hope you made it home safe!
Chuck April 24, 2009 at 3:52 pm
Hey JT! Yes, I have mentioned that book before. It’s just one of those books you don’t forget. Check out the Amazon reviews. He creates a twelve year old boy’s world, middle America, dead-spot on. And no, I didn’t find it very scary at all. It loses me a bit…just a bit…at the end, but all horror does that to me because I have a hard time with the SOD. Just me overthinking things. (I’ll probably get killed by a zombie tonight while my lab relieves herself. It will be the supernatural world paying me back.)
Brett Battes April 24, 2009 at 3:52 pm
Stephen King has to be right there at the top.
Like you, JT, I use a lot of real locations like Berlin, New York, London, Saigon… And while I attempt to be true to the cities as much as possible, I have to remember that it is still my-Berlin, my-New York, my-London, and my-Saigon… So if I establish that I have a grasp of the location, I find that I have the freedom to stray a little, and create places within those cities that don’t exist. It opens things up a bit when you want something that’s not really there.
Pari April 24, 2009 at 3:53 pm
I really enjoy your posts. Many of them make me look at my own assumptions. World building to me is far more than location — it’s creating a feel not only of place but of life/experience in that place; it’s all the unwritten rules of existence in a some-where or a some-time.
Orson Scott Card does a wonderful job of this as does Nancy Farmer. So does Lois McMaster Bujold, Alice Hoffman, Tony Hillerman . . .
Oh, there are so many!
Yeah, Chuck, you need to watch out for that zombie karma. It’s a bitch…
Brett – you actually do a wonderful job of world building. It’s the unfamiliar nature of your character that allows the reader to really get into the story. I think that’s something else about world building – the actual population of said world can have a decided influence. If we read about a character and know that he’s a Cleaner, and we’ve until now been unfamiliar with that term, it sucks us in. And you do the foreign spots really well too – I always feel like I’m THERE.
Pari, thank you. You challenge me as well.
It’s the unwritten and written rules that work for me when I’m trying to get into a book. What’s feasible? What’s allowable? What’s completely taboo? Once I figure out the taboo part, that’s usually where I tend to go.
And apologies, those earlier comments labeled Murderati are actually me – I was logged into the site. : )
J.D. Rhoades April 24, 2009 at 7:09 pm
George R.R. Martin’s SONG OF ICE AND FIRE series takes place in one of the most intricately constructed, complex and above all believable fantasy worlds I’ve ever read. Multiple kingdoms, each with it s own set of intrigues and power struggles, and the sense that everything is about to get knocked sideways when the dragons return and their human Queen comes into her full power…
Chuck mentioned Dan Simmons–Simmons’ HYPERION CANTOS also knocked me flat the first time I read it. HIs universe gives me that sense-of-wonder that make me remember why I read SF.
Most of the crime fiction I read takes place in at least a recognizable analogue of the "real world," but I have to say, I LOVE Ross McDonal’d s California.
Ashley Ludwig April 24, 2009 at 9:14 pm
Excellent post – I love the term World Building. As a kid, I danced in the sci-fi aisles – happily plunking down with any Anne McCaffery or Piers Anthony title. Specifically – the Crystal Singer Series – where Anne built an entire society based upon the misadventures of a wanna-be-singer turned Crystal Miner — but Piers Anthony created universes for me… with his Incarnations of Immortality – and the Phaze books. I spent years reading those… totally buying into the fantasy he wove for me.
Of course, I agree with you on Gabaldon – she had me at the get go.
As for real world, remember – though you have to stay true to the locals, you are building worlds for those who haven’t ever traveled to Nashville… or lurked about in its darker corners. 🙂
Catherine Shipton April 24, 2009 at 10:04 pm
This is harder than I thought to list only a few.I admire how a local author was able to show me an alternate world that is close to home. I must also raise my hand to admiring JD Robb’s series too. A short story that I think deserves special mention would go to Mr Battle’s, ‘Perfect Gentleman’ in the KILLER YEAR. That story took me out of a crowded food court in a noisy shopping centre straight into the world he had buiilt.
The local author I mentioned, Kimberley Starr, wrote a book called, THE KINGDOM WHERE NOBODY DIES in 2004. This was a book where repercussions of childhood actions echoed throughout the story, and the river that winds itself through the heart of Brisbane permeated in an evenhanded fashion. I’m not a huge fan of symbolism that feels the need to club me into submission… Why I remember it years later ,was that on reading this book, I remember feeling a strange disjointed familiarity, where places I sort of knew, suddenly obtained a noirish tint.
Dark world.
Brett Battes April 24, 2009 at 10:45 pm
Catherine, thank you so much for the mention. Glad you enjoyed the story! Made my day. 🙂
R.J. Mangahas April 25, 2009 at 1:05 am
Yes, JT, Gaiman is certainly an author to read. Some of my favorites include American Gods, Stardust, Coraline and Neverwhere
JT Ellison April 25, 2009 at 3:52 am
Dusty – Argh! More to add to my list??? Just kidding – I’ve been writing down names all day. I love it when the ‘Rati share. I love dragons, so that’s moving to the top of my list.
Ashley, you make an excellent point. When I first started these books, my Dad read an early, early version. He said something the same thing you did – address the city for the outsiders as well as the natives. It’s a hard balance, actually.
Hi Catherine! Good to see you! The Australian crime fiction and fantasy landscape is amazingly diverse. I wish more of the authors were known up here.
RJ, thank you! I’ll put them on the list.
Thanks everyone!!!!
Laura Benedict April 26, 2009 at 5:19 am
Late to the party, as usual…
Larry Brown, Elmore Leonard, Shirley Jackson, Richard Matheson, Cormac McCarthy. You’ve talked about Diana Gabaldon before–I should read her, I think.
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IMO endorses new protocols designed to lift barriers to crew changes
IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim urged Member States to implement the protocols. Image: IMO
Governments and their relevant national authorities should do everything possible to allow crew changes to happen, according to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) which has endorsed new protocols designed to lift barriers to crew repatriation.
The wide-ranging protocols contain recommendations to maritime administrations and other relevant national authorities such as health, customs, immigration, border control, seaport and civil aviation authorities.
They address the roles of shipping companies, agents and representatives, including crew agencies and seafarers, and extend to seaports, airports and airlines involved in travel operations for ship crew changes.
IMO Secretary-General Kitack Lim urged Member States to implement the protocols. 'In view of the importance of international maritime transport to the resilience of the global economy at this critical time, Governments are strongly encouraged to take urgent action to address this issue.'
G20 Governments have committed to minimising disruptions to trade and global supply chains, and have identified the need to prioritise keeping air and sea logistics networks open and functioning efficiently.
Shipping companies and airlines are cooperating to meet this priority by ensuring that reliable operations can continue throughout the coronavirus pandemic. However, these networks will come to a halt if replacement ship crews are unavailable for duty due to the lack of available flights and other restrictions affecting the travel and movement of ship crews.
This critical issue is increasingly taking on a humanitarian dimension for those crews which have already spent many months at sea, and which urgently need to be repatriated to their home countries and replaced.
Apart from the need for shipping companies to comply with international regulations and contractual obligations, service periods on board ships cannot be extended indefinitely due to the dangerous impacts this has for the well-being of ship crew and, most importantly, safe ship operations.
The IMO document - Coronavirus (COVID-19) – Recommended framework of protocols for ensuring safe ship crew changes and travel during the coronavirus
(COVID-19) pandemic
For further information and guidance on COVID-19, please see the IMO's dedicated coronavirus pages
IMO – the International Maritime Organization – is the United Nations specialized agency with responsibility for the safety and security of shipping and the prevention of marine pollution by ships.
Nautilus members who are concerned or are experiencing difficulties related to the coronavirus outbreak are advised to contact their industrial organiser for assistance. In an emergency, members can also contact the Nautilus 24/7 helpline.
More Nautilus assistance and our coronavirus resource hub can be found on our Assistance page.
international maritime organization
Nautilus FAQs on Covid-19 Coronavirus
Crew change for seafarers must be top of the agenda, says INTERCARGO
Dry cargo ship owners stepped up for seafarers as ships around the world honked their horns for International Labour Day on May 1 in support of the #HeroesAtSea social media campaign.
Stranded seafarers should be airlifted home, says Union
Seafarers who are unable to get off their ships due to coronavirus should be airlifted home, says Nautilus deputy general secretary Marcel van den Broek.
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Submitted by Simon Rosenberg on 4/25/19
Election and political analysis has been a major program area for NDN over the past 20 years. Here you can our work on the 2020 general election and democratic primary, Trump's popularity through three years in office, and more detailed geographic/demographic analysis. As well, our 2018, 2016, and 2014 election analyses are also available for your review.
On Wednesdays, be sure to catch our weekly look via Zoom at the 2020 elections and US politics. We do it every week at 2 pm ET, with alternating topics each week. The data is always fresh and current, so if you join us each week, you will always learn something new.
You can also find NDN’s analysis referenced in these recent articles in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Washington Post (here, here and here), Salon, Politico, US News and The Daily Beast.
Thursday Poll Roundups
Every Thursday (and some Fridays) NDN publishes its Poll Roundup, a deep dive into recent polling and political trends. You can sign up to receive it each week and feel free to review previous editions too. Some of our more recent work is below.
Analysis: There's A Whole Lotta Voting Going On! - Simon Rosenberg, NDN, 10/15/20 - Enormous numbers of people are voting early this year, in person and via mail. It is a welcome sign for our struggling democracy; and practically, all this voting is going to make it harder for Trump to manipulate the election outcome.
Analysis: It Has Been A Very Bad Week of Polling for Trump and the GOP - Simon Rosenberg, NDN, 9/29/20 - Despite desperate tactics, Trump isn't gaining ground against Biden. If anything the race may be beginning to slip away.
Analysis: Is McConnell leading the GOP off an electoral and political cliff? - Simon Rosenberg, NDN, 9/21/20 - Mitch McConnell's craven rush to replace RBG looks like a huge mistake, and raises further questions about whether McConnell's repeated mistakes this year is leading his conference off an electoral cliff.
Trump Is On An Electoral Crime Spree - Simon Rosenberg, Medium, 9/9/20 - The President has launched a breathtakingly broad effort to hold on to power through wide-scale cheating, treachery and illegal use of the US government to aide his campaign. Far more should be happening to make it stop.
Demographic/Geographic Analysis
Trump Has a Serious Young Voter Problem (Updated) - Simon Rosenberg, Medium, 9/25/20 - As more data comes in it's becoming clearer that Trump has a serious young voter problem. He's way below his 2016 numbers, and Biden's margin rivals the largest we've ever seen with 18-29 year olds in recent history.
Analysis: Should Dems Go For It? - Simon Rosenberg, NDN, 7/10/20 - The Biden campaign faces a big strategy choice in the coming days - how manystates to play in? How big shoulld the battlefield be? Argument for going big is very compelling right now.
Americans Under 45 Are Breaking Hard Toward The Democrats - And For Good Reason - Simon Rosenberg and Chris Taylor, NDN, 8/2/19 - Among the most significant political developments of the Trump era is the dramatic shift of under 45 year old voters towards the Democrats.From 2000 to 2016 D margin w/under 45s was 6 points. In 2018 it was 25.
Dems Have Already Won Back Voters In The Rust Belt. It's Trump Who Needs To Win Them Back Now - Simon Rosenberg, NDN, 6/5/19 - It is a myth that Trump's anti-immigrant and protectionist policies have made it difficult for Democrats to win in the Rust Belt in 2020. Trump is trailing badly there now raising questions about Trumpism itself has become a grand failure.
Notes On The GOP's Erosion In The Southwest - Simon Rosenberg, NDN, 2/11/19 - The dramatic erosion of the GOP brand in the heavily Mexican-American parts of the country over the past two elections is one of the biggest stories in American politics. Trump's border extremism has cost the GOP dearly, and it hasn't kept the industrial north from slipping away.
In All Important Florida, Democrats Lost Ground With Hispanic Voters - Simon Rosenberg, NDN, 11/9/18 - In a year when Democrats made gains with Hispanics across the nation, Florida Democrats saw their performance with Hispanics decline. Work has to be done to figure out why.
Among "New Coalition" Voters, Democrats Have Best Performance Ever - Simon Rosenberg, NDN, 11/9/18. In the 2018 elections Democrats had their best showing ever with 18-29s, 18-44s and Asian-Americans, 2nd best with Hispanics. Bodes well for 2020 and many elections to come.
$38 Million For Beto, And Why It Matters - Simon Rosenberg, NDN, 10/30/18 - Democrats have been raising a lot of money this cycle. This is not just about fear of Trump - it is about the broad adoption of a more authentic people based politics suited for the digital age championed by Dean, Obama, and yes even Trump himself.
Europe's Elections: Liberals and Greens Make Gains, Right Loses Ground - Simon Rosenberg, NDN, 5/28/19 - In both Europe and the US, a new politics is emerging in opposition to the extremism of the far right. It emphasizes political pragmatism and the embrace of trade and immigration, while also focusing on the significant threat of climate change.
Democrats Must Demonstrate Greater Leadership In Challenging Trump's Ruinous Trade Policy - Simon Rosenberg, Twitter, 5/8/19 - Democrats should be more aggressive in challenging Trump’s tariffs and trade policies given the failure of those policies to achieve their objectives and growing discontent with them around the country.
Iowa, Trump, and the Politics of Globalization/Tariffs - Chris Taylor, NDN, 10/12/18 - Trump’s trade policies are hurting the Iowa economy. His tariffs are unpopular there, and his party is performing badly in the fall elections. Some thoughts on what this means for the Democratic presidential race starting soon.
Media Citations: You can find NDN in recent stories about the national political landscape in the AP, Hearst Media/San Antonio Express News, NBC News, Washington Monthly and Washington Post (here, here, here). Our most important recent citations are below.
Joe Biden Identifies The No. 1 Threat: Trump - Greg Sargent, The Washington Post, 4/25/19 - Key passage: As Democratic strategist Simon Rosenberg, who worked on House races in 2018, told me, Democrats realized that both Democratic and swing voters wanted candidates who offered a "safe port in a storm" at a moment of perceived extreme danger in the form of Trump, which is why Democrats recruited many candidates with records of accomplishment and an aura of solidity and competence.
The Biggest Field Yet. No Frontrunner. A Divided Base. Welcome To The 2020 Democratic Primary - Molly Ball and Philip Elliott, Time Magazine, Cover Package, 2/21/19 - Key passage: “The Democratic Party is going through a very large transformation,” says party operative Simon Rosenberg, who’s backed the winning candidate in every primary since 1988 but has no favorite this time. “The era of Clinton and Obama is ending and ceding to a new set of dynamics. A new Democratic Party is being forged in front of our eyes.”
This Is Why Republicans And Democrats Aren't Talking To Each Other In Washington - Ron Brownstein, CNN, 1/8/19 - Key passage: "It's fair to say that the House campaign in 2018 executed on a politics that we first saw with Obama in 2007 and 2008: It aligned the House with the way that Obama began to reorient the Democratic Party," said Rosenberg, who consulted with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee through the campaign. "There were many people who were saying that Obama's embrace of this new coalition [that was younger, more diverse, better-educated, and more urbanized] was the cause of Democratic decline in the Senate and the House. It was never true. But what was true was that Democrats had never resigned themselves to having to lean into this new coalition that Obama constructed. Now they did in 2018 -- they leaned into it -- and look what happened."
Simon Rosenberg's blog
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Home Business Business News
Telephone services poor in Malawi—Macra
in Business News
The Malawi Communication Regulatory Authority (Macra) says it is aware of poor quality of telephone service in the country and will soon implement independent means of verifying the quality.
RBM upbeat on inflation outlook
IMF head, economist differ on spending
Budget deficts to persist—economists
Macra, in the quality of service report for third quarter (July to September) 2012 published on Thursday, says although there has been some improvement in the delivery of service, more needs to be done.
“While the averages look good on paper after aggregated quarterly averages, Macra is aware that consumers are experiencing poor quality of services from the operators in some areas of service delivery,” says the report.
Macra is thus assuring the public that it will facilitate the introduction of independent means of verifying the submitted data from operators to protect consumers in respect of quality and variety of service and prices charged.
The report says the overall performance of Access Communication Limited (ACL) needs to improve on radio network availability as part of its efforts to offer quality ICT services to Malawians in line with the established regulatory.
On the indicator, it, however, says ACL managed to meet the target in August, but failed to meet the target in July and September during the quarter under review.
Macra however commends TNM on, among others, call set up success rate, traffic channel congestion, handover success rate and radio network availability.
Airtel has been advised to improve in the radio network availability as its performance in this indicator was below acceptable levels in the period under review.
BT United confront difficult questions today
Malawi to hire expatriate coach
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Paranormal investigations a fast-growing hobby
24 May 2015 | Ghost Hunting, Ghosts in the news
Saurabh Singh is a commercial pilot who’s just conquered a deep fear. It wasn’t fear of flying but a dread of the dark and of what he might encounter in its depths that had Singh spooked for years. Until a few months ago, he wouldn’t even sleep without his bedroom lights on. But a three-month course in paranormal studies has changed all that. “The course equipped me with knowledge of what ghosts are all about and how to deal with them. Now, I sleep peacefully in the dark, secure in my new-found knowledge,” says Singh.
He is not alone in the pursuit of the unknown. An increasing number of urban Indian professionals are signing up for courses and training in paranormal sciences from a host of institutes that have mushroomed across India. And the cost of these courses — which can touch Rs 75,000 — is no deterrent.
Some, like Singh, sign up to face their fears, but for others it’s all about the thrill and sense of adventure. “When I started the Indian Paranormal Society a few years back, the word ‘paranormal’ was not familiar to everyone. I am happy that so many people are now taking interest in paranormal investigations. Ghosts are nothing but human consciousness without a physical body,” says Delhi-based Gaurav Tiwari, the country’s most famous ghost-hunter.
His Indian Paranormal Society runs the Ghost Research & Investigators of Paranormal (GRIP) academy from which, Tiwari says, around 3,700 have ‘graduated’. The academy’s three-month-long course can cost anything between Rs 45,000 and Rs 75,000 depending on the level of specialisation one wants to achieve.
It includes training in the use of ghost-hunting devices such as the electromagnetic field meter, infra-red thermometer, electronic voice phone, full spectrum cameras etc.
These can detect changes in electromagnetic field and temperatures which, paranormal investigators point out, can be indicators of paranormal activity.
Has Tiwari come across any such activity? Quite often, he says, citing an investigation he conducted last year in Delhi’s Karkardooma court where advocates complained of unexplained events at night. “The lawyers installed CCTV cameras and one day, at around 11.55pm, they saw all the computers getting switched on.
They also saw a bright light in the shape of a ball. When I was called to conduct my investigation after a few days, I put balloons on every computer and ordered aloud (to a suspected paranormal entity) to switch on the computers, move the balloons left and right, and to open the web browser. All these commands were carried out. Our electronic voice phenomena recorder also captured a voice that asked us to ‘get out’. The place was really haunted,” he says.
Around 50 paranormal teams and societies across India are in the pursuit of such paranormal occurrences, with Delhi alone boasting of over a dozen. Interestingly, a lot of these are run by doctors and engineers.
Kolkata-based Soumen is a mechanical engineer by day and a self-taught paranormal investigator by night. He was attracted to the paranormal during spiritual classes in his school where ‘soul’ was an often-repeated word. Like Tiwari, he too believes that ghosts are human consciousness. “Ghosts do not appear in white saris as most people have come to believe from movies. Their paranormal activity is nothing but an attempt to complete the task they couldn’t complete in their lifetime. This generally happens when someone dies in an accident,” says Somen, who founded the Paranormal Society of India (PRSI) along with a lawyer friend.
The most common signs of a place being haunted, he says, are unexplained shadows and noises, the feeling of being watched, lights turning on and off on their own, balls of unexplained light, eerie crying, unexplained handprints etc. “But in 90% cases that we handle, there is no real haunting,” says Soumen.
Bangalore-based dentist Rahul Kumar says he turned a paranormal investigator because science cannot explain everything. “Many behavioral and physical conditions of man lie beyond the boundaries of medical science. There are many doctors in our team of paranormal investigators who discuss cases that medical science cannot explain,” says Kumar, who is part of the Pentacle Paranormal Research Society.
The society, set up by former journalist Shishir Kumar takes the study of the paranormal a notch higher to include the mysteries of extra-terrestrials and UFOs.
Team Pentacle, which claims to have captured the first ever full-body apparition in India, runs the Institute of Paranormal Research and UFOlogy. “Our team has doctors, engineers, physiotherapists and charted accountants who blend the psychic and scientific approach in paranormal investigations,” says Mumbai-based Shishir, adding that most cases come from Mumbai and Pune.
Source: http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/the-new-paranormal-ghostbusting-a-fast-growing-hobby/article1-1350594.aspx
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Trump, on tape, presses Ga. official to ‘find’ Trump votes
Sen. Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga., greets a crowd after she spoke at a campaign rally on Saturday, Jan. 2, 2021, in Cumming, Ga. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
FILE - In this Dec. 21, 2020, file photo Democratic U.S. Senate challenger the Rev. Raphael Warnock speaks during a rally in Columbus, Ga. with Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and fellow Democratic U.S. Senate challenger Jon Ossoff. (AP Photo/Ben Gray, File)
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger speaks during a presser Monday, Dec. 14, 2020, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
President Donald Trump badgered and pleaded with Georgia’s election chief to overturn Joe Biden’s win in the state, suggesting in a telephone call that the official “find” enough votes to hand Trump the victory.
The conversation Saturday was the latest step in an unprecedented effort by a sitting president to pressure a state official to reverse the outcome of a free and fair election that he lost. The renewed intervention and the persistent and unfounded claims of fraud by the first president to lose reelection in almost 30 years come nearly two weeks before Trump leaves office and two days before twin runoffs in Georgia that will determine control of the Senate.
Trump confirmed in a tweet Sunday that he had spoken with Georgia’s secretary of state, Republican Brad Raffensperger, a day earlier.
Audio snippets of the conversation were posted online by The Washington Post. A recording of the call was later obtained by The Associated Press from a person who was on the call.
The president, who has refused to accept his loss to the Democratic president-elect, is heard telling Raffensperger at one point: “All I want to do is this. I just want to find 11,780 votes, which is one more than we have. Because we won the state.”
Georgia’s certified election results show Biden won the state’s Nov. 3 election by 11,779 votes.
The White House referred questions to Trump’s reelection campaign, which did not respond Sunday to an emailed request for comment. Raffensperger’s office did not respond to a text message seeking comment.
Biden senior adviser Bob Bauer said the recording was “irrefutable proof” of Trump pressuring and threatening an official in his own party to “rescind a state’s lawful, certified vote count and fabricate another in its place.”
“It captures the whole, disgraceful story about Donald Trump’s assault on American democracy,” Bauer said.
At another point in the conversation, Trump appeared to threaten Raffensperger and Ryan Germany, the secretary of state’s legal counsel, by suggesting both could be criminally liable if they failed to find that thousands of ballots in Fulton County had been illegally destroyed. There is no evidence to support Trump’s claim.
“That’s a criminal offence,” Trump says. “And you can’t let that happen.
Trump has repeatedly attacked how Raffensperger ran Georgia’s elections, claiming without evidence that the state’s 16 electoral votes were wrongly given to Biden.
“He has no clue!” Trump tweeted of Raffensperger, saying the state official “was unwilling, or unable” to answer questions about a series of claims about ballot handling and voters that have been debunked or shot down by judges and election authorities.
Raffensperger’s Twitter response: “Respectfully, President Trump: What you’re saying is not true. The truth will come out.”
There was no widespread fraud in the election, which a range of election officials across the country, as well as Trump’s former attorney general, William Barr, have confirmed. Republican governors in Arizona and Georgia, key battleground states crucial to Biden’s victory, have also vouched for the integrity of the elections in their states. Nearly all the legal challenges from Trump and his allies have been dismissed by judges, including two tossed by the Supreme Court, which includes three Trump-nominated justices.
The Senate runoffs pit Sen. Kelly Loeffler against Democrat Raphael Warnock and Sen. David Perdue against Democrat Jon Ossoff. With the Senate up for grabs, the candidates and outside groups supporting them have spent hundreds of millions of dollars in the contests, deluging Georgia with television ads, mail, phone calls and door-knocking efforts.
Loeffler said she had not decided whether to join Republican colleagues in challenging the legitimacy of Biden’s victory over Trump. The Democratic candidates whose wins Tuesday would help clear roadblocks for the new administration’s agenda awaited a campaign visit from Vice-President-elect Kamala Harris.
Trump has persisted in attacking top Georgia Republicans over his election loss in the state, raising fears that his words could cause some Republicans to stay away from the polls.
“I believe that we will win on Tuesday because of the grassroots momentum, the unprecedented movement energy in Georgia right now,” Ossoff told CNN’s “State of the Union.” He said “it feels in Georgia like we are on the cusp of a historic victory.”
Loeffler, when asked about siding with the growing group of Senate Republicans seeking to contest the Electoral College count, said she was “looking very closely at it, and I’ve been one of the first to say, everything’s on the table.” She told “Fox News Sunday” that ”I’m fighting for this president because he’s fought for us. He’s our president and we’re going to keep making sure that this is a fair election.”
Warnock, the senior pastor at Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta who has continued to preach as he campaigns for office, seemed to allude to the runoff in a message delivered Sunday. He told viewers watching remotely due to the pandemic that they are “on the verge of victory” in their lives if they accept that God has already equipped them with the ability to overcome their adversaries.
“When God is with you, you can defeat giants,” said Warnock, who ended the early morning service by encouraging Georgians to vote on Tuesday. “It’s so very important that your voice be heard in this defining moment in our country,” he said. “I would not be so presumptuous as to tell you who to vote for.”
Loeffler was appointed to fill a vacancy when Republican Johnny Isakson resigned his seat, and she will be in the Senate, win or lose this coming week, until the election is certified. Perdue’s seat will temporarily be vacant after his term expires Sunday at the end of six years.
Harris was scheduled to be in Savannah on Sunday afternoon. Trump and Biden plan last-minute, in-person efforts Monday to mobilize voters after more than 3 million people cast ballots early.
The president continues to create turbulence for Loeffler and Perdue by questioning Biden’s narrow victory in Georgia and the reliability of the state’s election systems.
Trump also tweeted that Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan, also Republicans, “have done less than nothing. They are a disgrace to the great people of Georgia!”
The president last week called on Kemp to resign; the governor dismissed it as a “distraction.”
Despite the attacks, Loeffler said she believed voters would heed Trump’s expected plea during his upcoming visit that they should turn out.
“He’s going to tell voters the same thing: You have to get out and vote Georgia, because this is too important,” Loeffler said.
Perdue, who is in quarantine after being exposed to a staff member with the coronavirus and won’t appear with Trump at Monday’s rally, said he would have joined the electoral challenge in the Senate if he had been in Washington. “I’m encouraging my colleagues to object. This is something that the American people demand right now,” he told Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures.”
Superville reported from Washington.
Jeff Amy, Darlene Superville And Kate Brumback, The Associated Press
‘Sky is the limit:’ Pilot project using drones to send medical supplies, COVID tests
Alberta helicopter crash victims identified as parents, two children in family of seven
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NECP has a flexible instrumentation that allows us to perform a wide variety of repertoire along the continuum of classical composition.
We are dedicated to performing modern, contemporary, and American works as part of that continuum.
Pieces marked with * are by American composers and those in bold have been composed in the last 60 years.
Beaser “Il est né, le Divin Enfant” (Flute, Guitar) 1982*
Beaser “Mountain Songs” (Flute, Guitar) 1984*
Brahms "Sonata" Op. 120 No. 2 Eb major (Clarinet, Piano) 1894
Cahuzac “Cantilena” (Clarinet, Piano) 1971
Gabaye “Sonatine” (Flute, Bassoon) 1962
Koechlin “Sonatine Modale” (Flute, Clarinet) 1936
Libermann “Sonata” (Flute, Harp) 1997*
Piazzola “Histoire du Tango” (Flute, Guitar) 1986
Rebay “Sonata in d minor” (Clarinet, Guitar) 1941
Ravel trans. Weston “5 Mélodies populaires grecques” (Clarinet Harp) 1905
Ravel trans. Weston “2 Mélodies hébraïques” (Clarinet, Harp) 1914
Reade “Suite from a ‘Victorian Kitchen Garden’” (Clarinet, Harp) 1991
Roussel “Deux Poèms du Ronsard” (Soprano, Flute) 1924
Schumann "Three Romances" Op. 94 (Oboe, Piano) 1849
Uebayashi "Suite" (Flute, Cello) 2004
Bax “Elegaic Trio” (Flute, Viola, Harp) 1916
Beethoven “Serenade” (Flute, Violin, Viola) 1795
Beethoven “Variations on ‘La ci darem la mano’” (Flute, Clarinet, Bassoon) 1790
Brahms “Clarinet Trio” (Clarinet, Cello, Piano) 1891
Brahms "Horn Trio" Op. 40 (Violin, Horn, Piano) 1865
Bruch “Eight Pieces” (Clarinet, Viola, Piano) 1909
Debussy “Trio” (Flute, Viola, Harp) 1915
Gaubert Tarentelle (Flute, Oboe, Piano) 1910
Kreutzer “Trio” (Flute, Clarinet, Guitar) 1823
Ives "Largo" (Violin, Clarinet, Piano) 1901
Mahler arr. Zimra “Wir geiessen” from Symphony 4 (Soprano, Clarinet, Piano) 1899
Mendelssohn “Concert Piece No. 2” (Clarinet, Bassoon, Piano) 1833
Mozart “Trio ‘Keggelstatt’” (Clarinet, Viola, Piano) 1788
Pierné “Bucolique Variée” (Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon) 1947
Rebay “Trio” (Flute, Clarinet, Guitar) 1941
Schubert “Shepherd on the Rock” (Soprano, Clarinet, Piano) 1828
Schuller “Romantic Sonata” (Clarinet, Horn, Piano) 1941/1983*
Shostakovich “Four Waltzes” (Flute/ Piccolo, Clarinet, Harp) 1955
Weber “Trio in g minor” (Flute, Cello, Piano) 1818
Bozza “Trois Piéces Pour Une Musique de Nuit” (Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon) 1954
Crusell “Clarinet Quartet in C Minor” Op. 4 (Clarinet and String Trio) 1817
Françaix “Quatuor” (Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon) 1933
Garfield “Quartet” (Bassoon, String Trio) 1950
Mozart arr. Munclinger “Adagio & Allegro” (Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon) 1790
Mozart arr. Munclinger “Fantasia” (Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon) 1791
Ravel “Chansons madécasses” (Mezzo-soprano, Flute, Cello, Piano) 1924
Saint-Saëns “Caprice sur des airs Danois et Russes” (Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Piano) 1887
Arnold “Three Shanties” (Wind Quintet) 1967
Beach Pastorale (Wind Quintet) 1942*
Beethoven “Piano Quintet” Op. 16 (Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon, Horn, Piano) 1796
Beethoven arr. Thompson “Sextet” (Wind Quintet) 1796
Bozza “Variations sur un theme libre” (Wind Quintet) 1943
Debussy arr. Munclinger “Childrens’ Corner” (Wind Quintet) 1906
Debussy arr. Munclinger “Petite Suite” (Wind Quintet) 1886
Grant- Still "Miniatures" (Wind Quintet) 1948/1963 *
Haydn arr. Jones “Divertemento No. 1 ‘St. Anthony’” (Wind Quintet) 1782
Hindemith “Kleine Kammermusik No. 2” (Wind Quintet) 1922
Ipollitov-Ivanov “An Evening in Georgia” (Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon, Piano) 1935
Mozart “Clarinet Quintet” (Clarinet, String Quartet) 1789
Mozart “Piano Quintet in Eb Major” (Oboe, Clarinet, Bassoon, Horn, Piano) 1784
Maslanka "Wind Quintet No. 3" (Wind Quintet) 1999*
Nielsen “Quintet” Op. 43 (Wind Quintet)
Piazolla arr. Scott “Oblivion” (Wind Quintet) 1982
Ponchielli Quartet with Piano (Flute, Oboe, Eb Clarinet, Clarinet, Piano) 1888
Prokofiev arr. Fine “Peter and the Wolf” (Wind Quintet, Narrator) 1936
Ravel arr. Munclinger “Mother Goose Suite” (Wind Quintet) 1910
Schuller “Suite” (Wind Quintet) 1958*
Wallace "Gloaming in Perpetuum" (Wind Quintet) 2007*
Beethoven “Octet” Op. 103 (2 Obs, 2 Cls, 2 Bsns, 2 hrns) 1792
Mozart “Serenade No. 12” K. 388 (2 Obs, 2 Cls, 2 Bsns, 2 hrns) 1782
Poulenc “Sextet” (Wind Quintet, Piano) 1931/1939
Ravel “Introduction and Allegro” (Flute, Clarinet, String Quartet, Harp) 1905
Roussel Divertissement Op. 6 (Wind Quintet and Piano) 1924
Thuille "Sextet" (Wind Quintet, Piano) 1888
Stravinsky “Soldier’s Tale” (Clarinet, Bassoon, Trumpet, Trombone, Violin, Bass, Percussion) 1918
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> News Xtend > News > EVENTS > Facebook’s CMO talks Candour, Privacy, and Diversity at AWAPAC 2019
Dionne Alaveras
News Xtend, Social Media Account Manager
Facebook’s CMO talks Candour, Privacy, and Diversity at AWAPAC 2019
With Sydney’s Luna Park as its backdrop, Advertising Week APAC 2019 took place last week.
A spot where imagination and innovation has long inflicted thrills and excitement to Sydney goers. The perfect destination to house Advertising Week.
The keynote speakers, brands and industry leaders complimented this notion of how imagination, innovation and technology can not only result in efficient problem solving, but modern day, tangible magic.
Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and other tech heavyweights were all on display. Showcasing their respective magic.
Their thought leaders also on display, educating budding advertisers and exploring notions that shape not only the technology, but the means and agendas behind them.
AWAPAC’s last day was Thursday, and it ended with a bang. The bang started, with Facebook’s Chief Marketing Officer, Antonio Luccio taking the keynote speaker stage.
Luccio dived into Facebook’s primary goals as a dominating platform, what he brings to the company, the importance of telling one’s truths and accepting the challenges of diversity.
“As a marketer I enjoy the platforms. I keep in touch with my daughters on Facebook and know what shoes they want on Instagram. I believe in the platforms. Where liberal democracies are being questioned, more people need to find their voice and connect,”claimed Luccio.
Facebook has been under heat in the last year. Privacy has never carried so much weight, irrespective of its density, it is still easily thrown around.
Luccio’s first job was to tell Facebook’s truth in the face of their recent privacy mishap and investigation with the FCP, he did this, by consolidating Facebook’s voice. A concept, many marketing and business owners know is crucial.
His job was to build trust between Facebook and its users.
“Trust cannot be built by word alone, it has to be built by meaningful actions. You then have to ensure those actions are communicated to the right audiences,” and Luccio’s first project was all about allowing Facebook to speak their truth.
Luccio went further to defend Facebook’s agenda, claiming that they have the responsibility (as a platform) to protect the interest of billions of users, the over 400,000 businesses that advertise on Facebook and journalists.
Luccio and Facebook believe in free press. They believe Facebook has a part to play in the current sphere and it is their responsibility to protect all voices and individual truths that are shared on Facebook.
Luccio claims this is strongly campaigned by Facebook’s founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
Luccio claims that Zuckerberg is “more thoughtful and more worried about his legacy. He doesn’t need the money, he wants to make sure that the platforms he has built works for people and advertisers in meaningful ways.”
Luccio also claims that Facebook is facing a challenge in the wake of the privacy mishap, this being trust.
“Rebuilding trust on all apps. To do that, we need to be purposeful. I have seen radical and fundamental change [at Facebook], slowing down to ensure things are right before you ship them.”
When looking at Australia and how Australian advertisers use Facebook and its family of apps, Luccio claims that “the marketing capability of Australia is the top 3 in the world. Australians have strong and thoughtful points of view.”
Luccio also touched on the need for diversity, not only at Facebook but throughout his career, specifically, when selecting his teams.
“Diversity has been a driver in my career. When it comes to complicated tasks, diverse teams do better. The types of stuff we do is complicated, we have products consumed by everyone around the world. So we need teams that mirror the communities we serve.”
In Luccios warm and honest nature, he made the next point that sent shocks and laughs throughout the room.
“Managing diverse teams is a pain in the neck. As you have to manage conflict”.
Luccio paints a picture of this notion with a workplace anecdote. Comparing his diverse team, to a non-diverse team at a former company.
“The non-diverse team is singing ‘we are family’ and my diverse team, is fighting. If you as a manager are to embrace diversity, you need to embrace conflict as a positive thing.”
Finishing off with a wry smile and unwavering sophistication, Luccio revisited the importance of candour.
“It is important to speak with candour. You need heads and hearts aligned with what you want to do.”
Got a question about digital marketing? Need some help getting started? Or maybe you just want to chat. Fill out your details below and we’ll be in touch.
The notion of frankness, honesty and trust. Luccio spoke his and Facebook’s truth and their challenges as a collective, in ensuring Facebook is a platform that celebrates candour in its purest form.
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Patrick Mahomes, Joey Bosa headline NFL All-Under-25 Team
Published: May 29, 2019 at 03:44 AM
Marc Sessler
Who are the most promising rising stars in the NFL? Marc Sessler compiled a roster of the top players under 25 years old heading into the 2019 season. Note that players must be less than 25 years old on Sept. 5, the day the season kicks off. Players have been listed with their age as of Sept. 5.
Quarterback: Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs (23 years old as of Sept. 5). No need to get too cute out of the gate: Mahomes is the clear choice under center after an MVP campaign that rewarded fans with more than just bursting box scores. Yes, the Chiefs passer notched the kind of statistical feats that make keyboard-facing number bods hot and bothered (for starters, his 134.2 passer rating from a clean pocket marked the highest qualifying single-season mark in the 13-year history of Pro Football Focus) while tossing for 5,097 yards at 8.8 yards per attempt with 50 touchdowns and 12 picks. It's about how the newbie starter did it, though, beguiling cover men and puzzling even the smartest chess players with a fast-arriving ball that left defenses out of position all season long. With Mahomes at the helm, the Chiefs were an explosive beast with a knack for raining down points like an NBA team on a 24-2 run. It's fair to expect Mahomes' numbers to regress some in 2019, but that doesn't diminish his physical gifts. Cleveland's Baker Mayfield (24) would be my second choice here -- with so much to like -- but Mahomes is the unquestioned leader today.
Running back: Ezekiel Elliott, Dallas Cowboys (24 as of Sept. 5). Elliott remains firmly in place as a do-everything workhorse in Dallas, one who led the NFL in ground yards per game for the third straight campaign in 2018. He might not top last year's 77 catches -- he amassed just 58 total grabs during his first two seasons -- but the fourth overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft remains a danger through the air. It's fair to wonder how long he can churn out 330-plus touches per year, but no current doubts exist about Elliott's immense meaning to the Cowboys as one of the more watchable and fascinating rumblers of our generation.
Running back: Saquon Barkley, New York Giants (22 as of Sept. 5). What more could you ask from a rookie? The Offensive Rookie of the Year had nine big-play snaps of 40-plus yards -- five more than any other back. The second overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft also finished second among runners with 91 catches and rolled through his rookie season as the central focus of New York's offense. Like Elliott before him, Barkley has fully delivered on his lofty draft pedigree. It's worth noting that Todd Gurley -- knee concerns aside -- turns 25 on Aug. 3, before the opener.
Running back: Alvin Kamara, New Orleans Saints (24 as of Sept. 5). After tossing and turning over a variety of combinations that would dump either Elliott, Barkley or Kamara to the curb, I've come up with a solution: We'll use all three -- at once. Envision Zeke, Saquon and Alvin bouncing around unhindered out of a grisly combination of Wishbone and Power I sets. Will we go heavy up the middle? Or unleash Kamara into the flats to employ the same jaw-dropping physical gifts that allowed him to freak out the league with back-to-back 81-catch campaigns? Kamara can run, too, blasting into would-be tacklers with more power than expected, for 5.1 yards per carry over 31 appearances.
When teams think they've figured us out, that's when we'll begin to unleash -- for quarters at a time -- variations of the T formation, the glorious flexbone triple option and the esoteric Notre Dame Box, before psychologically breaking the enemy with 25 straight runs out of the Maryland Power I.
Once we've gone 16-0, my editors can issue their rebuttal for including a third back on MY FOOTBALL LIST.
Wide receiver: JuJu Smith-Schuster, Pittsburgh Steelers (22 as of Sept. 5). Pittsburgh sets the bar when it comes to finding and developing wideouts. Some balked when 2009 third-rounder Mike Wallace was allowed to hit the market in 2012. The Steelers, though, knew what they had in Antonio Brown, despite the former sixth-round pick failing to reach 70 catches in any of his first three campaigns. Smith-Schuster's ceiling already feels inspired by Michelangelo; consider that he pulled down 111 balls for 1,426 yards last season with Brown still in the lineup. Age aside, JuJu has already become one of the league's anchoring stars. The question is whether Pittsburgh can flip the switch on second-year (and suddenly vastly important) wideout James Washington.
Wide receiver: D.J. Moore, Carolina Panthers (22 as of Sept. 5). The age cutoff for this piece eliminates a flock of stars -- Tyreek Hill (25), Michael Thomas (26), Mike Evans (25) and Amari Cooper (turning 25 in June) -- but Moore fits here as Carolina's tough-as-nails heir to Steve Smith. The rookie brought rugged traits to Carolina's air attack, finishing second league-wide in missed tackles (17) and first in yards after the catch per reception (7.91) among wideouts with 40-plus grabs. Corners, safeties and cowed would-be tacklers learned that Moore delights in chaos, as the first-rounder led all receivers in yards after contact per reception (5.06), the mark of a formidable punch-for-punch pass-catcher anointed by Smith as his "spirit animal," with Smith saying: "They have never been able to replace me. Until today." Atlanta's Calvin Ridley is equally deserving, but Moore is my choice today.
Tight end: O.J. Howard, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (24 as of Sept. 5). Before you ask, San Francisco's George Kittle already hit the quarter-century mark in October. Howard, however, fits here -- and remains my choice over the also-inviting David Njoku (22) -- after a tantalizing second season that saw him emerge as a strong-handed pass-catcher who now owns 60 receptions, 997 yards and 11 touchdowns over 24 tilts. In a post-Gronk universe, Howard is a candidate to fill that unfillable space. Questions linger over his usage in an offense led by Bruce Arians, who has historically deemphasized tight ends, but the Bucs coach never housed a toy like this in Arizona.
Offensive tackles: Braden Smith, Indianapolis Colts (23 as of Sept. 5) and Orlando Brown Jr., Baltimore Ravens (23 as of Sept. 5). After dominating at Auburn as a road-grading guard, the versatile Smith finished his rookie season as PFF's 18th-ranked tackle. Colts general manager Chris Ballard told reporters Smith would be given this offseason to stay and grow at right tackle -- that's good enough for me. Across from Smith, we've got Baltimore's Orlando Brown Jr., who needs polish as a run-blocker but gives our squad a wild-bodied 6-foot-8, 345-pound protector up front. Age prohibited us from nabbing Ryan Ramczyk (25), Laremy Tunsil, Mike McGlinchey, Jack Conklin, Taylor Moton (all turning 25 in August), Ronnie Stanley (25), George Fant (26) or Taylor Decker (25).
Offensive guards: Quenton Nelson, Indianapolis Colts (23 as of Sept. 5) and Will Hernandez, New York Giants (24 as of Sept. 5). The Colts keep giving, with the presence of Nelson, who graded out as PFF's fourth-best run-blocking guard and anchored an Indy line that properly protected Andrew Luck for the first time in Earth's history. A nasty football lifer, Nelson would make any gridiron list around -- forget the age requirement. Hernandez, meanwhile, brought a dose of stability to a Giants front lost at sea. Both Andrus Peat and Joe Thuney -- a couple of blue-hairs -- are 25-plus.
Center: Garrett Bradbury, Minnesota Vikings (24 as of Sept. 5). In another move bound to be critiqued by the reader, I've filled our center spot with an untested rookie in Minnesota's first-rounder, Garrett Bradbury. Way I see it, the Vikings already housed Pat Elflein (last year's center selection by colleague Elliot Harrison), who now moves to guard to make room for the newbie, before they selected Bradbury 18th overall. Bradbury is "the prototype starting center in the NFL," one scout told longtime beat writer Bob McGinn. "His size and strength issues will always persist." Doubters take heed: I plan to kick up my feet and drink a stiff glass of Pappy Van Winkle's Family Reserve once proven correct.
Edge rusher: Joey Bosa, Los Angeles Chargers (24 as of Sept. 5).Danielle Hunter (24) and T.J. Watt (24) hover closely, but no way do I pass on adding Bosa to the mix. I don't need him to pen a dense, intricately plotted Russian novel for the public. Instead, he will be used to turn opposing quarterbacks into doomed and greying mincemeat Sunday after Sunday. Durability concerns linger, but I also see a player who missed his entire rookie offseason, only to notch 10.5 takedowns in his first 12 NFL appearances. No assembly required.
Edge rusher: Myles Garrett, Cleveland Browns (23 as of Sept. 5). Housed on our roster, Garrett will be allowed to use more than two moves come kickoff. If it's true that former defensive coordinator Gregg Williams limited Garrett's bag of tricks, that makes his 13.5 sacks under Williams last season look even more remarkable. After leading all qualifying edge defenders with an 18.5 % win rate, per PFF, Garrett stands at the threshold of making his a monster career.
Defensive tackle: Jonathan Allen, Washington Redskins (24 as of Sept. 5). The Redskins love their Alabama defenders, with Allen, Daron Payne, Reuben Foster, Ryan Anderson, Shaun Dion Hamilton and Landon Collins all hailing from the college powerhouse. Injuries stunted Allen as a rookie in 2017, but he showed promise last autumn by winning more pass-rushing battles (11.7 percent) than any qualifying interior defender from his draft class.
Defensive tackle: Kenny Clark, Green Bay Packers (23 as of Sept. 5). More people should know Clark, the somewhat anonymous Green Bay anchor who played well against the run and pass in 2018. Tampa's Vita Vea (24) deserves a mention here, too, while Chris Jones (turning 25 in July), Leonard Williams (turning 25 in June), DeForest Buckner (25) and Sheldon Rankins (25) all missed out due to age.
Linebacker: Darius Leonard, Indianapolis Colts (24 as of Sept. 5). The quickly ascending Colts strike again with another young game-changer in Leonard. The 2018 Defensive Rookie of the Year hit the ground running with 10-plus tackles in a league-leading seven starts. The 6-foot-2, 234-pound seek-and-destroy droid rocked box-score nerdlings with a whopping 19 tackles (15 solo) against the Redskins in Week 2. Ridiculously snubbed as a Pro Bowl entry in December, Leonard vowed to notch 40 tackles against the Giants in Week 16. He fell short, but that changes nothing: The Colts have found the dictionary definition of a centerpiece on defense.
Linebacker: Leighton Vander Esch, Dallas Cowboys (23 as of Sept. 5). Vander Esch was a marvel to the eye as a rookie in 2018, dominating linemen and giving Dallas a lock-and-load tackler who singlehandedly turned the middle of the Dallas defense into a black hole. Down the stretch, Vander Esch and Jaylon Smith (23) -- so close to making this list -- formed the finest linebacker duo in the NFC and made us wonder why Sean Lee was re-signed in March.
Linebacker: Deion Jones, Atlanta Falcons (24 as of Sept. 5). You can make an argument for Jacksonville's Myles Jack (23), but I'm picking Jones in a tight race. Last year was largely a wash after Jones underwent foot surgery following the season opener, but he returned in time for five late-year starts. One of the premier coverage 'backers in the NFL, this young Pro Bowler brings speed and a rare skill set to the position.
Cornerback: Jalen Ramsey, Jacksonville Jaguars (24 as of Sept. 5). Ramsey struggled at times inside a Jacksonville defense held hostage by a confused and wandering offense. None of that stops me from siding with a player who reimagined the position in 2017. One memory sticks: Watching Ramsey, as a rookie, comprehensively maul people during otherwise invisible All-22 special teams snaps. Ramsey brings innate nastiness to the role to go with next-level precision and dedication to the game.
Cornerback: Marshon Lattimore, New Orleans Saints (23 as of Sept. 5). The New Orleans corner fell off a tad from his wondrous Defensive Rookie of the Year campaign in 2017, but Lattimore's dance card featured bouts with Odell Beckham, Mike Evans, Antonio Brown, Alshon Jeffery and Calvin Ridley inside a Saints secondary that took time to figure itself out. Tre'Davious White (24), Denzel Ward (22) and Desmond King II (24) hover beside Lattimore as some of the game's brightest young corners.
Safety: Jamal Adams, New York Jets (23 as of Sept. 5). While I hemmed and hawed at some positions, safety was simple. Adams evolved into a complete player in Year 2, the rare backstop who excels in coverage while operating as a dangerous pass-rushing nuisance. He's a vocal, high-energy leader respected by veterans out of the gate. It's fair to ask if Adams is already the best at what he does.
Safety: Derwin James, Los Angeles Chargers (23 as of Sept. 5). Seen by some as a snub for Defensive Player of the Year, Derwin logged a monster 1,169 defensive snaps as a wire-to-wire rock for the Chargers. Coordinator Gus Bradley was able to reimagine his secondary largely because of the versatility James brought as a rookie. The former Florida State luminary lined up all over the field, brought tangible pass-rushing prowess and finished fourth among qualifying safeties by allowing just 7.1 yards per catch. Who can forget James trash-talking the doomed Ravens during a wild-card tilt that saw him jammed up at the line to stymie scramble-happy QB Lamar Jackson?
Kicker: Harrison Butker, Kansas City Chiefs (24 as of Sept. 5). What's not to like? In an era where a flock of kickers flub extra points left and right, Mr. Butker has pegged 40 of 41 kicks inside 40 yards and nailed 93 of his 97 career PATs. He's reliable from longer ranges and serves as an appropriate fit for Kansas City's high-octane attack. It's worth noting Wil Lutz of the Saints turns 25 before HE'S ALLOWED TO in terms of this exercise.
Punter: Michael Dickson, Seattle Seahawks (23 as of Sept. 5). Finishing as football's second-best punter, via PFF, Dickson capably replaced the long-standing Jon Ryan in Seattle. Only Andy Lee of the Cardinals foisted up a higher average (48.6) than Dickson's 48.2 yards per punt among qualifying punters -- and, while not claiming to serve as a savant on the art of punting, I'd suggest that Arizona's dead-on-arrival offense offered Lee more real estate to work with, thanks to a league-low 21.18 yards per drive.
Returner: Desmond King II, Los Angeles Chargers (24 as of Sept. 5).Tarik Cohen (23) deserves a mention here, but the Bears weapon only returned three kicks last season, including playoffs. One of the game's top slot corners, King put his stamp on last year's Chargers campaign with a flurry of special-teams magic, highlighted by his 73-yard punt return score in a comeback win over Pittsburgh in Week 13. Doubling down in his X-factor status, King also notched a 72-yard kick return in the playoff win over Baltimore.
Follow Marc Sessler on Twitter @MarcSesslerNFL.
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Cecilia's Cocoon by Lawrence Buentello
The first sign of disturbance in Cecilia O’Connell’s life arrived as a dream.
Like many of her dreams, her remembrance of it was faulty—a hazy series of images—several parts of it lost to the waking world. But she did remember the most arresting fragments of it: seeing herself walking through a heavy mist, the tiny droplets falling on her bare arms while wisps of darkness and light swirled before her. She knew something lay beyond the mist, hidden by its thick white curtain, evoking a familiar anxiety in her body which quickly blossomed into dread. She felt compelled to keep moving blindly through the droplets, through the haze, until she was certain she saw a shape in the mist, the grotesque silhouette of an immense insect—
She woke in her bed breathing heavily, her heart excited by the experience, then lay pulling pieces of her dream from uncertain memories. She told herself that it was only a dream, bordering on frightfulness, but not altogether horrifying. The most affecting detail was the sensation of the mist touching her arms, her face—it felt more like the fabric of an opaque white shroud than a mist. But perhaps she was only embellishing a dubious recollection.
After her dream, Cecilia’s life returned to normal. She continued executing the habits of her solitary existence, peering from time to time through the curtains of the windows and nervously anticipating her weekly visit to the market. The rest of her life could be conducted from within the walls of her house where the outside world rarely intruded.
Cecilia had been a bookkeeper for a large manufacturer before retiring, surviving the effects of her agoraphobia by hiding in a cubicle most of the day and then hurrying home when her workday concluded. Therapy and prescription medication helped her complete her professional career, but by the time she had accumulated enough years to earn a pension, therapy and drugs were no longer useful. She sold her car because driving mortified her as much as walking out of doors did, and she retreated to her house to live vicariously through her television, books, and computer, surrendering any hope of living a typical life.
She’d never married: marrying meant courtship, and courtship meant an endless series of debilitating social exercises. Her appearance often left her unnoticed by most people. Now she was sixty years old, gray hair undyed and plain; she had resigned herself to a friendless existence. People observing her from a distance might have seen her as a pathetic case, but from inside of herself Cecilia knew—with perfect clarity—that this was the only existence possible for her.
The next disturbance in Cecilia’s life, which seemed only an annoyance at the time, was a plague of webs that had begun to settle in the eaves of her house.
She noticed them hanging in the corners of the woodwork, beneath window boxes; they even blanketed the soffits. She turned to right the stubborn wire cart she always rolled with her to the corner market and, once she’d righted the cart, she gazed up at the webs in surprise. They had seemed to materialize from air and were beautiful in their own way, shining with a soft white sheen in the sunlight. But curiously, she couldn’t see any webworms in their silk. Would she have to call someone to clean the woodwork? Cecilia shuddered at the thought of speaking over the telephone. The neighbors might complain if she left the webs unattended to, but never mind. She would address the problem in time.
When she returned from her shopping—dragging the full cart behind herself and wishing it held more so she could wait longer between trips to the market—the webs seemed to have increased in number. At least, she now noticed webs in places that she hadn’t before.
She would have to call someone to brush the webs away and apply pesticide.
But now she only wanted to hurry inside her home. Visiting the market always unnerved her, left her hyperventilating. She hated being affected this way, but she’d been suffering from this throughout her life. And, throughout her life, she’d never found a treatment or approach that might cure her condition.
She’d wanted love, a husband, children. But she felt that having a family would bring a paralyzing amount of apprehension into her life, and so remained alone. Her parents were dead. She had a younger brother, Stephen, but he lived a thousand miles away, and they hadn’t spoken for years. She wondered why she didn’t call him more often. He used to call her regularly, but he likely became weary of being the only one of the two to make an effort to keep in touch. She didn’t blame her brother for ignoring her now.
Cecilia never did call anyone to treat the webs disfiguring her house. Every time she began researching exterminators on her computer, the necessity of having to speak to an actual human being motivated her to quit. She wasn’t irresponsible—only irrationally afraid.
No one complained, however. Perhaps her neighbors knew she wouldn’t answer the door if they had knocked.
A week later, as she sat in her favorite chair in the living room reading a book of old poetry, Cecilia heard a strange noise, as if a soft patter were reverberating from every part of the house. She laid the book on her knee, pulled down her reading glasses to hang on their chain, and listened. Yes, the noise mimicked the sound of snowflakes blowing against a window. But in August, in Springfield, no snowstorms ever blew.
She rose from her chair and walked to the front window, parting the heavy red curtains. To her surprise, small orange butterflies bounced from the glass haphazardly, tapping softly with every collision. Her mouth open in wonder, she studied the neighborhood beyond her window and saw impossible clouds of orange butterflies flowing between the houses like eddying currents of rust-colored water. The insects rained on the window, on the roof, against the walls of her house, against every house in her neighborhood. She smiled then because she found the sight sublime—extraordinarily beautiful. She’d read about butterfly migrations and knew they could appear in massive numbers over selected routes, but she couldn’t identify the species. They weren’t monarchs or swallowtails. An expert could surely identify their species, but she knew no experts.
Cecilia stood watching the magnificent display for nearly an hour before the mysterious population of butterflies dwindled until they ceased haunting the neighborhood altogether. When she opened her front door to look outside, she found a multitude of butterflies covering her lawn like orange snow, their wings twitching in deathly exhaustion. A boy came to mow the lawn every two weeks—she always handed him money through a half-closed door—so they wouldn’t remain on the grass for long. When he came again, the insects would disappear into piles of cut grass.
The sight of the dying butterflies caused a great wave of sorrow to wash over her. She held her arms against her breast to ward away the pain. She knew a million butterflies had survived their journey through the neighborhood, on their way to whatever destination gave their existence meaning. But the butterflies on her lawn—their tiny orange wings twitching like a dying breath—seemed more important to her, if only because they would never fulfill their life’s purpose.
Cecilia closed the front door, sat in her chair again, and cried. She felt foolish for crying, recognizing the paradox, but refused to guard any tears dedicated to the fallen butterflies. Their failure was her failure, too.
Perhaps the oddness of these previous events psychologically prepared Cecilia for the next one. Or perhaps its bizarre dimensions had convinced her that she was going insane and that, if she were, confessing her visions to another person would only lead to her institutionalization.
Once again, she suffered a bewildering dream: She found herself stranded out of doors, unable to return home. The dread of being exposed to the outer world filled her with an inexplicable panic, as if something horrendous were about to happen. Then she suddenly found herself surrounded by butterflies, small ones and large ones, swallowtails, sulphurs, and buckeyes, and even luminous luna moths by the millions, swarming around her, over her, through her. She felt their soft, tiny bodies dabbing her flesh and her face without violence, but in such numbers that she felt as if she were drowning amidst their wings.
In her dream she tried to scream, but butterflies fell into her mouth, silencing her. She felt the familiar sensation of a panic attack rising in her chest, warming her limbs with an expectation of death—
Cecilia woke in darkness then, nauseated. A disturbing fullness in her stomach translated into a soft moan in her throat, and she threw off her blanket thinking she would be sick. She swung her feet onto the floor and managed a single step toward the bathroom before falling to her knees. Waves of nausea paralyzed her—she waited on her hands and knees in the dark for the obscene convulsions in her stomach to turn into retching.
But she didn’t vomit. Instead, she felt something large and solid sliding up her esophagus, the sensation electrifying her neck and shoulders, as if something were slowly crawling from her stomach to her mouth. She couldn’t breathe. She opened her mouth and felt the object rising from her throat, over her tongue, and from her lips. It spilled onto the floor in the darkness. She struggled for breath as the nausea and paralysis faded, then she rose to her feet and stumbled backward to turn on the lamp by the bed.
Cecilia should have screamed when she observed what lay on the floor in the halo of light but, for some strange reason, she didn’t. A green caterpillar with white accents across the undulations of its body stood there, pulsating on the tile—an insect as large as her forearm, its simple brown eyes shining in the lamplight, its mandibles the size of a child’s fingers. Stunned, she realized the monstrosity must have risen from her gut, but the absurdity of the idea prevented her from panicking. She must still be dreaming, or she had fallen ill and was hallucinating. Giant caterpillars didn’t exist, nor did they gestate in human beings.
She sat on the edge of her bed studying the creature. She felt normal again; the nausea had faded completely. She glanced at the clock on the bedside table—3:00 AM. Wasn’t there some significance to that time of night? The enormous caterpillar did nothing for a while but quiver on the tile, and then it raised its thorax as if appraising its environment. For a moment, it angled its tiny eyes at Cecilia, and she and the caterpillar gazed at one another fixedly.
Then it began crawling across the floor toward the doorway of her bedroom.
Cecilia stood and hesitantly began following the impossible insect into the shadows of the sleeping house. She turned on the lights of the rooms they entered, careful to maintain a respectful distance, until they both moved into the kitchen. She turned on the kitchen light and watched as the caterpillar inched its way toward the back door and raised its thorax again. Its formidable legs began scrabbling at the paneling beneath the doorknob. After a few minutes of futile effort, it turned its head toward Cecilia and paused.
She understood but was afraid to approach. Perhaps sensing her fear, the caterpillar retreated from the door and waited.
Cecilia rubbed her cheeks nervously before finally stepping to the back door, turning the doorknob, and pulling it open. She moved away quickly, standing behind the counter by the oven. Once she felt safe, the caterpillar scuttled through the partially opened doorway and vanished into the blackness of the backyard.
She rushed to the door and pushed it shut; she locked it and hurried from the kitchen back to her bedroom.
Cecilia lay in her bed again, unable to provide an explanation for what she’d witnessed. She listened for a long time, fearing the creature might try to scratch its way back into the house, but the house remained silent. She left all the lights burning as she waited for dawn but eventually fell asleep again. She suffered no more strange dreams.
Come morning, Cecilia felt convinced that the events of the previous night were nothing but a waking nightmare.
She dressed, brewed her tea, and sat in her favorite chair while the reporters on the television kept her informed of the latest developments in the world. This continuous exposure to information simulated socialization and sufficiently satisfied her need for companionship. The on-air personalities spoke to her and her alone, though she knew this was only a trick of her perception. She didn’t bother to question it, but simply enjoyed its effect.
Suddenly, as she set her empty teacup on the small table by the chair, the memory of the giant caterpillar came back to her like a shameful confession. Annoyed, she tried to put it out of her mind, but the image of the undulating green larva refused to dissipate. Where had it gone after scrabbling out the kitchen door?
Cecilia rose, ignoring her reservations, and walked into the kitchen. She leaned over the basin and peered from the kitchen window, scanning the dirt and stones comprising the yard. Long ago, she’d had the grass removed and replaced with a layer of graveling so she wouldn’t have to suffer anyone maintaining the lawn. Backyard maintenance would involve unlocking the gate, conversing with others as they rolled in their equipment, observing them as they moved around the yard. This would have required too much involvement for her tastes, so she covered the ground with gravel and never thought about it again.
She couldn’t see anything unusual until she gazed at the small juneberry tree standing in a far corner of the yard: a tree that, despite a lack of care from her, still managed to bloom pretty white flowers during its season. From one of its thicker branches depended an unusually large green chrysalis, much like an unripened gourd.
She stood by the window, staring through the glass, the muscles of her back tightening until a sharp spasm pulled at her shoulders. She moved away from the basin, and a slight nausea warmed her stomach.
Cecilia found a broom and opened the back door. She slowly descended the pair of concrete steps leading to the ground, then traversed the gravel-covered yard, the broom handle angled before her like a lance, her shoes crackling against the small stones. When she reached the juneberry tree, she extended the broom handle and gently prodded the massive chrysalis.
The chrysalis rocked in the air; the branch from which it hung moved with the weight of it. It seemed solid—rigid in construction—and heavy, as if it contained substantial matter. But no insects grew so impossibly large. Should she call someone to examine it?
No. That too was impossible.
More people would come to see it—curious people, news people—and she wished to be left alone. No, she would have to leave it undisturbed, just as she wished to be. She would let it mature, then release whatever creature lay within.
The days passed. Every so often, she peered from the kitchen window, acknowledged the chrysalis still suspended from the juneberry tree, and returned to her chores. After a few weeks, Cecilia wondered if any transformation would occur at all. Subtly, the bright glossy green shell dulled, and brown spots marred its surface. Soon, the entire chrysalis browned, then changed color again to an ashy gray.
Cecilia continued her rituals, rolling her wire cart to the market and noting the ever-increasing contamination of webs upon her house. She read her books and watched her favorite television programs—unaware of the passing of time until the air cooled—and the fall temperatures fell over her house to remind her of the season.
One day, as she stood washing a dish in the basin, she happened to glance at the juneberry tree. Its branches were bare now, and sickly. The large chrysalis still hung from one of its branches, swaying strangely with the chilling wind.
She dried her hands and found the broom again, stepped into the backyard and approached the tree. Now she was certain her imagination was deceiving her—the wind wasn’t yet strong enough to sway the chrysalis so violently. As gently as possible, she raised the broom handle and prodded the surface of the cocoon, opening a small hole. It felt too light to be viable, but it hadn’t been split open.
She pushed it with the broom handle again but, this time, the chrysalis broke away from the branch and fell quietly to the gravel. She reluctantly broke it open with the broom but found only desiccated remains inside, a suggestion of an insect’s legs, possibly a thorax, and the ashy remains of what once could have been wings. She knelt and studied the ruined cocoon. Again, an intense sorrow overwhelmed her. Her tears slipped down her cheeks and fell to the gravel, disappearing.
Cecilia stood and crushed the remains of the chrysalis into the gravel with the broom handle, breaking it apart so she wouldn’t have to see it through the kitchen window and be reminded of the caterpillar’s failure to escape its confinement.
The weather grew colder; the rains came but did little to wash away the webs from her house. The memory of the desiccated cocoon was determined to haunt her waking thoughts. Cecilia sat in her chair and forced herself to think about her agoraphobia.
It wasn’t just the fear of public spaces, or the panic attacks, or the endless episodes of anxiety that shaped her life; she’d endured enough of it all to earn her release from the tyranny of daily suffering. That was the most important consequence of her decisions: the ability to live out the rest of her life without having to agitate the unbearable reflexes of anxiety that shadowed every ordinary act from going to the movies, to seeing the doctor, to exchanging small talk with the cashier at the market. The ordinary actions taken for granted by most people caused her so much psychological pain that she willingly turned away from them, no matter how much of life she was missing. The pain was extraordinary.
So, why should she suffer?
But she was lonely, too—she could deny it, but denying it wouldn’t make it any less true. All her life, she had been trying to find an elixir to cure the effects of it. She had spent all her money on therapists who passed the time drawing out her personal history, hoping to find the seeds of her condition. But her history wasn’t to blame. Her mother and father were decent people, her brother an ordinary boy and man. Her psychological prison was built of hormones and neurons—temporarily eased by pharmaceuticals—but never banished. Her genetic imbalance had pronounced a life sentence for her at birth.
But Cecilia was growing older, ever older, and didn’t have many more years left before she died. Did she really want to die with that loneliness still inside of her? Even as she considered these points, she felt anxiety warming her chest, and she had to breathe carefully to avoid suffering a massive panic attack.
This is my life, she thought. This is my life.
She fell asleep in her chair and, when she woke, she felt angry with herself for being a prisoner of her feelings. And so, for the first time, Cecilia determined on negating their poison.
She rose, found her coat, and stepped to the front door to get some fresh air. But when she opened the door, she found a thick sheet of webbing covering the entirety of the threshold. Daylight glowed softly against the silk, like light shone through a cotton bandage. Amazed, she pressed her palm against the webbing. It responded to the pressure of her hand but did not break, as if it were impossibly thick. She pressed harder, but the material held firm. She stepped back, rubbing her fingers together and feeling the slightly tacky residue.
Cecilia turned and hurried to the back door in the kitchen but, when she opened the door, she found the same thick webbing sealing the portal completely.
She ran from window to window, wiping the frost from the glass but finding only more white webbing obscuring the outside world. When she opened one of the panes, the webbing clung fiercely to the frame, refusing to be brushed away. She ran from room to room, but every portal of the house was covered by the webbing. Frantic, she opened the front door again and flung a book at the web; the web absorbed the book a few inches into itself before flinging it back into the living room. She retrieved a knife from the kitchen and thrust it into the soft white expanse, but the webbing only seemed to absorb the length of the blade without being pierced by it. She dropped the knife, stunned.
Slowly, she pulled off her coat, hung it on a rack by the door and stood in the dull light of the room. I must call someone, she thought, still dazed. Yes, I must call someone to come and remove the awful webbing from my house so I can be free again.
She found her cell phone and sat in her chair.
But who should she call? She would have to find the number of an exterminator on her computer. Or someone who might be able to help her. But who? By then, she noticed that it was 6:00 PM; no business would send an exterminator to her house at this late hour. They would schedule an appointment for the next day, surely. And she was all right, after all. The webs were merely a nuisance, not a threat.
Cecilia sighed, placed her phone on the table by the chair, and rose again.
She walked to her bedroom and changed her clothes. She wouldn’t panic this time: she would take her circumstances in stride, accept the philosophy that life was unpredictable. She would live her life like a normal human being. After dressing for the evening, she watched a few hours of television, then lay in bed reading the last few pages of a book of old poetry—the antiquated rhymes moving across her lips—before closing the book and turning off the light.
I’ll call someone tomorrow, certainly. Tomorrow.
And so, Cecilia slept.
LAWRENCE BUENTELLO has published over 140 science fiction, fantasy, and horror short stories in numerous magazines and anthologies. His fiction can also be found in several collections of short stories. He lives in San Antonio, Texas.
Artwork by Novel Noctule team.
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Zac Sirna and Wendy Frisby, Novo Nordisk US
Working at Novo Nordisk
Life-changing careers
Starting a career at Novo Nordisk is more than getting a job. It is an opportunity to improve the lives of millions of people living with a serious chronic disease.
Whether you are a part of supplying insulin for patients around the world, discovering the next breakthrough at one of our state-of-the-art research centres, working with us is truly life-changing.
We are inspired by life
We are a proud life-science company on a mission to ensure that people living with a chronic disease can live a full life. Millions rely on us.
We’re inspired by life in all its forms and shapes, ups and downs, opportunities and challenges. From our colleagues in the lab, working to change lives through pioneering break-through treatments, to our colleagues putting sustainability at the core of our processes and working to prolong the life of our planet, this mission to improve lives is at the core of our every action.
Together we drive change
Change is a constant — change in lifestyle, change in technology, change all over. At Novo Nordisk, we don’t wait for change. We drive it.
We’re a dynamic company in an even more dynamic industry, and we know that what got us to where we are today is not necessarily what will make us successful in the future.
That’s why we continuously push to improve the way we work and the lives of the patients we serve, creating innovative solutions that fit the way people want to live. To accomplish this, we embrace a spirit of open-mindedness and experimentation, striving for excellence without fixating on perfection.
employees around the world.
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annual investment in research and development.
people using our diabetes care products.
Together, we are life-changing
Our company is our people. We know that life is anything but linear and balancing what is important at different stages of our career is never easy. That’s why we make room for diverse life situations, always putting people first. We want to ensure that every employee can achieve a work-life balance that supports their current priorities and where they want to go next.
Meet Marie Darting, Formulation Scientist in R&D CMC Development, working in Denmark
Your development starts here
We value our employees for the unique skills, backgrounds and perspectives they bring to the table. We work continuously to help bring out the best in all of our people, offering opportunities for development and creating an environment of mobility within the company. We strive to offer a workplace that’s great to be in and to be from.
It is very important to us that anyone working with us feels empowered as an employee and as a person. We all should have the opportunity to act fast, make decisions and be agile.
With a career at our company, you will feel a difference right from the start. A sense of inspiration that comes from a shared belief in driving positive change for people, families and communities everywhere, and it’s a collective effort. We rely on the joint potential and collaboration of our more than 40,000 employees.
In the video above, meet Marie Darting, one of our scientists, and hear more about her work as a formulation scientist, her perspective on development plans and the impact she feels her work has on people living with a chronic disease.
Chris Sumter, Novo Nordisk US
We were founded in 1923 and today we are a global healthcare company headquartered just outside Copenhagen, Denmark.
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Choices and determinants of delivery location among mothers attending a primary health facility in Southern Nigeria
Ofonime Effiong Johnson, Precious Chizaram Obidike, Miriam Uzezi Eroh, Abasiono Augustine Okpon, Emmanuel Imeh Bassey, Paschal Christodiong Patrick, Princewill Edet Ebong, Emmanuel Ojumah
DOI:10.4103/npmj.npmj_150_19 PMID:32003361
Background: The delivery locations of pregnant women contribute greatly to their birth outcome. The objectives of this study were to determine the choices and determinants of delivery locations among mothers attending a primary health centre (PHC) in southern Nigeria. Research Methodology: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study among mothers attending PHC, West Itam, Itu, Nigeria. Data were collected using interviewer-administered questionnaire and analysed with STATA version 12.0. Level of significance was set at 0.05. Results: A total of 185 mothers participated in the study. The mean age of respondents was 27.6 ± 5.2 years. The delivery locations of last pregnancy were health facility (64.9%), traditional birth attendant's place (23.3%), respondent's residence (6.3%) and church (5.4%). The top five reasons that influenced the choice of delivery locations were distance (45.4%), cost (34.6%), skills of healthcare workers (30.3%), drug availability (27.6%) and attitude of healthcare workers (26.5%). Utilisation of healthcare facilities for delivery increased significantly with level of education and income of respondents and spouses (P < 0.05). Conclusion: Different non-institutionalised delivery locations were utilised by some of the respondents. Factors influencing women's choices of delivery locations included distance, cost and attitude of health workers. It is recommended that pregnant women be offered free or highly subsidised healthcare services to encourage their delivery at health facilities. Healthcare providers should endeavour to develop better relationship with clients who patronise their services. Female education should also be encouraged as this would empower them to make better choices about their health services options.
Electronic medical record systems: A pathway to sustainable public health insurance schemes in sub-Saharan Africa
Victor Alangibi Kiri, Aaron C Ojule
Pubic health insurance schemes are usually set up by governments to provide cover for their insured populations against healthcare costs. These schemes are usually administered by a government agency and vary both in how they are funded and provide their services. A number of developing countries have introduced such schemes to minimise the impact of financial barriers to healthcare access by their populations. These schemes are expected to bridge the inequality in healthcare. A National Health Insurance Scheme has been in operation in Nigeria since 2005 to provide health cover for government employees and those in private institutions with no less than ten workers. There are similar schemes in a number of countries in sub-Saharan Africa. We conducted a literature review of publications on public health insurance schemes in sub-Saharan Africa to identify the challenges they encounter. We found 76 relevant publications. Although much have been published on these schemes, few have addressed the critical obstacles to effective implementation, management and sustenance in the unique environments we find in sub-Saharan Africa – where poor technological infrastructures, acts of forgery, counterfeiting and other forms of fraud are common. We highlight these challenges, using the scheme in Nigeria for reference. We discuss the potential role of robust electronic medical record (EMR) systems for sustainable schemes in such environments and describe some of the ways robust EMR systems could be used to mitigate the challenges posed by most of the peculiar problems associated with poor infrastructures.
Antipsychotic prescription and polypharmacy among outpatients with schizophrenia in a Nigerian hospital
Ihechiluru Goodnews Anozie, Bawo O James, Joyce O Omoaregba
DOI:10.4103/npmj.npmj_93_19 PMID:32003359
Background: International guidelines recommend antipsychotic monotherapy as the ideal treatment option in pharmacotherapy for schizophrenia, though this yields modest outcomes in a third of patients. Antipsychotic polypharmacy (APP) has been tried in many patients with schizophrenia to improve outcomes in those with poor treatment response. Objectives: This study examined the pattern of antipsychotic prescription and polypharmacy among outpatient attendees with schizophrenia in a Nigerian psychiatric hospital. Methods: A cross-sectional study of 320 attendees with schizophrenia at the consultant outpatient department was undertaken. We administered a socio-demographic questionnaire, antipsychotic medication and health questionnaire to record the general health indices and the prescribed antipsychotic medication of participants and the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) Version 6.0 (psychosis module). Results: Oral second-generation antipsychotics (SGAs) monotherapy was most commonly prescribed. The prevalence of APP was 50.9%. Participants on simultaneous anticholinergic agents (P < 0.001), a twice-daily antipsychotic dosing interval (P < 0.001,) alcohol use (P = 0.02), antidepressant use (P = 0.02) and a current episode of schizophrenia on the MINI (P < 0.001) were more likely to be on an APP regimen. Conclusion: Although a preference for SGA monotherapy was observed, the prevalence of APP remained high. Clinicians, therefore, should be cautious regarding the clinical utility of APP and discourage its persistent use.
My flanks aches: Emphysematous pyelonephritis in a newly diagnosed case of diabetes mellitus
Bolanle Olajumoke Okunowo, Olubukola Abeni Omidiji, Emmanuel Ajibola Jeje, Olufemi Adetola Fasanmade
Emphysematous pyelonephritis (EPN) is a rare, severe necrotising infection of the renal parenchyma and surrounding tissues. It is usually life-threatening and should be promptly treated. Here, we report a clinical case of a 54-year-old male who presented with the left flank pains of 3-week duration. The flank pain was described as dull, constant with associated fever. He was diagnosed with diabetes mellitus (DM) while on admission. A clinical diagnosis of the left pyelonephritis was made. The abdominopelvic computed tomography scan confirmed bilateral EPN by showing a thin film of perinephric fluid (13.2 ml) in the left lower pole. He was managed conservatively with fluid therapy, adequate glycaemic control and intravenous antibiotics with no percutaneous drainage done. This highlights the importance of early initiation of appropriate medical treatment to avoid interventional urological procedures of nephrectomy. It also highlights the importance of clinical suspicion of EPN in patients presenting with symptoms of urinary tract infection and DM.
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The role of immune restoration using highly active antiretroviral therapy in the management of AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma coexisting with pulmonary tuberculosis
Umar Abdullahi, Mukhtar Abdulmajid Adeiza
A 35-year-old highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART)-naïve woman diagnosed 2 years earlier presented with complaints of cough, fever and progressive weight loss of 5 months and skin rashes of 2 months. Clinical examination revealed a chronically ill-looking young woman who was wasted and pale, with purplish flat-topped papules and nodules on the skin of her neck, trunk, forearms and thighs. She also had a single lesion on the hard palate. Chest examination shows reduced breath sounds with crepitations. Sputum acid-fast bacilli were positive, and skin biopsy taken for histology confirmed Kaposi's sarcoma (KS). The patient recovered fully on antiretroviral and antituberculosis therapy without the need for any specific chemotherapy for KS. We report this case to elucidate the role of immune reconstitution as a treatment modality for AIDS-related KS, as well as to point out the possibility of multiple opportunistic conditions coexisting amongst patients with advanced HIV disease.
Lower urinary tract symptoms in patients with advanced prostate cancer: What are the outcomes of androgen deprivation therapy?
Idorenyin Cletus Akpayak, Samaila I Shuaibu, Chimaobi G Ofoha, Nuhu K Dakum, Venyir M Ramyil, Victor E Onowa, Christian A Agbo, Lemech E Nabasu, Zingur Z Galam
Background: Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) is accepted as the first-line treatment of advanced prostate cancer. This study sets out to determine the outcomes of ADT in reducing lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) in patients with advanced prostate cancer and also to determine the quality of life (QoL) of the patients. Patients and Methods: This was a prospective study carried out at Jos University Teaching Hospital. All consecutive patients who had LUTS due to advanced prostate cancer were recruited into the study. All patients completed the international prostate symptom score (IPSS) questionnaire, including QoL assessment. Post-void residual (PVR) urine, maximum flow rate (Qmax), prostate specific antigen and total prostate volume (TPV) were assessed. The parameters before and at 12 months were compared. Results: Data from 65 patients were analysed. The mean age of the patients was 68.5 ± 8.67 years with an age range of 46–85 years. Four (6.2%) had mild LUTS before AD, and their symptoms remained mild at 12 months of ADT. Twenty-two (33.9%) patients had moderate urinary symptoms. Of this, 10 (18.5%) patients had symptomatic improvement at 12 months of ADT. Of 39 (60%) patients who presented with severe LUTS, 21 (32.3%) had improvement at 12 months of ADT. Before ADT and at 12 months of ADT, the mean IPSS score, mean TPV, Qmax, PVR and mean QoL score were 23 ± 8.8 and 15 ± 8.8 (P < 0.0001); 79.7 ± 51.4 and 73.4 ± 34.3 (P = 0.212); 8.0 ± 4.7 and 11.2 ± 4.4 (<0.001); 209.8 ± 127.8 and 163 ± 111.4 (<0.001); 4.23 ± 1.2 and 3.24 ± 1.2 (P < 0.001), respectively. Of the 39 patients (60%) with severe urinary symptoms, 18 (27.7%) of patients had urethral catheterization for either acute or chronic urinary retention before ADT. At 12 months on ADT, eight patients (12.3.7%) were still on catheter due to failed attempts at trial without catheter. Conclusion: ADT significantly improves urodynamic parameters, IPSS score and IPSS-related QoL. There remains a subset of patients, in whom LUTS persist with negative effects on QoL.
Feasibility study of prospective audit, intervention and feedback as an antimicrobial stewardship strategy at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital
Alero Ann Roberts, Iretiolu Fajolu, Philip Oshun, Chioma Osuagwu, Opeyemi Awofeso, Edamisan Temiye, O Oyin Oduyebo
Background: Antimicrobial resistance, a global problem, is mostly a consequence of misuse or overuse of antimicrobials. This study sought to audit the compliance to hospital antimicrobial policy and determine the ability of medical students to carry out audits. Methodology: This was a retrospective study to determine compliance with departmental policies in the preceding 2 months in the Children's Emergency Room (ChER) using a checklist. The primary outcome was to determine the rational use of antibiotics. The secondary outcomes were to determine whether the de-escalation of antibiotic, change from intravenous to oral or change in prescriptions were performed in line with culture results based on the departmental policy. Results: The records of 450 children who attended ChER of Lagos University Teaching Hospital in January and February 2018 were retrieved for this study, of which 279 (62.0%) were prescribed antimicrobials. A suspected or confirmed diagnosis of infection was made in 214 (76.6%) of the patients, significantly highest in the infant age group (P = 0.03). Cultures were taken from 94 patients (33.7%), and although not statistically significant, cultures were mostly taken from neonatal patients aged <28 days (20/49, 40.8%). Applying the criteria, compliance with departmental guidelines was found in 111 (39.8%) of the cases. Conclusion: We found that the use of antimicrobials was judged unnecessary in 17.2% of the patients seen in ChER. There was a poor practice of collecting samples for culture before prescribing antibiotics. Prospective audit and feedback is feasible and it can be done with medical students who will report their findings to consultants and other doctors knowledgeable in principles of antimicrobial therapy.
Clinical, morphologic and histological features of chronic pyelonephritis: An 8-year review
Babatunde Lawrence Ademola, Akinfenwa T Atanda, Sani A Aji, Aliyu Abdu
Background: Urinary tract infection (UTI), especially pyelonephritis when inadequately treated may culminate in end-stage renal disease. The study aims to evaluate the risk factors for and clinico-pathologic features of chronic pyelonephritis (CPN) among patients in Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital, Kano, in North-Western Nigeria. Materials and Methods: Data on cases diagnosed as CPN between 2010 and 2017 in the study centre were retrieved from archives and analysed for risk factors and clinic-pathologic features. Results: Forty-three cases of CPN were diagnosed in the study period and comprised 24 males and 19 females, with a male: female ratio of 1.3:1. The ages ranged from 3 to 80 years with a mean age of 37.0 ± 19.6 years. Urinary tract obstruction, poorly treated UTI, HIV infection and polycystic kidney disease were the risk factors in 21 (49%), 15 (35%), 6 (14%) and 1 (2%) cases, respectively. Proteinuria was seen in 10 (23.3%) of the patients, hypertension in 7 (16.3%) and haematuria in 3 (7.0%) of cases. Nephrectomy was done in 17 (39.5%) of the 43 CPN cases, indications for surgery were pus-filled, non-functioning kidneys. The diameters of the removed kidneys ranged from 10 to 28 cm and they weighed between 140 g and 2500 g. Scarring, reported in 79.0% of patients, was the most common pathological finding, followed by pus casts in 48.8% and focal segmental glomerulosclerosis in 27.9%. No statistically significant difference was found between age or gender and aetiology or risk factors of the disease (P > 0.05). Conclusion: CPN with pus-filled and non-functioning kidneys is a common indication for nephrectomy. Urinary tract obstruction, poorly treated UTI, and HIV infection were major risk factors seen in this environment. To prevent this complication there is a need for better training of clinicians in the diagnosis and adequate treatment of UTI.
Comparative study of endoscopic band ligation versus injection sclerotherapy with 50% dextrose in water, in symptomatic internal haemorrhoids
Adekunle Adedapo Abiodun, Olusegun Isaac Alatise, Chukwuma Eze Okereke, Abudul-Rashid Kayode Adesunkanmi, Emmanuel Adewale Eletta, Alexander Gomna
Background: Haemorrhoids are common anorectal conditions seen in surgical practice, with various treatment modalities. This study compared the short-term outcome of injection sclerotherapy with 50% dextrose in water and rubber band ligation in the management of second-and third-degree haemorrhoids, in terms of symptoms improvement, complications, recurrence rate, retreatment rate and acceptability. Methodology: This was a prospective comparative study that was carried out in the endoscopic unit of the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospitals Complex, Ile-Ife, in southwestern Nigeria. Sixty consecutive patients with second- and third-degree haemorrhoids, who consented, were recruited into the study and were randomised into two groups. Group A had endoscopic injection sclerotherapy and Group B had endoscopic rubber band ligation. Results: With regard to anal protrusion, more patients consistently reported either complete (16 [64.4%]) or partial (9 [40.9%]) resolution of symptoms in Group B, compared to Group A which had 7 (28.0%) and 5 (22.7%) cases, respectively (P = 0.03). Resolution of anal bleeding was initially more in Group B than A (22 [95.7%] vs. 17 [77.3%] patients, respectively), in the first 24-h post-treatment; however, within the 1st week, this ratio was reversed (P = 0.07). The retreatment rate for Group A and B was 23.3% and 13.3%, respectively,P = 0.34. More patients in Group B experienced severe pain post-treatment compared to Group A (P = 0.01). Three-month post-treatment, two (11.8%) patients in Group A and one (4.5%) in Group B had recurrence of anal bleeding (P = 0.42). There was no recurrence in anal protrusion in both treatment groups. Conclusion: Endoscopic rubber band ligation had a significantly higher success rate than endoscopic injection sclerotherapy, in terms of resolution of anal protrusion, but with higher pain score.
Naturalistic clinical and psychosocial outcome of incident cases of schizophrenia in Enugu Federal Psychiatric Hospital: A preliminary report at 4-month follow-up
Justus Uchenna Onu, Jude Uzoma Ohaeri
Introduction: Longitudinal outcome studies based on incident and predominantly neuroleptic-naïve cases of schizophrenia are uncommon in the modern literature. Aims: To determine the proportion of persons with schizophrenia with different levels of clinical and functional outcome at monthly intervals of naturalistic treatment follow-up for 4 months: response, remission and recovery; and to examine the predictors of outcome. Subjects and Methods: Consecutive incident cases that fulfilled stringent criteria for schizophrenia were recruited into the study. After a baseline assessment, 160 incident cases of schizophrenia were followed up 4-weekly for indicators of symptomatic and functional outcome for 16 weeks. Standard rating scales were used to assess clinical and functional outcome. Sociodemographic and clinical variables were evaluated as predictors of outcome using multiple regression analysis. Results: The attrition rate at week 16 was 29.4%; hence, 113 subjects (out of 160) were available for assessment at the end of follow-up. Of the 113, 66.4%, by Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), met criteria for response (i.e., >50% reduction), while 20.3% could be judged to be clinically non-responsive to treatment (i.e., <20% decrease). Also, 60.2%, by BPRS, met the criteria for remission, while 44.5% met the criteria for recovery. The most important predictor, at week 16, of clinical and psychosocial outcome was social support (48.7%–51.8% of variance). Conclusion: Although as a preliminary report, the present findings are hypothesis-generating, the implication of the results is that, as a group, over a 4-month period of modern hospital treatment, schizophrenia patients who were incident cases progressively experienced significant reduction in psychopathology. The findings, therefore, support earlier international cross-cultural reports of relatively good clinical outcome from developing countries, thereby encouraging the idea of treatment optimism in schizophrenia in Africa.
Genetic diversity of human immunodeficiency virus-1 in Nigeria: 2002–2017 – systematic review and meta-analysis
Mohammed Ibrahim Tahir, Maryam Aminu, Babangida Ahmed Suleiman, Ahmed Saraja Opaluwa, Abdurrahman El-Fulaty Ahmad
Nigeria was ranked second highest country with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) burden worldwide. HIV-1 subtypes and circulating recombinant forms genetic variability affect the protease and reverse transcriptase genes which code for viral enzymes and are the main targets for antiretroviral drugs. Therefore, this study was aimed at reviewing and pooling such HIV-1 subtypes in Nigeria to represent the collective prevalence of each subtype. Studies of HIV-1 subtypes in Nigeria published from 2002 to 2017 were retrieved and synthesised from different sources electronically. Sixteen studies were included for random effect meta-analysis for various subtypes in each study. The pooled prevalence was charted in forest plot and effect estimates from individual studies against some measure of study size or precision were presented in funnel plots. The pooled prevalence of Subtype G, CRF02_AG, CRF06_cpx, Subtype A and Subtype C were 38.27% (95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 21.27%- 55.98%), 37.81% (95% CI: 20.37%- 55.25%), 6.6% (95% CI: 7.10%-7.10%), 14.05% (95% CI: 9.06% - 19.04%) and 2.80% (95% CI: 2.70%- 8.30%) respectively. This study suggests HIV-1 subtypes G, CRF02_AG and A are the most prevalent in Nigeria.
© Nigerian Postgraduate Medical Journal | Published by Wolters Kluwer - Medknow
Online since 2nd July, 2015
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The Magical Mystery Tour Also Known as Cannabis Sativa
What’s in the new Farm Bill and what does it mean for hemp and CBD?
Sunflower Hemp Co
Fiber Revisited: Closing the Gap
Healthy Snacking: Matching Lifestyle with Nutrition
Nuances of the Healthcare Institutional Nutrition Market
Trend Spotlight for 2019
By Todd Harrison & Meryl Nolan, Venable01.03.19
This column focuses on the evolution and acceptance of Cannabis sativa, from THC content of less than 0.3% to the heartier strains that are taking states by storm, and promising to cure whatever ails you.
I have long believed U.S. drug laws are outdated and that smoking weed/pot/grass should be legalized and regulated to avoid potential harm, but the explosion of state laws legalizing pot makes little sense from a public safety point of view. Moreover, we need to stop insisting that pot is not harmful to the body, that it is a non-addicting substance with a high safety profile. If we are being honest, pot is no more benign than alcohol.
Yet, states such as Colorado, California, and others have bought in, enacting laws that are downright dangerous and unsafe. Truly, in California’s case, legislators seem more worried about cannabidiol (CBD) than purified extracts of THC. Go figure. While I do not have an issue with the legalization of pot for smoking, let’s stop pretending that it’s a benign substance that cannot be abused, and understand that edibles are simply unsafe and should be prohibited from commercial distribution to the general public.
Call to Federal Action
It is simply time to enact, federally, a sane and rational marijuana law that permits the sale of pot instead of having a patchwork of questionable state laws that are either overly restrictive or entirely too lenient. Until we can enact sane legislation at the federal level, I agree that the Drug Enforcement Association (DEA) should use its enforcement discretion when it comes to the commercial sale of marijuana leaves, whether whole or simply ground.
However, I do not understand why the FDA and DEA continue to exercise restraint when marijuana is added to food and sold commercially. And, yes, the federal government does have the authority to step in because these products are making their way into interstate commerce. Indeed, establishing interstate commerce is not difficult for either agency. The height of idiocy on this issue should concern us all. It is time for the federal government to step in to act responsibly regarding edibles since it is clear that state legislatures simply do not have a clue regarding safety, which is no surprise.
On the other hand, Congress must lift the ban on marijuana and establish a regulatory scheme that actually makes sense. This system needs to preempt all state laws, require limits on THC content, and ban the addition of THC to food products unless it can be shown to be safe.
Moreover, such a regulatory framework cannot increase the cost of pot to the point where it is cheaper to get on the black market than to buy it legally. Only then will we have achieved the appropriate balance of permitting the sale of marijuana for recreational purposes while protecting the public from unsafe edible products. One last caveat: yes, I understand that people will still make homemade pot brownies, but you cannot regulate stupidity in the home.
At the same time, we’ve had idiotic laws that made it a felony to grow 0.3% hemp. From basic nutrition to clothing, hemp just makes sense to legalize, but for decades it has not been legal to sell. Fortunately, I am hoping that by the time this article is published the 2018 Farm Bill will have been passed and signed into law, descheduling hemp as a controlled substance. However, descheduling is not the same as legalization for all purposes, except from a controlled substance point of view. Indeed, there are significant changes from the 2014 Farm Bill and companies involved in the hemp and CBD industries should take note of the proposed changes analyzed here.
Farm Bill Update
The 2018 Farm Bill will amend the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 to define hemp as “the plant Cannabis sativa L. and any part of that plant, including the seeds thereof and all derivatives, extracts, cannabinoids, isomers, acids, salts, and salts of isomers, whether growing or not, with a delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol [THC] concentration of not more than 0.3 percent on a dry weight basis.”
The draft bill also revises the definition of “marihuana” in the Controlled Substances Act to remove hemp, including cannabinoids, extracts, and derivatives. In short, all parts of the hemp plant, including the aerial parts, are now fair game for production. The revised definitions effectively transfer authority over the cultivation, production, and sale of products that contain hemp or constituents of hemp from the U.S. DEA to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and to FDA.
The plain language of the proposed 2018 Farm Bill would permit the cultivation and production of hemp and extracts thereof with a THC content of no more than 0.3 percent. Importantly, the use of “hemp producer” in the proposed bill rather than “hemp grower” indicates that the THC cap in the definition of hemp extends beyond cultivation to manufacturers of hemp extracts and derivatives. Further, the inclusion of “growing or not” is a clear indication that an ingredient manufacturer cannot ship a hemp extract with a THC level above 0.3 percent.
Moreover, products with a THC content greater than 0.3 percent would be subject to both penalties as non-conforming goods under the amended Agricultural Marketing Act and regulation as a controlled substance under the definition of “marihuana.”
Manufacturers of hemp products should take note of how the new definition of hemp will affect their business models. Extraction processes must limit the THC content in the finished extract before shipping to the finished product manufacturer for further processing. Additionally, processes will need to be in place to ensure the proper disposal of THC in the extract if the THC itself cannot be destroyed in the extraction process.
The proposed 2018 Farm Bill also creates requirements for states and Indian tribes to create programs to regulate hemp production within their jurisdictions. Hemp producers operating in states that choose not to submit a plan for review will be subject to the federal program. Manufacturers of hemp and CBD products should take note that both the state and federal programs will require licensing, and some state-specific programs may have more stringent requirements beyond those in the proposed bill, including an outright ban on the production of hemp within the state.
The state and tribal plan approval process and the licensing requirements will increase the length of time until the new hemp regulatory framework takes effect on manufacturers. USDA and state regulators may exercise enforcement discretion while the regulations and licensing framework is put in place.
During the interim period, manufacturers should ensure that all extracts and hemp-related products conform to the existing exemption under the 2014 Farm Bill, as it will take time to put in the appropriate programs and regulations at the state and federal level. The 2018 Farm Bill contemplates that this will all be done within a year’s time, but I would be surprised that everything can be in place that quickly at the federal level and in those states without anything in place under the 2014 Farm Bill.
The proposed 2018 Farm Bill also explicitly recognizes that nothing in the act is intended to affect or modify FDA’s authority under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. Thus, manufacturers should keep in mind that any food, dietary supplement, or cosmetic containing hemp extracts or derivatives must comply with FDA’s current position on CBD’s use in food or dietary supplements or be prepared to challenge FDA’s position.
Indeed, there are still significant issues to be dealt with when it comes to marketing CBD and hemp including the Investigational New Drug (IND) application, clinical investigations, and the ultimate approval of Epidiolex by FDA. I have written often about this issue previously. However, it is time for the food and supplement industry to file a petition setting out the rationale for regulation of hemp extracts that contain CBD. This path makes far better sense than FDA initiating legal action against the marketers of CBD products and would save a significant amount of money while clearly defining what is permissible and what is not.
This regulatory framework should be done through proposed regulations rather than through guidance. This approach would allow FDA and industry to define what is meant by “substantial clinical trials,” “article used as a drug,” or what constitutes adding a “drug” to food. It would set limits on the level of CBD in food and dietary supplements that would be considered safe.
I strongly believe if we work with FDA, an appropriate resolution that will satisfy industry and FDA can be reached in a timely manner rather than through expensive litigation that will only target one or two companies while the rest of the industry continues down the same path. Rational regulation makes more sense than the status quo that we have now in which the industry simply does not have appropriate guideposts to follow.
Todd Harrison
Todd Harrison is partner with Venable, which is located in Washington, D.C. He advises food and drug companies on a variety of FDA and FTC matters, with an emphasis on dietary supplement, functional food, biotech, legislative, adulteration, labeling, and advertising issues. He can be reached at 575 7th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20004, Tel: 202-344-4724; E-mail: taharrison@venable.com.
Meryl Nolan
Meryl Nolan is an associate with Venable LLP who focuses on food and drug law, advertising law, and general regulatory matters. She is a 2017 graduate of the Georgetown University Law Center. She was previously an intern at the Department of Justice and worked in the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch, where she focused on online payment processor crimes.
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With an expanding base of clinical research supporting nutritional interventions, off label use of dietary supplements and medical foods is likely to grow.
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The mantra too often ignores common sense approaches to improving health and quality of life.
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Nutritional Status Has Critical Implications for Public Health
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It’s always a job getting started after the break. Australians are experts at switching off. Sand and sunburn cream and white wine in the sun - that’s a heaping plate of inertia right there. In January, I need jumper cables, caffeinated jumper cables. The holiday season can also be a hard time for the lonely, lost and troubled, which makes it the best time to reflect on whatever can make us all stronger and healthier. We should all take time to think about what will buoy our neighbourhood, our communities and the nation. I have. And I see many things with the snap, crackle and pop that are inspiring me to get on with the business of trying to make the world a better place. Here are some of the things that give me hope we can do just that. I think we’re approaching the tipping point where being a woman wins more votes, and that gives me hope. Among those helping this happen is our friend Carol Schwartz, AM, who has backed the Pathways to Politics Program for Women with funds from the Trawalla Foundation, joining forces with Melbourne University to help women reach office at the local, state and federal levels. If life expectancy keeps rising, the average 18-year-old can expect to witness New Year 2100. It’s not surprising then, that they are looking past the next election to demonstrate about the state of the environment. It is unfortunate to see purblind pollies complaining these young activists should go back to their desks and instead recite their times tables till the icecaps melt, but their stand gives me hope. It relieved some of my anxieties at the recent Victorian elections to see voters rise above the low opinions some in the media hold of us. They threw bloody chum in the water, inviting us to rage at refugees, addicts, and schoolchildren with non-“mainstream” sexuality, yet we passed by in good humour. A recent show by the Ilbijerri Theatre Company reminded me of the prodigious indigenous artistic talents – and the hope that comes with it – bubbling forth at the intersections of historic injustice and resurgent identity. As a member of the ithree advisory board for the microbe research faculty at the University of Technology in Sydney, I’ve been dazzled by the students and researchers seeking for solutions to our problems. It’s hard to believe “we’ll-all-be-rooned” in their presence. Looking at the tooth-and-claw battles in Canberra, where bi-partisan policy is dismissed as insufficiently wedging, it’s easy to forget that there is also progress in proving whether policies actually work. But the pain of every Barrier Reef funding scandal also draws us closer to economist Nicholas Gruen’s idea for an Evaluator-General – a government office that would build evaluation into everything the government does. It’s just a hope, but a positive one. It lifts my mood too, that our social enterprise will soon move into a new shared office hosting several organisations with room for up to 400 staff. Headed by my deputy Kathy Richardson, we’re dedicated to equipping not-for-profits with new tools, new goals, and new challenges, because we believe community organisations are the nurseries where hope is born. At home too, the year promises so much. Two years ago, my partner Brendan and I trained to become foster carers, thinking we’d help with respite care for kids on weekends and an occasional two-week stint. Somehow, our first placement was with John, who stayed for 14 months. When he couldn’t return home and staying with other foster families proved difficult – as well as the fact he missed lording it over our staff and explaining how life worked – we decided we loved him and wanted to care for him permanently. We are now incredibly excited and scared to have adopted a 14-year-old with a healthy and gifted attitude. And so, I begin the year with fresh hope and I think poet Emily Dickinson puts it best: “Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul - and sings the tunes without the words - and never stops at all.” Denis Moriarty is group managing director of OurCommunity.com.au
/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/y8YKNWH3Pdv2guZsVFQpjk/918aaa3e-b03c-441a-844d-7ce061ad1fc7.jpg/r433_629_2560_1831_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg
January 6 2019 - 7:00PM
Opinion || Year ahead offers rising sense of optimism
Denis Moriarty
Artistic talent: Lydia Fairhall (left) Rachael Maza and Caroline Martin and from Ilbijerri Theatre Company. Photo Chris Hopkins
It’s always a job getting started after the break. Australians are experts at switching off.
Sand and sunburn cream and white wine in the sun - that’s a heaping plate of inertia right there. In January, I need jumper cables, caffeinated jumper cables.
The holiday season can also be a hard time for the lonely, lost and troubled, which makes it the best time to reflect on whatever can make us all stronger and healthier.
We should all take time to think about what will buoy our neighbourhood, our communities and the nation. I have.
And I see many things with the snap, crackle and pop that are inspiring me to get on with the business of trying to make the world a better place. Here are some of the things that give me hope we can do just that.
I think we’re approaching the tipping point where being a woman wins more votes, and that gives me hope. Among those helping this happen is our friend Carol Schwartz, AM, who has backed the Pathways to Politics Program for Women with funds from the Trawalla Foundation, joining forces with Melbourne University to help women reach office at the local, state and federal levels.
Young people in politics
If life expectancy keeps rising, the average 18-year-old can expect to witness New Year 2100. It’s not surprising then, that they are looking past the next election to demonstrate about the state of the environment. It is unfortunate to see purblind pollies complaining these young activists should go back to their desks and instead recite their times tables till the icecaps melt, but their stand gives me hope.
I think we’re approaching the tipping point where being a woman wins more votes, and that gives me hope.
Old people out of politics
It relieved some of my anxieties at the recent Victorian elections to see voters rise above the low opinions some in the media hold of us. They threw bloody chum in the water, inviting us to rage at refugees, addicts, and schoolchildren with non-“mainstream” sexuality, yet we passed by in good humour.
Indigenous theatre on the rise
A recent show by the Ilbijerri Theatre Company reminded me of the prodigious indigenous artistic talents – and the hope that comes with it – bubbling forth at the intersections of historic injustice and resurgent identity.
An injection of talent seeking answers
As a member of the ithree advisory board for the microbe research faculty at the University of Technology in Sydney, I’ve been dazzled by the students and researchers seeking for solutions to our problems.
It’s hard to believe “we’ll-all-be-rooned” in their presence.
Policy based on evidence
Looking at the tooth-and-claw battles in Canberra, where bi-partisan policy is dismissed as insufficiently wedging, it’s easy to forget that there is also progress in proving whether policies actually work.
But the pain of every Barrier Reef funding scandal also draws us closer to economist Nicholas Gruen’s idea for an Evaluator-General – a government office that would build evaluation into everything the government does. It’s just a hope, but a positive one.
Not-for-profits joining forces
It lifts my mood too, that our social enterprise will soon move into a new shared office hosting several organisations with room for up to 400 staff. Headed by my deputy Kathy Richardson, we’re dedicated to equipping not-for-profits with new tools, new goals, and new challenges, because we believe community organisations are the nurseries where hope is born.
The promise of youth
At home too, the year promises so much. Two years ago, my partner Brendan and I trained to become foster carers, thinking we’d help with respite care for kids on weekends and an occasional two-week stint. Somehow, our first placement was with John, who stayed for 14 months. When he couldn’t return home and staying with other foster families proved difficult – as well as the fact he missed lording it over our staff and explaining how life worked – we decided we loved him and wanted to care for him permanently.
We are now incredibly excited and scared to have adopted a 14-year-old with a healthy and gifted attitude.
And so, I begin the year with fresh hope and I think poet Emily Dickinson puts it best: “Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul - and sings the tunes without the words - and never stops at all.”
Denis Moriarty is group managing director of OurCommunity.com.au
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Shelter lauds courageous by Carin Schoppmeyer | January 14, 2021 at 1:00 a.m.
NWA Democrat-Gazette/CARIN SCHOPPMEYER KC Tucker (from left), Kirk and Cee Cee Dupps and Louis Tucker enjoy the Peace at Home Bar & Grill on April 11 at the Stone Chapel at Matt Lane Farm in Fayetteville.
Peace at Home Family Shelter leaders will present the organization's Courage Award to KC Tucker of Fayetteville and Doug Sprouse of Springdale at their Courage Award Virtual Event set for Feb. 5. The event will be livestreamed from 11 to 11:30 a.m. on their Facebook page and posted on YouTube following the event.
The group gives the award "to honor individuals or groups who have shown fortitude, strength and dedication to empowering domestic violence survivors and their families."
Along with the awards presentations, organizers say the virtual event will "provide an inside look at Peace at Home programs and how we are still serving survivors of domestic violence during covid-19."
Founded in 1977, Peace at Home Family Shelter was the first program in Arkansas to provide safe shelter for abused women and their children. Each year, the safe emergency shelter, crisis hotline, housing assistance, counseling and legal services empower hundreds of families to leave abuse and establish non-violent homes.
Eva Terry, Peace at Home development director says: "In 2020, Peace at Home provided:
• Safe shelter to 199 people escaping domestic violence -- 109 adults and 90 children.
• Housing assistance for 95 families to move into new, safe homes and 53 families to maintain their housing (providing almost $230,000 in direct housing assistance alone).
• Legal services to 358 families, including divorce and child custody representation and assistance obtaining orders of protection.
• Professional counseling services to 65 survivors of domestic violence trying to recover from the abuse they experienced.
• A listening ear and assistance to the 1,074 crisis calls through the hotline.
In total, Peace at Home provided confidential and free support to help over 1,000 neighbors in our community flee domestic violence."
-- CARIN SCHOPPMEYER
Courage Awards Virtual Event
Who: Peace at Home Family Shelter
What: The group will recognize KC Tucker and Doug Sprouse and give backers an inside look.
When: 11-11:30 a.m. Feb. 5
Where: facebook.com/peaceathomeshelter
Information: (479) 442-9811 or peaceathome.org
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Oakland Theater
Your independent guide to the best shows in Oakland
OTHER CONTEMPORARY POP IN OAKLAND
My Chemical Romance Event homeBuy ticketsCustomer reviews Celine DionLouis TomlinsonMadness
OAKLAND ARENA
Andre Rieu (Mar 3, 2021)
The Millennium Tour (Apr 3, 2021)
Rage Against The Machine (Jun 11 - 12, 2021)
The Weeknd (Aug 3, 2021)
Celine Dion (Sep 4, 2021)
Lit AF Tour hosted by Martin Lawrence (Nov 20, 2021)
Oakland Arena Please selectVenue homeLocation and directionsOvernight accommodationSeating maps Andre Rieu (Mar 3, 2021)The Millennium Tour (Apr 3, 2021)Rage Against The Machine (Jun 11 - 12, 2021)The Weeknd (Aug 3, 2021)Celine Dion (Sep 4, 2021)Lit AF Tour hosted by Martin Lawrence (Nov 20, 2021)
7000 Coliseum Way, Oakland, CA 94621
Prices from: $130
Sing it from the heart, My Chemical Romance are reuniting!
Why See My Chemical Romance?
Contemporary PopIndie & RockConcerts
MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE REUNION!
The reunion we've all been waiting for! It's time to grab your black kohl eyeliner and dig out your supply of colorful slap bracelets and jelly bands because our boys are back together. My Chemical Romance are heading back on the road in 2021, reminding us of their emo-rock icon status.
The legendary Gerard Way, Ray Toro, Frank Iero, and Mikey Way all left their marks on fans' hearts. Whether it be Gerard Way's hair or the way MCR's style took over closets across the world. Their debut album, I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love, was released in 2002. A year later, they released their major debut album, Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge, which include fan-favorite singles 'Helena' and 'I'm Not Okay (I Promise). Their third album completely eclipsed the success of their previous two, The Black Parade marched through the United States and the United Kingdom gaining double-platinum certification.
This is one event you really don't want to miss out on, otherwise, you really won't be okay (I promise).
Performance date: 6 October 2021
About Oakland Theater: We are an independent show guide not a venue or show. We sell primary, discount and resale tickets and prices may be above or below face value.
Next available performances
View all times and dates
Seen My Chemical Romance? Loved it? Hated it?
Help your fellow Oakland Theater visitors by leaving the first review!
Sound good to you? Share this page on social media and let your friends know about My Chemical Romance at Oakland Arena.
Please note: The term Oakland Arena and/or My Chemical Romance as well as all associated graphics, logos, and/or other trademarks, tradenames or copyrights are the property of the Oakland Arena and/or My Chemical Romance and are used herein for factual descriptive purposes only. We are in no way associated with or authorized by the Oakland Arena and/or My Chemical Romance and neither that entity nor any of its affiliates have licensed or endorsed us to sell tickets, goods and or services in conjunction with their events.
Oakland Theater is part of the Theatreland Ltd Collection. Established in 2003, Theatreland offers the largest individual collection of websites providing complete, impartial guides to all the theatrical, musical and performance arts events and venues in the world's greatest theatre cities, from New York's Broadway to London's West End and from the showrooms of Las Vegas to Shakespeare's Globe Theatre.
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MedTorque Inc.
WuXi AppTec
What’s Apple Been Up To?
Apple is building its bench with teams of physicians and engineers creating software and hardware to address the healthcare market.
Maria Shepherd, President and Founder, Medi-Vantage08.11.20
Apple’s goal is still largely aspirational in the orthopedic healthcare space, despite public announcements such as CEO Tim Cook’s prediction that health will ultimately be the company’s “greatest contribution to mankind.”1 Apple is building its bench through relationships with orthopedic companies like Zimmer Biomet and its teams of physicians and engineers creating software and hardware targeting the healthcare market. Will the new digital health innovations such as Zimmer Biomet’s mymobility transform the joint replacement standard of care?
Apple, Microsoft, Google, Amazon—they all want to be in the healthcare space, and the scale of their businesses provides them resources much greater than what’s seen in traditional medtech. Zimmer Biomet recognizes this and has started a remote care management system with new mymobility features on the Apple Watch.2
This is an expansion of a first-ever remote care management system in orthopedics with a goal to transform the pre- and post-operative joint replacement experience. These features expand the existing software between Apple and Zimmer Biomet from the first generation mymobility care management system, launched in October 2018.
The second generation of mobility metrics will measure gait quality to provide healthcare professionals with more real-time patient information to augment the clinical decision-making process. Patients get an improved connected and customizable experience during their episode of care.
Gait quality metrics leverage the capabilities of Apple’s network through sensors in the Apple Watch and iPhone to store walking speeds and double-support time (defined as the amount of time where both feet touch the ground) when walking on flat level surfaces. No GPS is used. Gait quality metrics will be available to hip and knee joint replacement patients that opt in, as well as their healthcare professionals. Zimmer Biomet expects the mymobility app will be a new and effective way to mitigate patient issues while enhancing the patient experience, obviating the need for additional physician office visits.
mymobility’s gait quality metrics from Apple Watch allow clinicians to compare patient progress to a database to improve management of post-op care. The gait tracking feature can assist identification of patients not recuperating at the expected pace. These metrics will also be entered into the company’s OrthoIntel Orthopedic Intelligence Platform—a solution that collects pre-, intra-, and post-op data to identify new clinical insights for physicians and their care teams.
What Has Apple Done So Far?
Apple is not the worldwide smartphone market leader (Table 1). In the U.S., the sales of iPhones as compared to Android are shrinking. iPhone sales dropped from 38.1 percent in 3Q18 to 36.1 percent in 3Q19, a drop of 2 percent. Android increased by 1.8 percent from 61.8 percent in 2018 to 63.6 percent in 2019.4
Table 1: June 2019 to June 2020 mobile operating system market share worldwide3
In China, the dogs in the fight are not limited to Apple and Android leaders like Samsung. Local Chinese brands account for 79.3 percent of sales in the Chinese market. Huawei and Honor combined have a 46.8 percent market share, easing the impact from the U.S.-China trade dispute.4
Apple has successfully targeted the Big-Five European markets against Android (Table 2), leveraging the strengths of the iPhone 11 and 11 Pro. In the latest smartphone study5 for 3Q19, the iPhone accounts for 19 percent of all smartphone sales across Germany, France, U.K., Spain, and Italy. Android’s market share across the five markets remained dominant, even though they lost a slight amount of market share (down 1.5 percent in the quarter). Other operating system usage declined from 0.7 percent market share to 0.2 percent. Lower unit market shares for the iPhone contrast sharply with Android revenues, due to the immense price difference between the two smartphones.
Table 2: Big-Five EU Market Share for iPhone vs. Android5
Outside of orthopedics, Apple is grabbing the healthcare flag and running with it via an exciting new portfolio of products and services in healthcare.
First and foremost is the Apple Watch. Apple positions health as a use case and as a brand. The Apple Watch provides heart rate monitoring, with an ECG to detect heart rhythm irregularities, activity tracking, integration with third-party wellness apps, fall detection alerts, and more.
In addition, Apple is trying to get patients to incorporate lab results and medical history into their iPhones.6 Apple Health Records is another electronic medical record (EMR) that still has some software usability issues to work out. The largest EMRs have built firewalls around access to patient records and are bare-knuckle fighting over market share. Currently, patients using Apple Health Records must remember which doctors and hospitals they have seen and log into those portals to capture the data.
For the COVID-19 pandemic, Apple has teamed with Google to create contact tracing technology for smartphones. These will allow public health experts to build apps to track patients who have been exposed to the coronavirus.
A Double-Edged Sword
It’s no surprise physicians are of two minds regarding the use of patient health devices. Some doctors are pro-use, citing increased patient attention to personal health, while others feel analyzing patient-generated information is overwhelming and something they aren’t reimbursed for. Many doctors are uncertain about the accuracy of wearables when tracking patient health data. In addition, to make patient-generated data usable, it must integrate better with an EMR dashboard so the care team can see trends in a structured way.
A Finger in Every Pie
Apple is increasing its healthcare revenues by partnering with insurers like Aetna to market and sell more of its devices. In some programs, patients can pay down the price of a device like the Apple Watch while demonstrating healthy behavior.7 Apple has also reportedly begun discussions with private Medicare plans about subsidizing Apple Watch costs for seniors.
There is a longer game here. In the future, Apple could own a body of clinical evidence to get into the business of population health risk management. If Apple can improve the quality of care and reduce costs, it will reach the holy grail that supports AI in healthcare.
Preventive health will expand the Apple Watch’s market opportunity. Expect more game-changers if Apple can introduce non-invasive glucose or blood-pressure monitoring sensors. With sensors like these, the market for a home-use device on a smartphone increases dramatically. At that point, Apple’s iPhone could reach a much bigger market. It is estimated 60 percent of Americans have one or more co-morbidities8 and one out of every three Americans are at high risk for Type 2 diabetes (Table 3).9
Table 3: The Apple opportunity in U.S. preventive health8,9
The Medi-Vantage Perspective
We have several early-stage clients utilizing the strengths of the big four (Google, Apple, Microsoft, and Samsung) to harness their investment in healthcare. Also, is your device compatible with the iPhone to collect the data? If your device utilizes the cloud in any way, consider leveraging a smartphone, especially if you are targeting patients. The cost of HIPAA compliance is an issue, but the price for this certification will be coming down.
bit.ly/odt200701
Maria Shepherd has more than 20 years of leadership experience in medical device/life science marketing. After her industry career, including her role as VP of marketing for Oridion Medical, where she boosted the company valuation prior to a Medtronic acquisition, and director of marketing for Philips Medical, she founded Medi-Vantage. Medi-Vantage provides marketing and business strategy and innovation research for the medical device industry. Visit her website at www.medi-vantage.com.
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