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CHICAGO (Reuters) - The U.S. government’s $2.65 billion operating loan program for farms is close to running out of funds as cash-strapped grain farmers and cautious banks have rushed to shore up capital to survive the industry’s worst downturn in more than a decade. Crop scouts and grain buyers survey a wheat field in Leoni, Kansas, May 4, 2016. REUTERS/Karl Plume The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency funding for direct loans or guarantees are expected to be depleted by the end of June, about three months before the next year’s program restarts Oct. 1, USDA officials told Reuters on Tuesday. It is the second year in a row that money has dried up before the end of the fiscal year, the latest sign of a credit crunch as commercial banks and lenders have reined in lending to farmers, already hurt by sinking grains prices. That has forced farmers to turn to federal help to ride out the global grains downturn. Commercial banks and lenders have also scrambled to get guaranteed operating loans, which ensure that as much as 95 percent of the farm’s operating loan will be backed by the government. A recent rebound in crop prices, with soybeans up 37 percent since early March and corn up 23 percent, has not cooled demand. These FSA loan guarantees and direct loans are often considered to be loans of the last resort, say banking experts. Without the financial support, some farmers may struggle to survive until the next cash injection in the fall, say rural economy experts. In the past, such lending typically focused on smaller or new farmers with fewer resources. But as grain prices plummeted early this year, and economic erosion continues to squeeze Midwest farmers’ capital expenditures and pressure farmland values, a growing number of agricultural lenders turned to the federal government, FSA staff said. As of the end of May, applications for operating loans to the FSA were up 23 percent, while funding obligation has jumped 19 percent, compared to a year earlier, according to agency data. The applications continue to roll in even from farmers that have not needed FSA loans in the past, said Edwin Elfmann, vice president of government relations at political affairs at the American Bankers Association. USDA officials and banking experts estimated that the backlog of applications by October could be as much as $650 million. Banking and agricultural groups have pleaded for help from House and Senate appropriations committees, but have received no clear response yet, Elfmann said. |
Well, it appears that Google Fiber will finally arrive in Overland Park. At its meeting Monday evening, the City Council is poised to approve two agreements that would allow the California-based tech giant to bring super-high-speed Internet to the city. The proposals are similar to ones presented last September, but action on those was delayed. “Everything appears to be in order. We have been ready to deal with Google for several months now, so I am looking forward to it,” said Councilman David White. “We’ve wanted it all along, and if this can be pulled off it will be a good thing for Overland Park and for the citizens. I think they will all be happy.” The company did not respond Saturday to efforts to confirm it had a deal with Overland Park. Google typically does not comment until after a deal passes a city council. Sign Up and Save Get six months of free digital access to The Kansas City Star Under one of the agreements, Overland Park would allow Google Fiber to install network huts on city-owned property. This would enable Google Fiber to string its fiber-optic lines to neighborhoods throughout the city. The second agreement would permit Google Fiber to use the city’s existing fiber network conduit. Google Fiber asked Overland Park to place the separate agreements on Monday’s City Council agenda, city spokesman Sean Reilly said. Google and Overland Park officials had struck a preliminary deal last fall. Then on the evening it was set for a vote, some council members posed a few questions about liability issues. That prompted Google officials to ask for a delay in the vote. At the next meeting, the council had put aside its concerns and was eager to vote for the Google deal in its original form. But Google walked away — surprising the council and city staff. That move was seen by industry analysts as the tech giant sending a signal. Cities desperately wanted the broadband speed and high-tech cachet of Google Fiber. But Google would rather go elsewhere than put up with too much local regulation — even in what would appear to be the most lucrative part of the Kansas City market. In fact, Google is now examining expanding its broadband service to nine other American markets and figures to say which ones it will pursue by year’s end. Among the key things the company has asked for at each location is a streamlining of construction regulations. Google had also said it was putting off talks with Overland Park and other Kansas City suburbs, such as Independence, until it had made more progress finishing work in Kansas City. The company has said it expects installations there to be done by year’s end. “It is the latest technology, and I think given the desire of the community to have access to high-speed fiber, it is an important addition to the city,” said Councilman Terry Goodman. |
Remember all those Windows 8 screenshots that surfaced before the platform was released? Well, some of those might have been courtesy of Alex Kibkalo, an ex-Microsoft employee who was just arrested for stealing and leaking company secrets. Unlike the HTC execs who reportedly stole trade secrets to run a new firm, though, Kibkalo allegedly leaked info to a French tech blogger for something akin to revenge -- he was apparently angry over receiving a poor performance review when he was still with Microsoft. According to Seattle Post-Intelligencer, the accused sent the blogger (whom he met on a forum) parts of Windows 8's code and Microsoft's Activation Server Software Development Kit. While Kibkalo's charging paper states that the blogger only posted Windows 8 screenshots, Microsoft believes its former employee also encouraged him to share the development kit online. He supposedly wanted that to happen so hackers can use the kit (one of Microsoft's defenses against software piracy) to crack the company's products. |
Oct. 22, 2015 – Across the animal kingdom, males hoot and holler to attract females and ward off competing suitors. Now, a new study finds that male howler monkeys with deeper calls have smaller testicles – and vice versa, according to researchers from universities of Utah, Cambridge and Vienna and other institutions. In the cover story of Current Biology’s new issue, the research team provides the first evidence of a tradeoff between two traits evolved by different howler monkey species so that males could mate with females and pass their genes to offspring: large gonads to make more sperm, or a large vocal-tract hyoid bone to produce a deep call that scares competitors and attracts females – similar to how women like deep male voices. “They are different solutions to the same problem,” says Leslie Knapp, professor and chair of anthropology at the University of Utah and one of the study’s two senior authors. “It is not possible to produce a large hyoid and large testes. This probably arose because individuals within one species produced more offspring if they had large hyoids. And in another species they were more successful if they had large testes.” “The idea has been around since Charles Darwin, but this is the first time that anyone actually has demonstrated a trade-off between vocal characteristics before mating and sperm competition after mating,” she says. “Our study shows that Darwin was probably right when he suggested that the roars of howler monkeys are important for reproduction.” PHOTO CREDIT: Carolyn M. Crockett Download Full-Res Image Researchers used 3-D laser scans to calculate the volumes of 255 cup-shaped howler monkey hyoid bones from museums in the United States and Europe. To confirm the scans were accurate, the team made CT and MRI images of two adult male howlers. Data on testicle sizes for 66 howler monkeys were collected from published literature, but Knapp says researchers visited zoos in Brazil and Germany, using calipers to measure testes of 21 more monkeys while the animals were sedated for health exams. “This was a very serious business because the monkeys were passive – but not that passive,” Knapp says. A tactical tradeoff: Testicles or tone? Male howler monkeys are unusual among primates in that they have an enlarged hyoid bone in their voice box that acts like an echo chamber to amplify sounds. All howler monkeys howl to communicate with each other, but some species are able to howl more loudly and more deeply. Monkeys with larger hyoids produce louder, deeper calls, suggesting a larger body size, which indicates an ability to get food and resources. But the hyoid is an energetically expensive organ to make, so males that grow large hyoids may have to compensate by having smaller structures elsewhere. To test this idea, the researchers analyzed data on hyoid volume in nine of 10 howler monkey species, social group sizes in eight species and testes volume in five of those species. “We found that males with larger hyoids, who can make lower-pitch vocalizations, have smaller testes and live in single-male groups with a harem of a few females,” Knapp says. “Males with smaller hyoids live in multimale groups and have larger testes.” In a group where multiple males are mating with the same female, a male is likely to sire more offspring by simply making more sperm than the other males, allowing repeated mating and increasing the odds of fertilizing an egg. PHOTO CREDIT: Jacob C. Dunn, University of Cambridge Download Full-Res Image In species where a male lived with a harem of females and had exclusive access to them, the low-pitched voice should be more important than large testicles for siring offspring, because “once he has the females, a single male doesn’t face much sperm competition,” Knapp says. “A large hyoid might make a male more attractive to females or make other males think he is large and scary, which may be the best way for him to keep his harem.” Why does evolution lead to a tradeoff between a larger hyoid and smaller testes, rather than a smaller heart, liver or foot? “Your liver or kidney or toe doesn’t contribute to your having a mate or the possibility of more offspring,” says Knapp, who refers to the study as her “calls-and-balls paper.” Knapp conducted the study with fellow senior author W. Tecumseh Fitch, a University of Vienna professor of cognitive biology, and first author Jacob Dunn, a biological anthropologist at University of Cambridge, U.K. Co-authors were Lauren Halenar, Farmingdale State College, N.Y.; Thomas G. Davies and Jurgi Critobal-Azkarte, University of Cambridge; David Reby, University of Sussex, U.K.; Dan Sykes, Natural History Museum, London; and Sabine Dengg, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna. The study was funded by the Cambridge Humanities Research Council and the European Research Council. How howlers howl Howler monkeys are 12- to 16-pound New World monkeys in the genus Alouatta (al-oo-watt-tah) and live in Central and South America. They have some of the loudest and deepest voices of the animal kingdom. Although they are only the size of a medium dog, their roars are as loud and deep as an animal the size of a tiger. The secret is the hyoid bone, which is greatly enlarged in howler monkeys but not in other primates. Humans also have a hyoid, but we use our vocal folds (commonly known as vocal chords) to control sound quality. Males in other species sometimes use ornaments such as peacock tail feathers to attract females, or weapons like deer antlers to fight competitors. But the researchers hypothesized that male howler monkeys used vocalizations to attract mates and-or compete with each other. PHOTO CREDIT: Mariana Raño Download Full-Res Image The researchers found that within a howler monkey species, male hyoids are three to eight times larger female hyoids. And between species, “the biggest males have hyoids that are 10 times larger than the smallest males,” Knapp says. The researchers found that larger hyoids allowed howler monkeys to produce sounds with reduced “formant spacing,” a measure of sound’s resonant frequencies. “To us, calls with reduced formant spacing sound deeper and louder,” Knapp says. “To a howler monkey, these calls give an acoustic impression of large body size.” The researchers also considered an alternative hypothesis: hyoids might be adapted to produce different vocalizations in different habitats. But an analysis of the lushness of landscapes where howlers live found no support for this idea. In the future, the researchers want to measure hyoid and testes volume in individual males of the same species to determine if the relationship that they found between species also holds between individuals. Humans – the Barry White effect? In contrast to howlers’ hyoid bones, tiny hyoids in humans may have been necessary for delicate larynx movements needed for the development of language. Knapp cautions that it is hard to compare directly with humans, since unlike howler monkeys, we have miniscule hyoids and don’t use them to produce sound. But she says there is some evidence voice quality similarly affects human mate preferences. “Females of our own species tend to find deeper voices, like soul vocalist Barry White’s, more attractive and romantic,” Knapp says. “Deeper voices are thought to reflect a larger body size, which could represent a good choice for a mate.” Despite the lures of Barry White, a deep voice and testes size aren’t so important in our species. Knapp says: “Human males try to show a female what their value is with other things: resources, care of offspring and other attractive characteristics like being successful in business or driving a fast, flashy car.” Video: A two-minute video of a male red howler monkey at the La Senda Verde Animal Refuge in Bolivia is here (use case-sensitive password MonkeyHowls before embargo expires: https://vimeo.com/141341280 Video credit: La Senda Verde Animal Refuge, Bolivia. Audio: A recording of Alouatta sara is here. If it doesn’t work, try another browser: |
They're made out of Meat by Terry Bisson "They're made out of meat." "Meat?" "Meat. They're made out of meat." "Meat?" "There's no doubt about it. We picked several from different parts of the planet, took them aboard our recon vessels, probed them all the way through. They're completely meat." "That's impossible. What about the radio signals? The messages to the stars." "They use the radio waves to talk, but the signals don't come from them. The signals come from machines." "So who made the machines? That's who we want to contact." "They made the machines. That's what I'm trying to tell you. Meat made the machines." "That's ridiculous. How can meat make a machine? You're asking me to believe in sentient meat." "I'm not asking you, I'm telling you. These creatures are the only sentient race in the sector and they're made out of meat." "Maybe they're like the Orfolei. You know, a carbon-based intelligence that goes through a meat stage." "Nope. They're born meat and they die meat. We studied them for several of their life spans, which didn't take too long. Do you have any idea the life span of meat?" "Spare me. Okay, maybe they're only part meat. You know, like the Weddilei. A meat head with an electron plasma brain inside." "Nope. We thought of that, since they do have meat heads like the Weddilei. But I told you, we probed them. They're meat all the way through." "No brain?" "Oh, there is a brain all right. It's just that the brain is made out of meat!" "So... what does the thinking?" "You're not understanding, are you? The brain does the thinking. The meat." "Thinking meat! You're asking me to believe in thinking meat!" "Yes, thinking meat! Conscious meat! Loving meat. Dreaming meat. The meat is the whole deal! Are you getting the picture?" "Omigod. You're serious then. They're made out of meat." "Finally, Yes. They are indeed made out meat. And they've been trying to get in touch with us for almost a hundred of their years." "So what does the meat have in mind?" "First it wants to talk to us. Then I imagine it wants to explore the universe, contact other sentients, swap ideas and information. The usual." "We're supposed to talk to meat?" "That's the idea. That's the message they're sending out by radio. 'Hello. Anyone out there? Anyone home?' That sort of thing." "They actually do talk, then. They use words, ideas, concepts?" "Oh, yes. Except they do it with meat." "I thought you just told me they used radio." "They do, but what do you think is on the radio? Meat sounds. You know how when you slap or flap meat it makes a noise? They talk by flapping their meat at each other. They can even sing by squirting air through their meat." "Omigod. Singing meat. This is altogether too much. So what do you advise?" "Officially or unofficially?" "Both." "Officially, we are required to contact, welcome, and log in any and all sentient races or multibeings in the quadrant, without prejudice, fear, or favor. Unofficially, I advise that we erase the records and forget the whole thing." "I was hoping you would say that." "It seems harsh, but there is a limit. Do we really want to make contact with meat?" "I agree one hundred percent. What's there to say?" `Hello, meat. How's it going?' But will this work? How many planets are we dealing with here?" "Just one. They can travel to other planets in special meat containers, but they can't live on them. And being meat, they only travel through C space. Which limits them to the speed of light and makes the possibility of their ever making contact pretty slim. Infinitesimal, in fact." "So we just pretend there's no one home in the universe." "That's it." "Cruel. But you said it yourself, who wants to meet meat? And the ones who have been aboard our vessels, the ones you have probed? You're sure they won't remember?" "They'll be considered crackpots if they do. We went into their heads and smoothed out their meat so that we're just a dream to them." "A dream to meat! How strangely appropriate, that we should be meat's dream." "And we can mark this sector unoccupied." "Good. Agreed, officially and unofficially. Case closed. Any others? Anyone interesting on that side of the galaxy?" "Yes, a rather shy but sweet hydrogen core cluster intelligence in a class nine star in G445 zone. Was in contact two galactic rotations ago, wants to be friendly again." "They always come around." "And why not? Imagine how unbearably, how unutterably cold the universe would be if one were all alone." Editor's note: This story is © Copyright by Terry Bisson and is reproduced here by kind permission of the author. If you like the story, please visit Terry Bisson's Website and check out his books. |
Food stamp trafficking often begins with an innocuous question. "Can I talk to you?" Sami Deffala, who's managed a corner store in Chicago's Englewood neighborhood for 13 years, said he hears that every day from customers vying for a private moment in hopes of using their Link cards to exchange SNAP benefits, the modern-day version of food stamps, for cash — an illegal practice called trafficking by federal regulators. And every day, Deffala said, he hears them out but refuses to take part in the scheme. "I have people young and old doing this, from an 18 year-old-woman to a 67-year-old man," said Deffala, manager of Morgan Mini Mart. "It's a big problem." The temptation proves too great for some retailers. Since October 2014, more than 140 stores in Chicago and another 34 in suburban Cook County have been permanently disqualified from the $75 billion federal food stamps program, officially known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. All but one of them were kicked out for trafficking, according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Nationally, food stamp trafficking is on the decline, amounting to only 1.3 percent of SNAP spending, compared with 4 percent in the 1990s. And the vast majority of SNAP benefits — 82 percent — are redeemed at supermarkets and merchants like Costco. In Chicago, more than 140 stores have been disqualfied from the SNAP program since 2014. Nevertheless, the $975 million lost annually to food stamp trafficking, as Republicans in Congress have sought to cut SNAP's funding, has prompted the USDA in recent years to send a clear message through more sophisticated tracking and aggressive enforcement: Trafficking will not be tolerated. "I think they know the rules. ... It's just a temptation that some stores give into. They're playing the odds they won't get caught," said USDA Undersecretary Kevin Concannon. The crackdown has created empty storefronts and fewer shopping options in parts of Chicago, as most disqualified retailers were corner stores in low-income predominantly minority neighborhoods on Chicago's South and West sides. In those neighborhoods, a store getting booted from SNAP effectively means getting shut down. Some SNAP advocates say corner store trafficking represents a symptom of a much larger problem — deeply entrenched poverty exacerbated by poor schools, nonexistent jobs, scant business development and years of neglect from all levels of government. In Illinois, about 1.9 million people receive assistance through SNAP, up from about 1.2 million people some 10 years ago. Nationally, roughly 43.4 million people receive an average monthly benefit of about $125, according to USDA data from May. The monthly benefit has decreased or stayed basically flat for the past five years. Exchanging benefits for cash comes at a cost, both for taxpayers and those perpetrating the scam. In a typical scenario, a customer might trade $100 worth of benefits for $50 cash, leaving the other $50 for the retailer. For corner stores with razor-thin margins, such high-risk deals might represent a source of needed income. Customers lose a portion of their benefits in the deal, but they walk away with cash that can be used for expenses that can't be paid for with SNAP benefits, which are intended only for food. "We don't want these merchants preying on low-income communities of color and we don't want them tearing away at this important program," said Diane Doherty, executive director of the Illinois Hunger Coalition. Certainly, not all SNAP benefits are exchanged to help make rent. One customer of stores on the Near West Side said he swapped his benefits for cash to support his heroin habit and to buy diapers for his baby daughter. "It undermines public confidence when SNAP benefits are not used the way they're intended. ... You can't just violate the program and rationalize it by saying, 'Well, I was struggling,'" Concannon said. I think they know the rules. ... It's just a temptation that some stores give into. They're playing the odds they won't get caught. — USDA Undersecretary Kevin Concannon Cracking down On a grim two-block stretch of West Chicago Avenue on the city's West Side, straddling the neighborhood boundary of Humboldt Park and East Garfield Park, three corner stores were disqualified last year for trafficking. Two are now shuttered; one has since reopened under new ownership. A "Grand Opening" sign still hangs on the storefront beneath a bright yellow menu hawking dishes such as gyro sandwiches, chicken wings and fish dinners. At Homan Food and Deli, another corner store on the same block, employee Ammar Alobadi said he and co-workers are asked daily by customers to exchange benefits for cash but they refuse because it's considered haram, or forbidden, in Islam. Across the street, Mohamed Salam, manager of Ben Salem Food Market, offered a more worldly reason to not participate in food stamp trafficking. If a store's caught trafficking, the government will "take everything you have and they shut you down," Salam said, speaking from behind the protective partition of the elevated counter common in many corner stores. At one Englewood store, Link card sales account for about 80 percent of the business. In recent years, the federal government has used enhanced data tracking tools to sanction more stores, tracking suspicious transactions of electronic benefits. Stores are then ranked based on risk, placed on the agency's watch list as needed, and reviewed further by USDA analysts. Sometimes undercover agents are deployed to stores suspected of breaking the rules, Concannon said. Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune Sami Deffala gets some fresh air Aug. 16, 2016, outside his Morgan Mini Mart on the corner of 66th and Morgan streets in Chicago's Englewood neighborhood. Sami Deffala gets some fresh air Aug. 16, 2016, outside his Morgan Mini Mart on the corner of 66th and Morgan streets in Chicago's Englewood neighborhood. (Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune) Between fiscal years 2013 and 2015, the total number of stores disqualified nationally rose from 1,215 to 1,906, representing a 57 percent increase, according to the USDA. But the total number of authorized SNAP retailers still increased by 5,670 stores during that time. In some cases, SNAP violations lead to criminal prosecutions. Since October 2014, 16 indictments and 12 convictions of Chicago retailers, stemming from investigations conducted by the USDA's Office of Inspector General, have led to $2 million in fines, forfeitures and restitution orders. Corner stores were already a source of concern for the Cook County state's attorney's Regional Organized Crime Task Force, which found they're often "conduits of bad operations," including fencing stolen goods, identity theft, organized crime and SNAP trafficking, said Assistant State's Attorney David Williams. The Cook County state's attorney's office has partnered with federal authorities on prosecutions. In 2011, the task force successfully lobbied state lawmakers to toughen penalties for crimes that sometimes occur at corner stores, including trafficking, allowing prosectors to charge higher-level felonies and seize assets if patterns of criminal conduct could be proven, Williams said. Williams said he considered SNAP trafficking to be "fairly rampant" among Chicago corner stores. |
This is one of those weekends when the hardest part is deciding what NOT to do. Friday 12pm: Running all weekend, you can plan your dream on the road at the 11th Annual Virginia RV Show at the Hampton Roads Convention Center. For more, click here. 5-11pm: End your week in Norfolk with a self-guided tour of participating art galleries, restaurants and shops at the first “Go Local Art Crawl”. Each location will a little something different, including meeting artists, poetry readings, live music, entertainment, refreshments and specials. As a bonus, there is a Finale Party at 9:30pm. For more, click here. 5:30-8:30pm: If you still haven’t heard Glasgow Kiss, this a great time to see them. One of my favorite local bands, they’ll be playing at the Greening of Smartmouth Brewery. Irish music and beer? Sign me up and hand me a glass lassy! For more, click here. 6pm: Maybe spooky is your thing? If so, head to the Legends of Main Street: A Suffolk Ghost Walk. This begins at the Suffolk Visitor Center at 524 North Main Street. Reservations are required by calling 757-514-4130. You should be able to speak to a live person. 6-9pm: Heat up the night at AcquaFire at the Norfolk Botanical Gardens. There will be live acoustic music by David Welsh & Mack Against the Wall as fire blazes in the Garden’s Renaissance Pond. Bring your family, friends, lawn chairs, blankets, and a fire extinguisher. Food, beer, and wine will be available at the event. For more, click here. 6-10pm: Celebrate the luck of the Irish (or at least their determination) at Ghent’s St. Patrick’s Day street party, Shamrockin’ in Ghent. Colley Avenue makes you green with envy with this free event. Always fun to attend, we’ll be there pretending that the children dancing like strippers aren’t ours. For more, click here. 7pm: Don’t miss a night of beer and good, old fashioned comedy at the Push Comedy Theater during the St. Paddy’s Day Improv Jam. For more, click here. 7-9pm: Join local Ukulele Lady Skye Zentz and award winning folkies, Little Pants as they sing the hits of 1997 and 2002 (which happens to be when they were each 13) at Elliot’s Fair Grounds as they present “When We Were 13.” For more, click here. 7-9pm: Many people are scared of a zombie take-over; I’m more frightened that the MOCA is offering a Teen Takeover Night. Have they not been around teenagers? This event offers art, music, mocktails, food, and more. For more, click here. 9pm-1am: Did anyone notice that this Friday is Friday the 13th? The Iguana did! You can join DJP and MrT, Ladada, and Seamonster on this unlucky day. For more, click here. 9:30pm: The Push Comedy Theater also picked up on the date and will offer a double feature, “The Improvised Movie – Friday the 13th Edition”. In honor of Friday the 13th, they’ll be presenting the most messed up, improvised-on-the-spot horror movie ever. For more, click here. 9:30pm: If a Jason mask sends you over the edge, you can always go next door to the Parlor On Granby to see Great Peacock, JANKS, and Nate Sacks while your friends are getting hacked apart at the comedy club. For more, click here. Saturday Saturday begins Suffolk Restaurant Week. The event goes through the 21st. See participating restaurants and more here. 8am-2pm: Support the upcoming Tidewater Comicon and shop the Mega Nerd Garage Sale in Virginia Beach. Grab great deals on comics, hoodies, goodies, and more. Hardest decision for me? Do I wear my Superman shirt, Wonder Woman Apron or Supergirl undies to this event? For more, click here. 8am-2pm: If fishing is your love in life, you’ll want to head to the Fishing Flea Market in Chesapeake. Raffles, new and used rods, refreshments, boats, trailers and more await you. For more, click here. 9am: Need a trim. Like, a really big trim? The St. Baldrick’s fundraiser is this Saturday at the Westin in Virginia Beach. The funds raised at this event goes to kids cancer research. For more, click here. 9am-5pm: It is Community Day at the Mariner’s Museum in Newport News. Admission is only $5 and children three and under are free. Residents of Hampton Roads can enjoy this discounted admission rate for the museum and also partake in the inaugural Coffee Days event going on from 10am-1pm. For more, click here. 10am-3pm: After you’ve shopped in your best nerd attire at the Mega Nerd Garage Sale, head over to the Chrysler Museum of Art for “FREE Family Day: E for Everyone.” Here, you are encouraged to dress as your favorite video game character to compete in the Cosplay Contest, beat your family at video games, take selfies with Mario, get your face painted, and listed to music. What a great event! For more, click here. 10am-12:30pm: Grab your greenest green and most obnoxious outfit and head to the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Oceanview. This is the 48th year of the fun tradition. For more, click here. 10am-5pm: Highlighting women professionals, the second annual Women in STEM Day will be at Nauticus this weekend. Representatives from eleven local organizations involved in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math will offer related activities through the day. For more, click here. 11am: While you’re thinking of taking green jello shots, don’t forget to update your pets’ shots. Four Paws Mobile Veterinary will be at Muddy Paws in Norfolk for the Vaccine Clinic. For more, click here. 11am-2pm: See your kids’ heads explode into 1980s style blocks when they find out about the Minecraft Constructions Kids Family Event at the Hampton History Museum. The evil geniuses have found a way to use Minecraft to teach history themes. Mind blown. Mind blown. For more, click here. 11am-3pm: If green beer isn’t your desire this weekend, but chocolate is, bring your kids to the Royal Chocolate in Virginia Beach for the “Build Your Own Chocolate Bar Event”. You heard that right. They can build it, and then maybe you eat it. Just a suggestion. For more, click here. 12-6pm: Vinyl is back! And you can get back into the groove at the Norfolk Vinyl Record Exchange Record Swap at Alchemy in Norfolk. For more, click here. 12-9pm: Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and O’Connor’s 5th Anniversary with live music by Fixity & Subforce Maybe! There will be Irish-inspired menu items by Karnage Asada, Pizza Bella Vista, Bro’s Fish Tacos, and Just Cupcakes. There will also be 5+ stouts to celebrate the occasion. In addition, from 12-5pm, Crafty’s will be at O’Connor’s. For more, click here. 2pm: Enjoy the magic of Ballet Virginia International’s Sleeping Beauty at the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts. An additional show is at 7:30pm. For more, click here. 6-10pm: Sham ROCK The ‘BURG is going on this weekend. Enjoy the lively music of Glasgow Kiss, the “thank God we have more than potatoes” meal of corned beef and cabbage, all while drinking a Guinness. For more, click here. 7pm: This is the last chance to see The Taming of the Shrew at the Virginia Stage Company. This closing night offers a 9:30pm toast to the team with Sharkophagus on the Main Stage. For more, click here. 7-9:30pm: The Goddesses of the Gaelic Myst will be at the Rainbow-Cactus in Virginia Beach. Featuring dancers, percussionists, and bagpipes, this fundraiser belly dance show will celebrate Celtic-Scottish-medieval music and dance. For more, click here. 9pm: Head to MJ’s Tavern on Granby to see the Knight Hawks of Virginia. For more, click here. 10pm: Enjoy late-night music at Pancho N Luigi’s as they present Matt Jones and the Bobs with Nate Sacks. For more, click here. Sunday While events kick off earlier in the weekend, you can still participate in the running part of the One City Marathon in Newport News. For more, click here. 11am-2pm: Head to one of my favorite little places in Norfolk: Streats. For March, the Sunday Brunch menu is focused on New Orleans style food. My husband and I always consider NOLA our second city. Just reading this menu makes me happy. For more, click here. 11am: Enjoy a post-exceptional-Saturday St. Paddy’s Day Brunch at the Pagoda Restaurant with drink and menu specials. After this, you can join in on the Seed Swap at the same location, beginning at 2pm. For more, click here. 3pm: Take your mini-mes to the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts to see the PB&J Family Concert – Mayhem at the music Shoppe. Kids need culture, too. For more, click here. 8pm: End your weekend with some laughter at the Push Comedy Theater during “Tell Me More … Storytelling Nights: Loyalties.” For more, click here. If you would like your event included in the Reasons, e-mail the information with the date of the event in the subject line to mermaidcitygal@gmail.com. |
Sure looks placid enough. Image: Flickr/P J Harey An Arctic land rush is currently underway: Nations like Canada and Russia are using science and the occasional search for a storied shipwreck to lay claim to large swathes of the Arctic ocean, and the valuable oil that lies beneath. A new map of the Arctic, made by the International Boundaries Research Unit (IBRU) at Durham University, lays out the current claims for ownership of the region, as well as possible future ones, based on available data. It's a mess of overlapping boundaries and cordoned-off sections, showing just how complicated the claims have become. Here's how the map breaks down: For the most part, the solid areas surrounding the land masses represent their exclusive economic zones (EEZs), sovereign areas that extend 200 metres past each nation's respective coasts. The shaded areas represent the maximum possible claims that could be laid by different nations. There's a lot of very complex sea law involved in reading the map—for example, the little sliver of green stuck between Russia and Norway's EEZs is the result of a border dispute that lasted for more than 50 years—so if you want a more detailed breakdown, you can check out the IBRU's explanation here. In the race for the Arctic so far, Russia, Norway, and Denmark have all made submissions to the UN body overseeing the divvying up of the Arctic, based on data collected from ocean surveys. Canada and the US are currently busy preparing their own. It's expected that Canada, once it files its submission, will attempt to lay claim to the North Pole itself. The US hasn't actually ratified the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea yet, which precludes the country from filing a claim. Still, the US is planning to build an unmanned Arctic surveillance system, if and when a design proposal is approved. The political and economic stakes are high and rising in the Arctic, and the situation promises to only become knottier as some of the world's most powerful nations clammer for the north. |
ISIS militants badly damaged the archaeological site and used it to carry out horrific public executions Performance was called 'With a Prayer for Palmyra' and was the first to be held in the theatre since last year Advertisement The Syrian regime put on a patriotic celebration at the ancient city of Palmyra, with flag-waving and military music in a place where just last year jihadists carried out mass executions. President Bashar al-Assad's forces were able to display its control over the world heritage site six weeks after the army, with Russian help, recaptured it from ISIS. The event, held yesterday, marked the centenary of Martyrs' Day, when Syrian nationalists were executed in Damascus by the Ottoman occupiers in 1916. Scroll down for video People attend a music concert in the ancient theatre of Syria's ravaged Palmyra yesterday following its recapture by regime forces from ISIS People wave Syrian national flags as they attend a music concert in the ancient theatre of Syria's ravaged Palmyra yesterday Singers perform next to a portrait of Khaled al-Assaad, the late 82-year old retired chief archaeologist of the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra The orchestra plays last night during the concert in Palmyra where dozens of people have been executed by ISIS Russian soldiers and dignitaries were invited to the concert held in Syria's ravaged city of Palmyra yesterday Only around 15 to 20 per cent of Palmyra has actually been excavated so experts believe there is much more to discover President Bashar al-Assad's forces were able to display its control over the world heritage site six weeks after the army, with Russian help, recaptured it from ISIS The event, held yesterday, marked the centenary of Martyrs' Day, when Syrian nationalists were executed in Damascus by the Ottoman occupiers in 1916 On Thursday a Russian orchestra also performed in the arena before last night's performance (pictured) The Syrian regime put on a patriotic celebration at the ancient city of Palmyra, with flag-waving and military music in a place where just last year jihadists carried out mass executions Last July ISIS released a video showing the mass execution of 25 Syrian soldiers in the theatre. Bullet holes remain visible on one wall The event's presenter said: 'We are here to celebrate those who died to save our homeland. We salute the martyrs of Syria and among them the heroes who died in this very theatre.' Last July ISIS released a video showing the mass execution of 25 Syrian soldiers in the theatre. Bullet holes remain visible on one wall. In a symbol of Moscow's role in the recapture of Palmyra, 20 Russian soldiers marched onto the stage waving Russian and Syrian flags. On Thursday a Russian orchestra also performed in the arena watched by countrymen in their military. Russian maestro Valery Gergiev conducted the Mariinsky orchestra in what is the first performance since the theatre was used by ISIS to hold public executions. Despite the scorching afternoon heat, the St Petersburg-based orchestra played a range of music including Bach and Prokofiev, in front of a packed crowd. The concert, dubbed 'With a Prayer for Palmyra,' included Bach's Chaconne for Solo Violin, a cello piece by Rodion Shchedrin and Sergei Prokofiev's First Symphony Russian maestro Valery Gergiev conducted the Mariinsky orchestra in what is the first performance since the theatre was used by ISIS to hold public executions The concert, dubbed 'With a Prayer for Palmyra,' included Bach's Chaconne for solo Violin, a cello piece by Rodion Shchedrin and Sergei Prokofiev's First Symphony. Cellist Sergei Roldugin, who was named in the Panama Papers scandal, was the star soloist in the performance which was well received by the audience. The ancient amphitheatre seats were mainly filled with Russian servicemen, including those who have been working to remove old ISIS landmines in Palmyra. The city was retaken by Syrian government troops with the help of Russian airstrikes earlier this year. Cellist Sergei Roldugin, who was named in the Panama Papers scandal, was the star soloist in the performance which was well received by the audience The ancient amphitheatre seats were mainly made up of Russian servicemen, including those who have been working to remove old ISIS landmines in Palmyra The city was retaken by Syrian government troops with the help of Russian airstrikes earlier this year The ISIS militants badly damaged the world famous archaeological site of Palmyra, destroying two ancient temples and damaging other artefacts. In opening remarks, Gergiev said that with the concert, 'we protest against the barbarians who destroyed monuments of world culture.' There was also a video linkup in which Russian President Vladimir Putin addressed the audience. Putin said he regards the concert 'as a sign of gratitude, remembrance and hope - of gratitude to all those who fight terrorism without sparing one's own life; of remembrance for all victims of terror, regardless of the place and time of crimes against humanity; and of course hope not just for the revival of Palmyra as a cultural asset of all humanity but for the deliverance of modern civilization from this terrible ill, from international terrorism.' In opening remarks, Gergiev said that with the concert, 'we protest against the barbarians who destroyed monuments of world culture' The Islamic State group held public executions in the ancient theatre in Palmyra before the site was captured by Russia-backed Syrian forces The IS militants badly damaged the world famous archaeological site of Palmyra, destroying two ancient temples and damaging other artefacts In a video message, President Putin said he regards the concert 'as a sign of gratitude, remembrance and hope' Syrian troops backed by Russian air strikes and special forces on the ground recaptured the UNESCO world heritage site Palmyra from Islamic State group fighters in late March, delivering a major propaganda coup for both Damascus and Moscow. Russian army sappers said last month that they had demined the ancient site -- known as the 'Pearl of the Desert' -- where jihadist fighters blew up ancient temples and looted relics. Russian maestro Valery Gergiev is one of the world's best known conductors but has faced some criticism in the West for his strongly pro-Kremlin views, with his tours sometimes interrupted by protestors. The concert in Palmyra will not be the first he has conducted in a place where the Russian military has carried out controversial operations. In 2008 the Ossetian-native conducted a concert in Tskhinvali, the main city in separatist Georgian region of South Ossetia that was heavily damaged in the short Russian-Georgian war that year. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov meanwhile told journalists that Gergiev's Syria concert 'deserves to be valued most highly' as a gesture of solidarity and 'refusal to accept violence and terrorism' Russian maestro Valery Gergiev is one of the world's best known conductors but has faced some criticism in the West for his strongly pro-Kremlin views The amphitheatre performance was well-attended by officials and Russian soldiers this afternoon Gergiev also conducted a charity concert in Tokyo for victims of the Fukushima tragedy in 2012 and led a charity concert tour to raise funds for victims of Russia's Beslan school massacre in 2004. Gergiev is often seen as an instrument of soft power of the Kremlin. He endorsed President Vladimir Putin in his election to the third term in 2012. |
‘ A vote for anyone other than Donald Trump in November is a vote for Hillary," the governor of Wisconsin has spent the week of the Republican convention robotically repeating. "It's a binary choice," the speaker of the House keeps on telling us, in his less colloquial, more game-theoretical language. This is all nonsense—rationalization masquerading as realism, sophism disguised as sophistication. "A vote for anyone other than Donald Trump" is . . . a vote for anyone other than Donald Trump. And our choice need not be, and is not in truth, a binary one; that we must choose between the two nominees of the major parties is required neither by the Constitution nor the laws of the land, nor is it the truth of what we will see on our ballots this November. Indeed, there is no legal requirement, there is no moral obligation, there is no civic duty to vote for every office on the ballot or to vote at all. Nor should there be. This is a free country. Not that you would know this from the Republican convention, and not that you will learn it from the Democratic convention. What happened to freedom? Freedom—heretofore thought a rather central component of the American dream—is barely visible in the visions of both parties. Yes, we know: It's too simple to say that America is only about freedom. It's important to understand that there are other good and important things besides freedom. We know freedom isn't everything. But it's an awfully important thing. Neither of the major parties' 2016 presidential nominees is much of a votary of freedom. One is an old-fashioned authoritarian demagogue. The other is a modern nanny statist. The Republican nominee cares about the art of the deal, not the arts of free government. The Democratic nominee believes it takes a village to secure our rights, not that it takes free men and women assuming responsibility for their fate. Neither has much sympathy with Tocqueville's sentiment, expressed near the end of Democracy in America: "I would, I think, have loved freedom in all times; but I feel myself inclined to adore it in the time we are in." Neither Trump nor Clinton adores freedom. Neither loves it. Neither much respects it. Perhaps we shouldn't be too surprised. A lasting dedication to the cause of freedom is rare on the part of nations. An elevated taste for the exercise of freedom is rare on the part of individuals. And so, in America in 2016, we have two non-freedom-loving nominees supported by two relatively indifferent-to-freedom political parties. But we needn't support either of them. We are free to ignore the rationalizations and the sophisms of the politicians. We are free to make the case for freedom and to advance its cause. For if we owe allegiance to any party, surely it is the party of freedom. |
Turnbull seizes on resignation of NBN executive Updated The Federal Opposition says the resignation of the head of construction for the $36 billion National Broadband Network (NBN) is very concerning. Patrick Flannigan resigned earlier this week after 14 months with NBN Co. It came after NBN Co broke off its five month tendering process with construction firms, arguing the companies' quotes were overpriced. Opposition Communications spokesman, Malcolm Turnbull, says secrecy and uncertainty around Mr Flannigan's departure is troubling. "If this was a listed company you can only imagine the direction its share price would be going," he said. "This is one of the problems with the NBN - it is so unaccountable. "The Government has done everything it can to prevent scrutiny of the NBN." Mr Turnbull says it is clear the Government cannot deliver the project on budget by 2020. "That shows that their estimate of what it was going to cost to get this work done was too low, so we don't have confidence in their budget," he said. "The head of construction has left - no explanation given, no interviews given, no accountability given - this is a $50 billion project." Mr Flannigan managed the construction of the NBN's first release sites in Tasmania. Topics: internet-culture, government-and-politics, federal-government, information-and-communication, australia First posted |
BURNASTON, England — On Toyota’s brightly lit assembly line here, workers guide wheel and engine assemblies into unfinished sedans. Driverless carts carry parts through narrow aisles to work stations. The assembly line moves with clockwork precision, able to pop out a vehicle every 72 seconds. Britain’s automotive industry, once ailing and plagued by strikes, now hums with the vibrancy of a global manufacturing hub. Most of the cars made in Burnaston, models like Auris and Avensis, will make their way beyond the British borders. Toyota buys parts and hires workers from across the European Union. But the level of integration, previously lauded, has made the carmakers especially vulnerable after Britain’s vote to leave the bloc. If a messy divorce follows, Toyota and others face the prospect of higher tariffs, a smaller labor pool and less access to the 500 million potential customers in Europe — all of which will be negotiated in the coming months and years. The drop in the British pound since the vote has not been much help, either. Many of the carmakers’ contracts here are priced in euros, even with suppliers in the same country like Johnson Controls, which makes seats for Toyota. |
Cross Posted from Citizens Voice People opposed to fracking for natural gas protested Monday against the infrastructure used to bring the gas to market. About two dozen people from as far away as Ithaca, N.Y., and Bloomsburg gathered in front of PVR Partners’ natural gas dehydration station on Route 309 across from the former Beaumont Inn. Rebecca Roter of Brooklyn Township, Susquehanna County, organized the rally as part of national “Occupy the Pipeline” day. “This is basically a general protest,” said Joanne Fiorito of Tunkhannock. She sported a skull mask with “Dimock, Leroy, Lenox” – three sites allegedly contaminated by natural gas drilling – written on it. PVR spokesman Stephen R. Milbourne said the protestors have the right to assemble and speak their minds, as long as they don’t trespass. “People have the right to express their opinions,” he said. “We ask that they confine it to public property and not trespass on our property or our neighbors’ property.” The protesters did, sticking to the roadside in front of the dehydration station, which removes liquids from natural gas and adds odorant to it before the gas continues to Dallas Township and into a connection with the Transco interstate pipeline. Pipelines, compressor stations and natural gas dehydration stations have nothing to do directly with well-drilling and hydraulic fracturing or “fracking,” which involves blasting millions of gallons of chemical-treated water deep underground to open cracks in the shale and release the gas. The protesters are aware of it, but they wanted to point out that natural gas support equipment is part of the overall picture, and that it can pollute the environment. “Even though they’re not drilling, we still have this stuff,” Hunlock Creek resident Michele Thomas said, pointing at the dehydration station. “Everyone is affected by it (drilling). No one is exempt.” Protesters chose the site because, on the morning of Sept. 30, a loud noise from the station scared neighbors and animals. “There was something that depressurized that made a lot of noise, from what I understand,” he said. The safety equipment had something along the lines of a loose wire, Milbourne said. There was no safety issue, but because the equipment couldn’t verify everything was safe, it shut the system down, he said. “It’s engineered purposely that way to ensure there’s not a problem,” Milbourne said. He said PVR is working on the system. Protester Jo Anne Cipolla-Dennis of Dryden, N.Y. said she came to help her friends because there’s a pipeline – the Constitution – in the works to bring gas from Susquehanna County through upstate New York. “They call one of these lines the Constitution Pipeline,” she said. “That’s a slap in the face to every American who knows what these pipelines are doing to our country.” Hilary Acton of Ithaca, N.Y., said she comes to the region to educate herself on the full spectrum of natural gas infrastructure, and how it impacts the environment, including air and watersheds. “Water and air do not abide by state boundary lines,” she said. “They flow, they travel.” Dr. Al Rodriguez of Dallas Township, president of the Gas Drilling Awareness Coalition, stopped by despite being on call. He said the goal is to try to mitigate a little of the exploitative nature of the industry. “I can’t understand how an area that got ravaged with coal would let it happen again,” he said. Rodriguez’s concern is the “impact on us and the health of our children,” such as coal mining had. There are no long-term studies, he said. Bloomsburg University professor Wendy Lee, who writes about natural gas issues for media site Raging Chicken Press said she came because, among other reasons, Columbia County is just beginning to significant natural gas activity. Ray Kemble of Dimock Township knows firsthand about what natural gas drilling can do, and has test results on his water well to prove it. His drinking water contains an assortment of chemicals from arsenic to four grades of uranium, according to the tests. But the state won’t acknowledge there’s a problem, he said. “We’re just crazy now in Dimock,” Kemble said. “We’re just nuts.” Advertisements |
Title: Ghoul Squad #1 Writer: Brandon Rhiness Pencils & Inks: Carlos Trigo Colors: Nick O’Gorman Letters: Chris Johnson Publisher: The Higher Universe Ghoul Squad #1 Plot Synopsis: A pompous, insane, jackass of a vampire puts together a team of “monsters” and sets up shop in Transylvania to fight supernatural evil. In this first issue, the Ghoul Squad matches their wits against a werewolf. Ghoul Squad #1Comic-Book Preview: Comic-Book Review: Ghoul Squad #1: In today’s comics landscape, it can sometimes be difficult to find a book that’s willing to let itself and its readers just have a good time. This is an era of complex anti-heroes and event storylines, and that’s all well and good. But every once in a while, we need a book like Ghoul Squad to come along and remind us all that sometimes simple is better. The story is straightforward, and casually tongue-in-cheek. Writer Brandon Rhiness brings together a rogues’ gallery of legendary horror villain icons – a witch, a Frankenstein’s monster, and a Brazilian Hellbat – under the command of a vampire named Mr. Varney, a proud fellow who’s nursing a centuries-long grudge against a much more famous bloodsucker. Varney’s goal? To use the team’s combined ‘might’, as it were, to prove that supernatural folks like them aren’t as evil as they’re being made out to be. Unfortunately, the folks under his command are less than thoroughly motivated by his goal and gratuitous speechifying… but they are motivated by his money. So, after some squabbling and grumbling, they take on his first mission: to track down and neutralize a werewolf terrorizing a nearby Transylvanian town. Needless to say, nothing goes quite according to plan – and for the reader, that’s a good thing. What really works here is Rhiness’ sharp, clever writing. The premise is nothing earth-shattering, but the execution takes things up a notch. The characters pop off the page, embodying archetypes we’ve seen before but with the promise of depth that makes them unique. A tiny suspension of disbelief is all it takes to be swept up in the fun narrative of misunderstood monsters looking to improve their lot in the collective consciousness. The presentation style and witticism-peppered writing call to mind Brian Clevinger’s excellent Atomic Robo series, another example of genre subversion that takes a genuine joy in telling a comic-book story. This first installment does a great job of setting up our ragtag cast of characters and giving us an idea of what they look like in action. Carlos Trigo’s art is just this side of whimsical, grounding the story as a whole in reality while having some real fun with character designs and expressions. His work makes it easy and inviting to fall into the world on the page, and his inventive approach to character design in particular is a joy to look at. Ghoul Squad #1 is a great reminder to readers and creators alike that it’s not necessary to have an enormous budget, overly complex storylines, and overdone anti-heroes in order to tell a good story. It’s a refreshing break from the norm, and one whose second installment I’m looking forward to reading. Ghoul Squad #1 is available for FREE here: Ghoul Squad #1 Brandon Rhiness’s comic-book: Misfits issues #1-3 are available to buy here: Misfits |
Indigenous advisers slam Tony Abbott's 'lifestyle choice' comments as 'hopeless, disrespectful' Updated Tony Abbott's key Indigenous advisers have slammed his description of living in remote communities as a "lifestyle choice", saying the statement is "hopeless", "disrespectful" and simplistic. Yesterday, Mr Abbott backed a plan in Western Australia to close more than 100 remote communities and move more than 1,000 people, saying "what we can't do is endlessly subsidise lifestyle choices". The Opposition has demanded he apologise but Mr Abbott has defended his use of the term, saying he was "making a pretty obvious point". But Indigenous leader Noel Pearson told the ABC remote Indigenous communities deserved an "extensive" explanation and not "off-the-cuff" comments. "I think it's a very disappointing and hopeless statement by the Prime Minister, quite frankly," he told The World Today. Remote communities at a glance: There are 274 remote communities in Western Australia and 12,113 Aboriginal people live in them 507 people live in 115 of the smallest communities - an average of 4.4 people per community Premier Colin Barnett flagged the closure of up to 150 communities but has not named them The last community to shut down was in 2011, when Oombulgurri in the East Kimberley was shut down after a host of social problems The state and federal governments contributed $30 million per year to fund services, but the Commonwealth will cease its funding contribution in two years "I just think it's very disrespectful to cast fear into these communities through a kind of policy thought bubble rather than a considered position from the Commonwealth Government as to the future — the anxious future — of these remote communities. "He has got no plan for the future of these communities in the event that they close down. And I'm just bitterly disappointed to hear this deranged debate go on in the substandard manner in which it's being conducted." Chair of the Prime Minister's Indigenous Advisory Council Warren Mundine said it was not as "simple" as the Prime Minister had described. "These people are actually living on their homelands and it affects a lot of things, it affects their cultural activities, it affects their native title, it affects a number of areas," he told Radio National. "It's not as simple as... if someone from Sydney decides to have a treechange and go and live in the bush. It's about their life, it's about their very essence, it's about their very culture." One Coalition frontbencher said it was a "poor phrase" as it was "not a lifestyle choice to be living there [in remote Australia]". The MP said he did not have a problem with the sentiment that it was difficult to have people living a long way from employment, but said the point should have been made without using "language that can sometimes be seen to vilify them". Mick Gooda 'baffled' by comments Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner Mick Gooda said he was "baffled" by the comments. "I think they're poorly thought out," he told ABC News 24. "I think they will cause offence in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community." He added to calls for a thorough policy discussion. "What are we going to have? More communities on the fringe of our towns like we've got in places like Kalgoorlie and Darwin and Alice Springs already?" Mr Gooda said. "We're going to make a situation that's pretty bad already in those places even worse." Mr Pearson called on the Prime Minister to "get serious about policy". "There was a time in our history when they kicked us out of town, and now they want to bring us back in — just by a flick of the policy switch," he said. "Who is going to welcome these people in the country towns and suburbs of this country, as if there's a big welcoming mat for Aboriginal people from remote communities to be welcomed into the social and economic mainstream of Australia?" Mr Abbott said he was focused on the practical impacts of living in remote settlements on access to schooling, jobs and services. He says he's the prime minister for Indigenous Australians, but he just wants to move them off the land. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten "I was making the pretty obvious point that you or I are free to live where we choose, all Australians are free to live where we choose, but inevitably there are some limits to what we can reasonably expect of the taxpayer when it comes to supporting these choices," he said. "Now I am absolutely passionate, absolutely passionate and have been for all of my public life, about trying to ensure we do the right thing by Aboriginal people." Mr Abbott pointed to his decision last year to set up Government in a remote community in Arnhem Land. "I'm very comfortable with my credentials when it comes to doing the right thing by the Aboriginal people of Australia," he said. But Labor leader Bill Shorten said he should apologise. "Tony Abbott is a prime minister stuck in the 1950s," he said. "He says he's the prime minister for Indigenous Australians, but he just wants to move them off the land." Cabinet ministers Malcolm Turnbull and Joe Hockey have backed Mr Abbott's stance. Mr Hockey said the Prime Minister used the "right" phrase. "It's right because it is the lifestyle that they want," he said on 702 ABC Sydney. "Do they want that lifestyle to live in a remote area? Some of them do. Some of them say it is part of their tradition. That is their lifestyle — that is the way they live. The way they live is a lifestyle." Mr Turnbull said very few politicians had as much knowledge of Indigenous Australia as Mr Abbott. "I think he does have a very good understanding," he said on 612 ABC Brisbane. "I think it's important that we talk about the issue thoughtfully and rationally, rather than as is often the case with the Prime Minister — you know, whenever he opens his mouth his critics leap on him." 'You have to be on your country to look after it' Western Australia's Premier Colin Barnett said while the Prime Minister's comment was poorly worded, he believed he and Mr Abbott were "on the same page". "Unfortunate choice of words, but Tony Abbott has a lifetime of commitment to Aboriginal people, and would be more knowledgeable about Aboriginal people and their conditions and their history than probably almost anyone in Federal Parliament," he said. We're not funding lifestyle choices, we're funding lives, in fact. Northern Land Council chief executive Joe Morrison "Children aren't attending school, young children are being abused both physically and sexually, there are no employment opportunities, and I can't look the people of Western Australia in the face and say as Premier, I'm going to ignore that. "In that regard Tony Abbott and I are on the same page." But Indigenous leaders across WA criticised the Prime Minister's comments. The chairman of WA's Kimberley community of Djarindjin, Brian Lee, said it was a cultural obligation to live on traditional country and it could not be a "lifestyle choice". "We are obliged to look after our country and that's why a lot of us are out here on country," Mr Lee said. "Unless you live out here, you really can't make any judgement on that. The Kalgoorlie-Boulder Chamber of Commerce and Industry's Hugh Gallagher said the Prime Minister should be concerned about the profound impact it would have on Aboriginal culture and the business community. "I would ask him where that fits within the Government's policy on closing the gap?" Mr Gallagher said. "Because it is just so important that regional culture is retained and sadly it begins to shrink when it's in capital cities." In the Northern Territory, Northern Land Council chief executive Joe Morrison warned against similar closures there. "We're not funding lifestyle choices, we're funding lives, in fact," he told AM. "I would argue against that it's a 'choice' that people have got deep-rooted connections to their country, it's a 'choice' that they've lived there for generations and generations." Mr Abbott, who has said he wanted to be the prime minister for Indigenous affairs, was criticised last year for saying in a speech that Australia was "unsettled or scarcely settled" when British settlers arrived. This latest statement has led Mr Pearson, who has long been a political ally of Mr Abbott in relation to Indigenous issues, to question the Prime Minister's commitment. "I don't doubt his high-minded intentions, but I've got to say 18 months into the life of his Government, I don't see a great deal of proof of his intentions in this regard," he said. Topics: indigenous-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander, government-and-politics, abbott-tony, wa, australia First posted |
Looking for news you can trust? Subscribe to our free newsletters. Another day, another drug. Today comes news of Nitropress, a generic blood pressure drug that was priced at $44 per vial way back in 2013. Then it was sold to Marathon Pharmaceuticals, which raised the price to $257. A few months ago it was sold yet again, this time to Valeant Pharmaceuticals, which raised the price to $806. But no worries! According to a spokesman, no one will ever be denied this medication: “These are drugs that are only used by hospitals — they are not sold in pharmacies — in accordance with specific surgical procedures. This means that whenever the protocol calls for use of these drugs, they are used. Patients are never denied these drugs when the protocols call for their use.” And there you have it. Hospitals have to use it, and no one else makes it, so Valeant can charge whatever they want. Satisfied? Anyway, Democrats are “demanding answers” from Valeant, which will probably do about as much good as it did when they demanded answers from Marathon last year about their price increase. Or all the other companies they’ve demanded answers from ever since 10x price increases became the pharmaceutical industry’s favorite new sport. That is to say, none. It’s a funny thing. I’ve probably read just about every reason in the book explaining why national health care is supposed to be a terrible idea. Most of these reasons are pretty lousy—either unsupported by the evidence or else directly contradicted by it. But there’s one exception: the argument that a national health care plan would drive down the price of drugs—as it has everywhere else in the world—and this would stifle innovation in the pharmaceutical biz. There’s some real merit to this claim. It’s not quite that simple, of course, and it would take a longish post to go through this topic in detail. Nonetheless, you can put me in the camp of those who want to tread pretty carefully when it comes to regulating pharmaceutical pricing. But these guys are sure making it hard to maintain that position, aren’t they? |
Can harvest honey without having to open hive and anger bees Bee keeping may not seem the most hi-tech of pastimes, but a new hive is set to change that - and make keeping bees far easier. Called the flowhive, the gadget is expected to take the beekeeping industry by storm when it is revealed later this month. The new design allows owners to simply turn a switch to get fresh honey from their hive - without have to open it and anger the inhabitants. Scroll down for video The Flow frame consists of already partly formed honeycomb cells which separate inside the hive, allowing the honey to drop down into a collector HOW IT WORKS The Flow frame consists of already partly formed honeycomb cells. The bees complete the comb with their wax, fill the cells with honey and cap the cells as usual. When the honey tap is opened, the cells split vertically inside the comb forming channels allowing the honey to flow down to a sealed trough at the base of the frame and out of the hive - while the bees are practically undisturbed on the comb surface. 'Our new invention that allows honey to be harvested directly from the hive without opening the hive and with little disturbance to the bees,' the firm says. It plans to officially launch the hive later this month with a Kickstarter campaign. Instead of traditinal frames inside the hive, the new design uses 'flow' frames. The Flow frame consists of already partly formed honeycomb cells. The bees complete the comb with their wax, fill the cells with honey and cap the cells as usual. When you turn the tool, a bit like a tap, the cells split vertically inside the comb forming channels allowing the honey to flow down to a sealed trough at the base of the frame and out of the hive while the bees are practically undisturbed on the comb surface. When the honey has finished draining, owner's turn the tap again in the upper slot resets the comb into the original position and allows the bees to chew the wax capping away, and fill it with honey again. It was invented by Stuart and Cedar Anderson, beekeeping brothers in Byron Bay. 'A flow hive is our term for a standard beehive using a brood box with one or more Flow Supers for honey storage and extraction,' they say. They say they have had frames that have filled in a week during peak times of the flowering season. It can take anything from twenty minutes to over two hours to drain a hive, depending on the temperature and the viscosity of the honey, and each frame can produce around three kilos. 'However a super usually fills well within a month during the spring and summer,' they say. It can take anything from twenty minutes to over two hours to drain a hive, depending on the temperature and the viscosity of the honey, and each frame can produce around three kilos. |
The Dutch counterterrorism coordinator says intelligence experts estimate that the Islamic State extremist group has between 60 and 80 operatives planted in Europe to carry out attacks. Dick Schoof said in an interview Friday with The Associated Press that would-be fighters are also heeding messages from the IS militant group "asking them not to come to Syria and Iraq, but to prepare attacks in Europe." One result is that over the last six months the number of "foreign terrorist fighters" hasn't grown, he said, but the fact that they're not traveling "does not mean that the potential threat of those who would have traveled is diminished." Schoof said ongoing military operations to oust the Islamic State from its self-declared caliphate in Syria and Iraq is also scattering its fighters. |
Earlier this week, anti-Muslim activist John Guandolo spoke on the “Stand in the Gap” radio program about Monday’s terrorist attack in London, where a driver charged into a group of Muslims who were leaving their mosque after worship. The attack left one man dead and two others in critical condition. Rather than expressing remorse, Guandolo said that his “first professional response” to this tragedy “is not to believe at face value anything the Muslims at the scene are reporting.” Guandolo went on to explain that the reports about the attack ought to be greeted with skepticism, “especially since the jihadi mayor of London immediately stepped in and is already making statements which raise red flags.” Guandolo stated that the Finsbury Mosque, where the attack took place, was a logical target for a revenge attack against Muslims since the mosque, he claimed, “has been known for a long, long time inside of Britain as a jihadi mosque.” Despite the fact that the mosque had been awarded for its efforts in fighting Islamic extremism, Guandolo claimed that it had regularly preached violence “while the British government and British law enforcement does nothing.” “In the last two years, British subjects of the Queen have been killed in increasing numbers, and the British government comes to the defense of the Muslim community” Guandolo said. “The people in London elect a jihadi, a suit-wearing jihadi, Sadiq Khan, as their mayor, so people who are still sane there, are having to make very difficult decisions.” Guandolo said that, as such, the attack on the mosque was akin to an act of self-defense, asserting the circumstances leading up to the event were “no different” than “if we had a Soviet military outpost in the United States that was conducting operations and our government did nothing, and finally citizens said, ‘I don’t know what to do, we’re pleading with you to defend us and you’re not. We are going to do the only thing we know to do.’” |
David Diehl spent 11 NFL seasons with the Giants. (Photo11: Jim O'Connor, USA TODAY Sports) David Diehl wasn't out of work very long. Four months after retiring from the New York Giants, Diehl was added to FOX's lineup as an NFL game analyst for the 2014 season. "I'm thrilled for the opportunity to still be involved in the sport that I love so much and that has provided me so much in my life," Diehl said in a statement. "FOX Sports has a tremendous team of talented analysts, and I'm excited to join them and add my knowledge and experiences to the mix." Diehl spent the previous 11 years splitting his time between guard and tackle for the Giants. The 2009 Pro Bowler won two rings while starting in both Super Bowl XLII and XLVI. Diehl has done frequent appearances as a guest analyst for NFL Network in recent offseasons, typically offering strong opinions — even when asked about the Giants — that suggest he'll transition quickly into his new role. Diehl's former teammate, Michael Strahan, became a staple of FOX's NFL coverage following his retirement in 2008. "We're really excited to have a former player with David's credentials join our team of NFL on FOX game analysts," said FOX executive vice president John Entz. "Our sense is that he'll devote the same passion and preparation to his new career that he demonstrated in the trenches for 11 years, and he'll quickly develop to lead the next generation of NFL game analysts." *** Follow Nate Davis on Twitter @ByNateDavis |
Get the biggest politics stories by email Subscribe Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Could not subscribe, try again later Invalid Email Pampered MPs are sitting on a taxpayer-backed war chest of nearly £6million that can be used if they fall on hard times. The Treasury pays thousands of pounds a year into the “hardship fund”, which gives financial help to former members and their families down on their luck. But while MPs have this to fall back on, some of the most hard-pressed families in Britain have lost similar support because of the Government’s cuts. The Department for Work and Pensions this month axed the discretionary social fund, which provided emergency support to people living in poverty. The £800million pot has been wound up and responsibility handed to councils for loans and grants to those in need. The Government admits the money given to councils is “not ring-fenced” and could go “on other things”. Documents reveal the House of Commons Members’ Fund has assets of £5.7million and spent £160,000 last year to help 58 ex-MPs. Accounts show the fund got £148,000 from the taxpayer last year and £15,479 from members, who pay an annual subscription of £24 each. The fund spent nearly £22,000 on salaries for administration, £14,476 on actuarial fees, £12,800 on auditors, and Capita was paid £6,000 to act as “custodian” for the assets. The pot, set up in 1939, is overseen by a board of trustees headed by former Tory Cabinet minister Peter Lilley. The Members’ Fund can claim up to £215,000 a year in support from the Treasury. Since 2007, it has received more than £1million of taxpayers’ money. Attempts by MPs to make the fund no longer reliant on the Treasury have been blocked by ministers, who refuse to grant parliamentary time for such a debate. Former Labour MP Joe Ashton recently argued the fund was essential and said many former MPs descended into alcoholism and poverty. There are more than 1,000 former MPs, some in their 90s. But MPs may find it difficult to get sympathy. They went off this week on a two-week break. Parliament will sit for only about 150 days this year, compared to 190 days in school for teachers. Matthew Sinclair, of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “Helping those who fall on tough times is a worthy aim, but it is bizarre that ex-MPs have exclusive access to a taxpayer-funded hardship fund.” Voice of the Mirror: MPs out of touch Our MPs certainly know how to make themselves unpopular. We reveal today that, having spent the last legislative session axing benefits for the disabled and vulnerable, they are sitting on their own hardship fund of almost £6million. Most of this money has come from the taxpayer, with the Treasury paying more than £1million into it over the past six years. Nobody doubts there will be former politicians who need support when they fall on hard times. What many will find galling, not to say hypocritical, is that MPs are feathering their own nest while withdrawing exactly the same help for the rest of us. On April 1 the Government axed the discretionary social fund which offered emergency grants and loans to those most in need. And unlike MPs, people who relied on this money did not have the luxury of a decent pension or subsidised bars and restaurants. |
As it turns out, the general public -- even us heathens who've cut the cord -- like watching video content on televisions rather than monitors. A stat chart culled from The NPD Group's, "Connected Intelligence Report, Application & Convergence" revealed the latest US-centric news on Netflix Instant usage; it puts HDTV use far above that of more traditional platforms like PCs and laptops. Averaged across age groups, 40 percent of people using Netflix Instant in the US are doing so on HDTVs, while just 14 percent are going through computers (both desktops and laptops). That's not just Smart TVs, but also, "another device connected to the TV" -- so that's game consoles, streaming boxes, and software level built-in streaming. A mere 13 percent are using the service on tablets, and a paltry 8 percent are streaming on smartphones (a stat David Lynch would assuredly relish). Unsurprisingly, users are primarily of the younger variety: over 50 percent of 18 to 25-year-olds make up the HDTV statistic, and that group makes up nearly a full quarter of PC folks. Of course, none of this is a huge surprise to anyone that's ever tried comfortably watching anything longer than a few minutes on a 13-inch laptop screen. Check out the full chart just below. |
DUBAI (Reuters) - The new U.S. immigration curbs have cast uncertainty over the futures of thousands of Iranian students in the United States, with many losing hope of being able to finish their studies or find a job in the country. President Donald Trump’s executive order bans travelers from seven Muslim-majority countries including Iran for three months, and there is little certainty of what will happen after that. Many of the students have spent their families’ life savings to pay for an American higher education, which they hope will be a ticket to a well-paid job in the West or Iran. Now they fear if they leave the country, they will not be allowed back in. They also do not know what status they will have after the three months are up, and whether they will be allowed to study, live or work in the United States. Amin Amouhadi, 32, studies at the University of Georgia. His girlfriend, who is also Iranian, is about to finish her PhD in Canada. “We were planning to get married in a month and move in together but the current ban and its possible consequences have put the future of all our plans in jeopardy,” he told Reuters. “I might quit my PhD program, (and) try to find a university in Canada to apply for. I can’t think of any other plan.” The United States is the most popular destination for Iranians studying abroad, despite decades of hostility between the two countries. The trend goes right to the top; Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s cabinet boasts more U.S. doctorates than did the cabinet of Trump’s predecessor Barack Obama. About 8,700 Iranian students were at U.S. universities in 2014, a fifth of the estimated 50,000 Iranians studying abroad, according to the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. More than 3,000 Iranian students have received PhDs from American universities in the past three years, over 7,000 U.S. academics including 40 Nobel Laureates said in a petition against the order signed by Trump on Friday. They said the ban could lead to the departure of many talented individuals. ‘INHUMANE ORDER’ Mohammadreza Jalaeipour, a post-doctorate student at Harvard University, has canceled a study visit to Oxford University in Britain because he was afraid he would not be able to return. The 34-year-old said he was not hopeful of extending his studies in another American university or receiving a visa for a job in the United States. “This discriminatory and inhumane order is targeted to harm Iranian society. It shows that the U.S. government is dishonest when it says they have no problem with the Iranian people and they are only against the Iranian government,” he said. Medical students could be among the hardest hit. Roozbeh Esfandiari is an Iranian who studied medicine in the United States before gaining a job as a researcher at Harris County psychiatric center in Houston. He said U.S. medicine school qualifications could not be easily transferred to other countries, so it would be a major blow for Iranian graduates if they were unable to work in the United States after several years of study. “This news (Trump’s order) is a headache for Iranian doctors applying for residency,” he said. The Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates said on its website that it was aware of the executive order and was evaluating the potential impact on international medical students and graduates. ANXIETY, DEPRESSION Even before Trump’s order, the road to American higher education has always been a tough one for Iranians. Since there is no U.S. embassy in Iran, students must travel to embassies or consulates in other countries to apply, which can cost them thousands of dollars. Student visas can take many months to secure. Because of security concerns, Iranians can face background stiff checks. Zahra Razavi, a computer science student at the University of Rochester, said her husband had applied for a U.S. visa several times under the Obama administration, with no success. The Trump order has crushed their lingering hopes of living together in the United States, she added. “This disaster has caused depression and deep anxiety in me. It’s impossible to continue this way. I have no choice but to say goodbye to my dreams and quit my studies.” Shirin Sajadi, an Iranian psychotherapist in Boston, wants to help shell-shocked students from her homeland by offering them free psychotherapy sessions. “There’s a sense of facing crisis and the need to make sense of the chaos surrounding us,” she told Reuters. “Many immigrants have come to this country when they had nothing but hope for a better life. They’ve worked hard, played by the rules and hoped to succeed. But now that hope is gone.” |
The theory that Colorado drivers are some of the worst in the nation now has data to back it up. Insurer Nationwide said that it analyzed data from its SmartRide telematics program, which installs a small device in cars, tracks a user’s driving habits, including hard braking, fast acceleration and nighttime driving. The results? Colorado drivers have a high frequency of suddenly speeding up – an indicator of dangerous behavior, said Larry Thursby, Nationwide’s vice president who oversees the telematics program. The most aggressive driving is on Thursdays, especially during the morning commute. On weekends, bad-driving habits peak on Sundays. Nationwide said drivers in the state have “among the worst driving habits,” and said drivers in Washington D.C., New York, Arizona and Pennsylvania have similar habits. The data comes from 40,000 current drivers in Nationwide’s program and over 3 million drivers that have gone through the program. Of course, the data doesn’t mesh with another recent survey by Kars4Kids. The New Jersey nonprofit deemed Colorado drivers the seventh most polite nationwide. Far from slamming on brakes, the study said Coloradans are more likely than others in the nation to let another car merge in heavy traffic and have patience when someone is tailgating. Many readers disagreed with that study. What does mesh are other reports that support Colorado as having some of the worst drivers in the nation. In December, insurance-comparison site Quote Wizard ranked Denver as the eighth worst driving state, as measured by auto accidents, drunk driving cases, speeding tickets and traffic citations. At least Denver became less worse by June, when QuoteWizard bumped the city down a spot to ninth worst drivers in the nation. Another insurer, Allstate, takes a more optimistic approach: It currently ranks Denver as the 131st safest driving city in the nation out of 200 metro areas. But if you read the fine print, Allstate notes that Denver drivers fared worse than the national average. Denver drivers had an average of 8.2 years between claims, compared to the national average of 10. Drivers here also “hard brake” 20 times for every 1,000 miles, compared to the national average of 19. Denver also is less safe than last year’s Allstate results, when the city was 14 spots higher. Maybe we Denver drivers can just blame bad roads. An analysis last year by data-research firm Inrix found that Interstate 25 congestion qualified the 15.7 mile stretch between Colorado Boulevard and 84th Avenue as the nation’s 50th worst traffic corridor. |
About PRiVCY PRiVCY Coin is a peer-to-peer cryptocurrency and can be termed as a modified version of the technology on which bitcoin was built as it allows completely private transactions, faster confirmation rates and achieve consensus through the combination of Proof of Stake and Proof of Work technology, rather than solely depending on PoW. PRiVCY enables instant, near-zero cost transactions to anyone anywhere in the world. It is an open source global payment network that is fully decentralized without being dependent on any centralized authority such as banks or governments. Fueled by Computation and secured by Mathematics, PRiVCY Coin network empowers individuals to control their own finances by themselves. Being operated through the TOR network a highly secure private network our blockchain network ensures that your wallet IP remains hidden for any transactional activity, and so does your geographical location. |
Gordon Wiltsie / Getty Images A compound found in marijuana can treat schizophrenia as effectively as antipsychotic medications, with far fewer side effects, according to a preliminary clinical trial. Researchers led by Markus Leweke of the University of Cologne in Germany studied 39 people with schizophrenia who were hospitalized for a psychotic episode. Nineteen patients were treated with amisulpride, an antipsychotic medication that is not approved in the U.S., but is comparable to other medications that are. The rest of the patients were given cannabidiol (CBD), a substance found in marijuana that is thought to be responsible for some of its mellowing or anxiety-reducing effects. Unlike the main ingredient in marijuana, THC, which can produce psychotic reactions and may worsen schizophrenia, CBD has antipsychotic effects, according to previous research in both animals and humans. Neither the patients nor the scientists knew who was getting which drug. At the end of the four-week trial, both groups showed significant clinical improvement in their schizophrenic symptoms, and there was no difference between those getting CBD or amisulpride. (MORE: The Complex Link Between Marijuana and Schizophrenia) “The results were amazing,” says Daniele Piomelli, professor of pharmacology at the University of California-Irvine and a co-author of the study. “Not only was [CBD] as effective as standard antipsychotics, but it was also essentially free of the typical side effects seen with antipsychotic drugs.” Antipsychotic medications can potentially cause devastating and sometimes permanent movement disorders; they can also reduce users’ motivation and pleasure. The new generation of antipsychotic drugs also often leads to weight gain and can increase diabetes risk. These side effects have long been known to be a major obstacle to treatment. In the German study, published online in March by the journal Translational Psychiatry, weight gain and movement problems were seen in patients taking amisulpride, but not CBD. “These exciting findings should stimulate a great deal of research,” says Dr. John Krystal, chair of psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine, who was not associated with the research. He notes that CBD not only had fewer side effects, but also seemed to work better on schizophrenia’s so-called “negative symptoms,” which are notoriously hard to treat. Negative symptoms include social withdrawal, blunting of pleasure and lack of motivation, which commonly occur in schizophrenia. Since current antipsychotic medications can themselves cause the same problems, however, it wasn’t clear whether CBD was better than amisulpride at treating these symptoms, or whether CBD simply caused fewer side effects to begin with. (MORE: Stoned Driving Nearly Doubles the Risk of Fatal Car Crash) Nevertheless, the new research helps elucidate the intricate complexities of the brain’s natural cannabinoid system and how CBD may work to alleviate symptoms of schizophrenia. Years ago, Piomelli and his colleagues discovered that people with schizophrenia have elevated levels of anandamide — a neurotransmitter that activates the same receptor activated by THC — in their cerebrospinal fluid, suggesting that they also had higher levels of it in the brain. The difference was huge: anandamide levels were nine times higher in schizophrenic people than in mentally healthy controls, Piomelli says. The researchers theorized that these radically high levels would correlate with hallucinations and delusions: the more anandamide bathing patients’ brains, the worse their disease would be. The thinking was, in essence, that people with schizophrenia are constantly high on their own natural THC. But what the researchers actually found was the opposite. “What you get is not a positive correlation, but a negative one. The higher the levels of anandamide, the lower the symptoms,” Piomelli says. It didn’t seem to make much sense at first, but research in both animals and humans now shows that anandamide is a natural stress reliever and antipsychotic. Piomelli thinks that the high levels seen in people with schizophrenia aren’t the cause of the problem, but the result of the brain’s attempts to solve it. (MORE: Study: Smoking Marijuana Not Linked with Lung Damage) The new study confirmed that as CBD relieved patients’ symptoms, anandamide levels rose in concert. “It looks like anandamide is a signaling molecule that has evolved to help us cope with stress,” Piomelli says. “In the brain, everything it does seems to be related to ways of relieving stress. It can relieve anxiety and reduce the stress response. It is involved in stress-induced analgesia [when you stop feeling pain while fighting or fleeing]. These are all mechanisms to help us prevent [negative outcomes related to stress],” says Piomelli. “If Dr. Piomelli is right, then the brain is exquisitely sensitive to changes in anandamide levels,” says Krystal. This raises another question, however. THC itself mimics anandamide. If high levels of anandamide are helpful for schizophrenia, why does marijuana smoking intensify psychotic states? Here’s where it gets complex. THC mimics not only anandamide, but also another cannabinoid, 2-AG, which fits the same receptors and is far more common. “There is 200 times more 2-AG than anandamide in the brain,” Piomelli says. “At the end of the day, the complexity is such that 2-AG has a whole cluster of effects. Anandamide has completely different effects, sometimes even opposite effects. That is why with THC you get a big mess.” (MORE: Marijuana May Both Trigger and Suppress Psychosis) Complicating matters further, when chronic marijuana smokers build up a tolerance to THC, it may down-regulate the entire system, making it harder for anandamide to have its positive effects. This may be why some studies find that people with schizophrenia who smoke marijuana get worse. So, where does CBD fit in? It doesn’t attach to a receptor like THC, or fool the brain into thinking that it’s getting extra anandamide or 2-AG. “What CBD seems to be doing is preventing anandamide from being destroyed,” says Piomelli. That allows the substance to exert its stress-reducing and antipsychotic effects on the brain longer, without the negative effects of THC. If replicated, the results suggest that CBD may be at least as effective as existing drugs for the treatment of schizophrenia, without the severe side effects that make patients reluctant to take medication. The catch: “The real problem with CBD is that it’s hard to develop for a variety of silly reasons,” says Piomelli. Because it comes from marijuana, there are obvious political issues surrounding its use. Extracting it from the plant is also expensive. But the biggest barrier may be that CBD is a natural compound, and therefore can’t be patented the way new drugs are. That means that despite the possibility that it could outsell their current blockbuster antipsychotic drugs, pharmaceutical companies aren’t likely to develop it — a particularly striking fact when you consider that every major manufacturer of new generation antipsychotics in the U.S. has so far paid out hundreds of millions or billions of dollars in fines for mismarketing these drugs. Yet they still reaped huge profits. (MORE: The Case Against the Ban on ‘Bath Salts’ and Fake Marijuana) Piomelli and others are working to develop synthetic versions of CBD that would avoid such hurdles. “We have one and are hoping to move forward in the near future,” he says. For people with schizophrenia and their families, of course, it is likely to be infuriating that non-scientific issues like marijuana policy and patenting problems could stand in the way of a treatment that could potentially be so restorative. While it’s possible that these study results may not hold up or that researchers could discover problems related to long-term use of CBD, it’s hard to imagine that they could be any worse than what patients already experience. Maia Szalavitz is a health writer for TIME.com. Find her on Twitter at @maiasz. You can also continue the discussion on TIME Healthland’s Facebook page and on Twitter at @TIMEHealthland. |
The demand for virtual reality headsets is expected to hit the tens of millions in just a few short years, but issues like motion sickness could discourage some consumers from embracing the technology. Now, researchers from Columbia Engineering say they've developed a method to combat that problem. Professor Steven K. Feiner and Ajoy Fernandes MS'16 conducted a study in which they dynamically -- but subtly -- changed a VR user's field of view (FOV) in response to visually perceived motion. The technique gets at the heart of motion sickness, which is caused when the visual motion cues a person sees conflict with the physical motion cues they receive from their inner ears' vestibular system. Decreasing a person's FOV can help reduce nausea in these scenarios, but it can also decrease the critical sense of "presence" in VR that's needed to make the experience feel real. Consequently, the researchers developed software to ever-so-subtly adjust the FOV on a VR headset, depending on how much of a conflict there is between a user's visual and physical motion cues. When there's a big gap, it restricts the FOV by partially obscuring each eye's view with a vertical soft-edged cutout. After conducting a multi-day study with 30 participants, the researchers say they managed to significantly reduce the motion sickness that the participants felt using a VR headset, without decreasing their sense of presence. "Virtual reality has the potential to profoundly change how we interact with people, machines, and information," Feiner said in a statement. "It is critical that the experience be both comfortable and compelling, and we think we've found a way." The research team says their software can be applied to VR headsets including the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Sony PlayStation VR, and Google Cardboard. They have filed a provisional patent with Columbia Technology Ventures. |
If you live in inner Sydney, your vote for Lord Mayor this September will be worth half that of a business. A convenience store gets two votes; a bank gets two votes; an absent landowner gets two votes. Residents get one. That a business has any vote at all is galling enough. So is the fact owning property is still a qualification as an elector, a century-and-a-half after most places dumped it? But most offensive to democracy is the fact an individual's voting power will be 50 per cent that of a business. Ordinarily, Clover Moore would be facing an it's-time election. After 12 years in elected leadership, any incumbent would expect a sizeable vote against another term, even with the new team she announced over the weekend. But if her Liberal opponent, Christine Forster, wins, her victory will be soured by an appalling gerrymander, among the worst in a long history of state government meddling to get the city council it wants. |
After super middleweight champion Andre Ward returned from a 14-month layoff because of a shoulder injury to rout Edwin Rodriguez on Nov. 16, the question that came to mind was, whom could Ward face next? He has already virtually cleaned out the 168-pound division, having won the Super Six World Boxing Classic and banking lopsided wins against Carl Froch, Mikkel Kessler and Arthur Abraham, not to mention a nontournament rout of Sakio Bika (who later won the belt that was wrongly stripped from Ward). After the tournament was over, Ward even crushed light heavyweight champ Chad Dawson, who had dropped down in weight to face Ward, stopping him in the 10th round of a one-sided fight. A week after Ward's clinic against Rodriguez, George Groves challenged titleholder Froch on Nov. 23 in a big all-British showdown. Groves mostly took Froch to school, knocking him down in the first round, and was clearly winning the fight. But in the ninth round, Froch got Groves into some trouble and referee Howard John Foster suddenly jumped in to stop the fight in one of the worst stoppages in recent memory. Now Froch is telling anyone who will listen that he won't give Groves the rematch he deserves. After seeing how Groves dominated Froch, awful stoppage notwithstanding, I thought: Wouldn't it be interesting if Ward gave Groves a shot? After all, Ward (27-0, 14 KOs) beat Froch easily (and with one hand), and even though Froch has talked about his desire for a rematch with Ward, there is really no reason for it. That said, there is a very good reason for Froch-Groves II. But if Froch wants to run away from a rematch with Groves (19-1, 15 KOs), so be it. Ward would be justified in giving a shot to Groves, who looked good enough against Froch to deserve a shot against the real 168-pound champion anyway. Maybe there will be a Ward-Groves fight, especially after Ward took to Twitter on Thursday to mention the possibility. "UK fans still not happy with Carl 'The Cobra' Froch huh?? That's why I respect UK fans, they ride for the home team, but tell the truth," Ward wrote. "Thing is, if he is going to live up to his tough guy image, he has to rematch Groves or try to avenge his loss to me. He's got two options. "His fans won't except anything else," Ward continued. "What do you think UK? "I would consider fighting George Groves next. He showed a lot his last fight. He's a good fighter & deserves a shot." Considering the facts that Ward has said he isn't prepared to move up to light heavyweight yet, he has beaten the other top fighters at super middleweight -- except for titlist Robert Stieglitz (who is slated for a rubber match with Abraham anyway) -- and the most intriguing middleweight opponent, Gennady Golovkin, is already scheduled for a February fight, I think Ward-Groves makes all the sense in the world. Ward could face an interesting opponent and stick it to Froch at the same time. Whether Ward will return to the ring in a timely fashion is another story now that he is suing promoter Dan Goossen to get out of their contract. The litigation could stall Ward's career again, something he should be wary of after two extended breaks for injury since beating Froch in December 2011. This is the second time this year that Ward has tried to break the contract, having previously lost in arbitration with the California State Athletic Commission, which upheld Goossen's agreement. |
0 of 30 Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports It's time once again for an updated look at where all 30 MLB teams stand this offseason, as we are officially one month from the start of spring training. These rankings were last updated Dec. 31, so any transactions that have taken place between then and now were factored into the changes you'll see in the following rankings. Notable additions during that span include: Justin Upton (DET), Chris Davis (BAL), Alex Gordon (KC), Wei-Yin Chen (MIA), Ian Kennedy (KC), Ben Revere (WAS), Drew Storen (TOR), Gerardo Parra (COL), Seung-hwan Oh (STL), Alexei Ramirez (SD), Chris Carter (MIL), Edwin Jackson (MIA), Kelly Johnson (ATL) and Carlos Villanueva (SD) As with any offseason power rankings, these are not simply meant to be a prediction for the year ahead, but instead a look at how teams would stack up with the rosters they currently have if the season were to start today. Expect plenty more shuffling over the final month, with a number of key free agents still searching for a new home, including Yoenis Cespedes, Yovani Gallardo, Ian Desmond, Dexter Fowler, Howie Kendrick and Tyler Clippard. Keep that in mind when considering where your favorite team falls in the following rankings. Note: This time around, we've included a projected 25-man Opening Day roster for each club. The roster projections from Roster Resource served as an invaluable starting point in this exercise, though changes were made based on my own opinions. In the following projected rosters, (R) indicates a player with rookie eligibility remaining, while a bolded player is a newcomer to the team. |
Every now and again, a developer makes a game that completely redefines the genre around it, rewriting the benchmarks for the industry and raising the bar of expectation for fans. [Quick aside, if the game isn't your thing, just be sure to watch the Epic SC2 moments video below!] If you've played games over a long period of time, you can probably remember quite a few. Elite set a standard in the 80s that some argue is still being sought after. Everything a 2D fighting fan wants is epitomised in the standards that the Street Fighter series has established over the last two decades. Unlike most other games, however, Starcraft 2 was created with the precise understanding of the effect it would have as a competitive pursuit. While the original Starcraft was never developed with the intention of setting the standard for professional gaming, the infrastructure and vision of many South Korean businesses and entrepreneurs plus Blizzard's strong support in patching the game for over a decade did just that. The features of the sequel became a fierce point of discussion within Blizzard and among fans and professional gamers alike. A big sticking point was the inclusion of multi-building select. Back in 1998, the technology of the day only allowed a maximum of either one building or twelve units to be selected at once. Many believed this was part of the skill ceiling that made the game as deep and as difficult to master as it was: a very high number of actions were required to effectively manage your army and economy at the same time. Starcraft 2, on the other hand, was recently patched to allow for a maximum of 500 units to be selected at once, up from 255 upon release. If desired, players can group all of their production facilities on a single hotkey, a vast difference from a time where players were forced to maintain a camera location (a hotkey that snaps back to a fixed location on the map) so they could click on each individual building to build units. But despite the objections of many professionals, Blizzard remained steadfast and introduced a much more modern interface, part of which included an overhaul of the way replays were stored and watched. Replays weren't a feature in Starcraft - they weren't even a feature when Brood War was released. Until 2001 - three years after Brood War was published - the only way to watch a match was to see recorded videos from South Korea, which was already operating televised leagues featuring a range of gamers from around the world. Australia would send a couple of its own; Peter "Legionnaire" Neate became the most famous, with the tall Queenslander becoming the first foreigner to "all-kill" - defeat every member of the opposing team - in a televised match. It wasn't until much later in the decade that other Australians would have the opportunity to live a life as a professional gamer - thanks to the foundation of the Championship Gaming Series in the United States. Despite the high level of talent in the Australian scene, it wasn't until the release of Starcraft 2 that doors really began to open. In the past two years, Australians have been given the opportunity to travel to North America, various parts of Europe, South Korea, the Philippines and Japan. Part of the reason behind this is that competition in Starcraft 2 is much more global than games of the past. When the game was still in beta, Australians were forced to play on the North American server (and in North American tournaments) if they wanted to play at all. When Blizzard announced that Australians would be forced to play on a separate server hosted out of Kuala Lumpur upon release, it sparked massive outrage across the internet, eventually forcing Blizzard to give all copies of the game purchased in Australia, New Zealand and South-east Asia access to the North American servers. Given that Australians were already used to playing against their American brethren, this simply opened up the doors for a wide array of events. In the past, it didn't matter how good your broadband connection was. Australians could only play other Australians, and if the conditions were perfect, against New Zealanders (In some FPS titles it is still preferable to play New Zealand teams than teams from Perth, depending on the server's location.) Around the world, Starcraft 2 has now become the benchmark for what people expect out of professional gaming, not only in terms of the "easy to learn, hard to master" phrase but also for its level of refinement, developer support, interface and overall functionality. But what makes it so engaging is its capacity to consistently deliver a variety of classic gaming moments: the all-out brawl; the impossible comeback; that one battle; the intensity and just the sheer talent required to play at the top. The difficulty of being competitive, and the sheer size of competing in something so global from the comfort of your home, is all-encompassing to the point where people devote their lives to it. Some of that devotion has been captured on camera in the form of documentaries. Some of the films follow the players; others track the commentators, while others look at the teams. Over the last two years, there's been a lot of great games and moments - so sit back and enjoy. Alex Walker is the regular gaming columnist for ABC Tech + Games. You can follow him on Twitter at @thedippaeffect. |
Share. It's not in the (Gwent) cards. It's not in the (Gwent) cards. CD Projekt Red isn't planning on creating a PlayStation 4 Pro patch for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt. Speaking with Eurogamer, the studio explained it is prioritizing its efforts on Gwent: The Witcher Card Game and Cyberpunk 2077. That means an update for Sony's upgraded console isn't in the works. Exit Theatre Mode "Since we want to fully focus on Cyberpunk 2077 and Gwent, and converting The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt from a full HD game into a 4K one [on console] would be too much of a time- and resource-consuming process, we decided not to release an edition of Wild Hunt supporting the new features of PlayStation Pro," CD Project Red said to Eurogamer. So even though The Witcher 3 can scale up to 4K on PC, don't expect a similar option on PlayStation 4 Pro. But there are other already released games that will get patches for the console. When Sony unveiled the system with 4K and HDR capabilities earlier this month, games like Call of Duty: Black Ops III and Deux Ex: Mankind Divided were highlighted as getting support for the new visual features. (You can see the full PS4 Pro games compatibility list here.) Exit Theatre Mode Earlier this year, CD Projekt Red announced and released The Witcher 3: Game of the Year Edition. The package combines the main game with all of the DLC for the fantasy RPG, including the Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine expansions. In fact, IGN has a review roundup for all of The Witcher 3's content. Exit Theatre Mode Evan Campbell is a freelance writer who scripts the Daily Fix, streams games on his Twitch channel, and chats about movies and TV series on Twitter. |
Moldova’s security is in danger, regardless of who wins the November 30 elections. On the one hand, there is a danger that extremist parties serving Russia will enter Parliament. On the other hand, the same forces could cause mass disorder if they do not come to power. Such statements were made in the program “Fabrika” on Publika TV channel, IPN reports. The head of the Union of Independence War Veterans Eduard Maican said there are extremist forces in Moldova that are financed from outside and have the only task of destabilizing the situation. “There are several organizations in the north, center and south of Moldova and surely in the Transnistrian region. For example, “Antifa” and the Movement of Cossacks are well-organized and equipped and are managed by persons with military ranks, including generals. The danger will persist even after the parliamentary elections because the extremist forces may stage a revolt so that Russia could later intervene militarily on the pretext of saving the Russian nationals living in Moldova,” he stated. Former acting head of the Security and Information Service (SIS) Valentin Dediu said the situation became very tense. “Radical forces want to enter Parliament to hamper the European integration process. This would be a catastrophe for many generations. The situation is especially tense owing to the geopolitical interests, with out country being at the intersection of these interests. NATO has expanded close to Moldova, while for Russia NATO and the U.S. are the main enemies. The several arrests of Gagauz young people were taken out of context. An increasing number of luxury cars with Transnistrian license numbers can be seen on the streets of Chisinau. I personally met former KGB colleagues who left Moldova long ago and I doubt it that they retuned because they missed it. Moscow started to send emissaries. Those coming from Russia are searched at the airport, but many arrive by train. A part of the Russian emissaries come through Turkey, Austria or Romania. The organization “Antifa” is especially dangerous. It is financed by several companies from Russia and was created to stage violent events aimed against state institutions. Young people and former employees of the SIS and other law enforcement bodies are recruited to work for it. They started to be trained long ago, in two Moldovan villages, where members of the group meet regularly and receive instructions from trainers from Ukraine and Russia,” he stated. Oazu Nantoi, program director at the Institute of Public Policy, expressed his indignation at the fact that none of the platforms of the election runners contains provisions concerning the resolution of the Transnistrian conflict. “During 24 years, no government proposed a concrete strategy for settling the conflict, but this dispute can be resolved. We only need a responsible government that will not pursue personal goals in this area. We are now in a vulnerable situation and have to only regret that an election campaign is taking place,” he said. Media analyst Cristian Tabara, the program’s permanent invitee, said that Moldova now pays the price of the administration’s ambiguity. The November 30 elections are crucial and the people must realize this. |
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will outline a plan on Thursday to relax U.S. immigration policy and grant relief from deportation to as many as 5 million undocumented immigrants in a go-it-alone move that will deepen a partisan divide with Republicans. U.S. President Barack Obama speaks at a news conference at the end of the G20 summit in Brisbane November 16, 2014. REUTERS/Jason Reed The White House said Obama will deliver a televised speech on Thursday night laying out the plan followed by a trip to Las Vegas on Friday to build support. Nevada is home to the highest proportion of undocumented immigrants in the country. Frustrated by years of congressional inaction on what most in Washington agree is a broken immigration system, Obama said in a web video posting that he is now prepared to act unilaterally. “So what I’m going to be laying out is the things that I can do with my lawful authority as president to make the system work better even as I continue to work with Congress and encourage them to get a bipartisan, comprehensive bill that can solve the entire problem,” he said. Some conservative Republicans have threatened to fight the immigration move by imposing funding restrictions in a must-pass spending bill, which could conceivably lead to a government shutdown. Republican leaders, however, have stressed they will not allow a shutdown after facing heavy criticism for the last one a year ago. Obama’s executive orders are expected to remove the threat of deportation for as many as 5 million of the estimated 11 million people living illegally in the United States. This is a significant step for a president known for having deported thousands of illegal migrants. Sources close to the administration said Obama is planning to issue a reprieve from deportation that will cover some parents of U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents. That initiative would expand on a 2012 executive order by the president that gave relief from deportation and work permits to undocumented children brought to the United States by their parents. There is also expected to be a border security element and Obama will act to help companies hire and retain high-skilled workers from abroad, the sources said. “We’ve identified a number of ways that we will (fix the system) which the president will speak to in the coming days,” Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said at a National Press Club event on Wednesday. Obama’s move, coming little more than two weeks after elections in which Republicans seized the Senate, is certain to provoke a backlash and House of Representatives Republicans are weighing a range of responses. Michael Steel, a spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner, said in a statement: “If ‘Emperor Obama’ ignores the American people and announces an amnesty plan that he himself has said over and over again exceeds his constitutional authority, he will cement his legacy of lawlessness and ruin the chances for congressional action on this issue and many others.” Republican Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, who will become Senate majority leader when Republicans command the Senate in January, has warned that Obama will poison the well for future cooperation if he acts unilaterally. The White House hopes that by acting now, Obama will spur House Republicans into acting on long-stalled immigration legislation, an idea that many on Capitol Hill see as far-fetched. It is not out of the question that Obama early next year could offer to approve the long-stalled Keystone XL pipeline from Canada in exchange for a deal on immigration legislation. The president on Wednesday night will host 18 congressional Democrats at the White House to talk through his immigration action, White House spokesman Josh Earnest said. Obama’s move could potentially have the unintended effect of increasing illegal immigration along the U.S. southern border with Mexico, if it is perceived as a softening of U.S. policy toward future migrants. Homeland Security’s Johnson said on Wednesday he was concerned about another rise in illegal immigration, citing seasonal increases and a recovering U.S. economy. He also cited the influx of Central American child immigrants earlier this year and said U.S. officials need to retain safeguards against a repeat of that. The migrant crisis last summer contributed to some ill feelings among Americans about undocumented migrants. A Reuters/Ipsos opinion poll in August found that 70 percent of Americans believed immigrants threatened the country’s beliefs while 63 percent believed they burdened the economy. |
So, I have something to get off my chest. Despite coming to Columbus Crew SC matches regularly since 2007, I had never been to a tailgate thrown by the Supporters Section. Until this past weekend, that is. This was mostly due to my natural awkwardness at meeting new people. Writing for Massive Report has helped me to get to know the assorted people involved with it and I really had no excuse anymore last weekend. So, despite still having more than a little anxiety, I went. Shockingly enough, it was awesome. So I got to thinking, how many others were in my same boat? Wanting to attend the tailgate, but slightly intimidated by the size of the gathering, the noisy nature of our Supporters Groups, or just general social anxiety? This is column is for them. Perhaps not for the hardcore fans who are already members, who know the score, and maybe not for the "casual fans" that are showing up for their yearly match, but the increasingly large section of fans who attend matches most weeks, but aren't a part of an established Supporters Group, who don't sit in the Nordecke, but want to dip their toes in to the water of "supporters culture." First question first, what exactly makes the MEGATAILGATE "mega"? Basically, instead of having separate tailgates, all the Supporters Groups throw one giant one. Everyone has their own setup in one big group, and fans mill about between them. It's quite a sight. And, to be honest, I was still a little intimidated while approaching. Then I remembered the sage-like words of Massive Report's own Morgan Hughes, shared with me via twitter in the preceding weeks: @krislandis shut up your face, it's laid back as hell - you'll be fine. — Morgan Hughes (@Morgan_Hughes) March 5, 2015 I took a deep breath, and approached. Most of the people I know are members of the Hudson Street Hooligans, so I migrated towards their tent. I carried with me a box of assorted beers from my fridge. Due to some ongoing diabetes related issues, drinking is a no-go for me, so I thought the beer would be a perfect icebreaker. Who doesn't like community beer? Seeing several friendly faces, I made my way over. After saying my hellos and finding someplace to stash my beer, I began to circulate. My first stop was the Yellow Nation Army tailgate. Their area is usually (if not always) themed. This week's theme was St. Patrick's Day, which meant booze and brisket. I walked up to the YNA stand, slightly nervous since I was only acquainted with those folks through social media, and introduced myself. I was greeted with a warm welcome and hot brisket sandwich. Someone I'd never met even recognized my name from Massive Report, a first for me. As I munched on my delicious sandwich I got to talk shop with some of the YNA folk and they were all excellent. Friendly, welcoming, and slightly tipsy, there was no talk of "Are you a member?" They were blasting some Irish punk style tunes, which set the mood for the evening perfectly. I am informed their annual hip-hop themed tailgate is a highlight of the season. I then saw Crew legend, and party fixture, Frankie Hejduk hanging around the Crew Union tailgate, talking with fans, taking pictures, and generally getting the party started. Anyone who has ever met Frankie in person knows he is perhaps the single most approachable man on Earth. If you somehow haven't had the pleasure, you really should approach him when given the chance. Regardless of if he has a jam-packed schedule and can only spare a high five, or plenty of time to chat and party, I have never seen Frankie turn away a fans request. As he was walking by I noticed his libation was empty. I offered him a beer from my box of random booze. He graciously accepted and relived me of my suds. This was, as I said, my first MEGATAILGATE, and therefor my first "proper" celebration of my favorite Holiday, Crewmas. I am told that every year the Crew Supporters Union (henceforth CSU) have their annual Chilli Cook-Off. This year was no exception. By the time I arrived there were seven or eight different types on offer, but I was too full from my excellent brisket sandwich to partake. I don't really know anyone from CSU, but everyone I spoke to was cool, easy to approach, and generally excited for the night. That was really the thing, across the whole tailgate, which stood out to me. There was a real sense of togetherness, even amongst the different groups. It's obvious we were all there for the same reason, and there was a palpable feeling of excitement in the air. For some reason I expected a lot of factionalism, people sticking to "their places", but by and large most people were mingling about, which, I suppose, is the point. I didn't spend too much time at Murderers Row or La Turbina, again owing mostly to not knowing anyone there, but I got no sense of a "What are you doing here?" vibe when I walked by. Also, on the periphery of the MEGATAILGATE were several subsets of people just hanging out. On a mission to finally meet Twitter friend Chris LaMacchia in person, I scoured many of these smaller hangouts until I found him. So, if jumping straight in to the fray (FRE?) of the MEGATAILGATE isn't quite your speed, there is always this option. Set up just outside the main show and feel your way in, so to speak. I saw plenty of grills, plenty of beer, and more than a few kick-abouts going on in the parking lot. There's plenty of room. Now, what about supporters with children? I didn't see many there, to be honest, but the few I did see seemed to be enjoying themselves. Obviously, this was an adult environment. Drinking and swearing was abundant. I can't speak to any "rules" for this sort of behavior, but I saw nothing indicating a "no kids allowed" policy at any of the tents. This one, I'm afraid, is up to the parents. So all in all, the MEGATAILGATE was emblematic of everything I consider good about Crew SC supporters culture. Everyone was invited and everyone was welcome. Not once did I feel that I didn't belong. I did hear a pitch or two about joining, but it was all friendly and in good fun. Even the most "notorious" of Crew supporters (not naming any names) were friendly and approachable. I can't think of any better way to kick off a matchday at MAPFRE Stadium. Afraid of coming to a party where you don't know anyone? Come talk to me. I will most likely still be the most sober person there, and not nearly as wordy as these articles make me seem. Or just bring some beer to share and come hang out. Strike up a conversation with someone. It's really not anything to worry about. However you want to approach it, you should come. You're doing yourself a disservice if you don't. Stay Massive folks. |
By GottaLaff Is anyone surprised? .... Anyone....? ::crickets:: Who will be the first one to finally prosecute? Officials privately mocked assertions that the Iraqi president was covertly trying to develop a nuclear capability and wisecracked that perhaps he had recruited "Dr Frankenstein" to his supposed crack team of nuclear scientists. They disclose that the intelligence services were skeptical over the "iffy drafting" of government claims that Saddam Hussein could mount a missile strike on his neighbours within 45 minutes of ordering an attack. So much for that mushroom cloud. What was that you were saying again, Ari? The release of a series of confidential memos and emails, following a protracted Freedom of Information battle, reignited the controversy over accusations that Tony Blair's government "spun" Britain into war. Last night both the Tories and the Liberal Democrats renewed their demands for a full public inquiry into the decision to join the US-led invasion of Iraq. The 45-minute claim – presented to MPs in a notorious dossier on 24 September 2002, six months before military action began – was central to the Blair government's justification for war. But a memo sent 13 days earlier by Desmond Bowen, head of the Cabinet Office defence secretariat, to John Scarlett, who was head of the Joint Intelligence Committee, suggested he had grave reservations over the threat. [...] Another memo exaggerated claims Last night William Hague, the shadow Foreign Secretary, said: "This is the latest in a steady stream of damaging revelations about the events leading up to the Iraq war. These minutes shed interesting light on the process by which the caveats in the Joint Intelligence Committee's original assessment of Iraq's WMD programmes were stripped out of the dossier that was presented to Parliament and the British people." [...] The emails: How 'sexing-up' was achieved: 11 September 2002 Desmond Bowen: "The question we have to have in the back of our mind is: 'Why now?' I think we have moved away from promoting the ideas that we are in imminent danger of attack and intend to act in pre-emptive self-defence... In looking at the WMD sections, you will clearly want to be as firm and authoritative as you can be. You will clearly need to judge the extent to which you need to hedge your judgements with, for example, 'it is almost certain' and similar caveats." 11 September 2002 Mark Sedwill: "I would expand the history of weapons inspections. It is an interesting story and would give the media a better feel for the difficulties they faced and the persistence of the Iraqi obstruction... We need a very simple table somewhere... This should be brief enough to get on to the Sky wall – ie no more than five bullets." 16 September 2002 Unnamed official (thought to be intelligence agent): "I note that the paper suggests that Saddam's biotech efforts have gone much further than we ever feared. Page 4 Bullet 4: '[Iraq] has assembled specialists to work on its nuclear programme' – Dr Frankenstein I presume? Sorry. It's getting late... We have suggested moderating the same language in much the same way on drafts from the dim and distant past without success. Feel free to try again!... Lots of 'ranges' close together – iffy drafting." |
This is the moment we’ve been building to. We’ve seen so many great teams, taking trips down memory lane with each of them to see what made them a special and unique champion. However, none of them compare to the champion we are going to look at today. 60 wins. 132 points. 33-1-6 home record. 9 Hall of Famers. Those are just a few things that this team accomplished and below we’ll look at even more. Some of the stats and facts we’ll throw out at you will have you rubbing your eyes in disbelief or questioning whether or not I made a typo. The #1 team in NHL history is without a doubt…..the 1976-1977 Montreal Canadiens. The 1975-1976 season saw the Canadiens finally end the run of the Broad Street Bullies, sweeping them 4-0 in the Stanley Cup Finals. Heading into the 1976-1977 season, the Canadiens made very little changes, with the only significant change being the return of Rejean Houle from the WHA. Coach Scotty Bowman had his team ready to go from the very first game. In the first game of the regular season, the Canadiens routed the Penguins 10-1. Just 3 games later, the Canadiens traveled to Philadelphia for a rematch of the Stanley Cup Finals, and they thumped the Flyers 7-1. This team was just ruthless. Fast forwarding to October 30th, the Bruins managed to knock off the Canadiens in Montreal, ending the Canadiens 5-0 start at home. Little did people know, that would be the only time Montreal would lose on home ice that season. More of than later. At the end of October, the Canadiens were 9-3-1, and had started off pretty good. The Canadiens averaged 5.1 goals a game in the first month of the season and gave up just 2.2 goals a game. The scary part for the rest of the NHL? The Canadiens kept us this pace for the entire season. The Canadiens ran through the month of November, going 10-1-2. The Canadiens then ramped up their level of play, if you can even imagine that, going 18-1-3 between November 17th and January 12th. In the worst “skid” of the season, the Canadiens dropped 2 of their next 3 games, bringing their record to 33-7-6 on January 17th. The Canadiens went 3-0-1 in their next 4 games to push their record to 37-7-7 at the All Star Break. What the Canadiens did post-All Star Break is the greatest post-All Star break run in the history of the NHL. The Canadiens went 24-1-5, earning 53 of a possible 60 points (88.3%) of the points possible. That post All Star break run included the Canadiens finishing the regular season on a 28-0-6 home unbeaten streak. Remember that game back in October when the Bruins knocked off the Canadiens 4-3 in Montreal? Yea I wasn’t joking when I said that was the last time they were going to lose at home for the season. The Canadiens finished the regular season with a 33-1-6 home record (90% of points possible), the best home record in NHL history. Want to make that home record seem even more impressive? The Canadiens outscored their opponents 205-75 at home (5.1-1.9). Take a moment to think about that. We’ll wait. Their overall record was 60-8-12, good for an NHL-record 132 points that only 1 team has even come close to (95-96 Wings, 131 points). The Canadiens won their division by a mere 49 points, their conference by 26 points, and were 1st overall by 20 points over the hated Flyers. Individually, the Canadiens were the most impressive team in NHL history in terms of the awards they captured. Guy Lafleur finished the regular season with 56 goals and 136 points (1st in NHL). Steve Shutt scored 60 goals to lead the NHL. The third member of “The Dynasty Line”, Jacques Lemaire, scored 34 goals and 75 points. Larry Robinson scored 85 points to lead all defensemen in scoring. Ken Dryden went 41-6-8 with a 2.14 GAA and 10 shutouts. Let’s look at the hardware this team collected. Of the 6 spots on the NHL’s 1st All Star Team, 4 were occupied by Canadiens (Ken Dryden, Larry Robinson, Guy Lafleur, Steve Shutt). The MVP and Art Ross went to Guy Lafleur. If the Rocket Richard existed, Steve Shutt would have won it. Ken Dryden and Michel Larocque shared the Vezina for giving up the fewest goals. Larry Robinson won the Norris Trophy as the league’s top defenseman. Scotty Bowman won the Jack Adams Award as the Coach of the Year. Finally, Lafleur also received the Lester B. Pearson award as the League’s Most Outstanding Player. As a team, the Canadiens put up some mind boggling numbers. The Canadiens were 1st in goals for (4.84). The next closest team was almost a full goal behind (Flyers 4.04). The Canadiens also finished 1st in goals against (2.14). The Canadiens had 8 20 goal scorers, 14 10 goal scorers, and 10 players finish with 50 or more points. The Canadiens finished the year 2nd in PP% at 24.9% and 1st in PK% at 87.9%. Finally, the most impressive stat from the Canadiens was their Even Strength For/Against numbers. The Canadiens finished that season with the highest number ever for a Stanley Cup Champion, at 2.31. This team could do everything. Let’s look at their playoff run. |
Something that I thought I noticed soon after I graduated college and moved to DC was that a lot of my female friends were very interested in the subject of street harassment. Later, thanks to the magic of social media and web traffic (check out the Facebook shares on this item!) I learned that I'd misconstrued this entirely. It's not that women I was friends with were very interested in this subject. Women in general were interested. Their interest wasn't exactly invisible to me — I was hearing about it in person from friends — but ten or 12 years ago those friends' interest wasn't refracted back and validated by the larger media ecosystem the way it is today. It seemed like an idiosyncratic obsession rather than what it is: an alarmingly widespread social malady that a male-dominated media culture had kind of swept under the rug. Another thing you see in the web traffic stats is that the American public's appetite for internecine warfare between diaspora Jewish intellectuals about what is and is not the appropriate attitude to have toward Israel is quite limited. When you stop and think about it, this is perfectly obvious (indeed, if you're not Jewish it probably didn't even require thought). But in a world where the New York Times' columnist rotation features more Jews than women of any ethnic background, it's easy for a person (like me!) with demographic attributes very typical of the prestige media to be blind to the ways particularist identities were shaping coverage decisions. This is, I think, the problem with idea of "identity politics" as a shorthand for talking about feminism or anti-racism. The world of navel-gazing journalism is currently enmeshed in a couple of partially overlapping conversations, about "PC culture," diversity, social justice, technological change, and shifting business models. One thread of this is the (accurate) observation that social media distribution creates new incentives for publications to be attuned to feminist and minority rights perspectives in a way that was not necessarily the case in the past. But where some see a cynical play for readership, I see an extraordinarily useful shock to a media ecosystem that's too long been myopic in its range of concerns. @mattyglesias It was shorthand for articles principally about race or gender bias. — Jonathan Chait (@jonathanchait) January 29, 2015 The implication of this usage (which is widespread, and by no means limited to people who agree with Chait) is that somehow an identity is something only women or African-Americans or perhaps LGBT people have. White men just have ideas about politics that spring from a realm of pure reason, with concerns that are by definition universal. You see something similar in Noam Scheiber's argument that New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio went astray by emphasizing an "identity group agenda" of police reform at the expense of a (presumably identity-free) agenda of populist economics. For starters, it is actually inevitable that a New York City mayor would end up spending more time on his police department management agenda (something that is actually under the mayor's control) than on tax policy, which is set by the State Legislature in Albany. But beyond that, not addressing a racially discriminatory status quo in policing is itself a choice. Indeed, it's a kind of identity group appeal — to white people, whose preferred means of striking the balance between liberty and security, in many contexts, is that security should be achieved by depriving other people of their civil liberties. This is where the at-times tiresome concept of privilege becomes very useful. The truth is that almost all politics is, on some level, about identity. But those with the right identities have the privilege of simply calling it politics while labeling other people's agendas "identity." Denial of this reality, it seems to me, is actually a key failing of a certain brand of American liberalism. Conservatives may join some white male liberals in decrying "identity politics," but nobody knows better than conservatives the power and importance of identities like Christian, American, traditional family, etc., in shaping thinking and giving meaning to political engagement. Indeed, we just saw a species of this failure of American liberalism in the Obama administration's swiftly abandoned plan to kill tax-subsidized 529 accounts. The entire politics of this ended up hinging not on economic models, but on the question of whether a certain class of professional couple earning a low-six figure income should be considered "middle class." Or look at how Obama's effort to raise middle-class incomes in a way that encourages work morphed into a "war on homemakers." All politics is, on some level, identity politics. The idea that it's some special attribute of black politics or feminist politics is just blindness. And while identity politics can be practiced in bad ways or in pursuit of bad goals, that's simply to say that politics can be practiced both for good and for ill. The idea that gendered or ethnic claims are despoiling a liberalism of pure selves and neutral rationality is little more than an unselfconscious form of identity politics. Politics is about collective decisions. This necessarily implicates individuals' identities by defining who is inside and who is outside the community of concern and under what terms. The trend by which modern digital media forces publications to be more aware of what resonates with audiences is not an unalloyed good. But given the centrality of identity to politics of all kinds and the badly skewed demographics at the commanding heights of the American media ecosystem, this particular aspect of the trend is pretty clearly change for the better. |
(Photo courtesy of Tenants of the Trees) Allegations that patrons have been roofied at popular Silver Lake bar Tenants of the Trees have reached a fever pitch in recent weeks, spurred by a tweet from comedian Kate Berlant. ATTN WOMEN OF LA: I know of at least 7 women who have been roofied at Tenants of the Trees in Silverlake. BE VIGILANT. — Kate Berlant (@kateberlant) June 7, 2016 Tenants of the Trees replaced gay bar/neighborhood institution MJ's last August and almost immediately became one of the hipper spots in town (per Vogue: If you can get in, you’re likely to bump into models visiting from New York, members of Judd Apatow’s lad-flick clique, and music-industry luminaries...). After Berlant's tweet, more speculation about women being drugged at Tenants of the Trees circulated on social media, but no one has yet publicly come forward to say they were victimized, and LAPD's Northeast Division told LAist that they didn't know of any drug-related complaints involving the bar. Tenants of the Trees co-owner Reza Fahim told LAist that he and co-owner Jason Lev took the allegations "very seriously," and said that "regardless of whether the allegations that have been made are true or not, this is activity that we take extremely seriously and believe strongly that it cannot be tolerated." The Los Feliz Ledger, who originally reported the story, spoke to a former Tenants of the Trees employee who called the incidents "a trend," saying that "It doesn’t just happen once in a while.” According to the Ledger, the former employee quit after a friend was drugged while visiting her at work. The former employee told the Ledger that she "told security and management. I pointed out the guy. And they just let him come back whenever." Fahim pushed back in regard to the former employee's allegations, saying that "she definitely never complained about anything and she definitely did not quit." Fahim said that bar management believe she made the allegations in an effort to retaliate against the bar after being fired. He also noted that the former employee often hung out at the bar on her days off up until the week she was fired, which would run counter to her complaints about the environment. Ana Calderon, a prominent L.A. DJ who hosts one of the most popular nights at Tenants of the Trees, expressed shock over the incidents. "I take that type of offense extremely seriously," Calderon said. "It makes me super angry that women are often subjected to that criminal act all around the world when they are just out trying to have fun." "This is one of the first clubs I've ever worked at that happily removed people for crossing personal space boundaries or making women uncomfortable," Calderon told LAist. "Back when I hosted/DJ-ed more in Hollywood, it was like a three strikes rule before any action was taken and it used to make me so mad... But at Tenants it's just not tolerated. I like that I can go up to a bouncer and be like, 'that guy made my friend feel weird, can you please help?' and next thing you know that person is ejected." Fahim also told LAist that after learning of the allegations he and Lev met with staff to make them more aware of the possible problem, and took a number of steps, which Fahim detailed in an email to LAist: We have instructed our staff to immediately remove all unattended drinks, and we have reached out to our patrons and those in the online community who are discussing this matter in an effort to create awareness and learn more about each incident so that we can try our best to investigate (by reviewing video tape if possible) or otherwise try and determine if we can figure out what happened or who is responsible. This is not easy under the best of circumstances and is even harder when we only become aware of an incident far after it occurred. If you have information about the alleged incidents at Tenants of the Trees, we'd like to hear your story. Please reach out to us at tips@laist.com. Related: These Women Caught A Guy Drugging His Date's Drink At Fig In Santa Monica |
The man accused of abducting a child in Palmerston North allegedly offended against the same child two days earlier. Suppression orders blanketing the details of the charges relating to the abduction of the 5-year-old child were lifted in the Palmerston North District Court on Thursday. Cheltenham man Brendan Paul Henson, 46, is accused of abducting the child on February 12 with the intent of having sexual connection with her. DAVID UNWIN/FAIRFAX NZ Alleged child abductor Brendan Paul Henson appears in Palmerston North District Court. He is also accused of indecently assaulting her on the same day. The alleged abduction of the girl received much attention, spawning a manhunt throughout Manawatu involving 30 police officers and a search helicopter. But police say that was not the first time Henson offended against the child. David Unwin/Fairfax NZ. Alleged child abductor Brendan Paul Henson appears in Palmerston North District Court. He is also charged with indecently assaulting the child on February 10. The child's name is automatically suppressed due to the nature of the charges and her age. Henson did not plead to any of the charges. Defence lawyer Fergus Steedman said it was his first time appearing for Henson. He said he needed time to go over things with Henson, especially because the February 12 indecent assault charge had been laid by police on Thursday. A bail application was "floating around somewhere", but could be withdrawn, Steedman said. Judge Gregory Ross remanded Henson in custody until later in March. |
Nokia has invited members of the press to a conference on May 14 where they plan to reveal the next chapter in the Lumia story. The Finnish handset maker didn’t outline exactly what we will see but rumors point to a Windows-based tablet, among other things. Sources indicate the slate could run either Windows 8 or Windows RT. Other rumored specifications include a 10.1-inch display operating at a lowly 1,366 x 768 resolution, a 1GHz processor (likely a dual-core chip) and 1GB of RAM. All of this points to a mid-range device at best which may lean more towards Windows RT. The Lumia tablet reportedly measures 256.6×175.3×9.7mm and weighs in at 676g. In the same respect, Nokia may use the London-based event to launch a new smartphone instead. Recent rumors suggest this could be the Lumia 920 successor, codenamed Catwalk. This phone is expected to be much lighter and thinner than current offerings as it will be constructed of aluminum instead of the typical polycarbonate. If not the Catwalk, then perhaps we may see Nokia’s Windows Phone 8 handset with a true PureView image sensor inside, codename EOS. Such a device was first rumored to be in the works back in January. It would use an image sensor similar to the 41-megapixel unit found in the 808 PureView. We’ll keep a close eye on Nokia’s event as they could be prepared to unveil any of these devices – or perhaps something totally new that we didn’t see coming. Any bets on what we might see next month? |
Virtual reality is entering the mainstream, influencing such fields as medicine and military training. Consumer-grade devices like Samsung's Gear VR (made with virtual-reality pioneer Oculus) and Google's make-it-yourself Cardboard viewer have democratised the technology, but headsets are just the beginning. To make the most of VR's immersive possibilities, we need to involve not just the user's eyes and ears, but his gut, as well. Behold the VR peripheral ever created: the CableRobot Simulator, created by Germany's Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics and unveiled this week during the Driving Simulation Conference & Exhibition in the town of Tübingen. Designed to study motion-perception and cognition, this expansive motion-simulation setup, two years in the making, uses a polyhedron-shaped gondola suspended in a 200-cubic-metre hall by a system of eight wire cables. The cables are connected to electric winch motors producing a total of 467 horsepower — enough to accelerate the 176lb carbon-fibre gondola and its passenger at a stomach-flopping 1.5g. The user wears an Oculus Rift-style wireless headset connected to an optical tracking system and an appropriate controller — a steering wheel or a flight stick, for example. Player inputs prompt the winch motors to engage and move, rotate or tilt the cage in real time. Driving and flying simulations are the most obvious applications but, like the Planck Institute's robot-arm CyberMotion Simulator from 2013, the CableRobot can allow users to experience motion playback of actual onboard recordings — imagine immersive, gut-wrenching hot laps of Silverstone with Lewis Hamilton. CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story erroneously suggested that the CableRobot Simulator could be used as a gaming peripheral. The Max Planck Institut has no such plans for the machine, which was created solely to research motion cognition and perception. BBC Autos apologises for this misleading suggestion. |
“Hard work, every day.” Huge orange banners bearing this phrase hang majestically on the walls and from the ceiling of the Nikko Kirifuri Ice Arena, the home of the Nikko Ice Bucks hockey club. The motto may sound like a cliche for a sports team, but it’s no exaggeration for this club. The professional ice hockey franchise, based in the calm, historic town in Tochigi Prefecture, about 120 km northeast of Tokyo, has no time to rest in its quest to be the leading team in Japan and Asia. The Ice Bucks’ hardworking attitude derives from the club’s dark days, when the only thing that occupied their minds was how to stay alive. The Ice Bucks, now of the nine-team Asia League Ice Hockey, were established as a successor to the Furukawa Electric hockey club, of the old Japan League, when the corporate giant opted to fold its 90-year-old team in 1999. As much as becoming the first pro hockey team in Japan was a groundbreaking event, it brought with it many problems. The Ice Bucks, who captured the 82nd All-Japan Ice Hockey Championship on Sunday, no longer received the big-company backing of Furukawa Electric and were burdened with serious financial woes, which caused payment delays for the players at times. The club constantly faced the threat of extinction. Ice Bucks team director Hideji Tsuchida, who played for the Ice Bucks, said the team was thrown into turmoil after the support that it received from Furukawa Electric for the first couple of years following its inception ended. “We were getting a lot of interest and support because we were the first professional club. We had support from Furukawa as well,” Tsuchida told The Japan Times at Kirifuri Ice Arena. “But once the support ended (from Furukawa), then we started being thrown into situations where we could have gone under.” When the first crisis struck, in 2001, the Ice Bucks barely avoided disbanding when they received about 100,000 signatures from their loyal fans, not just from within Tochigi but from all over the nation. But even the support of the fans couldn’t drastically improve the club’s financial status. In fact, Tsuchida describes how it had to go through years of hardship afterward. But the club finally saw a ray of hope in the summer of 2006, when well-known Japanese-Brazilian soccer commentator Sergio Echigo joined the club as its senior director (Echigo, who played as a forward for famous Brazilian club Corinthians, suited up for the Japan Soccer League’s Towa Real Estate S.C., which was based in Tochigi, back in the early 1970s). Echigo set up a new managing company, called Tochigi United, to run the Ice Bucks starting with the 2007-08 season. And in 2010, the club began a business tie-up with Yoshimoto Kogyo, a major Japanese entertainment conglomerate. The following year, it hired Takayuki Hioki, a sports media business expert as its managing director. Both Echigo and Hioki weren’t hockey gurus, nor was Yoshimoto Kogyo. But with the knowledge they had regarding other sports and sports business, the Ice Bucks were gradually heading in the right direction. * * * With no big sponsor backing them, the volume of support from the Ice Bucks’ fans has been absolutely critical. Tsuchida says the club is desperate to draw crowds to Kirifuri and the club’s staff consistently racks its brains to persuade fans to keep coming back to games and events. “Our fans are the top priority that we have to think of,” Tsuchida said. “And we’ve got to think about how to make them cheer us and keep their eyes on us. We definitely rely on attendance.” Tsuchida explained that the club also benefits from its hockey school and its fan club, which he added is “by far” the biggest in the league with some 1,600 members. Tsuchida doesn’t think that the Ice Bucks’ games alone can amuse the fans. The team has consistently been attempting to develop the entertainment side of its business — for example the presentation and music at the arena, hosting off-ice events and pre-game ceremonies — thanks to the influence of Hioki, who was part of a group which established a sports business company, Sports Marketing Japan, and has worked in digital media and business consulting for the NFL, WWE pro-wrestling and Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters, among others. “Those are things that other teams aren’t really doing,” Tsuchida said. “So we can proudly tell you that the Ice Bucks are different.” At one late-October game at Kirifuri, Tsuchida and some other staff members were handing carnations to the fans entering the arena. That day, an Utsunomiya-based beauty salon was the title sponsor of the game. Also, Halloween was approaching, so Tsuchida said that a snack company would be a title sponsor and the club would likewise give snacks to the boys and girls with the staff in costumes. Similarly, they have different title sponsors for their home contests and that is what makes each one unique. “What we’re really scared of is losing the fans,” Tsuchida said. “We want to provide a different inspiration at every game.” Some fans said that the ticket prices for the Ice Bucks home games are more expensive than at other clubs, particularly corporate-owned clubs. Tsuchida admitted as much but insisted that the club tries to add extra values with its home games. * * * Makoto and Mikiko Sasakawa, a middle-aged couple, are die-hard Ice Bucks fanatics who have bought season tickets for years. In fact, they’ve come to the rink dating back to the Furukawa Electric era of nearly two decades ago, and frequently make trips to other venues for the team’s away games (Makoto said he has previously gone to games outside Japan as well). Although the ticket prices are higher and the team doesn’t really deliver many victories (the Ice Bucks were in seventh place with 34 points as of Dec. 12), the Sasakawas still remained loyal. Love that asks nothing in return, you could say. “The players are like our children. I start to worry, wondering if they are eating well and things like that,” Mikiko said with a smile. “We appreciate them for giving us something that we can get excited about.” And for the Ice Bucks players, there’s no place like Nikko to hit the rink. They may not earn as much as players at other clubs and may not have as big of a chance to win a championship every year, because of their lower budget (Tsuchida attested that the team’s budget is roughly one-third of that of bigger corporate clubs like the Oji Eagles and Nippon Paper Cranes, who are said to spend about ¥500 million or more annually). But some guys are happy to play here. The Ice Bucks finished as runnerup in the 2011-12 season, and that’s the best result they have had since their inception. Forward Kazuma Iwamoto, who played high school and college hockey in the United States, acknowledges that winning every single contest is impossible, but that giving inspiration to the fans is not. “We’re aware of that from our daily life,” said Iwamoto, when asked if the Ice Bucks players realize that they have to draw as many fans as possible as a pro club. “We’ve got to appreciate the fans, and it’s our theme to work hard in our practices and move our fans in our games. “Even when we are behind in games, we’re never going to give up, keep putting our bodies on the line until the very end. That’s something we are aware of.” Canadian forward David Bonk, who is in his fourth season with the team, insisted that it is special to play in Nikko. “It makes a big difference and the Ice Bucks don’t have one huge sponsor backing,” said Bonk, a former American Hockey League player. “There’s a lot of different sponsors, the fans contribute a lot. It makes it a lot more fun to come to games. We have good crowds. Some of the teams out there aren’t so great, so it feels great.” * * * While every staff member and player carries a responsibility for the team, Hioki is probably one of the most significant in terms of holding the key for its future. With his past experience in sports marketing and business, he has become an irreplaceable asset for the club. Hioki said with a wry smile that the Ice Bucks didn’t have the business acumen to properly manage its affairs before his arrival. But this no-nonsense figure was given full decision-making powers for the business side of the club and transformed it to get back on the right track. But Hioki is far from satisfied with the status quo. He thinks that the sport has more potential, not just the Ice Bucks (the Japan League used to draw jam-packed crowds a couple of decades ago). Bonk said that the game is “dying,” and the irony is that the quality has gotten better. “Maybe it’s frustrating for some of the Japanese guys, because the players are better,” Bonk shrugged. “Hockey is a lot better now. So it’s a better product for the fans.” Hioki is trying to raise the bar of the whole Asia League, which consists of teams from Japan, South Korea, China and Russia, because success of the Ice Bucks alone won’t help improve the popularity of the game in Asia. In other words, everybody has to be on the same page, bringing more parity to the league at a higher standard. “No matter how well one team does, if the entire league isn’t doing great, it’s going to be over,” Hioki said. “What we’re doing right now is providing know-how to other clubs.” Hioki said the idea is comparable with the NFL, in which a parity system is common practice — as seen in the draft and revenue sharing — adding that is something the Asia League needs to apply. “You have to make the managerial sizes equal,” he said. “Nevertheless, it’s going to be difficult to make the league more fascinating.” Traditionally, Japan’s sports leagues have tended to be old boys’ clubs, and it’s not been easy to change things, especially when trying to implement radical reforms. Hioki, however, said that although that had previously been an issue, the things he has insisted upon have gradually been understood by those in the hockey circle, because of what the Ice Bucks, along with the Tohoku Free Blades, have done as pro clubs. He said it has been proven by some of the players having moved to pro teams like Nikko and Tohoku with smaller contracts. “Some of them come to join our team, though their salaries would be lower,” Hioki said. “Why do they do that? Because they want to play in front of a lot of fans.” * * * Away from the size of the paychecks, Nikko is probably the place players really feel like pros, perhaps much more so than anywhere else in Asia. “Through all sports, there are teams with higher budgets and teams with lower budgets,” said Nikko assistant coach Burke Henry, a Canadian. “That doesn’t always equate to success. “(The club has) been very professional and it’s been a good place for me. And it’s exciting to be at the best hockey town in Asia.” And the Ice Bucks won’t stop striving to be the leading hockey team in the league. In fact, they now look outside the circuit, not just inside. Back in May, the club started partnerships with the NHL’s New York Islanders and the Finnish League’s Ilves-Hockey Oy, with the purpose of strengthening the team, exchanging personnel and sharing information. Forward Yuta Suzuki participated in Ilves’ camp in May, while another forward, Yuri Terao, joined the Islanders’ rookie camp in July. Tsuchida said that the club wanted to show that it’s linked with the world. “While we want to be a team that gives the local people joy, we want to produce players that will get out to the world,” he said. |
**UPDATE**: MORBID ANGEL bassist/vocalist David Vincent has released the following statement: "I am aware of Trey Azagthoth's [MORBID ANGEL guitarist] announcement of a collaboration with Steve Tucker on new music. However, the inference that I have left MORBID ANGEL is incorrect. To be clear, I have not left MORBID ANGEL nor have I been asked to do so." The original article follows below. Florida death metallers MORBID ANGEL have once again parted ways with bassist/vocalist David Vincent and have reunited with Steve Tucker (pictured) Says MORBID ANGEL guitarist Trey Azagthoth: "I'm excited to announce that Steve Tucker and I are working together again for MORBID ANGEL and the next record will certainly be an amazingly sick World Beater!" Tucker added in a June 14 post on his Facebook page: "Lately I have been talking to a good old friend that I haven't had the chance to speak with in years. It's been great! Now it seems I will be a very busy man in the coming months. More news to come!" MORBID ANGEL is also believed to have split with Tim Yeung, who joined the band in 2010 as the replacement for the group's longtime drummer, Pedro "Pete" Sandoval. A new sticksman for MORBID ANGEL has not yet been announced. In a 2014 interview with New Noise Magazine, Tucker was asked for his opinion on MORBID ANGEL's controversial 2011 album "Illud Divinum Insanus", which incorporated industrial and electronic elements into the band's traditional death metal sound. "I really have nothing to say about that album," he replied. "However, fans have a right to an opinion. Regardless, I think MORBID ANGEL has made a career of doing what they want to do and not being worried about what people think they should do." After starting out as vocalist/bassist for death/thrash act CEREMONY, Steve Tucker moved on to handle bass and vocals on MORBID ANGEL's "Formulas Fatal To The Flesh", "Gateways To Annihilation" and "Heretic" LPs. In 2009, Tucker was recruited to take part in the NADER SADEK album "In The Flesh" for release through then-brand-new label Greyhaze Records, and licensed to Season of Mist Records. The project also featured Flo Mounier (CRYPTOPSY), Rune Eriksen (MAYHEM, AVA INFERI) and more. During this time, Tucker struck up a relationship with Greyhaze Records, and together they joined forces to release the debut album from Tucker's WARFATHER project, last year's "Orchestrating The Apocalypse". "Illud Divinum Insanus" marked MORBID ANGEL's first CD to feature Vincent since 1995's "Domination". |
Shoyna is a small fishing village located on the Kanin Peninsula in Northern Russia. Situated on the edge of the arctic circle, the inhabitants of this coastal village has to endure not only the cold but the huge amount of sand that stretches for tens of kilometers all along the coast of the White Sea. The dunes continually migrate up and down the coast by the action of the westerly wind, and can bury houses up to the roof in a single night. Residents take precaution not to close the door at night, because by morning, it might not open. The village has a bulldozer that is frequently in action, digging out homes. Photo credit: www.azimutx.ru The village was settled in the 1930s by fishing families because of the abundance of fish and sea life in the waters. By the 1950s, it grew to a pretty large settlement with 1,500 residents. Together they owned more than seventy vessels. But reckless trawling over the decades decimated the fish population and eventually the fishery collapsed. Today, just three hundred people live at Shoyna supported mainly by unemployment benefits and pensions. Some earn a living from hunting. There are large number of geese in the region. More than half of the village is now buried under sand dunes deposited by the wind. It is thought that damage to permafrost and destruction of the sea bottom released the sand. The village is connected by neither roads nor railroads. Transportation to the outside world is by ship or air. There is a civilian airport consisting of a 650-meter dirt runway. Photo credit: heliograf.ru Photo credit: www.azimutx.ru Photo credit: www.azimutx.ru Photo credit: www.kirishi.ru Photo credit: www.kirishi.ru Photo credit: www.moya-planeta.ru Photo credit: www.moya-planeta.ru Photo credit: www.moya-planeta.ru Photo credit: www.moya-planeta.ru Photo credit: www.moya-planeta.ru Photo credit: www.moya-planeta.ru Photo credit: www.moya-planeta.ru Photo credit: www.moya-planeta.ru Sources: Wikipedia / Russia Beyond The Headlines |
The Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida is the world’s fourth largest building by volume. Completed in 1966, the VAB also holds the record of the largest one-story building in the world and is the tallest building outside an urban center in the United States. At an astonishing 160 meters (525 feet) tall, 218 meters (716 feet) long, and 158 meters (518 feet) wide, the VAB covers an area of eight acres and encloses a volume of about 3,665,000 cubic meters (129,428,000 cubic feet). To get an idea of how large that is, the total volume of the VAB is about 3.75 times that of Manhattan’s Empire State Building. That’s enough space to fit the volume of Pentagon inside and have plenty of room left over! The VAB is so large, in fact, that it has its own weather. On humid days, rain clouds can form below the ceiling, requiring about 10,000 tons of air conditioning equipment to control the moisture. With this setup, the total volume of air in the building can be replaced in only one hour. The records held by the VAB are not limited to its interior, however. The exterior boasts one of the largest American flags, completed with 6,000 gallons of paint. At 64 meters (209 feet) high and 33.5 meters (110 feet) wide, the stars are six feet across, the stripes are nine feet wide, and the blue portion is approximately the size of a regulation basketball court. Originally built to accommodate the vehicle assembly for the Apollo and Saturn missions, the VAB underwent renovations to support the Space Shuttle. Following the shuttle’s retirement in 2011, the VAB was modified to handle assembly of the Space Launch System, a heavy-lift rocket that is designed to carry the new Orion spacecraft beyond Earth orbit. From this building, NASA’s space-bound vehicles leave through one of the building’s four doors. The doors, which are the largest in the world, each measure 139 meters (456 feet) high. While tall enough to easily fit the Statue of Liberty, the doors take 45 minutes to open or close. From these doors, the six-million pound Crawler-Transporter begins the slow process of moving the space vehicles to the launch pad several miles away. At a mere one mile per hour, and a gas-guzzling 42 feet per gallon, the Crawler can position the vehicle for launch with an accuracy of one inch. While the exterior of the VAB can be seen regularly on guided tours of the Kennedy Space Center, opportunities to view the building’s interior are a much rarer occurrence. |
Cain tells McFarland: Only preemptive strike can stop Iran I posted earlier on Herman Cain’s unusual list of foreign policy role models: Henry Kissinger, John Bolton and Fox News contributor and 2006 Republican Senate candidate KT McFarland. It turns out that Cain and McFarland have discussed foreign policy together — on the air, no less. The presidential candidate appeared on McFarland’s web show, “DEFCON 3,” and took on Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, the threat of Iran, missile defense and more. Story Continued Below Cain told McFarland he thinks only military action can stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, explaining: “I don’t think we can stop them from getting a nuclear weapon without some sort of pre-emptive strike.” “I would have to talk to a lot of people before I would go so far as to say we should do a pre-emptive strike,” he added. Watch the latest video at video.foxnews.com And here’s how Cain described his general foreign policy doctrine: "The Cain doctrine, as it relates to foreign affairs and foreign relations, is an extension of the Reagan philosophy. Reagan's philosophy, as you know, was peace through strength. My philosophy peace through strength and clarity. We need to clarify who our friends are, clarify who our enemies are, stop giving money to the enemies and make sure that our enemies know who our friends are, that we are going to stand solidly behind." This article tagged under: Herman Cain 2012 Elections |
Augmented reality is just starting its long-anticipated march into humanity’s eyeballs, but if you don’t plan on dropping $1,000 for an iPhone X, you can still reap the benefits. All you need is a new car. Ford has started equipping its designers with HoloLens, the augmented reality technology Microsoft is rolling out for commercial and industrial applications. Outfitted with the holographic goggles, these Detroit denizens can stand in front of clay models of cars and see 3-D vehicle elements digitally overlaid onto them, so they can quickly evaluate and alter new car designs. “This ability to mesh digital and physical worlds together is for us the future of designing products,” says Craig Wetzel, Ford’s manager of design technical operations. “It also places our engineers and designers in the same space, speeding that relationship along, as well.” Augmented reality technology has already begun wrapping its tentacles around the auto industry. Genesis uses it in its digital owner’s manual. Jaguar provides virtual test drives through an AR app. Porsche engineers use the tech on the Panamera assembly line. Wearing wireless headgear with a built-in Windows 10 computer, the designers can experience any given feature as a real world driver would. Is the side mirror is too large? Just pinch your fingers to shrink it. The front bumper’s too obtrusive? Rein it in with a wave of your hand. Ready to fix something else? Cycle through design elements with a flick of the finger. For now, Ford is only using Hololens to work on details, not in the early design phase where the vehicle first takes shape. (Clay modeling is here to stay.) The goal is to deploy the tech where it can deliver the most concrete benefits. Ford thinks this technology will make the new-vehicle design process more efficient, specifically when it comes to integrating pesky engineering requirements, since AR-equipped teams in offices around the world can see the designs simultaneously. “In today’s world, my design team might make a mirror that we have to digitally render, send to the engineers so they can study it, and then make changes based on their feedback,” Wetzel says. “That takes time, and we find ourselves out of phase there a lot. But placing engineering and design in the same space, a process we call co-creation, streamlines that interaction.” Those potential time savings could even lead to better final products. “It will streamline the design process and allow designers more time to fine tune their concepts for their target market,” says Antonio Borja, who runs the Academy of Art University’s School of Industrial Design, in San Francisco. “AR will also create much more intuitive designs, as the concepts will be evaluated in real time as they are being developed.” For Microsoft, it’s a chance to deliver on its broader vision of creating technology with which humans naturally interact. So far, so good. Ford’s design process is more efficient, and the work is more pleasant. “It is more natural and humanistic, in a way,” Wetzel says. “It’s how we would want to create. It’s also more fun—both fun to use and fun to share with others.” And for you, it just might mean a better daily drive to your non-augmented reality office. |
The Catholic Church has welcomed new plans to address the lack of diversity in the primary education system. Announcing his intentions, Minister for Education Richard Bruton said everyone agreed that the current process was too slow and that his department had looked and learned from the experience. Like the old plan, the new one envisages the transfer of religious-run schools to new multi or non-denominational patrons. However, under the new scheme the school properties will be leased by the State from their current owners, which in the vast majority of cases will be the Catholic Church. The old plan had aimed to be cost neutral, however in practice it did entail entering into lease arrangements with the Catholic Church. The minister acknowledged that his new plan would involve a cost to the State. A second key difference is that the country's Education and Training Boards have been charged with leading the new process at a local level. They have been asked to survey the parents of preschool children to measure demand for multi-denominational schools and to consult with existing school owners such as the Catholic Church about the possible transfer of schools to a new model. The minister has indicated that his preferred model for transfer is that run by the country's ETBs. The ETBs currently run 11 Community National Schools. These are multi-denominational and, unlike other multi-denominational schools, involve segregating children at key times of the year into groups according to their religion. The typical divisions are: Catholics in one group, other Christians in a second, Muslim children in a third, with a fourth group for children of other religions or none. This system enables Catholic children to be prepared for Catholic sacraments such as Communion during the school day. When this new kind of school was being designed, the Catholic bishops told Department of Education officials that the preparation of Catholic children for the sacraments within school was "a minimum non-negotiable requirement" for their support for any new model. Documents released to RTÉ under Freedom of Information a number of years ago show that the Catholic Church played a strong role in the design of the Community National School model. The Catholic Bishop's Conference has today welcomed the minister's statement "in relation to the teaching of religion with sacramental preparation in Community Schools". The bishops said they would study the proposals and continue to engage with the minister, his officials, and the Education and Training Boards. Groups campaigning for a more diverse primary school system have given qualified welcomes to the Minister's announcement. Education Equality, which represents parents seeking change, has said it is encouraged that the minister plans to breathe new life into the divestment process. However, it says it is concerned by the minister's preference for the Community National School model. The groups says it believes Community National Schools are not truly equality-based because of the way they segregate children. A second NGO campaigning for change has welcomed the minister's announcement. However, EQUATE says clarity is needed on how the "completely fair and independent" transfer of schools is to be achieved. Minister rejects criticisms of plan by Educate Together The minister said he did not agree with criticisms of the plan expressed by multi-denominational patron body Educate Together. Educate Together has criticised the fact that, as the largest provider of multi-denominational education, it was not asked to have any input into the formulation of the new policy. It said it was concerned that the process would be run by the ETBs who would themselves be candidates for running any newly transferred schools. Educate Together said there appeared to be no robust process whereby the wishes of parents to define the choice of school would be taken into account. However, Mr Bruton said this morning that it was natural that the State would choose to use its own local statutory authorities to run such a process. Mr Bruton said that, unlike the previous process, the new scheme did not envisage schools amalgamating or closing before a new kind of school was opened using the same premises. He said this had given rise to complexities, including legal complexities. He said his model envisaged the "live" transfer of existing schools, complete with existing boards of management. Mr Bruton said the transfer of any schools would be voluntary. The country's Education and Training Boards have also welcomed the minister's plan. In a statement, the ETBs said that as patrons of many multi-denominational schools at second level, as well as 11 Community National Schools at primary level, they were "very aware of the changing societal demands". They said that the challenging reality of different patronage demands from different cohorts of parents must be addressed "sensibly and rationally". The CEO of ETB Ireland, Michael Moriarty, said that in the main any school to be divested would be under the patronage of the local Catholic bishop. Mr Moriarty said he hoped that where demand for multi-denominational education was proven, the ETB and the diocese could engage constructively. |
Toronto Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro addressed his team's need for additional depth in the rotation earlier this week, and a former adversary from the American League Division Series could be a target. After the Blue Jays reportedly showed strong interest in Yovani Gallardo throughout the winter, the two sides were in contact this week, according to Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. Gallardo's coming off a season with the Texas Rangers in which he went 13-11 with a career-low 3.42 ERA to go with a career-worst 1.42 WHIP. The 29-year-old has thrown at least 180 innings in each of the past seven seasons and hit free agency after declining a qualifying offer, tying him to draft-pick compensation. "(Gallardo)'s the kind of guy that would make us better. He's the kind of guy you'd like to have," Shapiro said on Sportsnet 590 The Fan on Wednesday. "Whether or not, from a resource perspective, we still have enough to make a move like that, I think that’s still a variable that exists. But we do have some flexibility still. Thinking about how we use those resources is still a question." The Blue Jays retained Marco Estrada while adding J.A. Happ, Jesse Chavez, and reliever Drew Storen into the fold this offseason. While the addition of Storen possibly opens the door for either Aaron Sanchez or Roberto Osuna to be stretched out as a starter, Shapiro remains unconvinced they have enough starting pitching. "Depth is probably the overriding need for this team, because when you start to look at what do you do if you lose a guy for three, four weeks?" he asked. "There are a lot of spots where we don't have the right championship-caliber alternative to keep that going. I think that our team is good enough position player-wise that we can survive that - it happened last year at times - pitching wise, not so much. So it's more urgent." |
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