JK:emw/cjs/amn
June 21, 2019 - Introduced by Senators Hansen, Risser, Larson, Wirch, Shilling,
Carpenter, L. Taylor, Schachtner, Bewley, Erpenbach, Miller, Ringhand,
Smith and Johnson, cosponsored by Representatives Vining, Stubbs,
Emerson, Gruszynski, L. Myers, Anderson, Billings, Bowen, Brostoff,
Considine, Crowley, Doyle, Fields, Goyke, Hebl, Hesselbein, Hintz,
Kolste, McGuire, B. Meyers, Neubauer, Novak, Ohnstad, Pope, Riemer,
Sargent, Shankland, Spreitzer, Stuck, Subeck, C. Taylor, Vruwink,
Zamarripa, Haywood, Milroy, Sinicki and Tranel. Referred to Committee on
Government Operations, Technology and Consumer Protection.
SB288,1,4 1An Act to repeal 3.002 (2); to consolidate, renumber and amend 3.002
2(intro.) and (1m); to amend 3.004 (2) and 5.15 (4) (a); to repeal and recreate
3subchapter I of chapter 4 [precedes 4.001]; and to create 13.49 of the statutes;
4relating to: legislative and congressional redistricting.
Currently, under the state constitution, the legislature is directed to redistrict
legislative districts according to the number of inhabitants at its next session
following each decennial federal census. At the same intervals, the legislature also
reapportions congressional districts in this state pursuant to federal law. Under
current state law, following each decennial federal census, most municipalities are
also required to divide their territory into wards. With limited exceptions, wards are
required to consist of one or more whole, contiguous census blocks (the smallest
geographic units for which census results are available). Traditionally, the
legislature has used municipal wards to construct legislative and congressional
districts, although the legislature may adjust the boundaries of a municipal ward
and use the revised ward boundaries instead. Legislative and congressional
redistricting plans enacted pursuant to this procedure are used to elect members of
the legislature and members of Congress in the fall of the second year following the
year of the census.
This bill creates a new procedure for the preparation of legislative and
congressional redistricting plans. The bill directs the Legislative Reference Bureau
to draw redistricting plans based upon standards specified in the bill and establishes
a Redistricting Advisory Commission to perform certain tasks in the redistricting
process. The bill also makes various other changes to the laws governing
redistricting. Significant aspects of the bill include the following:
Redistricting standards
Under the bill, a redistricting plan drawn by the LRB must satisfy several
criteria, including:
1. The plan must be based on population requirements imposed under the
Wisconsin Constitution and the U.S. Constitution and requirements imposed under
Section 2 of the federal Voting Rights Act, which, among other things, generally
prohibits redistricting plans from abridging the right to vote on account of race or
color or because a person is a member of a language minority group.
2. The senate and assembly districts established in the plan must satisfy equal
population standards specified in the bill. Among other things, no senate district
may have a population that exceeds that of any other senate district by more than
10 percent and no assembly district may have a population that exceeds that of any
other assembly district by more than 10 percent, unless necessary to maintain
compliance with Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. Congressional districts
established in the plan must each have a population as nearly equal as practicable
to the ideal population for such districts, while maintaining compliance with Section
2 of the Voting Rights Act.
3. District boundaries under the plan must coincide with municipal ward
boundaries and, to the extent consistent with the Wisconsin Constitution, the U.S.
Constitution, and Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, must coincide with the
boundaries of political subdivisions. The number of political subdivisions divided
among more than one district must be as small as possible and, with limited
exceptions, if there is a choice among political subdivisions to divide, the more
populous political subdivisions shall be divided before the less populous.
4. Districts must be composed of convenient contiguous territory. Under the
bill, areas which meet only at the points of adjoining corners are not contiguous.
5. To the extent consistent with the requirements described in items 1. to 3.,
districts must be compact. The bill also specifies how compactness is to be measured.
6. In preparing the plan, the LRB must be strictly nonpartisan. No district may
be drawn for the purpose of favoring a political party, incumbent legislator or
member of Congress, or other person or group or, except to the extent necessary to
meet the requirements described in item 1., for the purpose of augmenting or diluting
the voting strength of a language or racial minority group. The LRB may not use
political affiliations of registered voters, previous election results, or demographic
information, except as necessary to test the efficiency gap and competitiveness of
each district, or use residence addresses of incumbent legislators or members of
Congress. The LRB may also use demographic information as necessary to meet the
requirements described in item 1.
7. The number of assembly districts may not be less than 54 nor more than 100.
The number of senate districts may not be more than one-third nor less than
one-fourth of the number of assembly districts. Each senate district must contain
only whole assembly districts and, with certain exceptions, each congressional
district may contain only whole senate districts, to the extent possible.
8. Districts must be drawn so that neither the intent nor the result of the plan
abridges the equal opportunity of racial or language minorities to participate in the
political process.
Redistricting Advisory Commission
The bill assigns several tasks to the Redistricting Advisory Commission,
including the following:
1. If requested to do so by the LRB, the commission must provide direction to
the LRB concerning any decision the LRB must make in preparing a redistricting
plan for which no clearly applicable guideline is provided under the bill.
2. The commission must oversee the work of LRB employees engaged in
preparing a redistricting plan and may enter into contracts for hiring experts to
assist in plan preparation. Entering into such a contract, or terminating a contract
employee, requires approval from three-fourths of the members of the commission.
3. The commission must make available to the public at the earliest feasible
time copies of any redistricting bill delivered by the LRB to the legislature, as
provided under this bill, maps illustrating the redistricting bill, a summary of the
standards applicable to the LRB for development of the plan in the redistricting bill,
and a statement of the population of each district created in the plan and the relative
deviation of each district population from the ideal district population.
4. The commission must conduct public hearings on a redistricting bill
delivered by the LRB to the legislature, as provided under this bill, unless the
redistricting bill represents a plan drawn in response to a redistricting bill that was
previously delivered to the legislature and rejected by at least one house. The bill
also requires the commission to hold a hearing in each of the congressional districts
in this state and, whenever it is practicable, on weekends. The commission must
submit a report to the legislature summarizing information and testimony received
by the commission at the hearings. The report may also include any comments and
conclusions that the commission's members deem appropriate concerning the
information and testimony received at the hearings or otherwise presented to the
commission.
The bill also permits the commission to establish policies limiting the
information that the LRB may provide to persons outside of LRB staff concerning any
redistricting plan drawn by the LRB, except that any such policy does not apply to
population data furnished to the LRB by the U.S. Bureau of the Census or to a
redistricting plan after a bill embodying that plan is delivered by the LRB to the
legislature as required under this bill. The bill also provides that any draft maps,
along with the data sets used to create them, that the LRB produces in the course
of preparing a redistricting plan must be open to public inspection and copying and
made available on the Internet site of the LRB as soon as they are produced.
Under the bill, the Redistricting Advisory Commission must be created not
later than February 15 of the first year following the decennial federal census and
terminates upon satisfying its duties, until a new Redistricting Advisory
Commission is created for the next round of legislative and congressional
redistricting. The commission consists of five members. The speaker and minority
leader of the assembly and the majority and minority leaders of the senate must each
appoint one person to serve on the commission. Within 30 days after the fourth
commission member is appointed, but not later than February 15 of the first year
following the decennial federal census, the four commission members so appointed
must select the fifth commission member, who serves as chairperson. The bill
prohibits all of the following individuals from being commission members:
individuals who are not eligible electors of this state at the time of the appointment,
individuals who hold partisan public office or political party office, and individuals
who are a relative of or are employed by a member of the legislature or of Congress
or are employed directly by the legislature or Congress.
Redistricting process
The bill requires the LRB to perform certain tasks in preparation for drawing
congressional and legislative redistricting plans on the basis of each federal
decennial census. For example, as soon as possible after receiving from the U.S.
Bureau of the Census the population data needed for legislative redistricting, the
LRB must use that data to assign a population figure to geographic or political units
to facilitate the drawing of redistricting plans. Typically, this data is available on or
about April 1 of the first year following the decennial federal census. The LRB must
also prepare and publish an analysis describing the population of current legislative
and congressional districts and the extent to which the districts may violate the
redistricting standards described above. In addition, as municipalities complete
their ward plans (typically, by October of the first year following the decennial
federal census), the LRB must assign a population figure based upon certified federal
census data to each municipal ward, for use in drawing redistricting plans.
Not later than January 1 of the second year following the decennial federal
census, the LRB must deliver to the majority leader of the senate and speaker of the
assembly identical bills embodying a plan of legislative and congressional
redistricting, drawn in accordance with the standards described above. The bill
further specifies a procedure that the legislature must follow in considering the bills,
although that procedure is not enforceable by the courts. The bill requires either the
assembly or the senate to bring the bill to a vote expeditiously, but not less than seven
days after the report of the Redistricting Advisory Commission is received and made
available to the members of the legislature. The vote must be under a procedure or
rule permitting no amendments. If the bill is approved by the first house in which
it is considered, the bill must expeditiously be brought to a vote in the second house
under a similar procedure or rule.
If neither of the bills delivered by the LRB is approved by both the assembly and
the senate, the chief clerk of the house that failed to approve the bill must transmit
to the LRB information that the house may direct regarding reasons why the plan
was not approved. The LRB must then prepare identical bills embodying a second
plan of legislative and congressional redistricting, taking into account the reasons
transmitted to the LRB, insofar as it is possible to do so while complying with the
standards described above. The LRB must deliver the bill to the majority leader of
the senate and the speaker of the assembly no later than 21 days after the date of
the vote by which the senate or the assembly failed to approve the bill initially
submitted. This second bill must be expeditiously introduced and brought to a vote
not less than seven days after the date of introduction, in the same manner as
prescribed for the initial bill.
If the second bill is similarly rejected by at least one house, the same procedure
applies, except that the third bill is subject to amendment in the same manner as
other bills. In addition, the third bill and any amendments to it may be passed only
with the approval of three-fourths of all the members elected in each house.
The bill also provides exceptions to this process to account for variations in the
timing of the release of federal census data.
In addition, the bill prohibits the majority leader of the senate, the minority
leader of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, or the minority leader of the
assembly from assigning or hiring any person to work with the LRB to prepare for
redistricting, to prepare plans, or to oversee either process.
Required contents of redistricting bills
The LRB must ensure that each bill embodying a redistricting plan it draws
contains specified conventions to apply wherever territory in a plan is described by
geographic boundaries. Also, each such bill must provide that the bill first applies,
with respect to regular elections, to offices filled at the next occurring general
election and, with respect to special or recall elections, to offices filled or contested
on or after the date of the next occurring general election.
Challenge based on population inequality
If an action is brought challenging a legislative redistricting plan adopted
under the procedure established in the bill on the basis of an excessive population
variance among senate or assembly districts, the legislature has the burden of
justifying any variance in excess of 10 percent between the population of a senate or
assembly district and the applicable ideal district population. If an action is brought
challenging a congressional redistricting plan adopted under the procedure
established in the bill on the basis of an excessive population variance among
congressional districts, the legislature has the burden of justifying any variance in
excess of 1 percent between the population of a congressional district and the
applicable ideal district population.
For further information see the state fiscal estimate, which will be printed as
an appendix to this bill.
SB288,1 1Section 1 . 3.002 (intro.) and (1m) of the statutes are consolidated, renumbered
23.002 and amended to read:
SB288,6,4
13.002 Description of territory. In this chapter: (1m) Reference, reference
2to any county or municipality means that county or municipality as its boundaries
3exist on April 1 of the year of the federal decennial census on which the districting
4plan described under subch. II is based.
SB288,2 5Section 2. 3.002 (2) of the statutes is repealed.
SB288,3 6Section 3 . 3.004 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:
SB288,6,117 3.004 (2) "Ward" means a ward prescribed by a municipality based upon
8municipal boundaries in effect on April 1 of the year of the federal decennial census
9in accordance with the most recent revision of municipal wards under s. 5.15 upon
10which the districting plan described under subch. II is based and used in preparing
11congressional and legislative redistricting plans as required under s. 4.005.
SB288,4 12Section 4. Subchapter I of chapter 4 [precedes 4.001] of the statutes is repealed
13and recreated to read:
SB288,6,1414 CHAPTER 4
SB288,6,1515 subchapter i


NQC Acquires Lake Country Jubilee Concert Series
March 15, 2019 Absolutely Gospel Music News & Scoops 0
PIGEON FORGE, Tenn. (March 13, 2019) – NQC – the National Quartet Convention – announced today that it has acquired the Lake Country Jubilee concert series in Terrell, Texas, beginning in January 2020. Lake Country Jubilee is a concert series founded by Texas promoters Harold and Jean Marshall that has been serving the East Dallas area, and drawing attendees from a much larger area, for 28 years. Recently, NQC and LCJ came to terms on NQC being able to continue this very successful series into the future.
"Lake Country Jubilee has been an important concert series for our industry for many years, " states Clarke Beasley, Executive Vice President of the National Quartet Convention. "We look forward to continuing the great work Harold and his late wife Jean have done for Gospel Music in the Dallas Metroplex area."
"I would like to thank Clarke Beasley, the NQC Board of Directors, and Dean Hopper for making this all possible," says Harold Marshall. "I look forward to doing everything in my power to make this a success for the NQC, our loyal fans, and for our Lord. It's been a wonderful journey for Jean, and me."
The Lake Country Jubilee series consist of approximately 6 concerts per year featuring around 14 artists per year. Harold Marshall will continue to operate the series in 2019 with NQC assuming ownership and management in 2020.
Lake Country Jubilee
national quartet convention
NQC
NQC 2019 Set To Be An Experience Like No Other
Christian Healthcare Ministries Named First-Ever Sponsor of National Quartet Convention
The McKameys release LIVE Like No Other


Composing for a Free-Exchange
Shelf Life Books (1302 4 St SW)
Each year, the English Department at the University of Calgary hosts an interdisciplinary graduate student conference entitled "Free Exchange." Scholars-in-training from around the world gather to discuss literature, creative writing, social issues, critical theory, popular culture, and other areas of concern, so as to generate dialogues between fields of study and from multiple perspectives. This year, our conference topic is "Re/Collections."
We are hosting a fundraiser at Shelf Life Books to raise money for this conference. With this money, we can widen our scope, plan for a larger diversity of speakers, and ensure that this conference continues to be an important yearly event not only for the English Department, but also for those who are interested preserving space for critical discussion.
"Composing for a Free-Exchange" invites Calgarians to attend a reading on November 13 at Shelf Life Books, beginning at 7 p.m. Tickets are $12 each, which include refreshments. We've prepared a line-up of established and emerging writers currently working in the Department of English at the University of Calgary — and for the first time, they're all in one place!
Buy tickets here.
List of readers:
Denise Chong, best known for her family memoir, The Concubine's Children, is this year's Writer-in-Residence at the University of Calgary. A two-time finalist for the Governor General's literary award for non-fiction, and named an Officer of the Order of Canada for "writing books that raise our social consciousness", Denise has published four works. Her newest is Lives of the Family: Stories of Fate & Circumstance.
Larissa Lai is the author of two novels, When Fox Is a Thousand and Salt Fish Girl; two books of poetry, sybil unrest (with Rita Wong) and Automaton Biographies; a chapbook, Eggs in the Basement; and a critical book, Slanting I, Imagining We: Asian Canadian Literary Production in the 1980s and 1990s. A recipient of the Astraea Foundation Emerging Writers' Award, and a finalist for seven others, she holds a Canada Research Chair in Creative Writing at the University of Calgary and directs The Insurgent Architects' House for Creative Writing there.
Shannon Maguire is an Assistant Professor in the Department of English at the University of Calgary. Shannon's third full-length collection of poetry, Zip's File: A Romance of Silence is forthcoming from BookThug in the spring of 2018. Shannon's other collections include fur(l) parachute—which was shortlisted for the Robert Kroetsch Award for Innovative Poetry—and Myrmurs: An Exploded Sestina. Shannon has been a finalist for the bpNichol Chapbook Award for her chapbook fruit machine and the Manitoba Magazine Award for Best Suite of Poetry. Shannon edited and wrote the critical introduction to Planetary Noise: Selected work of Erín Moure (Wesleyan UP).
Suzette Mayr is the author of five novels, including her most recent book Dr. Edith Vane and the Hares of Crawley Hall. Her novel Monoceros won the ReLit and the City of Calgary W. O. Mitchell Awards, and was nominated for the 2011 Giller Prize, the Ferro-Grumley Award for LGBT Fiction, and Georges Bugnet Award for Fiction. Her novel The Widows was a finalist for the Commonwealth Prize for Best Book in the Canada-Caribbean region. She is a former president of the Writers' Guild of Alberta, and she has been teaching creative writing at the University of Calgary since 2003.
Mallory E. Land Smith is a PhD candidate in the University of Calgary's program in English and Creative Writing. She is working on Manifest Meaning, her thesis poetry collection, that investigates Lyric Conceptualism and materialism in poetry, and dismantles notions of scientific objectivity by looking at the first poetry collection of the 17th century writer, Maragaret Cavendish.
Erin Emily Ann Vance is an MA student in English and Creative Writing at the University of Calgary. Her work has appeared in Contemporary Verse 2, Untethered, Parenthetical, NoD, QWERTY, Existere, and more. In 2016, she was a recipient of the Alberta Foundation for the Arts Young Artist's Prize.
Aritha van Herk is an award-winning Canadian novelist. She first rose to international literary prominence with the publication of Judith, which received the Seal First Novel Award. Her other novels include The Tent Peg, No Fixed Address, and Restlessness. She teaches Canadian Literature and Creative Writing; but first of all, she is a writer who loves stories.
Joshua Whitehead is an Oji-Cree/nehiyaw, Two-Spirit/Indigiqueer member of Peguis First Nation (Treaty 1) in Manitowapow. He is the 2016 winner of the Indigenous Arts and Stories competition and recipient of a Governor General's History Award for his poem, "mihkokwaniy". His debut book of poetry, full-metal indigiqueer, was published this fall with Talonbooks and features a cybernetic 2S trickster who re-members queer Indigeneity. His debut novel, Jonny Appleseed, is forthcoming in Spring 2018 through Arsenal Pulp Press.


Quinnipiac women's basketball comeback falls short
Daniel Brennan
A comeback attempt from the Quinnipiac women's basketball team in Friday's season-opener fell just short as visiting James Madison escaped with an 81-73 victory.JMU led by 22 points over half-way through the second half but let the Bobcats come all the way back, cutting the score by one. The Bobcats put together stretches of great play but in the in end, the inconsistencies proved to be too much to overcome.Quinnipiac head coach Tricia Fabbri was pleased with many things the Bobcats accomplished but will look for her team to be more consistent throughout the game.
"That's going to be our goal moving forward after tonight," Fabbri said. "Going to get those 40 good minutes of the game, and then I think we are going to become a really really dominant team."
A layup from JMU's point guard Tarik Hislop put the Dukes up 67-50 with 6:37 left in the second half.
At this point, Quinnipiac redshirt junior Felicia Barron came alive and jump started the Bobcats previously stagnant offense. Barron converted a layup and was able to draw the foul. She missed the free throw but picked the rebounder's pocket and finished with another layup.
Barron also knocked down a pair of free throws less than a minute later off of a diving steal from freshman Gillian Abshire.
"When I got into the game I just thought: play hard, as hard as you can to get this lead back," Barron said.
The stellar play from Barron rubbed off, breathing air back into the lungs of the seemingly defeated Bobcats. Fabbri also upped the ante, instituting a full-court pressure defense that flustered the Dukes, causing a turnover on five straight possessions.
"When you're playing from behind, you can be as loose as you want," Fabbri said.
Down 67-60, coming out of a JMU timeout, the Bobcats had the crowd on its feet and the Dukes on their heels.
A pair of threes from Quinnipiac freshman Jasmine Martin capped off a 16-0 Bobcat run and cut the JMU lead to one with 3:43 remaining.
This would be as close as the Bobcats would come. The Dukes answered the Quinnipiac run, putting together a 10-0 run of their own, extending their lead to 77-66 with just 38 seconds left.
The game was a sloppy affair, as the teams combined for a total of 44 turnovers. Quinnipiac starting point guard Gillian Abshire committed seven turnovers in her first collegiate game but was also an integral part of the Bobcats comeback bid.
"We're going to go through some growing pains with a freshman point guard," Fabbri said. "She [Gillian Abshire] is 30 days in or 31 days in and really did a fantastic job."
Quinnipiac and JMU went neck and neck in the first half, trading points in the paint. The Bobcats looked to control the paint from the start, pounding the ball into the post on offense. Sophomore forward Camryn Warner paved the way for the Bobcats with nine first-half points.
"Our whole system is set up to get it [the ball] into the post," Warner said.
Warner used crafty footwork down low, unleashing an arsenal of post moves to create open looks and get to the charity stripe. In the process, she tallied her first career double-double, finishing the contest with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
"Cammy Warner was fantastic for us tonight," Fabbri said. "She anchored us on the inside with the shuffling in of our other post players."
At the intermission Quinnipiac trailed JMU 36-28. Fabbri tried to stress the magnitude of the game and the level of play that they were up against and hanging with.
"Do you understand who you have in the gym right now?" Fabbri said she asked the players at halftime. "An NCAA tournament team. For the last couple of years they have been a top 50 program. We have them, let's go out and get them."
The message didn't seem to get through until late in the second half as Quinnipiac came out flat after halftime. Poor shooting plagued the Bobcats early on and they finished the game shooting 33.3 percent from the field. Prior to the frantic comeback, Quinnipiac was shooting a mere 25.9 percent.
Freshman Jasmine Martin made major contributions for the Bobcats in her first career collegiate game. Martin was instrumental in the Bobcats comeback, pouring in 20 points. Of those 20 points, 17 came in the second half.
The Bobcats return to the hardwood at Holy Cross on Wednesday, Nov. 16.
felicai barron
Gillian Abshire
quinnipiac women's basketball
Tricia Fabbri
Quinnipiac drops second game of back-to-back against Manhattan
Quinnipiac wins its MAAC opener in double-overtime game
Ever torn an ACL? How about two?
A bright future ahead
Nothin' but nylon: Getting all caught up
Bobcats take down UNH 64-58
Three in the Key: Is this actually happening?
Break the mold
It starts with the athletes


Home ► ► News: By Month ► Strategic Planning Committee
Strategic Planning Committee
Filed in Archive	by joellen.gardner	on September 29, 2017
The Bethlehem Central School District will begin developing a Strategic Plan for the school district in fall 2017. The long-term plan will examine the district's core values, mission and vision, and map out goals and strategies that will help guide district decision-making into the next decade. The planning process is just beginning and will likely extend through early 2019.
A Strategic Planning Committee comprised of district stakeholders — including administrators, faculty and staff, students, parents, community members, and Board members — is responsible for establishing the framework for a five-year plan which will provide direction for the district's administrative team into the next decade. The plan will be designed to be a fluid plan that will allow for continuous improvement and refinement as needed.
Superintendent Jody Monroe described the Strategic Plan process at the August 9, 2017 Board of Education meeting. A series of Strategic Planning Meetings have been scheduled and a Community Forum, to gather input from the larger community, is set for Wednesday, October 11.
August 9, 2017 Strategic Planning presentation
Community Forum – October 11, 2017
The Bethlehem Central School District Strategic Planning Committee — comprised of district stakeholders — including administrators, faculty and staff, students, parents, community members, and Board members — invites you to a Community Forum on Wednesday, October 11 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the high school library.
The intent of the forum is to gather input for a strategic plan tentatively titled Design for Excellence 2025. The long-term plan will examine the district's core values, mission and vision and map out goals and strategies that will help guide district decision-making into the next decade. The planning process is just beginning and will likely extend through early 2019.
Please RSVP online at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/BCSD-Community-Forum and join us on Wednesday, October 11.
2017-18 Committee Meetings
6:30- 8:30 p.m.
BCHS Room B115
Review community feedback.
Review mission and goals.
Further discussion of goals, identify innovation teams.
February 7, 2018 – State of the Schools presentation
BCHS Library
Superintendent to provide update on committee's work.
Review work to date, feedback from BOE.
HS Room B115
Review progress and plan.
Courtney Bowen
Dan Cotton
Holly Dellenbaugh
Michael Fredette
David Hurst
Kathleen Johnston
Judith Kehoe
Kate Kloss
Michael Klugman
Lynne Lenhardt
Rachel Linehan
Megan McGinnis
Raymond Nardelli
Hope Perlman
Dianna Reagan
David Rounds
Erik Smith
Marie Spain
Merissa Taylor
Charmaine Wijeyesinghe


We now know what is at the center of our own galaxy
AU astrophysicists research cosmic particle accelerators with unparalleled energy
Researchers have been mapping the centre of our galaxy in very-high-energy gamma rays using these telescopes - the most sensitive of their kind - for over 10 years. The results were published in the journal Nature on 16 March 2016.
The earth is constantly bombarded by high energy particles from space. Together these particles - protons, electrons and atomic nuclei - are known as cosmic radiation or cosmic rays. The question of which astrophysical sources produce this cosmic radiation has remained a mystery to researchers for over a century. The problem is that the particles are electrically charged and are therefore deflected in interstellar magnetic fields, making it impossible to identify the astrophysical sources that produce them based on their arrival direction. Fortunately, however, the particles interact with light and gas in the neighbourhood of their sources, producing very-high-energy gamma rays that travel to the earth in straight lines. 'These gamma rays allow us to visualise the sources of cosmic radiation in the sky,' says Christopher van Eldik, a professor at FAU's Erlangen Centre for Astroparticle Physics (ECAP) and deputy director of the H.E.S.S. collaboration.
Climate Change Redistributes Global Water Resources
Rising temperatures worldwide are changing not only weather systems, but - just as importantly - the distribution of water around the globe, according to a study published today (March 14, 2016) in the journal, "Scientific Reports."
Analysis of more than 40 years of water samples archived at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF) in New Hampshire tells a vivid tale of how the sources of precipitation have changed. Over the years, there has been a dramatic increase, especially during the winter, of the amount of water that originated far to the north.
Study suggests impact of climate change on agriculture may be underestimated
Studies of how climate change might affect agriculture generally look only at crop yields — the amount of product harvested from a given unit of land. But climate change may also influence how much land people choose to farm and the number of crops they plant each growing season. A new study takes all of these variables into account, and suggests researchers may be underestimating the total effect of climate change on the world's food supply.
Advances in understanding the development of blood cancers
Walter and Eliza Hall Institute researchers have uncovered a protein that is key to the development of blood cancers caused by a common genetic error.
The discovery is a missing piece in the puzzle of understanding how high levels of a protein called MYC drive cancer development, and may to lead to future strategies for early treatment or possibly even prevention of these cancers.
Seventy per cent of human cancers have abnormally high levels of MYC, which forces cells into unusually rapid growth.
Whales dine with their friends of the same species
For a few weeks in early fall, Georges Bank — a vast North Atlantic fishery off the coast of Cape Cod — teems with billions of herring that take over the region to spawn. The seasonal arrival of the herring also attracts predators to the shallow banks, including many species of whales.
Now researchers from MIT, Northeastern University, the Institute of Marine Research in Norway, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, have found that as multiple species of whales feast on herring, they tend to stick with their own kind, establishing species-specific feeding centers along the 150-mile length of Georges Bank. The team's results are published today in the journal Nature.
Can you guess the world's longest distance flyer?
A dragonfly barely an inch and a half long appears to be animal world's most prolific long distance traveler – flying thousands of miles over oceans as it migrates from continent to continent – according to newly published research.
Well-maintained roadways improve fuel efficiency
Most people know that properly inflated tires can improve a vehicle's fuel efficiency, but did you know that properly maintained roadways can improve fuel efficiency across an entire pavement network?
New Heat Wave Formula Can Help Public Health Agencies Prepare for Extreme Temperatures
Extreme heat can pose several health risks, such as dehydration, hyperthermia and even death, especially during sustained periods of high temperatures. However, a uniform definition of a heat wave doesn't exist. As a result, public health agencies may be unsure of when to activate heat alerts, cooling centers and other protective measures. A University of Missouri School of Medicine researcher has developed a uniform definition of a heat wave that may help public health agencies prepare for extreme temperatures.
Rutgers University Study finds sea level rise in the 20th Century was fastest in 3,000 years
Global sea level rose faster in the 20th century than in any of the 27 previous centuries, according to a Rutgers University-led study published today.
Moreover, without global warming, global sea level would have risen by less than half the observed 20th century increase and might even have fallen.
Instead, global sea level rose by about 14 centimeters, or 5.5 inches, from 1900 to 2000. That's a substantial increase, especially for vulnerable, low-lying coastal areas.
"The 20th-century rise was extraordinary in the context of the last three millennia – and the rise over the last two decades has been even faster," said Robert Kopp, the lead author and an associate professor in Rutgers' Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences.
Scientists unlock key to turning wastewater and sewage into power
As renewable energy sources goes, solar rays have historically hogged the limelight.
But two Virginia Tech researchers have stolen the spotlight from the sun by discovering a way to maximize the amount of electricity that can be generated from the wastewater we flush down the toilet.


Obama Exempts White House From FOIA Requests
Written by Joe Wolverton, II, J.D.
For a candidate who ran on a promise to have the most transparent administration ever, Barack Obama is unusually fond of opacity.
On Monday, USA Today reported:
The White House is removing a federal regulation that subjects its Office of Administration to the Freedom of Information Act, making official a policy under Presidents Bush and Obama to reject requests for records to that office.
With almost unbelievable irony, the president's lengthening of the shadow of secrecy over the Office of Administration happened on National Freedom of Information Day, a day set aside by activists to call for greater transparency in government.
The coincidence was highlighted in the USA Today article:
But the timing of the move raised eyebrows among transparency advocates, coming on National Freedom of Information Day and during a national debate over the preservation of Obama administration records. It's also Sunshine Week, an effort by news organizations and watchdog groups to highlight issues of government transparency.
"The irony of this being Sunshine Week is not lost on me," said Anne Weismann of the liberal Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, or CREW.
"It is completely out of step with the president's supposed commitment to transparency," she said. "That is a critical office, especially if you want to know, for example, how the White House is dealing with e-mail."
The lengths to which President Obama will go to keep the activities of his administration away from the eyes of the American people are shameful, particularly in light of the statements by candidate Obama against similar decisions made by his predecessor.
When the Bush White House erased millions of e-mails in 2008, a federal appeals court declared the deletion to be permissible and walled off the Office of Administration from future FOIA petitions.
Then-Senator Obama promised that if he became president, such violations of the "rule of law" would never happen and the sunshine of transparency would illuminate what once was kept under deep cover.
With Tuesday's entry into the Federal Register, the revealer became the concealer.
According to the White House, the exemption of the Office of Administration from the FOIA was made "according to well-settled legal interpretations."
Obama's duplicity is not surprising; he is a man who has made a habit of betraying those he once promised to protect.
The man who once declared whistleblowing to be "acts of courage and patriotism" has single-handedly prosecuted (and persecuted) more whistleblowers than any of his predecessors.
With the formal filing of the charges against NSA leaker Edward Snowden, the Obama administration has charged eight whistleblowers under the Espionage Act.
Another former government employee, James Hitselberger, was working as a linguist for the U.S. Navy when he became the seventh to be charged under the nearly century-old law.
President Obama has targeted each of these men — including Edward Snowden — for their efforts to expose government corruption. In fact, the others charged with espionage are targets of an apparent vendetta against whistleblowers in direct contradiction of the president's promise to protect them.
President Obama's zeal in pursuing, prosecuting, and punishing those he once described as courageous and patriotic is remarkable for its relentlessness, as is his almost fanatical fear of transparency.
Of course, as one would expect, the ministry of propaganda immediately published the "war is peace" press release. From USA Today:
White House spokeswoman Brandi Hoffine said the administration remains committed "to work towards unprecedented openness in government."
"Over the past six years, federal agencies have gone to great efforts to make government more transparent and more accessible than ever, including by making more information available to the public via our Open Government initiative and improving the FOIA process," she said.
"Improving the FOIA process" is presidential parlance for rendering the process pointless when it comes to using the law as a crowbar to open the well-sealed coffers of corruption guarded so ferociously by the federal government.
Heaping one deplorable act upon another, the Obama administration declared that it was doing away with the usual public comment on the new regulation, thus making the rule instantly final and enforceable.
It is noteworthy that the newly walled off department is the very one that is responsible for keeping the records of the president. This is a particularly curious coincidence in light of the scandal surrounding Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's (mis)use of e-mail and the subsequent investigation.
Luckily for the president, the department in charge of handling his electronic correspondence is now protected from the prying eyes of the public and will not be searchable for five years after Barack Obama leaves the White House.
Rick Blum, coordinator of the Sunshine in Government initiative of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, pointed to the bigger picture in a comment quoted in the USA Today piece:
I think what we've all learned in the last few weeks is the person who creates a record — whether it's running a program or writing an e-mail — is the one who gets to decide whether it's an official record, And there ought to be another set of eyes on that. That's the essential problem.
With all due respect to Mr. Blum, the essential problem is more fundamental than oversight.
The problem is one of principle. President Obama — and his predecessors for generations — have considered themselves above the law and have regarded the Constitution as nothing more than a modern Twelve Tables: an irrelevant relic, useful only when reference to its contents would be politically advantageous.
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House Speaker Paul Ryan: To be honest, we can't defund Planned Parenthood
'I don't think Planned Parenthood should get a red cent from the taxpayer' - but it will until 2017.
Mon Nov 2, 2015 - 12:46 pm EST
By Ben Johnson
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WASHINGTON, D.C., November 2, 2015 (LifeSiteNews) - Defunding Planned Parenthood won't happen this year, Paul Ryan confirmed this weekend. Instead, the House will turn its focus to investigations into whether the abortion industry illegally sells the body parts of aborted babies.
On CNN's State of the Union program Sunday, the newly elected Speaker of the House told Dana Bash that he would counsel Republicans to be realistic about setting legislative goals.
"I think being an effective opposition party means being honest with people upfront about what it is we can and cannot achieve," Ryan, a nine-term Congressman from Wisconsin, said.
"We have a Senate that has a very difficult process when it comes to actually getting bills voted on," he said.
In January the Senate restored the filibuster, abolished under Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid, which requires bills to receive 60 votes. The Democratic minority has used that procedural to block pro-life legislation from reaching the floor.
President Barack Obama has also promised to veto any measure defunding Planned Parenthood, the nation's leading provider of abortion. Obama, an inflexible opponent of all abortion regulations, has said, "I will not yield, and Planned Parenthood will not yield" to any pro-life legislation.
In the Republican-controlled Congress, conservatives lack the votes to overcome either roadblock.
Paul's Senate counterpart, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, said in September that defunding the abortion industry is yet "another issue that awaits a new president, hopefully with a different point of view about Planned Parenthood."
McConnell and former House Speaker John Boehner squelched efforts to shut down the government in order to withhold half-a-billion dollars of taxpayer funds from Planned Parenthood for one year.
"We have a president that isn't willing to listen, that isn't going to sign lots of our bills into law," Paul Ryan said this weekend. "We have to operate within those constraints."
"I don't think Planned Parenthood should get a red cent from the taxpayer," Ryan, who has earned a strong pro-life voting record throughout his career, said. "I've always believed that, even before these disgusting videos came out."
Instead, he intends for Congress to push its "oversight" functions by investigating allegations of multiple felonies captured in undercover videos from the Center for Medical Progress.
"We also have to push issues where we can push issues. We have to speak truth to power," he said.
"The special committee on Planned Parenthood, I think, should be in the driver's seat overseeing this process," he said.
But Ryan held out the possibility that congressmen may be able to add defunding amendments to legislation in a less "tightly" controlled House.
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House Speaker Paul Ryan: To be honest, we can't defund Planned Parenthood House Speaker Paul Ryan: To be honest, we can't defund Planned Parenthood News By Ben Johnson


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Two weeks ago, I had the unique opportunity of speaking with two of networking's top CEOs within hours of each other: Cisco's John Chambers and Juniper's Scott Kriens. They're both eyeing the same big opportunity in the enterprise - the next generation ...
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Weblog: 3Com's new direction, 01/27/06
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Juniper posted fourth quarter results generally in line with analyst expectations.
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DubaiNews
Police concludes 'Dubai Fitness Challenge' with Shooting Championship for 'People of Determination'
Dubai Fitness Challenge was concluded with a Shooting Championship for People of Determination (deaf and hard of hearing individuals), which Dubai Police organised.
Dubai Fitness Challenge was concluded with a Shooting Championship for People of Determination (deaf and hard of hearing individuals), which was organized by Dubai Police.
Dubai Fitness Challenge 30X30 was initiated with the aim of encouraging citizens to take care of their mental and physical fitness for 30 minutes each day from 29 October to 27 November.
The Dubai Police General Command organised a shooting championship for People of Determination (deaf and hard of hearing individuals) as part of the force's participation in the Dubai 30×30 Fitness Challenge.
The Championship was organised by the force's community-based initiative 'Positive Spirit, and the People of Determination Empowerment Council at Dubai Police in cooperation with the General Department of Orgnasitons Protective Security and Emergency at the Dubai Police Academy.
Brigadier Ali Khalfan Al Mansouri, Acting Director of the General Department of Community Happiness and Head of the Positive Spirit Initiative at Dubai Police, witnessed the concluding ceremony in the presence of Lieutenant Colonel Abdul Basit Ali, Director of the Sports Affairs Department; Captain Abdullah Al Shamsi, Vice President of the Empowerment Council for People of Determination; and Ms Fatima Abu Hajeer, Coordinator of the Positive Spirit Initiative and member of the People of Determination Empowerment Council.
Al Mansouri said the Championship is part of the force's active participation in the Dubai 30×30 Fitness Challenge, which promotes the concept of sport among all segments of society in the UAE as a sustainable healthy lifestyle.
Al Mansouri confirmed that 20 players from the Dubai Club for People of Determination, Dubai Police, Dubai Municipality and a number of clubs for people of determination participated in the event, indicating that the event is within Dubai Police's efforts to build positive community relations through meaningful social and sports work and to consolidate the values of cooperation and cohesion.
Al Mansouri said Dubai Police place great importance on such events that integrate people of determination into society and empower them to discover their potential in sports.
Dubai: School, law firm to accept cryptocurrency as mode of payment
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Middle East to witness gradual rise in temperature: Study
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UAE bans Pixar's latest movie 'Lightyear' as it shows same-sex relationship
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Sockeye Recovery is Still Nowhere Close
by Amanda Peacher
Idaho Statesman, July 20, 2008
If we see higher returns of sockeye salmon to Redfish Lake this year, as Roger Phillips' recent article and projections from Bonneville Dam suggest, Idahoans will have cause to celebrate.
In most of the 17 years since Idaho's sockeye have been listed as an endangered species, returning adults have numbered in the single digits. Last year, just four sockeye made it back to Redfish Lake. Indeed, 50, 100 or 700 returning fish would be welcome news.
But before Idahoans get too excited, here are a few things we should keep in mind:
It's too early to tell just how many sockeye will make it home to the Stanley Basin this year. Yes, counts of sockeye at Bonneville Dam have been high. Keep in mind, however, that most of those sockeye are headed to spawning grounds in the Columbia system, and are not federally protected species.
When most of this year's adult sockeye were migrating to the ocean as babies in 2006, Judge James Redden ordered the government to "spill" water over dams to help flush fish to the ocean. Baby salmon survive at much higher rates when allowed to migrate in the river, rather than being trucked or barged downstream. Idaho Rivers United, fishermen, and other conservationists pushed for spill in court. If groups like ours had not stepped up to fight for the salmon, the feds would have been content to continue fish transportation methods that work poorly.
Idaho Fish and Game, the Sho-Ban Tribes, and other scientists have done remarkable work keeping Idaho's sockeye alive, despite the challenges of working with a limited gene pool and limited resources. Without the expertise and commitment of this community, Idaho's sockeye would already be extinct. Still, those scientists would be the first to tell you that a long-term captive breeding program - without changes in Snake River management - will not succeed.
I hope Idahoans are lucky enough to see more sockeye make it home this year. After a decade of failed salmon plans, billions of taxpayer and ratepayer dollars spent and years of dismal returns, it would be nice to have something to cheer about.
But without further action, this year's improved Snake River sockeye returns will be just another outlier. In its 'new' salmon plan, the federal agencies responsible for salmon recovery actually roll back sockeye protections. The plan calls for less spill, more barging, and refuses to consider lower Snake River dam removal as an option.
A majority of scientists say that removing the four high-cost, low-value dams on the lower Snake River in Eastern Washington is the best, and perhaps only way to restore Idaho's salmon. But as long as the federal government refuses to do what's necessary to restore Idaho's salmon populations, another outlier year of more fish will only postpone extinction.
One 'good year' is not enough. We need sustained increases in sockeye returns over several years before we break out the good champagne and declare a positive trend.
In order to keep Idaho's sockeye from fading into extinction, we will ultimately need Congressional leadership and support for removing the four lower Snake River dams. We can have healthy salmon populations, fishing opportunities, a reliable energy supply and a strong Northwest economy. But we can't have all of those things when the lower Snake River dams remain in place.
So as we celebrate Idaho's returning sockeye this year, let's also ask our political leaders to be accountable for the fate of our sockeye, in 2009, 2010 and over the years to come.
Amanda Peacher is salmon program coordinator for Idaho Rivers United, a statewide conservation group dedicated to protecting and restoring Idaho's rivers and native fish.


Asian Elephants 101
26-part series now on UnchainedTV!
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Watch Now on UnchainedTV
UnchainedTV is delighted to announce the launch of the Asian Elephants 101 series, produced by the author of Gods in Shackles, Amazon's #1 animal rights book, wildlife filmmaker & broadcast journalist, Nat Geo Explorer, and founder of Elephant Matrix, Sangita Iyer.
Asian Elephants 101, funded by the National Geographic Society, is the first science-based robust series produced to highlight the ecological, cultural, and spiritual significance of this endangered species.
Two years in the making, nine of the 26-part Asian Elephants 101 series world premiered on multiple National Geographic Channels, and we are excited to now stream the entire series on UnchainedTV.com.
Watch Asian Elephants 101 today on the Elephant Matrix channel on UnchainedTV.
Unchained TV Synopsis of the first 7 episodes
Two years in the making. World premiered on multiple Nat Geo channels! We're thrilled to launch Asian elephants 101 series.
Living with Giants
Dramatic story portraying the precarious lives of elephants and people – two dominant species, trying to coexist. Join the movement: vfaes.org/projects
End Elephant Bullying
Habitat loss is driving elephants into villages and cropland to find food, where young men are mobbing elephants. Help cultivate saplings: vfaes.org/projects
Temple Elephants
Worshipped and tortured, revered and defiled. Indian elephants are exploited behind the insidious veil of religion. Support our projects: vfaes.org/projects
Deadly Tracks
Every year, many elephants are killed on India's deadly train tracks. Join our movement to end these tragic deaths: vfaes.org/projects
Gentle Bulls
Rare footage of bull elephants displaying unique and extraordinary behaviors dispels unfounded myths about male elephants. Visit: elephantmatrix.com
A robust infotainment series supported by Nat Geo Society and produced by award-winning Wildlife Filmmaker, Author, and Voice for Asian Elephant Society Founder, Sangita Iyer
WHY THIS SERIES IS SO IMPORTANT
All species of elephants are ecologically significant. They traverse vast areas 16 to 18 hours a day, trampling softwood trees, thus allowing rain and sunshine to penetrate the ground, promoting hardwood trees that store more carbon-di-oxide (a potent greenhouse gas that exacerbates climate change). According to the International Monetary Authority, African forest elephants help fight climate change, with each elephant at a carbon value of $1.75 million. Elephants also create pathways to waterholes and fodder for other animals, who would otherwise be unable to access these life-giving sources.
Given the similarities, Asian elephants also likely play a key role in climate mitigation. According to the IUCN, there are less than 40,000 Asian elephants left on the planet, fully 27,000 in India, their last bastion. Thus, saving Asian elephants of India is critically important to not only saving the species, but also other species in the ecosystem.
The issue is, human-elephant conflict (HEC) is rampant, due to the unprecedented human population growth in India, driving competition for space. Reckless development and land use have decimated 80% of wildlife habitats. Famished elephants are forced to leave the forests and venture into croplands to quell their hunger, exacerbating HEC, resulting in senseless tragedies – both humans and elephants. This in turn triggers retaliatory killings of elephants, and the vicious cycle continues unabated.
Another major issue facing elephants in India is their illegal capture. On the one hand, elephants are revered, considered the embodiment of Lord Ganesh – a Hindu God with an elephant face. But on the other hand, they are tortured and exploited for profit behind the veil of culture and religion.
Our mission in producing the 26-part short film series, Asian Elephants 101, is to highlight the survival challenges faced by people and elephants, as two dominant species compete for space. The short films, no more than seven minutes long, are grounded in systems principles that foster cooperation, mutualism, and coexistence, interspersed throughout the short films. They focus on key aspects of elephant ecology, the plight of captive elephants, factors contributing HEC, human encroachment into the wildlife habitats, climate change, habitat fragmentation, and deforestation, among other topics.
Our ultimate goal is not only to foster empathy, awe, reverence, and love for these magnificent animals but also to influence decision-makers to legislate laws that would take into consideration elephants, wildlife and the rich biodiversity of India. We hope that the narratives and visuals will help people understand our intricate connections with and dependence on other species, inspire attitude and behavior shifts, and motivate people to protect the endangered Asian elephants. The films will help people realize that the survival of elephants in the forests of India is crucial to mitigating climate change globally, demonstrating that what happens in one country reverberates across the planet.
Asian Elephants 101 Producer, Sangita Iyer
Sangita Iyer:
Voices for Elephants Society:
The Elephant Matrix:
Gods in Shackles
by Sangita Iyer


Home Covid-19 Nicaragua's election called 'undemocratic' after Ortega secures 4th term in landslide
Nicaragua's election called 'undemocratic' after Ortega secures 4th term in landslide
Nicaragua's President Daniel Ortega easily locked in a fourth consecutive term after suppressing political rivals, results showed on Monday, leading the United States and other countries to warn of possible sanctions and press for free and fair elections.
Nicaragua's Supreme Electoral Council said that with nearly all the ballots counted, a preliminary tally had Ortega's Sandinista alliance winning with about 76% of votes.
In the months leading up to Sunday's election Western and many Latin American nations had expressed deep concern about the fairness of the vote as Ortega detained opponents and business leaders, canceled rival parties, and criminalized dissent.
Election observers from the European Union and the Organization of American States were not allowed to scrutinize the process and journalists were barred from entering Nicaragua.
Rights group calls for pressure on Nicaragua's Ortega over pre-election crackdown
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said his country will work with other democratic governments and was ready to use a range of tools, including possible sanctions, visa restrictions and coordinated actions against those it said were complicit in supporting the Nicaragua government's "undemocratic acts."
Democrats in the U.S. Congress pushed for President Joe Biden to back the so-called Renacer Act that aims to intensify pressure on Ortega and pursue greater regional cooperation to boost democratic institutions.
A statement by all 27 EU members accused Ortega of "systematic incarceration, harassment and intimidation" of opponents, journalists and activists.
The elections "complete the conversion of Nicaragua into an autocratic regime," the EU said. Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Spain and Britain called for detained opposition leaders to be freed.
"Elections were neither free, nor fair, nor competitive," said Jose Manuel Albares, Spain's foreign minister.
Canada's Minister of Foreign Affairs Melanie Joly said in a statement that the elections "do not reflect the will of the Nicaraguan people."
We stand with the people of #Nicaragua, who have been robbed of free & fair elections. We will work with democracies in the region & around the world to urge the Ortega regime to change course & seek a peaceful & democratic resolution to the crisis.https://t.co/XC1ZcoVdhT
— Mélanie Joly (@melaniejoly) November 9, 2021
In a speech that lasted more than an hour on Monday evening, Ortega fired back against the United States and Europe, labeling them "Yankee imperialists."
"They wanted to be at the head of the Supreme Electoral Council… counting the votes of the Nicaraguans," Ortega said, addressing supporters from Revolution Square in Managua. "That won't happen again in Nicaragua. Never again, never again."
Of his jailed opponents, Ortega said, "They are not Nicaraguans, they have no homeland."
Cuba, Venezuela and Russia all offered Ortega their backing.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said U.S. calls for countries not to recognize the outcome were "unacceptable."
Mexico's foreign ministry said it would not comment on the election until official results were posted. Mexico maintained a critical view of Ortega's jailing of opponents but backed non-intervention in Nicaragua's affairs, a Mexican official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Journalists protest intimidation of Nicaragua press
Journalists protest intimidation of Nicaragua press – Aug 4, 2018
Former rebel
Ortega's victory consolidates the increasingly repressive political model he has built in recent years along with his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo.
A former Marxist rebel who helped topple the right-wing Somoza family dictatorship in the late 1970s, Ortega says he is defending Nicaragua against unscrupulous adversaries bent on ousting him with the aid of foreign powers. His government has passed a series of laws that make it easy to prosecute opponents for crimes such as "betraying the homeland."
Just five little-known candidates of mostly small parties allied to Ortega's Sandinistas were allowed to run against him.
"Most people I know decided not to vote, they say it's madness," said Naomi, an opponent of the government from the eastern port of Bluefields, who declined to give her last name for fear of reprisals.
"What they're doing here is a joke."
Nicaragua frees some protesters after government crackdown, including Belgian activist
Nicaragua's electoral authority said turnout was 65%.
In the 1980s, Ortega served a single term as president before being voted out. He returned to the top job in 2007.
After initially delivering solid economic growth and attracting private investment, Ortega's government changed course in response to 2018 anti-government protests. More than 300 people were killed during the ensuing crackdown.
Tens of thousands of Nicaraguans have since fled the country. Many of them gathered in neighboring Costa Rica on Sunday in a show of defiance against Ortega.
Prolonged discontent is expected to fuel more emigration to Costa Rica and the United States, where record numbers of Nicaraguans have been apprehended at the border this year.
Rights activist Haydee Castillo, who was arrested in 2018 and now lives in the United States, called the election "a farce."
"He has not conceded anything despite the resolutions and declarations that the international community has made," Castillo said.
(Reporting by Daina Beth Solomon in San Jose; Additional reporting by Alvaro Murillo in San Jose, Sofia Menchu in Guatemala City, Natalia Ramos in Santiago, Gabrielle Tetrault-Farber in Moscow, Guy Faulconbridge in London, Inti Landauro in Madrid, Patricia Zengerle in Washington and Dave Graham and Jake Kincaid in Mexico City; Editing by Catherine Evans, Rosalba O'Brien and Grant McCool)
© 2021 Reuters
This article was originally published by Globalnews.ca. Read the original article here.
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July 3, 2020 July 3, 2020 by Matthew Bennett
F1 2020 trailer shows a lap of the Red Bull Ring
Codemasters has shared a new trailer for F1 2020 that shows a hot lap of the Red Bull Ring, home of the Austrian Grand Prix.
The trailer follows Esteban Ocon's Renault on a lap of the circuit, which will host the start of the 2020 Formula One season this weekend.
"It is a short circuit, where the first half very much rewards power, as the cars race along three straights separated by a pair of uphill right-handers," developer Codemasters adds. "As the drivers work their way downhill, the circuit becomes a high speed alpine luge ride, as the cars navigate through a series of very quick corners, including the exhilarating Rindt right-hander, named for Austria's first F1 champion."
Last month, the developer released another trailer for the game that showed off the new split-screen mode.
F1 2020 launches July 10th for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC, and Stadia.
Post tagsCodemastersF1Formula One


Jeremy Morris-Burke > Filmmaker
Jeremy Morris-Burke is originally from St. Louis, MO and moved to New York City in 1997 to pursue an MFA in Design for Stage and Film at NYU. Over the next few years Mr. Morris-Burke designed lighting and scenery for dozens of theatre and dance pieces in the US and Europe. He and his wife Vanessa founded a non-profit production company to assist in raising funds for some of these projects, their first foray into producing.
Vanessa Morris-Burke > Producer
'Jim' marks Vanessa's first film producing credit. She has produced theater with ROTOR Productions on "West Pier" in New York and Tolstoy's "Power of Darkness" at the Trafo theatre in Budapest, Hungary, as well as coordinating numerous events in a professional capacity.
Suzanne Wang > Production Design (Part 1)
Suzanne is a graduate of the Department of Design for Stage and Film at NYU. Other production design credits for film include 'Five Years' directed by Brett W. Wagner, and 'Mission' directed by Loren Marsh. Art Department credits include 'Happy Hour' and 'Kissing Jessica Stein', and she also Art Directed 'The End of the Bar' for director Randy T. Dinzler. Ms. Wang has learned that sometimes a rifle is more effective than a paintbrush, especially for shooting skeet.
Michael Byrnes > Production Design (Part 2)
Michael is a New York based set designer. He has designed for theater, opera, music videos, live events, nightclubs, and film. 2010 credits include stage designs for Katy Perry and Phil Collins, interior designs for New York Adorned Tattoo Parlor in Soho, Besu Salon and Day Spa in Gramercy, and Goods Restaurant in Williamsburg. He is currently preparing designs for a stadium scale electronic music festival for 2011. Michael was trained at the Motley Theater Design Course London, England, The Tisch School of the Arts NYU, and the SoMa School of Art, San Fransisco. He is the founder (2008) and Head of Design of TheFuturePlastic.com
Alexandre Tannous > Composer
Alexandre holds a Bachelor of Music with a double major in Music Theory and Composition from Montclair State University, and a Master of Arts degree in Music Education from Columbia University Teachers College. As a recipient of the Mellon Fellowship he also earned a Master of Arts and a Master of Philosophy degree in Ethnomusicology from Columbia University where he was enrolled in the PH.D. program. He has taught various music courses there as well, and currently teaches privately. The works of Alexandre Tannous are frequently performed in the United States, Europe and in Asia. His orchestral composition Métamorphose premiered under his baton at Carnegie Hall in 1995 garnering a standing ovation. As an ethnomusicologist he has conducted fieldwork over many years with musicians in the States and abroad. Alexandre is a frequent lecturer at Georgetown University, Princeton University, and Columbia University, and in museums such as the American Museum of Natural History, the Museum of the City of New York, and the Metropolitan Museum of New York. As a film composer, Alexandre has composed two film-scores: "The Seventh Dog" (2005), and "Jim" (2010).
Gene Masher
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Social media early adopters sadly resting on their laurels
Have you met the guy who signed up for Twitter in 2008 and tells you about it every chance they get as if that implies they know anything about social media? Let's examine how this resting on laurels came to be.
Lani Rosales, COO + News Director
Social media people resting on their laurels
At a social media event last night, a mixture of people new to the industry sat alongside industry insiders who pioneered the space, and the discussion was lively. I came to a halt, however, when an attendee made a reference to having been on Twitter many years ago, making it sound a lot like they somehow invented the space. It got me to thinking… how many other people are resting on their laurels?
The graphic I created above is obviously a mockery of those who exaggerate their role in the early days of social media, but rest on their laurels of having been an early adopter. Social media experts are about as common as sales people – there's no shortage of someone who will take your money and show you how to sign up for Twitter, especially those who were there in the early days.
The rise of the social media expert coincided with massive unemployment, so while many legitimate experts were born, there were also thousands of unemployed people poking around the internet that discovered Twitter and Facebook and saw people there figuring out how to use it as a marketing tool, so light bulbs went off and the guru era ensued. Great.
Fast forward to today, and you have people that haven't accomplished a whole hell of a lot since they signed up for (sorry, I mean pioneered) Twitter. Sure, we (@BennRosales and I) were some of the first people on Twitter, in fact, I looked it up today and my personal account was created five years, seven months, and two days ago, making my account older than 99.8 percent of all Twitter accounts, according to Twopcharts.
But I am an established pioneer, I swear
So shouldn't I be telling people that every time I encounter someone to really demonstrate my prowess, to prove what an expert I am, and to instill in minds of many that my very presence on Twitter so early means that I am an established pioneer who knows more than anyone else who has figured out how to sign up for Twitter since?
No. I shouldn't. Not only because it's a douche move, but because resting on laurels is a lazy move, and an ignorant one, because let's be honest, just because someone was on Twitter in 1983 (I kid), does not mean they know anything about marketing or social media. You've signed up for Twitter and know how to tweet – is the actual act really that difficult? Nope.
Although I am confident that Benn and I did play a role in helping shape the very culture of Twitter and helped businesses to understand the tools, we didn't stop there – in fact, there are thousands of articles on this very website that catalog our continued involvement in and shaping of the community, we've hosted dozens of events on the topic over the years, and we've even won a few trophies along the way.
When someone proclaims how long they've been on Twitter as if they invented it, my first thought is, "okay, great, but what have you done since?" Most people that puff their chest about having been on the internet in 2007 don't have much to brag about since, because news outlets have stopped calling to interview them as the glorious marvels of early adoption. Most of them peaked around 2008.
Next time someone rolls their eyes at social media information and proclaim they've been on Twitter since forever, ask yourself what they've done since. Many of these people are the same nerds that like to casually (and frequently) mention in conversation that they were on the football team in high school, and will probably slip in a few of their stats even though you were talking about something completely unrelated. That's exactly what they're doing when they assert that the age of their Twitter account implies they're superior social media beings. What have you done since high school or since you signed up for Twitter, bro? In most cases, probably not much.
In this article:Social Media, social media early adopters
Written By Lani Rosales, COO + News Director
Lani is the COO and News Director at The American Genius, has co-authored a book, co-founded BASHH, Austin Digital Jobs, Remote Digital Jobs, and is a seasoned business writer and editorialist with a penchant for the irreverent.
Allen Mireles
I have met the type of person you describe in this post, Lani. I understand your frustration. I am also an early-ish adopter of Twitter (and many of the other social platforms) and my usage has changed drastically over the years. It's fair to wonder what people are doing with their social profiles now, especially after so many years and so many changes. Especially if they imply that early adoption equates with expertise on any level.
It's also really interesting to watch the ebb and flow of involvement in social networks. People change how they use Twitter as they change–and as it changes. There are so many reasons. Some of us are still working through a protracted "social media existential crisis". Others have gotten bored. Some are still using the platforms to do nothing but broadcast.
In the end, if someone needs to promote the fact that they are early adopters of a technology or a social network, I think it's fun to ask them for their observations on how things have changed over time and even where they predict things may be going. The response can be very telling!
Lani Rosales
Allen, that is a GREAT suggestion – people that only know one moment of the timeline (aka, their glory days on Twitter), they can't tell you the rest of the timeline and as you suggest, can't possibly predict the future.
Thank you for reading, digesting, and not being a social media douche 😉
lol, perhaps we need to create badges saying: "I am NOT a social media douche."
bobledrew
And then all the douches would start wearing them, so we could shun them!
Yeah, the douches always like to think they're not douches. They are usually so *edgy* and cool.
Go to LinkedIn, see what "early adopters" have done pre-2006. That tells you all you need to know. 😉
"Sprint sales assistant to the regional manager 2005-2006
Gap shirt folder/sniffer 2004-2005
Full time Phish tour fanatic 2000-2004"
Am I close?
Ken Brand
You and a very few others are the "real deal". I've learned a lot from you guys and I'm thankful. The Poser/Pretender ratio to Pro is about 1,787 to 1.
I think you're being generous with your ratio 😉 But thanks for the props – you were right there with us, buddy!
agbenn
Hello, my name is Benn, and I too suffer from early adoption. Know anyone hiring?
LOL. Great response 😉
Mickey, perfectly put. Perfectly.
Thank you so much for adding such meaningful thoughts!
Julie, you're exactly right. That evidence is often flimsy – having a job somewhere isn't really evidence, but is typically used as such. And for the record, my comment about trophies was a jab as well – they don't mean much in the scope of things.
Rich Becker
As the old saying goes: Some people who work somewhere for 10 years have 10 years of experience. Other people who work somewhere for 10 years will have one year of experience ten times. There is a difference, no matter what they did in high school.
Great point, Rich. You're exactly right.
A friend of mine is having a slight struggle shaping her career plan right now. She feels her resume isn't solid enough and that she's too young to be taken seriously. But I look at what she's accomplished and marvel at the quality and of the output given her time in the social media field. There needs to be some common ground between the "whippersnapper" who's hired simply because they're young, and the guru-by-inertia at the other end of the scale. Perhaps we need to judge people by their words and their deeds, not simply by the capricious numbers of age and "years of experience".
Bob, that's a great point and one I failed to mention in my column – a lot of people who have only been practicing in the field for two or three years have done amazing things but are often slighted based on the age of their Twitter account.
I'm with you – this has to change. Businesses can't be fleeced anymore by the idiot gurus who simply say they were there first. So what?
hessie jones
I know ALL too well how many people boast about being earliest to the Twitter and LI platforms, but never having done anything with their account. Somehow the early bird seems to have carried more weight. I know people who are far more effective than I am on Twitter, who came on to the platform much later than myself and were able to garner more engagement and more momentum in the process. Early doesn't mean they get it. This could have been happenstance. I like what @bobledrew:disqus said: Judge by your "words and deeds, not simply by the capricious numbers of age and "years of experience".
Hessie, right on. "Happenstance" is one of the best words to describe this entire phenomena that isn't unique to social media, it just happens to be where we are on the timeline of social media's history.
Do you think businesses are wising up to the gurus that hang their hat on being first to Twitter?
Kami Watson Huyse
In the world of online marketing it really only matters what you have done for me lately. Early adopters have some cred, but their current accomplishments mean a lot more, and how they synthesize and use what they have seen over the years is even more critical. Ask for case studies and beware the snake oil.
Yes! Any "expert" who can't provide a case study or reference to someone they've actually worked with is not legit. And unfortunately common. Snake oil salespeople – you nailed it, Kami!
"I've already stopped listening," YES. THAT.
You and Kami are on to a bigger point – due diligence is necessary and six years later, people actually know how to Google you now instead of taking your word that you're a ninja guru maven expert sensei or whatever.
Thank you for your commentary, it is always a delight to hear your perspective!
Tinu
Don't get me wrong. Despite the easy use of Google, LOTS Of people don't do their due diligence, or think that a recommendation is enough.
And if these discussions didn't exist, when people look up things like due diligence and social media, they don't have a starting point from a trusted source. I think it's important that we keep talking about it, if for no other reason than to have a 3rd party article to send the people who trust us to read.
Loren Nason
I've been on twitter longer than you. So that makes me better than you.
HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAH
Warren Whitlock
It's not yet time to write a history of social media… We are just now getting started.
I have no problem with somebody deciding not to use Twitter. I do find it troubling that those same people think they understand.
I am just now learning new things about Twitter. Seven years after I wrote the first book about the Twitter Revolution. The only thing that's changed is the number of people who think they have it figured out… Those of us using Twitter far outnumber them
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10/20/2019 1 Comment
Neo Cab Review
Cars, Characters, Conspiracies, and ConnectionsBy Edwin Velez
Reviewed on Nintendo Switch
Released Oct.3rd, 2019 on Switch, also available on PC
Developer: Chance Agency
Publisher: Fellow Traveller
As we continue to become more technologically advanced day in and day out, for better or for worse, visions and predictions of the future in pop culture and media start to seem less fantastical and begin to appear as more of a potential reality. Mega-corporations are no sci-fi boogeyman, but more of a growing concern as companies like Disney, Amazon, Apple, and Facebook continue to grow in size, scale, and evidently, power. Neo Cab is a text-based adventure game that is all about those harsh potential realities of a corporate power fueled future, and how it can have a ripple effect on the lives of people and their very nature at that. You get behind the wheel of your very own Neo Cab (one of the last remaining human driver services ala "Uber") as Lina, who is uprooting her life in the small town of Cactus Flats to move to the bright, bustling city of Los Ojos. There, her lifelong best friend Savy would be waiting with a spare bedroom and the promise of a fresh start. Life was getting tough for Neo Cab drivers, as mega-corporation Capra has all but monopolized the automated driver service in much of the country, and their influence is as strong as can be in Los Ojos (LO for short). But with the support of Savy, who knew her way around the streets and people of LO, it should not be too hard to settle in, right? Right?? Well let's just say, things in LO get interesting pretty fast.
After a brief link up with Savy, you drop her off at a club and anticipate a happier and longer reunion shortly after. But those hopes exit the car as quick as a client at their stop, as Savy falls off the map. No communication, no contacts, and no idea what is going on. With little choice in the matter, Lina opts to continue working. This allows you to hunt for information on LO and Savy while earning coin to keep your car charged up and put a temporary roof over your head via hotels and shared living spaces (bed and breakfast type deals.) The bulk of the gameplay comes via text-based actions, and every action has a reaction. The narrative in Neo Cab is rich, emotional, and very engaging, and it is all thanks to a multifaceted system that has you not only worried about Savy and your genuine interactions with those around you but also worried about your job.
Neo Cab is a fantastic piece of interactive art, as it is one of the few games recently that made me genuinely feel attached to characters past face value. I was all-in on developing relationships with these people and retaining them, for that matter. The gameplay is pretty similar to that of ROM 2064, in that you make conversational decisions to progress forward and essentially solve a mystery. It is much different in that you not only run a business the entire time but that you also have a visible "mood" that sometimes dictates what you can and cannot say. This takes the otherwise simple gameplay and adds a whole new depth to it. With the future comes futuristic gadgets, not excluding the Feelgrid. The Feelgrid is a sort of modern "Mood Ring" that features a ranged palette that helps Lina, you, and the clients hone in on exactly how Lina feels, even to varying degrees of intensity. Certain feelings unlock certain responses, while if a feeling is too intense, it may prevent you from saying something. It is an incredible dynamic and really manipulates how a conversation can go. Sometimes I would be dead set on a response and would ultimately be blocked by a mood swing or a mood-related observation. Managing this was key to managing your business.
Working for Neo Cabs is an uphill battle. Not only are your clients unpredictable, but Neo Cab watches your star rating closely. Having less than a 4 can get you fired (probably not really…), and a lower rating can also mean a limited clientele pool too. Certain premium members only accept drivers with a 5-star rating, which means you could miss out on a decent fare. Typically, you get to pick from 3 available clients on a map of Los Ojos. Not only do you earn different amounts of coin from these, but each takes a different amount of gas too. At the end of each night, you have to put yourself up at a hotel, so saving money on gas and making smart decisions during your fares (there are some special events where you can gain or lose coin outside of the standard ways.)
The beauty of this game is the power of your choices. Along the way in my playthrough, I made friends with people I favored, one of which wasn't even a client, but rather one I was a client for at a bed and breakfast style place I spent the night. Even in this "end of day" scenario, there was a moving connection made by Lina. Some other interactions went south, with me being duped by a client or running into trouble with the law for trying to go the extra mile for a customer just for the sake of my rating. All the while, you dig deeper into Savy's whereabouts. I had genuine emotional reactions to characters and the world around them, as these little branches that connect to the overall spiritual tree of Neo Cab are all really thoughtful. There are several different endings, and surely several different ways conversations can play out, so I can definitely see myself replaying this one just to realize the scope of everything. Hell, there are some characters I never even picked up, just because I favored the friendship of another, so who knows what else LO has in store for me.
The game has a very fitting graphical style, with neon vibes and flashy tech playing a large role in the visual connections. People have all sorts of tech they rely on, towering glass buildings are burdened by the over-saturation of advertisements, and the style of each passenger is more unique than the next. While the world outside the car can sometimes feel a bit empty in passing, the characters that sit in the back bring enough pizazz to the show that you won't feel the need to look for it elsewhere. There is also something incredibly refreshing about these pitstops Lina takes, whether it be to interact with someone outside the car or stay at a motel because the areas are so detailed and vibrant. The Aztec themed motel is a standout, and when staying there, the still shot is just a work of art to behold as you read about the surreal dreams Lina has there after a rough week of feeling out of place in a new city. The music is perfect for the game too. Its got just enough synth, bass, and futuristic vibes to be chill most of the time and subtly intense when it needs to be too, all without being overbearing so that you can keep reading and stay in tune with everything happening on screen. I definitely would not mind adding a vinyl copy to my growing collection of gaming OSTs on vinyl.
The game, at least on Switch, has only very minor problems. For one, anytime Lina goes to grab her phone to review notes, pick a gig, or look at recent reviews, there is this really ugly screen tear that almost looks like she takes a long blink. This is, thankfully, the only time it happens. There are a few instances of slowdowns too, but nothing overbearing or detrimental. I also think that some narrative scripts do not always line up. I was pulled over twice by the robo-police in the game, and Lina had some similar reactions the second time that would have made it seem like it was the first. There was also an interaction with a client via text that happened right after he was dropped off, but the text made it seem like it was the next day. Those are the only two narrative inconsistencies that ring a bell, other than maybe a few emotions feeling not inline during the last verbal "battle" you have towards the end. Otherwise, everything was smooth, deep, and narratively gripping. I don't think I have been this emotionally invested in my choice of words in a game since the Mass Effect trilogy, except for maybe Night in the Woods, and that is saying something.
Like Night in the Woods before it, Neo Cab is a really easy game to put yourself in the shoes of the protagonist and really embrace being the character. We make choices every day, some are over thought, some are on a whim, but all are of our own doing. This game truly makes you feel empowered that way, and having to manage your job and even keep your emotions in check really keep this title from being just a read-along or a visual novel, and makes it one of the most unique and special titles I have played this year. While my ending was disappointing, it still gave me emotional responses. I hated how my run ended, I was upset that my efforts to better things did not work out, but as the player, I loved that Neo Cab elicited these feelings. Art is anything that can do something like that to you, and if that sounds up your alley, you should consider keeping real-life drivers on the streets of Los Ojos, and grab a copy of Neo Cab to do so.
*Note: A copy of this game was provided for the purpose of the review.
+Engaging and Deep Narrative
+Interesting Characters
+Genuinely Elicits Emotion
-Some Sluggish Aspects
Jonnydarkfang
From its looks and genre it's not a game I'd usually go for but sounds rather interesting. One to take a look at when the chance arises. Good review mate!