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What is the narrator of in another country doing in Italy?
What is the narrator of in another country doing in Italy?
The narrator of this story, a wounded American soldier, is recuperating from his injury in Milan, Italy. He receives treatments delivered by machines each afternoon at the hospital.
What did the author & his friends do after packing was over?
Dear student, The narrator and his friends completed their packing by 12:50, and after that, they went upstairs to sleep. Narrator and Harris quarreled for a while regarding the time they would get up.
Why did the narrator go to the hospital?
The narrator goes to the hospital every day because he is under orders to do so. He also likes the feeling of camaraderie with the Italian soldiers, some of whom were heavily involved in fighting with the Germans. And he enjoys practicing his Italian.
What message about war does Hemingway Express in in another country how does he use the elements of fiction to express it?
Answer: Hemingway expresses his thoughts on war and its impact from the point of view of “The Lost Generation”. He expresses the message that the war was destructive and many people (i.e. those who are a part of The Lost Generation) deeply felt the losses caused by the war.
How does the Major’s behavior represent the modernist writer’s take on life in another country?
How does the major’s behavior represent the modernist writer’s take on life? An important theme of modernism was disillusionment. Most modernist writers felt disillusioned in postwar America because of the destruction and devastating loss of human life.
What is the main significance of the hospital setting in in another country?
The setting of “In Another Country” is Milan, Italy, during autumn. In this season, the atmosphere is cold, which is synonymous with death, an event that is common and frequent in the hospital: It was cold in the fall in Milan and the dark came very early.
What might the machines represent in in another country?
To the major, the machinery in “In Another Country” represents the war machine and man’s dependency upon something mechanical that can fail him. He comes to the hospital every day, but he does not believe in the power of the machines to rehabilitate his withered hand.
What is the theme of in another country by Ernest Hemingway?
The main themes of the short story “In Another Country” by Ernest Hemingway are war, courage and fear, and isolation and rejection.
What is the irony in the story in another country?
The other irony that we can find from “In Another Country” is this story tells the readers about four soldiers who feel that they lives were meaningless because of their wounds after war. They feel that they lost their trust in people because of those wounds. Their wounds make them have no hope in their lives.
What is the meaning of the title in another country?
The most obvious meaning of “another country” is that the solider is literally in another country that is not his home. The second meaning that I took from the title is that perhaps the hospital could be seen as a foreign country set apart from the rest of the world and what is going on in it aka the war.
What is ironic about the major’s wife’s death?
The consequence on his wife’s death to be more ironic is that we can definitely see how, even after her death, the Major refuses to let go. He does not even let go of something as simple as teaching someone how to speak Italian.
What are some examples of irony in Hemingway’s stories?
There’s great irony in the opening line of the story: “In the fall the war was always there, but we did not go to it any more.” In other words, war and its effects are ever-present for the injured soldiers, even though they’re no longer able to participate in the conflict.
How is hawk used as a metaphor in in another country?
The narrator uses a hawk as a metaphor for those men who attach great importance to the medals they’ve earned during the war. He compares the Italian soldiers in the hospital to “hunting hawks”, making it seem that they’re warmongers who eagerly participate in conflict. The narrator isn’t like these men.
What is the tone of in another country?
The tone of “In Another Country” is sanguine, or hopeful. The speaker of the story feels rather optimistic, despite all the pain and suffering around him.
What is the setting of in another country?
Published in 1926, the short story “In Another Country” by Ernest Hemingway is set in Milan, Italy, most probably during World War I (Hemingway fought in World War I).
What happens to the major’s wife in another country?
In Ernest Hemingway’s “In Another Country,” the major’s wife died from pneumonia after three days of suffering. A character that Hemingway created to represent himself has an injured knee and goes to a hospital daily for rehabilitation.
How does parallelism affect a story?
Parallelism helps make an idea or argument clear and easy to remember. It also shows that each repeated structure is of equal importance. And, it is a powerful tool for public speaking. Throughout history, many famous leaders have used parallel structure to communicate with the public.
Why does the boy with the black silk handkerchief on his face have no medals?
Answer: The boy wearing a black silk scarf on his face receives no medal because he did not stay long enough at the front line of the battle to be awarded a medal. Explanation: The boy wearing a black silk scarf had to leave the front line because he was injured.
What did the major do before the war?
In Ernest Hemingway’s “In Another Country,” what did the major do before the war? He was a doctor. He was a hand surgeon. He was the greatest fencer in Italy He played professional football.
What is a good example of parallelism?
Examples
|Lacking parallelism||Parallel|
|“She likes cooking, jogging, and to read.”||“She likes cooking, jogging, and reading.” “She likes to cook, jog, and read.”|
|“He likes baseball and running.”||“He likes playing baseball and running.” “He likes to play baseball and to run.”|
What is the function of parallelism?
The use of parallel structures in speech or writing allows speakers and writers to maintain a consistency within their work and create a balanced flow of ideas. Moreover, it can be employed as a tool for persuasion as well because of the repetition it uses.
Which of the following is an example of parallelism?
Some examples of parallelism in rhetoric include the following: “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream today.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
What’s the difference between parallelism and repetition?
Repetition is the reuse of words, phrases, ideas or themes in your speech. Parallelism—a related device—is the proximity of two or more phrases with identical or similar constructions, especially those expressing the same sentiment, but with slight modifications.
What is parallelism and examples?
Here’s a quick and simple definition: Parallelism is a figure of speech in which two or more elements of a sentence (or series of sentences) have the same grammatical structure. The following well-known adage is an example of parallelism: “Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day.
What is parallelism in grammar example?
Parallel structure (also called parallelism) is the repetition of a chosen grammatical form within a sentence. By making each compared item or idea in your sentence follow the same grammatical pattern, you create a parallel construction. Example Not Parallel: Ellen likes hiking, the rodeo, and to take afternoon naps.
How do you achieve parallelism?
You may use phrases or sentences at any level, as long as you keep corresponding items in each level parallel in structure. To achieve parallelism, try skimming your papers for coordinating conjunctions such as and and or. Check the sentence elements on both sides of the conjunction to see if they are parallel in form.
Is concurrency same as multithreading?
Concurrency is the ability of your program to deal (not doing) with many things at once and is achieved through multithreading. Do not confuse concurrency with parallelism which is about doing many things at once.
What are the different levels of parallelism?
There are several different forms of parallel computing: bit-level, instruction-level, data, and task parallelism. Parallelism has long been employed in high-performance computing, but has gained broader interest due to the physical constraints preventing frequency scaling. | https://easierwithpractice.com/what-is-the-narrator-of-in-another-country-doing-in-italy/ |
MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay, February 7, 2019 - The governments of Mexico, Uruguay and the Caribbean Community are meeting in Montevideo today, to formally propose and discuss a four phased negotiating process called the “Montevideo Mechanism” in an effort to solve the situation in Venezuela where, National Assembly Leader Juan Guaidó has declared and installed himself interim president of that country.
“Therefore, we propose the Montevideo Mechanism, based on our legitimate interest and willingness to assist the Venezuelan people and the actors involved find a solution to their differences. This initiative is offered to the Venezuelan actors as a peaceful and democratic alternative that privileges dialogue and peace, with the aim to create all necessary conditions for an inclusive, comprehensive and lasting solution.
1. Dialogue Phase: Creating conditions for direct contacts among the actors involved, in an environment of security.
2. Negotiation Phase: Strategic presentation of the results of the previous phase to the counterparts, seeking to find common ground and areas of opportunity to allow the relaxation of positions and identify potential agreements.
3. Commitments Phase: Construction and subscription of agreements based on the results of the negotiation phase, with the characteristics and timeframe, previously agreed upon.
4. Implementation Phase: Materialization of the commitments assumed in the previous phase with the international accompaniment.
Mr. Maduro easily won re-election last year, despite the collapsing economy occasioned by falling oil prices and US engineered economic sanctions against the Venezuelan government in a vote that his opponents and international observers said was heavily rigged.
Most of the European Union’s member countries on Monday recognized Juan Guaidó as the legitimate leader of Venezuela, turning decisively against President Nicolás Maduro after he refused their demand to schedule a new presidential election by Sunday. | http://www.wiredja.com/news/latin-america/caricom-mexico-uruguay-search-for-venezuela-solution |
CAIRO — A simple white backdrop, two seats and four small wooden boxes make up the stage for “1980 W Enta Taleh,” (“1980 and Above”), a play about the lost dreams and daily challenges of the Egyptian youth born in the 1980s and 1990s.
The theatrical piece, 180 minutes long, was first performed in 2012 by the Studio el-Prova team in small theaters and garages used as art spaces in Cairo. Its popularity grew as word spread on social media, encouraging the theater group to perform it for a larger audience.
A three-hour version debuted in June this year, with a new script that includes current issues and sketches. Despite the Egyptian authorities' recent encroachment on freedom of expression, such as banning news sites and television programs criticizing the government, Egypt's Office of Censorship of Artistic Works authorized the play a year and a half ago.
In an interview with Al-Monitor, the play's director Mohamed Gabr said, “Our objective is to present a social play that depicts the daily life of the Egyptian people, not a political one opposing the government. We might be more daring than others, but we do not defame or insult any authority figure or political trend.”
Downtown Cairo's Hosapeer Theater was not the troupe's first choice, but various public theaters, such as Bibliotheca Alexandrina, declined to stage it despite the censors' approval.
Gabr said, “The play is outspoken and critical, which is not so common in Egypt’s artistic scene anymore. This is why some local authorities and theater directors have been reluctant to host or allow the play. The only solution was to choose one of the few private stages in Egypt.”
He asserted that the play has been a success with young people since it was first staged in 2012. “We must retain the audience that comes to watch this type of bold artistic work,” he said, adding that if the play were performed in public theaters such as Theater House, there would be attempts to control its content.
Gabr said, “The stage setup is simple because of artistic and financial constraints. The play is an example of ‘poor theater,’ which consists of using minimal fixed objects in the theater to get the message across by depending on lighting and actors’ motions.”
He added that the white curtain is symbolic of the void and isolation that the generation born in the 1980s is experiencing.
Sarcastic, bitter and often ironic in tone, the play consists of 14 scenes with 14 actors, including three women and 11 men. In the first scene, the actors recite their date of birth, age and unfulfilled dreams, and they condemn the contradictions in Egyptian society in short, snappy lines: “Should I join the military academy to become president, minister or governor?” “I am afraid I will have to travel and leave my dream behind.” “Can I laugh, or is that forbidden?” “Are the youth of the 1919 revolution still cheering?”
The scenes mostly focus on struggles against tyranny and repression, as well as family and social pressures. One of the most touching depicts a young man who works as a sales representative trying to sell toothpaste. With smiles and jokes, he tries to hide his despair: “Years go by in hypocrisy and cowardice. I tread a path blocked from all sides. The faster I go, the more I find myself walking backward.”
The play also addresses women’s freedom and independence, the social pressures to marry and attitudes toward women above 25 who are still unmarried. One scene criticizes families' control over girls when an actress says, “I shut the door to my room each day to hide from people. … But their stares and words still seep through closed doors.”
Despite the often depressing subject matter, the show manages to discuss this generation's problems in an artistic and entertaining way, and the audience often cheers throughout the performance.
Actor Mustafa Mohammad praised “the energy that comes from the young audience."
"These youths relate to every scene in the play, which reflects their political, social and cultural experiences,” he said.
Mohammad noted that tickets for the play's entire season sold out quickly. “The happiness beaming from the faces of spectators lined up at the box office of an old theater with worn-out seats stirred strong feelings within us. We hope that ‘1980 W Enta Taleh’ will live on in the memory of this generation.”
“We constantly interact with the audience through social media. Most of the scenes of self-reflection were inspired by questions from the audience. Most of the 1980s music and songs added to the show were actually proposed by the audience,” he added.
In the closing scene, the cast questions their future. In this scene, the actors seem confused, torn between continuing to fight for progress and justice and stepping back from the struggle. It's a portrayal of the youths’ state of mind after the failure of the January 25 Revolution to meet its goals — freedom, life and human dignity — seven years on.
The young generation is confused about whether to keep defying the challenges it faces and pushing for change or to give up. The show ends with a choice to continue as Cairokee's famous song “Mikammilin” ("We will go on") plays in the background.
The players hope the success of “1980 W Enta Taleh” could be the first sign of a growing independent youth theater movement that could offer a new platform for Egypt's pressing social, cultural and political topics and challenges. | https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2017/09/egyptian-theater-voices-youths-woes.html |
Phone/Fax:
(512) 358-8180
Fax: (855) 270-9668
Dr. Sandy is a Florida native. She attended Duke University in North Carolina for her undergraduate career and pursued a Bachelor’s in Science with a Psychology Major. She then attended American University of the Caribbean for her Medical Doctorate, which she graduated in 2013. After completion of medical school, she underwent her residency training at Baton Rouge General Family Medicine Residency Program in Louisiana, which she graduated in 2017 with an award in Behavioral Sciences for her empathic treatment in mental health. Following her residency, she worked in an urgent care setting in Indiana prior to coming to Austin, TX. She is excited to finally be settling down in Austin, Texas, to start her Family Medicine practice. She has two French bulldogs named Duke and Duchess, which she loves to play Frisbee with at the dog park. She has traveled the world and likes to participate in medical mission trips to third world countries.
"By listening to each patient's needs, I strive to treat the whole patient: mind, body and soul, with compassion and understanding. Each patient is multifaceted, and it’s imperative to understand an individual as a complex whole. I strive to build a partnership with each patient in order to take into account each patient’s preferences in their treatment plans, in order to create the best management plan for the individual so that they can achieve their goals and feel happy, inspired and motivated." | https://www.pfpdocs.com/sandy |
For the quickest answer, search previously asked questions below. Chances are, others have asked a similar question and there's already an answer waiting for you. If you can't find a match, ask a new question and our team members will answer.
Is it possible to get a bank statement early, I already have an account and I can see my bank statement for the previous month, but I need the bank statement that will come out next month.
Uros, Paterson
July 21, 2017 04:49:09 PM
1 person recommended this |
1 Response
In reply to Uros, Paterson
Thanks for coming to TD Helps with a great question, Uros!
While we're unable to provide a statement earlier than its release date, we do offer interim statements in any of our Stores or mini statements at the ATM.
At any TD Bank ATM machine you should be able to print out a mini statement. This would include approximately the last 10 transactions presented against your account. Your account number would not be listed on this mini statement.
If you'd prefer, you may also visit us at any of our Stores and we can provide you with an Interim Statement. This would include your account number and would list all transactions that have posted to your account since your last statement was completed. To find a Store near you where you can obtain an Interim Statement, please click here: https://go.td.com/1nq31dc.
We look forward to hearing from you soon, Uros. Have a great weekend! | https://www.tdbank.com/tdhelps/default.aspx/early-bank-statement/v/46839893/ |
District-level reports of the 2014 discipline records data validation indicators and student-level reports were posted to the TEA Secure Environment (TEASE) Accountability application on November 21, 2014. Reports are available only for districts that triggered one of the nine DVM-D indicators. Districts were encouraged to review and analyze these reports to ensure the discipline records data they submit reflect the requirements of discipline record reporting, including the requirements contained in the 2014-2015 PEIMS Data Standards and Appendix E. Based on that review, districts should have determined whether any new or additional procedures needed to be implemented to ensure the accurate submission of discipline record data.
For the 2014-2015 year, intervention staging for DVM-D was determined by which indicators the district triggered, including longitudinal data, and the number of indicators the district triggered. Staging will be posted Tuesday, February 24, 2015, in the Intervention, Stage, and Activity Manager (ISAM) application in TEASE. Through ISAM, a district can determine which stage of intervention has been assigned for DVM-D. All districts that triggered any DVM-D indicator have been assigned an intervention stage.
Districts assigned to Stage 1 will complete the DVM-D workbook for the indicator triggered and develop a DVM-D corrective action plan (DVM-D CAP) to address any discipline record coding or documentation discrepancies and/or noncompliance. Completion due date is April 10, 2015. Districts in Stage 1 will maintain the DVM-D workbook, DVM-D CAP, and supporting documentation locally. These districts will submit intervention and supporting documentation only upon request of the Texas Education Agency (TEA).
Districts assigned to Stage 2 or 3 will complete the DVM-D workbook for the indicator(s) triggered and develop a DVM-D CAP to address any discipline record coding or documentation discrepancies and/or noncompliance. The due date for completion and submission to TEA is April 10, 2015. Further, districts assigned to Stage 3 will engage in follow-up support activities to help ensure the successful implementation of corrective actions and discipline records data submission. Specific follow-up activities will be determined after the review of the submitted DVM-D workbook(s) and DVM-D CAP.
Additionally, districts assigned to Stage 2 or 3 will need to designate a DVM-D program contact in ISAM. Step-by-step instructions for completing this task will be located under Intervention Guidance and Resources on the DVM-D page of the TEA website.
Information related to the DVM-D indicators is available in the 2014 Discipline Records Data Validation Manual.
Intervention documents, including the Data Validation Guidance Document, and tools for conducting the DVM-D intervention activities will be posted to ISAM and the TEA website on February 24, 2015. Districts selected for on-site data validation reviews will receive individualized correspondence from TEA detailing required intervention activities. | https://www.esc4.net/thepulse/data-validation-monitoring-discipline-staging-announced |
A Global Leader: What's the new DNA?
The uncertain times require leaders to have a global mindset, manage differences and be able to redefine self. Excerpts from the People Matters & BIMTECH Roundtable Series on the Art & Science of Developing Leaders
Increasing uncertainty and ambiguity are being seen as the most critical challenges for leaders today. As the economy continues on its dwindling path, organizations across the globe and in India are finding the need to increasingly be prepared for contingencies in the future, instead of focusing primarily on only their long-term or short-term goals. The rate of change has accelerated, indicating that leaders must learn how to strike a balance between managing complex issues today and predicting the uncertain issues of tomorrow.
Ajay Soni, Practice Leader, Leadership Consulting, AON Hewitt defines the present business scenario as being interconnected, uncertain and filled with great opportunities for leaders to exploit. He adds, “In the interconnected world, leaders must be able to tackle short-term challenges and long-term opportunities, and therefore must have the ability to connect the dots.”
A global leader
In the present business scenario, the leadership spectrum includes leaders of three natures. There are leaders with global responsibilities or performing activities, which span across borders. There are leaders who interface routinely with customers, suppliers or peers from other countries. And there are leaders with purely local responsibilities who have little or no interaction with customers, suppliers or peers in other countries. But, all three types of leaders have the need to become global leaders in the present context of how business is operated and the fact that any business is influenced by external factors in the interconnected world.
To be effective in an interconnected world, leaders must acquire three critical characteristics for greater effectiveness:
A global mindset: The leader’s ability to think, strategize and therefore, take decisions from a more macro perspective will contribute to greater success. Business no more operates in a silo, and the truth is that in an interconnected world, the fortunes of Indian IT sector is linked to US recovery, which must overcome the European divorce! Thus, leaders must understand global dynamics and how it can impact business.
Ability to re-define self: Continuous change being the only constant, leaders must have the ability to re-evaluate their strengths and be willing to change in order to suit the changing demands of the economy and business.
Manage differences: The interconnected world extends the workplace beyond office boundaries and geographies. It is essential for leaders, therefore, to be able to manage cultural differences, as well as be open to adopt new styles and attitudes as demanded.
Keeping in mind the above context, Ron Moffatt, Director, San Diego State University International Student Center, defines a global leader as one who has a grasp of global systems, global issues, the dynamics of how things are interrelated and interconnected in the world, and how organizations can best address global issues.
So, what are the competencies of a global leader?
Being sensitive to cultures and encourage diversity
Leaders must be able to appreciate and understand cultural differences of people to really be able to optimize their collective strength. The more interconnected the world becomes, the more it will have people from varied cultures, demography or geography working together. The ability of a leader to understand their differences and work with that will define his/her success as a global leader.
Building partnerships
Creating connectedness will go beyond the internal business environment. Business success will require global leaders to seamlessly partner with all stakeholders to create partnerships. Partnering with different stakeholders will enable global leaders to achieve far more, as it will allow businesses to capitalize on their collective strength.
Optimism
The uncertain times present the most unpromising situations and global leaders must showcase optimism in the face of uncertainty during tough times. The confidence that businesses will be able to surpass the difficult times and ensure continuity will be based on the global leader’s ability to stay optimistic at all times.
Comfort with ambiguity
The present uncertainty reaffirms that change is the only constant. A global leader must be very comfortable with constant ambiguity. Changes in global economy will continue to have its implications on business and a global leader will need the ability to steer through such confusing and hazy situations, while staying focused on the business objective.
Risk taking and being decisive
The rough and tough business scenario poses a demanding situation for global leaders who often need to make critical decisions without much clarity on the repercussions. Global leaders must present a risk taking ability and be decisive as they stay focused on ensuring business continuity even in the worst of situations.
Can organizations create global leaders?
To create global leaders, organizations need to invest on developing global leaders who have the above competencies. The business fraternity in India is cognizant of the challenge inadequate leadership can pose on business continuity and success. This demands a change in how leadership developed is approached in organizations today. There is a clear need to start early by identifying potential leaders at an early age and grooming them, exposing them to challenging assignments and allowing them to learn from experience, by creating learning agility in people and instilling a will to change continuously. | https://www.peoplematters.in/article/strategic-hr/a-global-leader-whats-the-new-dna-2158 |
When leaders delegate more responsibility for decision making, they see increased employee productivity, morale, and commitment as well as improved company culture and lower turnover rates (Gallup 2015). This type of employee empowerment not only improves the bottom line but also helps create an environment where employees can feel confident in their abilities to solve problems and make decisions on their own. In this article, we’re going to share how to delegate decision-making responsibility and how to support your people as they work through and implement decisions.
Delegating is something many leaders know they should do, but often don’t. One of the most difficult transitions for leaders to make is the shift from doing to leading. In order to become an effective leader, you have to let go of work. You have to stop becoming mired in details that only individual contributors should be handling. And you need to let go of control: empowering others means letting them take risks and make mistakes – all are essential parts of learning how to lead. Your colleagues may even value your willingness to “roll your sleeves up” to execute tactical assignments. But as your responsibilities become more complex, the difference between an effective leader and an overstretched individual contributor with a leader’s title is painfully evident.
Leaders often find it more difficult to delegate decision-making responsibility than to delegate a task. Delegation means giving up control over part of your work. Some leaders lack confidence in the delegatee’s ability and hover over them, taking over when things go off track. You have to trust that someone else will do it well, with minimal direction and input from you. And that can be hard – especially when you’re used to doing things yourself.
However, delegation is about more unloading busy work on others. We often work with leaders who confuse delegation for dumping and leave the responsibility to their direct report and then don’t support them on an ongoing basis. Effective delegation is about creating a framework that allows your people to grow into their potential. To really empower your people, don’t just delegate tasks; make sure people get a chance to make decisions about their work as well. Delegated decision-making responsibility is an essential tool of any modern manager.
If you constantly finding yourself as the bottleneck to your team’s work – with everyone waiting for your review, sign-off or input – then it’s time to take another look at delegation. It’s an effective tool for speeding up work, allowing others the opportunity to develop their skills and for moving decision-making into the hands closest to the work who may actually be better placed to make decisions than you.
We’ve broken down the delegation process into 2 stages:
Stage 1: Preparing to Delegate
The key to delegating decision making like so many other things is preparation. Making time for some preliminary work can help ensure the whole process runs smoothly, saving time and overall effort.
It’s important to perceive a decision as a workflow made of a series decisions and actions rather than a one-off event. To support your people, you have to provide them with the information they need to apply good judgement, you need to delegate sufficient authority to them, so they don’t keep coming back to you, you need to lay out a clear path for them, facilitate relationships with key stakeholders and you need to monitor and support at a safe distance to ensure they stay on track.
Step 1: Write down in clear language the decision you are preparing to delegate.
Before sitting down with your direct report, you need to sit down and write down the decision you are delegating. This way you have real clarity when you sit down with them. This includes what the decision is, the rationale, why it’s important, what the impact will be and any key dependencies and define what “done” or “good” looks like. It’s also good practice to send a summary email of the decision you have delegated afterwards to ensure there are no misunderstandings and interpretations.
Step 2: Realistically Assess the Delegatee’s Abilities
Have they done this before and how successful were they? How confident are you in them, how confident are others? How well networked in the organisation are they? Do they prefer to be given the big picture so that they can just work it out, or do they prefer to hear instructions step by step? All these questions will help you decide how much support is required and to what extent you will need to seed ideas to set them off on the right path.
Step 3: Work out what is your preferred timeline for completion along with milestones
This way you can be clear of your expectations. Providing milestones breaks the decision down into manageable chunks. During the actual delegation discussion, you should be open to make changes based on new information that comes up. However, it’s good to be clear upfront what your expectations are so there are no misunderstandings.
Step 4: Describe, in specific terms, the level of authority being delegated.
Think through the decision-making authority they will need to get this decision made and implemented. Do they need sign off limits, Think of Different “If This, Then That (IFTT)” scenarios. For example, if the Head of Finance refuses to provide one of their team to implement their decision, then what should they do?
Step 5: When and Where?
If it’s a challenging decision, then it’s best you arrange a specific time for the meeting when you won’t be rushed or disturbed. It’s even better if the agenda is clear and you can just focus on this task, so they have a clear mind and not on other topics you’ve discussed
Stage 2: The Delegation Session
You’ve done your preparation, it’s now time to sit down with your direct report to take them through the delegation process. You need to remember this is as much a development opportunity as it is a key decision for your team or your organisation. One of the essential skills you will be using in the conversation is coaching, as you invite them to think for themselves rather than spoon feed the answers and give them specific directions. Coaching is a muscle that you build up over time with practice. However, you don’t need to be an experienced coaching to delegate a decision well. The very talented Michael Bungay-Steiner devised but immensely powerful questions that encourages your people to think for themselves. During this section we’ll be weaving a small selection of his questions and adapting them to support delegating decision-making process.
Step 1: Take them through your prepared notes and invite questions
Firstly, take them the through the decision you are delegating, working through the points you have prepared. Explain why you have selected them for the decision, particularly to build their confidence.
Once you’ve explained, ask if they have any clarifying questions or if anything is unclear. Depending on their level of experience, you might want to give them an opportunity to go away and do some thinking and then arrange a follow-up meeting where you will go into the following questions in depth.
Step 2: Ask “What options are you considering?”
The most effective decision outcomes happen when you consider multiple options (Nutt, 2002). By asking this question, you encourage people to think about more than one potential solution (and not fall in love with their first idea). If they only share one option, ask “and what else?” It’s an extremely powerful coaching question as it encourages deeper thinking. You can follow this up by asking them “What are the Pros and Cons of each option?” This helps them think through the trade-offs of each decision and reduces overconfidence bias. Remember, if they are inexperienced, they won’t be able to trust their intuition as much as someone who is experienced, so you need to help them think for themselves. If they have no idea where to start, then this is when you can seed the idea. Give them a few suggestions about who they might need to talk to, or what research they will need to conduct in order to develop suitable options.
Step 3: Ask “What are the challenges for you with this?”
This question helps identify what the challenges are that stand in the way of a successful decision and implementation. Adding “for you” makes it more personal and increases the chance this conversation might identify some developmental needs. By inviting them to be vulnerable, this can help you build a more transparent and trusting relationship, allowing you to support them in the optimal way. As their manager you might be well placed to help them overcome or reduce any potential challenges along the way, such as introducing them to a challenging stakeholder.
Step 4: Explain what will done/ good like to you at the end of the decision process?
It’s so important that you both agree on what the end result looks like. By asking this question, it gives you both an opportunity to share your perspectives, agree what the standard should be you want to achieve at the end of the process. At the same time, you can also discuss what happens once the decision has been made and implemented. Will they hand responsibility over to someone else and how will they do it? Effective decision makers are often held back as they find it difficult to pass on responsibility once their part in a decision has been completed.
Step 5: Ask “How can I help (during the process)”?
Your natural preference could be to just leave them to it or to stay close in case they make a mistake. It’s important in delegation that you ask them first. Is it weekly check-ins, will you be available at short notice if they need you? Will you be needed to attend initial meetings to help build relations with other departments? This is where you agree how you will support them during the process. It’s important that you provide ongoing feedback and help them through any mistakes they make. Agree up front how often you will both meet up, how long will your meetings last? Ask “what knowledge or expertise you need from me”? Ask “Do you need me to arrange any meetings with stakeholders or speak to a stakeholder’s manager in order to prepare them for their work with you?”
Step 6: At the end of the meeting, Ask “What’s on your mind?”
Once you’ve completed the delegation process, this question gives your team member an opportunity to voice any reservations they have about the decisions or share any concerns. Sometimes it can be challenging for a direct report to share with their manager any doubts they have about their ability or experience to make the decision. You can follow this first question by asking “and what else?” as this allows you to dig deeper. This forces your team member to think deeper about what’s the issue is. It also shows you’re keen to hear from them and get to the heart of the matter. It’s important to surface these things now so you can support them in the best way possible.
Step 7: Ask “Because you’re saying yes to this, what are you saying no to?”
This helps ensure that the person doesn’t get overwhelmed by work and stays focused. Often when our manager asks us to do something we want to make a good impression, so we say yes regardless of how busy we are.
Step 8: Ask “What was most useful for you in this delegation session, what could we do better next time?”
Reviewing your processes, are the sign of a great delegator. By taking a few moments to review the conversation and think about how you can improve it, will speed up your preparation for your next delegation and save you time
Conclusion
As you can see with some preparation and quality time with your direct report you can help them take on greater levels of responsibility and accelerate their development.
By following this process you’re encouraging your direct report to develop their decision-making judgement. You’re setting clear expectations and helping them develop the skills they need to succeed. If you would like further information about the process for delegating a decision to a direct report, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. | https://distinction.live/from-doing-to-leading-how-to-delegate-to-decision-making-to-your-team/ |
Occupational Groups:
- Project and Programme Management
- Managerial positions
- Closing Date:
LocationThis position is based Juba, South Sudan with frequent travel to field locations.
Starting Date & Initial Contract Details
September 2022. Full time, 24 months.
Role Overview
Oversee all programme and support activities in-country. Representing Medair in all issues relating to the country programme, the Country Director plays a key role in donor relations and grant management, external representation, legal compliance, they manage the country strategy, project implementation and evaluation in conjunction with senior field managers.
Project Overview
The purpose of Medair’s multi-sector relief programme in South Sudan is to save lives and alleviate human suffering by working in fixed and emergency response locations, with vulnerable populations and providing essential life-saving health, nutrition, WASH, NFI/ES and mental health and psychosocial services.
Our Culture
Key Activity Areas
Leadership and Management
- To Implement the country strategy; design, review and evaluate in collaboration with senior field managers and GSO staffs. Consider the political and security context, community needs, donor criteria and strategies and possible exit strategies in order to facilitate the long-term planning and development of projects.
- Ensure the implementation, monitoring, evaluation and reporting of the planned activities in accordance with the project proposals and logical frameworks and institutional donor policies and guidelines.
- Manage the overall programme and support functions related to reviews, management structures, the development and maintenance of operational procedures for individual projects and support functions.
- Analyse humanitarian needs, trends and political developments in the country of operation and the surrounding region in order to anticipate new projects and initiatives, ensure needs driven, life-saving focus. Ensure that the project proposals, project implementation and project reporting are of high quality that meet and exceed donor expectations and relevant national and international standards.
- Maintain strong relationships with donors so that Medair is a partner of choice.
- Ensure that activities and support functions comply with the national and international laws and regulations.
Operations Management
- Oversee programme implementations in consultation with the relevant senior field manager of the programme. Ensure objectives are met on time and within the budgets while preventing corrective actions.
- Ensure good communications with all country teams implementing and supporting the programme plans.
- Ensure that the structures are in place to support managers to comply with operational systems, donor requirements while meeting the country programme strategy. Development of activity plans & resource analysis.
- Prepare and implement policies, procedures and guidelines, as appropriate and with the relevant field manager and GSO staffs through standardised procedures and improvement supports.
- Represent Medair at relevant national and local meetings with government officials, contractors, donors, UN and other NGOs, etc., reporting back as applicable to staff, field managers and GSO.
Financial Management
- Supervise the budget management and expenditures, in collaboration with the finance manager, the project. coordinator, manager and GSO staffs, ensuring budgets are spent according to donor proposals and regulations. Ensure the management of spending within the programme is in-line with the approved budgets.
- Ensure sufficient and appropriate controls are in place to prevent fraud and that relevant staff receive the required information and training to minimise the risk of occurrence within the country programme.
Security Management
- Overall responsibility for the safety and security of Medair staff and assets.
- Oversee the updating and implementation of country location security plans, guidelines and manuals.
- Ensure appropriate security procedures and awareness are maintained throughout the country programme.
- Leading decision makings and contingency plans. Chair the local Crisis Management Team if/when required.
Staff Management
- Line manage designated staff, including direct supervision and development.
- Hold regular team meetings and through a consultative leadership style and a transparent, honest and supportive communication structure, develop and build an effective team.
- Ensure effective HR functions of all national and international staffs and refer issues to the appropriate HR lead. Ensure compliance and safeguarding policies and practices are in place in all locations.
- Reflect the vision and values of Medair while providing good leadership, support and appropriate communication.
Quality Management
- Review, develop and implement systems to detect and improve transparency in order to prevent loss or fraud. Ensure that the country programme are implemented in line with donor proposals and requirements and in accordance with Medair and stakeholder international standards and others.
Team Spiritual Life
- Reflect the values of Medair with team members, local staff, beneficiaries, and external contacts.
- Work, live, and pray together in our Christian faith-based team settings. Fully contribute to the rich spiritual life of your team, including team devotions, prayers, and words of encouragement.
- Encouraged to join and contribute to Medair’s international prayer network.
This job description covers the main tasks that are anticipated. Other tasks may be assigned as necessary.
Qualifications
- Degree in Management; Development Studies; Business Administration or in a relevant technical subject.
- Desired Post-graduate degree in the humanitarian sector; Security management and/or Leadership training.
- Excellent working knowledge of English and French (speaking and writing). Arabic will be an advantage.
Relief & Recovery Orientation Course (ROC)
What is the ROC and why is it required?
Experience
- 5 years post-qualification experience in a management position and 3 years in complex humanitarian emergencies.
- 1-year experience in managing projects in insecure working environments.
- Experience in dealing with donors and government officials. Knowledge of Humanitarian Essentials such as Sphere and CHS. Strategic thinker, change oriented, advanced planning, assessment and analytical skills.
- Advanced leadership and management skills and ability to build trust and enforce procedures.
- Experience and willingness in training and mentoring staffs. Team player with good interpersonal skills.
All new deploying international staff to Medair’s country programmes (and other roles which require field travel) should be fully vaccinated with a WHO-approved COVID vaccine, supported with a COVID vaccination certificate as evidence. | https://www.impactpool.org/jobs/788764 |
- Front. Neurosci.
- 2015
Recent advances have been discussed in fenestrated capillary characterization and dynamic tissue reconstruction accompanied by angiogenesis and neurogliogenesis in the sensory CVOs of adult brains. Expand
Vasopressin and sensory circumventricular organs.
- Biology, Medicine
- Progress in brain research
- 1998
The subfornical organ, the area postrema and the organum vasculosum of the lamina terminalis are considered to be sensory circumventricular organs as they contain neuronal somata which are located… Expand
Anatomical Organization of the Rat Subfornical Organ
- Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience
- 2021
The subfornical organ (SFO) is a sensory circumventricular organ located along the anterodorsal wall of the third ventricle. SFO lacks a complete blood-brain barrier (BBB), and thus… Expand
Anatomical, molecular and pathological consideration of the circumventricular organs.
- Biology, Medicine
- Neuro-Chirurgie
- 2015
This study used LCM and microarrays to analyse the transcriptomes of three CVOs, the SCO, the subfornical organ (SFO) and the PG and the third ventricle ependyma of the adult rat, in order to better characterise these organs at the molecular level. Expand
Understanding How the Subcommissural Organ and Other Periventricular Secretory Structures Contribute via the Cerebrospinal Fluid to Neurogenesis
- Biology, Medicine
- Front. Cell. Neurosci.
- 2015
Early and new evidence concerning the role(s) of the SCO, and the probable mechanisms by which SCO compounds can readily reach the neurogenic niche of the subventricular zone flowing with the CSF are brought into discussion. Expand
References
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Circumventricular organ capillaries.
- Biology, Medicine
- Progress in brain research
- 1992
The work is intended to highlight established concepts about the process of blood monitoring by CVOs, summarize new morphological and physiological characteristics of their capillaries, and provide clues to novel research that could foster further understanding of these curious sentinel and secretory organs of the brain. Expand
Neurotransmitters and receptors in the subfornical organ. Immunohistochemical and electrophysiological evidence.
- Biology, Medicine
- Progress in brain research
- 1992
This in vitro technique allows electrical recording from viable tissue sections to identify cells as true neurons under conditions of applying certain currents and voltages as well as certain transmitters resulting in typical membrane- and ion channel-related electrical responses. Expand
Somatostatin-binding sites on structures of circumventricular organs.
- Biology, Medicine
- Progress in brain research
- 1992
This chapter focuses on three circumventricular organs (CVOs) that receive typical somatostatin projections, the organum vasculosum laminae terminalis (OVLT), the subfornical organ (SFO) and the median eminence (ME). Expand
The supraoptic nucleus: Afferents from areas involved in control of body fluid homeostasis
- Medicine, Biology
- Neuroscience
- 1989
Detailed investigation of the neurochemical afferents to the supraoptic nucleus from regions of the lamina terminalis and the brainstem provides an anatomical basis for the functional observations that the supraOptic nucleus plays a key integrative role in the maintenance of body fluid homeostasis. Expand
Chapter 36: Steroid hormones and circumventricular organs
- Biology
- 1992
The presence of steroid hormone receptors in the regions of the OVLT, the SFO and in the interconnecting nuclear groups strongly suggests regulatory effects on brain angiotensin production and secretion and on the related regulation of water and electrolyte homeostasis. Expand
The area postrema: a cardiovascular control centre at the blood-brain interface?
- Medicine
- Canadian journal of physiology and pharmacology
- 1991
Extracellular single unit recordings have identified two functionally separate populations of AP neurons: one responsive to circulating ANG and a second apparently responsive to changes in blood pressure. Expand
Periventricular preoptic-hypothalamus is vital for thirst and normal water economy.
- Biology, Medicine
- The American journal of physiology
- 1978
The data suggest that preoptic-anterior hypothalamic periventricular tissue houses vital neural elements which function in the modulation of water ingestive and conservation mechanisms directed at the maintenance of body fluid homeostasis. Expand
Neuroanatomical and biochemical evidence for the involvement of the area postrema in the regulation of vasopressin release in rats
- Medicine, Chemistry
- Brain Research
- 1988
The findings indicate that AP plays an important role in the regulation of VP release during changes in osmotic environment and suggest that this medullary circumventricular organ is a part of central circuitry subserving salt-water balance. Expand
The circumventricular organs and the central actions of angiotensin.
- Medicine
- Neuroendocrinology
- 1981
This review discusses the central nervous system actions of the circulating hormone, angiotensin II, and three of the circumventricular organs, the area postrema, the subfornical organ, and the organum vasculosum, have all been suggested to be sites of action for angiotsin within the brain. Expand
A survey of occurrence of about seventeen circumventricular organs in brains of various vertebrates with special reference to lower groups. | https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Sensory-circumventricular-organs-and-brain-pathways-Johnson-Gross/3fc8871f32b28c93faa45c368ae57994700d2607 |
Under the direction of the Executive Director, the ROSS Services Coordinator is responsible for coordinating the grantee’s approved activities to ensure that grant goals and objectives are met. The Coordinator must have experience managing projects and preferably has experience working with supportive services and responsible for ensuring that all federal requirements are followed.
MAJOR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
- Plans, develops, implements ROSS programs.
- Coordinates partners to ensure grant funded programs are implemented effectively and efficiently.
- Monitors programs goals and objectives.
- Researches and purchases necessary equipment and supplies.
- Develops community contacts by maintaining communication and correspondence with area social service agencies both private and public; stays abreast of services offered by area social services agencies.
- Meets with Resident Councils and Resident Advisory Board on a regular basis.
- Coordinates the ROSS activities with other NWGHA resident programs.
- Submits monthly status reports to the Executive Director detailing progress with assigned programs and activities.
- Integrity and Trust – Show consistency between words and actions.
- Protect confidential and sensitive information.
- Effectively handles emotions, including anger and frustration.
- Ethics and Values – Engages in open and honest dialogue with others.
- Treat all individuals (residents, staff and guest) respectfully, professionally, and fairly.
- Customer and Team Focus – Establish and maintains effective customer relationships.
- Demonstrate effective customer relationships.
- Demonstrate effective listening skills.
- Involve residents in shaping plans and in making decisions that affect them.
- Consistently demonstrates timely follow-through and responsiveness to resident’s needs and requests.
- Other duties may be assigned at the discretion of the Executive Director.
- REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES
- Must have two years’ experience managing programs and have experience working with supportive services.
- Knowledge of the general operations and procedures of a Public Housing Agency (PHA).
- Knowledge of report preparation techniques and procedures and a demonstrated ability to prepare and evaluate professional and technical reports, grant applications and other documents.
- Knowledge of available human service resources in the area.
- Ability to understand, act on, and interpret policies, regulations, and procedures as set forth by the housing authority and/or HUD.
- Ability to interpret and apply complex rules, regulations, laws and ordinances.
- Ability to prepare detailed written reports, correspondence and proposals.
- EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE
- Graduated from an accredited college or university, preferably with specialization in sociology, social work, business management, public administration, education, or related field.
- Three years of considerably progressive experience (or Master’s Degree) in social work, including three years of supervisory experience and work with disadvantage persons.
- Any equivalent combination of training and experience to meet the required knowledge, skills and abilities.
- SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS
- Ability to travel to various locations within Floyd and Polk Counties.
- Ability and willingness to travel occasionally to attend conferences and training events across the nation. | https://www.romega.com/jobs/info/government-ross-coordinator-25037 |
Hiroshima Peace Memorial is one of the intrinsic parts of the Japan that is a representation of the country’s loss of its citizens because of the atomic bombing on 6 August 1945. This is why locals commonly call the memorial the Atomic Bomb Dome or Genbaku D?mu. It is situated in Hiroshima, Japan, and is one of the attractions of the main Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1996.
Over the years, the memorial has emerged as a strong symbol of peace and how taxing war is, as more than 70,000 people were killed and another 70,000 suffered fatal injuries due to the radiation. Today, people take the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Tour and learn about the importance of peace.
Architecture and History
Designed by the Czech architect Jan Letzel, the Hiroshima Peace Memorial is prominently recognized by its distinct dome. Earlier, it was a building in the business district next to the Aioi Bride. It was a piece of art, visited mostly during art and educational exhibitions. After the bombing, only the left side of the building was left. The dome of the building was predominantly visible and many people were in favor of preserving the place. Ultimately, the ruin was preserved as a memorial and a reminder of peace.
|Established||:||1954|
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Comments will go through a verification process for security reasons. | https://www.tourtravelworld.com/japan/hiroshima/hiroshima-peace-memorial.htm |
If there is a copyrighted book that I want to be freely available (for whatever reason), is it possible through legal means to make it available to everyone? When I say freely available I mean to publish an ebook that is free or a website that has the whole book online. Would it involve contacting the publisher (if the author is deceased) or author and making some sort of deal? If known what would such a deal potentially entail (one time payment, multiple payments based on usage, or some other criteria)? I live in the US.
If you own the copyright (because you wrote the book), you can do whatever you want with it. If someone else has the copyright, you have to get their permission to do what you propose. That could be the author, the author's estate, or some other party. It then depends on what the interest of the rights-holder is: they could say "No way!", "Sure, for a payment of $100,000", "At $1 per copy, here is how you must keep track of copies", "Okay, as long as you include this notice that prevents further re-distribution" or "Huh, I never thought of that. Sure, I grant you complete license to do whatever you want". A publisher is relevant only when the publisher requires a transfer of copyright to the publishing company, or if the rights-holder has granted them a certain type of license (e.g. an exclusive license). If the author has granted someone else an exclusive perpetual right to distribute, then they cannot also grant you a license to distribute for free. That is really the author's problem, though, since the publisher doesn't hold the copyright so can't sue you, instead the publisher would sue the author for breach of contract.
You would have to contact the copyright owner, and negotiate a contract with them. That could be complicated if they already have an agreement with someone else.
There are expirations for copyrights, but you have not mentioned what you would propose to distribute.
Note that works may be covered by more than one copyright, in more than one country, and for some works, the countries can vary widely in their copyright protections.
You might want to consider the library system approach. Check out this article. Increasing number of books are loaned out in e-book format. I think in a sense it's a legal way to make a book freely available to the public.
However, note that:
- you are NOT purchasing a copy of a book, instead you are purchasing
license to access the content, so first-sale doctrine of
copyright law is not applicable. Namely, they might grant you
one year e-loaning right, or might charge you licence fee again for
every 100 copies loaned.
The first sale doctrine, codified at 17 U.S.C. § 109, provides that an individual who knowingly purchases a copy of a copyrighted work from the copyright holder receives the right to sell, display or otherwise dispose of that particular copy, notwithstanding the interests of the copyright owner. The right to distribute ends, however, once the owner has sold that particular copy.
- Whether this practice is doing publishers good or harm is still debatable.
- To self-publishers, selling to libraries might present a economical and effective marketing opportunity. In other words, if you are considering distributing self-published copyrighted books, and you are running a digital library (I guess you will need state permit or something to do so), it can be a win-win to both parties.
P.S. I am NOT attorney. This post is NOT legal advice. | https://law.stackexchange.com/questions/21089/process-to-make-a-copyrighted-book-freely-available/21096 |
The bedrock exposed in the Low Wassie Quadrangle, Missouri, comprises Late Cambrian and Early Ordovician aged dolomite, sandstone, and chert. The sedimentary rocks are nearly flat-lying except where they are adjacent to faults. The carbonates are karstified and the area contains numerous sinkholes, springs, caves, and losing-streams.
This map is one of several being produced under the U.S. Geological Survey National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program to provide geologic data applicable to land-use problems in the Ozarks of south-central Missouri. Ongoing and potential industrial and agricultural development in the Ozarks region has presented issues of ground-water quality in karst areas. A National Park in this region (Ozark National Scenic Riverways, Missouri ) is concerned about the effects of activities in areas outside of their stewardship on the water resources that define the heart of this Park. This task applies geologic mapping and karst investigations to address issues surrounding competing land use in south-central Missouri. This task keeps geologists from the USGS associated with the park and allows the Parks to utilize USGS expertise and aid the NPS on how to effectively use geologic maps for Park management. For more information see: http://geology.er.usgs.gov/eespteam/Karst/.
- Download compressed GIS vector and raster data: (GISdata.zip, 6.57 MB)
- Metadata available in compressed .html files: (metadata.zip 33 KB)
Direct questions and comments to: | https://pubs.usgs.gov/imap/i2719/ |
From 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019, Latvia will preside over the Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS). The CBSS is an intergovernmental cooperation format for the promotion of political dialogue and practical cooperation among member states seeking to strengthen the region’s sustainability, security and identity.
The CBSS member states carry out joint projects in the field of climate change and environmental protection, culture, education, youth cooperation, effective use of resources, innovations and labour market, as well as pooling efforts to fight against human trafficking and organised crime, strengthening civil security and border management, cooperating closely in the field of the protection of children’s rights.
Latvia has been a member of the CBSS since its establishment in 1992, and has held presidency of the organisation twice: in 2007-2008, and in 1996-1997. Latvia is a constructive and visible partner in the CBSS, engaging actively in cooperation projects and sector-specific working groups and task forces.
The 2018-2019 Presidency of the CBSS will give Latvia the opportunity to take the helm of the intergovernmental cooperation in the Baltic Sea Region, set out the vectors of practical cooperation among the region’s countries, advance joint interests and objectives, as well as launch new initiatives. Each presidency, including that of Latvia, has a unique opportunity for defining its special priorities to be implemented during the year in office.
The Latvian Presidency of the CBSS will be put into effect by the majority of Latvia’s line ministries and their subordinate institutions, with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs assuming the coordinator’s role and chairing the meeting of the CBSS Committee of Senior Officials (CSO) and arranging the closing event of the Presidency. The Presidency will work in close cooperation with the CBSS Permanent Secretariat in Stockholm, which provides technical and organisational support for the chairperson of the CSOs, expert groups and task forces, coordinates and administers the CBSS activities and its financial flow.
The Latvian Presidency will be guided in its work by three priority focus areas:
1. Integrity and Societal Security
The Latvian Presidency will seek to increase macro-regional coherence in approaching societal security threats. The Presidency will strengthen regional cooperation in civil protection, the fight against trafficking in human beings (including minors), combating organised crime, and border management.
In order to advance this priority, the Latvian Presidency will focus on the following issues:
- Enhancing cooperation in civil protection area to strengthen resilience in the region against major emergencies and disasters.
- Fighting against trafficking in human beings to prevent and mitigate consequences of this serious crime.
- Combating organised crime and strengthening border management.
In 2017, the CBSS Civil Protection Network (CPN) adopted the Joint Position on Enhancing Cooperation in Civil Protection Area that defines eight priority areas for the upcoming years. The Latvian Presidency will advance implementation of two of the strategic actions: building a common societal security culture; and combining national efforts in implementing the UN Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction. To that end, Latvia in cooperation with academia will organise the first conference on “Societal Security in the Baltic Sea Region: Challenges and Solutions”, aiming to keep the network of enlightened decision-makers active. All these endeavours will contribute to making the Baltic Sea Region safer and more secure for all people living here.
Human trafficking remains a topical issue for the countries in the Baltic Sea Region. Effective prevention depends on mutual trust between all stakeholders involved in counteracting these crimes and providing timely assistance to victims. Integrity and ability to establish mutual trust between all actors involved are the most important issues that need to be promoted by joint efforts. Further steps are necessary to increase an understanding of victims’ rights, to strengthen investigation and prosecution, and effective handling of trafficking cases by the judiciary.
Strengthening the role of local actors, in particular mass media, in prevention of trafficking in human beings and work on the development of a TRM (Transnational Referral Mechanism) for the Baltic Sea Region will be continued by the CBSS Task Force against Trafficking in Human Beings (TF-THB) in cooperation with the CBSS Children at Risk Group (CAR). The expert group has a proven track-record in implementing measures to prevent the exploitation and trafficking of children below 18.
Regional cooperation is also required to tackle supranational phenomena such as the smuggling of drugs and weapons, irregular migration, crimes against property and crimes threatening economic interests and state budget revenue, as well as the use of the internet for unlawful activities. Latvia will support all efforts aimed at building a comprehensive mechanism for operational cooperation between law enforcement agencies in the Baltic Sea Region, in particular, based on the achievements of two networks: the Baltic Sea Task Force against Organised Crime (BSTF) and the Baltic Sea Region Border Control Cooperation (BSRBCC). Law enforcement agencies of the Baltic Sea Region will benefit from increased day-to-day cooperation founded on a multidisciplinary approach, integrity and trust, confidence in justice as well as a common understanding of major threats.
2. Responsibility
The Implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the “Baltic 2030 Action Plan – a Shared Vision”, depends on a responsible approach both on national and regional level. Responsibility is multifaceted – it has political, administrative, environmental, economic, social, cultural and moral aspects. For the CBSS as a regional organisation it comes naturally – to take care of our common home and its future. The proposals for an implementation framework, elaborated during the Swedish Presidency, will serve as a basis for the new mandate of the CBSS Expert Group of Sustainable Development to be approved during the Latvian Presidency
SDGs in action during the Latvian Presidency will mean focusing on circular economy and responsible consumption and production that is practically interlinked with aspects of green procurement. Smart governance of our cities is something that unites the interests of urban planners in the countries of the region with very different background and approaches. The Latvian Presidency of the VASAB Committee on Spatial Planning and Development of the Baltic Sea Region (CSPD/BSR) will address gaps in the development of various types of urban areas.
During the Latvian Presidency, pursuant to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), countries will adopt the necessary decisions for effective implementation of the Paris Agreement on climate change. Climate change is a transboundary issue that concerns many areas on which work is undertaken by the CBSS – mitigation and adaptation to climate change, especially finding practical solutions is a common responsibility at municipal, national, regional, as well as international level. Moreover, the CBSS is the Coordinator of the Climate Action of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region and its Flagship “BSR Climate Dialogue Platform”.
3. Dialogue
The CBSS member states share a common value – the Baltic Sea coast with its special character and cultural heritage, one that is enriched by the many diverse contributions from each of the countries along its shores. There is a tendency towards a broader understanding of cultural heritage as an important element in the development of a democratic, law-based and culture oriented society. Cultural heritage plays a role both in shaping regional identity and ensuring sustainable growth – the long term CBSS priorities.
The notion of cultural heritage is expanding. It is no longer something exclusive to be revered, it is becoming an integral part of our societal living space. This space is constantly evolving, which means that heritage systems should be flexible and able to adapt to these changes. The preservation of cultural heritage calls for an interdisciplinary approach which looks at the wider context beyond a particular object or sector. The opportunities offered by our modern era should be increasingly used in the preservation of cultural heritage. A dialogue among experts and other stakeholders is necessary in order to discuss heritage preservation systems, including systems for recent cultural heritage, as well as, the use of contemporary methods and technologies to find models that best serve these contexts.
4. Other Priority Areas
Alongside the main priorities, the Latvian Presidency of the CBSS will also deal with other no less important topics on the Councils agenda. Various sector-specific expert groups and cooperation formats are successfully operating within the CBSS format, also involving Latvian experts as close partners who are committed to continued active efforts during the period of the Latvian Presidency.
The CBSS Expert Group on Sustainable Maritime Economy (EGSME) has the overarching goals of (1) knowledge exchange in order to ensure a politically coordinated support for initiatives, measures and projects aimed at raising the CBSS competitiveness in regard to the development of sustainable maritime economy, (2) positioning the BSR as a model region for maritime best practices and the coexistence of a balanced, successful maritime economy with marine ecosystems also in view of socio-economic aspects, (3) functioning as an information centre for sharing experience and knowledge, which offers a cross-sectoral approach and synergies among the main actors in the maritime economies in the BSR.
During the Latvian CBSS Presidency, the Ministry of Transport will organise and chair an EGSME meeting.
The CBSS Expert Group on Children at Risk (CAR) is in charge of tackling issues relevant to the region such as the protection of children from trafficking and exploitation, promotion of a child-friendly justice system, consideration of best interests of children in migration (‘children on the move’), protection of children from sexual abuse and sexual exploitation, advocating the interests of children without parental care, as well as prevention, early intervention, parenting and family support measures.
The Latvian Presidency of the CBSS will follow up on the initiatives launched during the Swedish Presidency on improvements to a comprehensive and sustainable child protection system. At least two meetings of the Expert Group and a high-level conference on the practical implementation of prohibition of corporal punishment of children will be organised.
With a view to increasing the visibility of CAR among its cooperation partners and decision-making institutions, an event to celebrate the 20th anniversary of CAR will be held jointly with the CBSS Senior Officials Committee, looking back at CAR’s achievements at the national, regional and international level as well as raising awareness among cooperation partners of CAR’s role in regional cooperation. Under a Cabinet of Ministers mandate to represent Latvia on CAR, the Ministry of Welfare will organise and chair the expert group meetings.
Cooperation in education and science has a significant role in the CBSS cooperation. Latvia supports joint development of the fields of excellence in science and increasing mobility in higher education and research in the BSR. An effective instrument for the achievement of those goals is the “Baltic Science Network” project, aimed at balancing out the level of research excellence in the BSR, thereby positioning the BSR status as Europe’s most innovative region.
The Ministry of Education and Science, in association with the University of Latvia and other partners, are planning to organise the CBSS Baltic Sea Science Day 2019, the final event of the "Baltic Science Network" project, and a meeting of high-level officials from the ministries in charge of science in the CBSS member states.
Special focus in CBSS cooperation is placed on the promotion of youth cooperation. Young people from Latvia are active participants in the Baltic Sea Youth Dialogue, the CBSS Summer Universities project, and the youth platform of the CBSS Vision Group.
The Baltic Sea Non-Governmental Organisations Forum has become an established tradition. The Latvian CBSS Presidency will also host the event. The association “Civic Alliance – Latvia”, which is a national representative in the BSR NGO Network, will assume its organisation and coordination.
The Baltic Sea Trade Union Network (BASTUN), a strategic partner of CBSS, is functioning alongside the CBSS in the Baltic Sea Region, and according to the same principles. The Free Trade Union of Latvia (FTUL), taking over from Sweden, will hold the presidency of BASTUN from 1 July 2018 to 30 June 2019. The following priorities have been set for the FTUL presidency:
- Workforce mobility, observing fair rules and preventing social fraud, with a strong emphasis on equal conditions for employees and the responsibility of companies in cross-border cooperation;
- Enhancing the social dialogue and a balanced participation of trade unions and businesses, development of collective agreements at the sector level, and promotion of best practice;
- Strengthening the role and growth of trade unions in the Baltic Sea Region.
In conclusion of the Latvian Presidency, a possibility will be considered to arrange a high-level international conference – a discussion on the CBSS future development bringing together foreign ministers, other public officials and experts from the member states. The dominant theme of the event related to the CBSS future beyond 2020 will stem from the CBSS Vision Group’s report and the Latvian Presidency’s proposals on how to take forward its recommendations.
At the same time, the term of the Latvian Presidency will be marked by the report of the CBSS Vision Group, in which experts from the CBSS member states are expected to offer recommendations for the region’s future beyond 2020 and the role of the CBSS in that setup. To evaluate those recommendations will be the task of the Latvian Presidency.
It is worth noting that, back-to-back with the CBSS Presidency, Latvia will chair the Baltic Region Heritage Committee, the Vision and Strategies Around the Baltic Sea (VASAB) cooperation format, and the Task Force against Trafficking in Human Beings (TF-THB). | https://preview.mfa.gov.lv/en/policy/latvian-presidency-of-the-council-of-the-baltic-sea-states |
Jess Ponting is a leading sustainable surf tourism researcher and consultant. After an early career utilizing community-based tourism for economic and social development in Papua New Guinea, he completed the first Masters and PhD degrees to focus on sustainable surf tourism in 2001 and 2008 respectively. Beginning his academic career in Australia and Indonesia, Jess later taught at the University of the South Pacific in Fiji for three years before taking a faculty position at San Diego State University (SDSU). He helped to pioneer the growing field of surf tourism studies in the early 2000’s and has produced 18 journal articles, 14 books, 6 book chapters, and 35 conference presentations in 13 countries on the topic. He is a tenured Associate Professor in sustainable tourism at San Diego State Univeristy where he founded the Center for Surf Research in 2011 and the International Association of Surfing Academics in 2015. Jess has provided consulting services in 11 countries, worked with multilateral agencies including the UN, the World Bank, the International Trade Center and the Inter-American Development Bank. He has worked with NGOs including Conservation International, scores of surf tourism operators, and advised governments in five countries on sustainable surf tourism.
With former Center for Surf Research intern Carl Kish, in 2013 Jess co-founded the world’s first sustainable tourism certification program to focus specifically on surf and snow resorts, destinations, and events – STOKE Certified. STOKE currently manages 19 members in 8 countries and is growing fast. Also in 2013 Jess co-founded the conference series “Surf Park Summit” which is the world’s premiere trade conference for the surf park industry. His research interests include: the sustainability of surf tourism and the regulation and policy that can support it; the social construction of tourist spaces disembedded from geography and culture; well being benefits from surfing and their utilization; and, ensuring that the emerging surf park industry is developed in a sustainable way. | https://csr.sdsu.edu/researcher-profiles/jess-ponting-phd/ |
Planting trees, what’s native to us?20th April 2021
We love trees. But what’s native to us? What other interesting stuff can we dig up?
Let’s first define native. This means tree species that arrived naturally in Scotland without direct human assistance. Most of our native tree and shrub species colonised Scotland after the last Ice Age that ended roughly 9,000 years ago. Seeds were then dispersed by wind, water, and animals.
Galloway Woodlands trees
The majority of our trees are premium-grade Nordmann Firs that aren’t indigenous to Scotland. They grow in the mountains south and east of the Black Sea, in Turkey, Georgia and Russia.
We also plant a small number of Norway Spruce and Lodgepole pine. The former grows in Norway, Poland, and in the mountains of central Europe. The latter is an inland variety of the American shore pine.
Both were introduced to Scotland in the 1800s.
Planting trees
We grow our trees from premium seedling stock only that is then planted in the best soil on our farm and cultivated by hand.
Which are some of Scotland’s most common native trees?
If we included them all you wouldn’t be able to see the wood for the trees so here’s the final cut.
Scots pine
Scotland’s national tree. It matures to up to 36 metres and tends to lose its lower branches with age. The Scottish Gaelic for pine is giuthas and this word crops up in several place names like Allt na Ghuithas in Wester Ross. There are also Anglicised derivations like Kingussie.
Yew
Thought to be Scotland’s oldest tree, the yew could be anything from two to nine thousand years old. It grows from 15 to 29 metres tall. Every part of the tree except the fleshy seed cap is poisonous to humans and cattle but not to deer or rabbits. The Fortingall Yew stands within Fortingall churchyard in Aberfeldy and is thought to be between 3000 and 9000 years old – making it one of the oldest living things in Europe.
Ash
These tall, domed trees can reach up to 40 metres in height. The leaves are arranged in pairs and the single-winged seeds grow in bunches.
Beech
Mature beech trees have a dense canopy. Their husks split to release two triangular edible seeds – or they can be roasted to make a type of coffee. The bark is smooth and delicate enough for lovers to carve their initials into.
Oak
The mighty oak tree can reach up to 30 metres in height. Most don’t produce acorns until they’re over the age of 50, which are then carried on long stalks or ‘peduncles’.
Rowan
The rowan tree’s beautiful red autumnal berries make this graceful, narrow tree easy to spot. It has flat heads of cream coloured, heavily scented flowers and smooth, purplish or grey-brown bark
Silver birch
Birch trees would have been one of the first species to re-colonise when the glaciers of the last ice age receded. They sport triangular leaves and papery, peeling upper bark, and can grow up to 24 metres tall.
Trees in mythology and folklore
These magnificent creations have long been venerated by humans in mythology and folklore.
• Folklore from northeast Scotland warned against using cherry wood (the cherry tree’s another native) for any purpose because it was a witches’ tree.
• Rowan berries can be made into alcoholic drinks and different Celtic people had their favourites. As well as the wine still made in the Highlands, the Scots also made a strong spirit from berries.
• To the Greeks, Romans, Celts, Slavs and Teutonic tribes the oak was foremost among trees. It was associated with the supreme god in their respective pantheons – Zeus, Jupiter, Dagda, Perun, and Thor.
• The ash tree has strong links with the Vikings but has its place in Gaelic folklore too where it’s known as uninnseann. It was and still is renowned for its protective and healing properties.
• In Celtic mythology hazelnuts (the hazel tree usually resembles a shrub but can grow quite tall) are associated with wisdom and poetic inspiration, and the birch is the tree of beginnings, renewal, and purification. | https://www.gallowaywoodlands.co.uk/planting-trees-whats-native-to-us/ |
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Naga
- For the tome known by the same name from Genealogy of the Holy War, see Naga (tome).
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|“||But know this: I am no god. [...] So do sons of man name me. But I am no creator. I possess not the powers of making or unmaking.||”|
— Naga
Naga (Japanese: ナーガ Naga) is a powerful divine dragon, and was once the King of the divine dragon clan which bears her name. She has historically played a strong role as an ally and defender of mankind in conflicts with earth dragons, and is worshipped as a god in the cultures of Archanea/Ylisse and Jugdral, and she is acknowledged in the lore of Valentia due to her connection to Mila, Duma, and Valentia's Falchion. Her Holy Blood is carried through generations of two dynasties – the Belhalla family of Grannvale, and the Ylisse royal family – and she is the creator of numerous holy weapons and items used and revered by mankind, including both the Archanean and Falchions, the Binding Shield, and the Book of Naga.
Biography
Ancient Archanea
Naga presided over the divine dragon tribe at the end of the golden era of the dragons of Archanea, and willingly became a Manakete along with the majority of other dragons in order to survive the degeneration of the dragons. When the earth dragons turned feral and attacked the fledgling human population after refusing to become Manaketes, Naga led the divine dragons in a war against the earth dragon in order to protect mankind. The divine dragons emerged victorious from the war, and Naga sealed the earth dragons in the Dragon's Table using the Binding Shield, forged from one of her fangs. She entrusted the guardianship of the Table to Medeus, the sole earth dragon manakete.
Jugdral and the Miracle of Dahna
Unbeknownst to Naga, a single earth dragon escaped the war: Loptous, who had undergone blood rites with the bishop Galle, possessed him, traveled to Jugdral and there established a malevolent empire. Nearly two hundred years after the Loptrian Empire's foundation, Naga learned of its existence and the role of Loptous in its abuse of humanity. In response she recruited eleven other dragons, including Forseti and Salamand, and with them travelled to Jugdral.
Naga and the eleven dragons descended upon Dahna Fortress, the last stronghold of the rebellion against the Loptrian Empire, in an event which came to be known as the Miracle of Dahna. Under the guise of a little girl, she underwent blood rites with Heim, transforming him into the leader of the Twelve Crusaders and granting him her power through their blood pact, in the form of Holy Blood and the Book of Naga, the tome channeling her power. Heim and the Book of Naga would prove to be crucial in the defeat of Loptous and his then-present host, Galle XVII, with her power being the only hope of truly piercing that of Loptous. Naga's holy blood was passed on through the descendants of Heim, the ruling Belhalla dynasty of Grannvale.
"Death"
In order to grant humans a way to protect themselves from other dragons who wish them harm, Naga forged Falchion from another of her fangs. She placed Falchion and the Binding Shield in the Fane of Raman, put her infant daughter Tiki to sleep in the Ice Dragon Temple, and commanded Gotoh and the other manaketes to observe and protect humanity. With these last acts accomplished, Naga "died", with the location of her death said to be Thabes.
Thousands of years after her "death", Marth encountered a Manakete called Nagi who is strongly hinted to be some form of reincarnation or avatar of Naga; Nagi assisted Marth in the defeat of Medeus.
Ylisse
At the height of Grima's first reign of terror, Naga was awakened by an unnamed man descended from Marth through the rite of Awakening. She conferred her power upon this man in a second blood pact, enabling him to defeat Grima and return him to slumber using Falchion. This man went on to become the first Exalt of Ylisse, and as with Heim's descendants, his descendants also bear Naga's Holy Blood as made manifest by the Brand of the Exalt present on all of their bodies.
One thousand years later, following Grima's revival by Validar of the Grimleal, Naga's assistance was sought by Chrom, descendant of Ylisse's founder and wielder of a Falchion whose divine power had faded (or possibly was sealed) with time. Using the Fire Emblem, he performed the Awakening rite at Mount Prism, and Naga provided both advice on Grima's downfall and granted her power to Chrom, restoring to Falchion the mighty power it had during the era of Marth, as well as the title it had during Marth's time: "Exalted Falchion".
In an alternate future in which Chrom was slain by the Grima-possessed Robin and Grima's reign became absolute, his daughter Lucina and the children of Chrom's allies sought Naga's assistance. She granted them passage to the past through the Outrealm Gate, in order to avert the disastrous future; however, Grima caught wind and followed them back in time.
Fire Emblem Heroes
Role
Naga is the game's fourth Mythic Hero, and as such was added to the game in a dedicated Mythic Hero update, and was made available for summoning as part of a summoning event released on May 30, 2018. Only one variation of Naga is currently available in Heroes; she is the first character in the game with two games credited to her name for a single variation, credited to both Mystery of the Emblem and Awakening.
Starting stats
- Naga: Dragon Divinity is only available at 5★ rarity.
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Initial Stats Level 40 Stats
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Skill set
|Skill set|
|Skill||Rarity||SP cost|
|Fire Breath||Innate|
|Fire Breath+||Innate|
|Flametongue||Innate|
|Divine Breath||Innate|
|New Moon||Innate|
|Luna||★★★★★||200 SP|
|A||AR-O Atk/Spd 1||★★★★★||60 SP|
|A||AR-O Atk/Spd 2||★★★★★||120 SP|
|A||AR-O Atk/Spd 3||★★★★★||240 SP|
|B||Chill Spd 1||★★★★★||60 SP|
|B||Chill Spd 2||★★★★★||120 SP|
|B||Chill Spd 3||★★★★★||240 SP|
|C||Divine Fang||★★★★★||300 SP|
Quotes
Heroes quotes
- Main article: Naga/Quotes (Heroes)
Other appearances
Fire Emblem Cipher
Naga is currently featured on one card in Fire Emblem Cipher.
|Fire Emblem Cipher data for Naga|
|Divine Dragon of Salvation, Naga|
|"Be swift, Awakener. Grima's servants will harry you to the very last. You must reach the dragon before it is too late."|
"Cleansed in my fire, your desire has proven to burn the stronger."
|Attack: 0||Support: 20||Range: 1||Deploy Cost: 5|
|Class: Divine Dragon||Tier: Base||Class Change Cost: --|
|Divine Dragon's Rite of Awakening: [Activate] Choose 1 other ally. Then choose 1 card with a Promotion Cost from your retreat area with the same unit name as the chosen ally, and Class Change them.|
Naga's Power: [Trigger] [Once per turn] When another ally Class Changes, until the end of the turn, all allies gain +20 attack. Place this unit face-down in your Bond Area.
|Card #B12-073R(+) • Artist: Mayu (B12-073R), Geso Umiu (B12-073R+)|
|Some card information translation provided by Serenes Forest.|
For more detailed strategic information on these cards, see their TCG wiki article on Naga .
Flavor text
|Game||Text
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(English)
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(Japanese)
|Heroes||Ruler of the Divine Dragons. Takes on a variety
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of appearances in the presence of humans, and
is said to have saved the world from despair.
Appears in Fire Emblem: Mystery of the Emblem
and Fire Emblem Awakening.
|神竜族の王。さまざまな姿をとって人の前に現れ、|
世界を絶望から救ったと伝えられる。
（登場：『ファイアーエムブレム 紋章の謎・覚醒』）
Trivia
- Naga is referred to with the masculine pronoun 彼 kare "he" in Mystery of the Emblem, specifically in the legend shown over the tapestry in the game's opening, where Naga is described as an avatar of a god in the form of a giant. However, from Genealogy of the Holy War onward, Naga has been portrayed as female, described as taking the form of a "little girl" during the Miracle of Dahna by Lewyn.
- The character Kurthnaga in Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn derives his name from both Naga herself and Kurth, a bearer of Naga's Holy Blood.
- Naga's title of "god of light" (Japanese: 光神) is shared with Baldr. Fjalar and Salamand similarly share the title of fire god, but Salamand was the dragon who made a blood pact with Fjalar, but there is no such relationship between Baldr and Naga.
- Naga's title of "guardian deity" (Japanese: 守護神) is shared with Salamander from Shadow Dragon & the Blade of Light, the god whom Mannu wishes to sacrifice the Archanean League to. Like Naga, Salamander shares his or her name with that of the dragon tribe he or she is associated with, so it is likely Salamander is the fire dragon ruler. It is also one of the two names of the unused Guardian class from Mystery of the Emblem.
Etymology and other languages
|Names, etymology and in other regions|
|Language||Name||Definition, etymology and notes|
|English||
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Naga
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From Nāga, a class of deity in Buddhist and Hindu mythology which takes the form of a great snake. "Nāga" is also one of several words for common snakes in the Sanskrit language.
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(unofficial)
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Narga
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--
|Japanese||
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ナーガ
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Officially romanized as Naga, formerly as Narga; as above.
|Spanish||
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Naga
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As above.
|French||
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Naga
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As above.
|German||
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Naga
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As above.
|Italian||
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Naga
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As above.
|Dutch||
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Naga
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In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, from Tiki's enhanced spirit "Tiki (de stem van Naga)".
|Portuguese
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(Brazil)
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Naga
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As above
|Traditional Chinese||
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那迦
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Naga
Gallery
Artwork of Loptous and Naga from the Super Tactics Book.
Depiction of Naga's and Loptous's clash from Intelligent Systems's old website.
Artwork of Naga from Awakening.
Naga, depicted as a god by a human tapestry, in the opening of Mystery of the Emblem.
Naga in her dragon form, as channeled by the Book of Naga in Genealogy of the Holy War.
The Brand of the Exalt, the mark of those bearing Naga's Holy Blood in the Ylisse lineage. | https://www.fireemblemwiki.org/wiki/Naga |
Evolution Chamber10 Jul 2015 · 4 min read — shared on Hacker News
A couple weeks ago, HackMIT ran an experiment to see what would happen if we evolved a HackMIT logo based on the Internet’s preferences. Before getting into the details of how we did it, here’s the final result:
The Internet ended up choosing that logo out of possible designs after casting over 200,000 votes! The logo will be printed as a sticker for participants at HackMIT 2015. Here’s the story of how the design came to be.
Algorithm
First, we wrote code to procedurally generate a HackMIT logo based on a whole bunch of parameters that controlled the color palette, the opacity, and the way shapes are positioned and overlaid. In total, there are about ways to set these parameters. With the parameters chosen randomly, we could have a logo that looks like this:
It’s not very pretty! To fix it, we needed a way of choosing a good set of parameters. Unfortunately, we couldn’t just try every possibility and pick the best one — there would be way too many logos to choose from. We thought about phrasing the problem as a combinatorial optimization problem, but that wouldn’t work either. A computer algorithm can’t pick the best looking logo because a computer can’t decide how good a logo looks — we can’t program that behavior!
Needing a better approach to the problem, we looked into taking classical artificial intelligence techniques and adapting them to have a human component. We ended up using techniques from genetic algorithms and modifying them to fit our needs.
Genetic Algorithms
Here’s a brief introduction to genetic algorithms. GAs find solutions to optimization problems by emulating the way evolution works in nature. Candidate solutions to a problem can be thought of as individuals in a population. To begin with, an initial population is initialized with random parameters. Candidates are assigned fitness scores based on the quality of the solution, and the most fit subset of the population is used to breed a new generation, mimicking the process of natural selection. Solutions are combined through crossover and mutation, where characteristics of solutions are combined and subjected to random variation. The hope is to arrive at higher-quality solutions by combining fit parents. Repeating this process over many generations can yield high-quality solutions to optimization problems.
There’s just one problem with using a genetic algorithm for our application — in traditional GAs, the process of assigning fitness scores is completely automated. In our case, we require human input to compare logos. To incorporate human feedback, we built a website where people could vote on logos through side-by-side comparison of two logos at a time. We used the Elo rating system to compute actual fitness scores based on comparisons.
Evolution
After developing the code, we put it online at evolution.hackmit.org and publicized it everywhere we could — Facebook, Twitter, Hacker News… We wanted as much data as possible. Here’s how the website looked a couple minutes after we launched it:
We were on the front page of Hacker News for a couple hours, which in combination with our posting on Twitter and Facebook, led to us getting a lot of data. Running the experiment over about 10 days, we received 220,200 votes and evolved 2202 generations of logos.
Here’s an animation of the evolution over the first 100 generations. You can see that it converges quite quickly:
Discussion
There were several limitations in our approach. We combined genetic algorithms with human input in an ad-hoc way without developing any rigorous mathematical theory to understand and validate the behavior of our algorithm. Considering that this project was developed in the span of about 12 hours, that wasn’t really possible.
Besides that, there were a couple other things. While we were collecting votes, there were a ton of different people providing input. It is likely that there were people who had different opinions about which logos looked good, which would influence rankings and prevent convergence. One thing we could have tried to improve on is variation in logos. Differences in color palette were the most apparent; differences in other parameters such as opacity and arrangement arguably didn’t impact the design as much. However, adding more variation is a tricky problem when we want to ensure that we keep logos similar enough to the HackMIT logo to be recognizable.
At the end of the day, it’s important to keep in mind that what we did is not academic work — it’s a fun social experiment. It was a cool idea to try out, and it was great that we ended up getting input from a whole bunch of people and arrived at a result that looks visually appealing.
Source Code and Data
The full source code for this experiment is available here. The data we collected from over 200,000 votes on evolution.hackmit.org is available here.
If you do something cool with the data, I’d love to hear about it! | https://www.anishathalye.com/2015/07/10/evolution-chamber/ |
This resource is also available in French. Click here to access the French version.
In this article, Amanda Sheedy reflects on the importance of her past experiences engaging with Indigenous and remote communities across Turtle Island in informing the Virtual Community Engagement Guide.
Despite the challenges of a sudden switch to virtual community engagement thanks to the pandemic, Amanda shares the silver lining she found while navigating virtual and hybrid community engagement sessions: "the potential to create new opportunities to engage people in important conversations, and to weave relationships by bringing people together in their communities, even with limited budgets"
Read the complete guide here: Virtual Community Engagement Guide: A Toolkit for Hosting Online Community Engagement and Meetings in Rural, Remote, and Indigenous Communities
Take your learning further: | https://www.tamarackcommunity.ca/library/article-making-the-most-of-the-times-virtual-community-engagement-in-indigenous-and-remote-communities?hsLang=en-us |
Dr. Todd is not admitting graduate students as a primary research advisor for the Fall 2023.
Research Description
In our Ecologies of Liberation Lab, we draw from ecological models to focus on the places, spaces, settings, and structures that maintain oppression and/or facilitate liberation. This ecological emphasis pushes beyond a sole focus on individuals to instead understand individuals in relation to their larger ecological contexts, and the dynamic interplay between individuals and their ecologies.
We are interested in how ecologies shape processes of oppression and liberation. We draw from community psychology and other liberation psychologies to consider liberation as a process of resisting oppression grounded in an analysis and transformation of social conditions. Taken together, we want to better understand how to create spaces and settings that catalyze liberation and resist oppression in the service of promoting wellbeing and social change. Our work also is intersectional in how we understand individuals, their multiple social group memberships, and their larger social ecologies.
We have two new lines of research:
- We are launching work to examine sexual and gender minority (SGM) spirituality and wellbeing. In particular, we are interested in the multiple ways SGM people construct their spiritualities inside and outside of religious institutions, and furthermore how religious institutions and settings can better support SGM spirituality and wellbeing. As one example of this work, we are engaging with open and affirming religious congregations to understand the process of becoming and sustaining being an open and affirming congregation. Integral to this work is an intersectional focus that incorporates a focus on gender, class, race and ethnicity, religious and spiritual diversity, and other facets of privilege and oppression.
- We are developing tools to assess religious climate to better understand how such climate operates as a form of structural stigma contributing to sexual and gender minority health disparities. As an initial project, we are examining state-level indicators of religious climate to test how religious climate predicts and may moderate sexual and gender minority health disparities.
In other ongoing work, we examine:
- College campuses as a particular type of social setting, doing research to better understand campus efforts to promote diversity and inclusion. We work with campus partners to understand the impact of campus-diversity programming on diversity-related attitudes and behaviors.
- The ways in which religious settings such as congregations promote social justice engagement.
- How White students understand and respond to racism and White privilege.
- Attitudes related to racial microaggressions and colorblind ideology.
Education
- Ph.D. from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
- M.A., Theology, from Fuller Theological Seminary
- M.A., Psychology, from Fuller Theological Seminary
- B.A., from the University of Oklahoma
Grants
- 2022 Louisville Institute Project Grants for Researchers. Understanding the Process of Becoming an LGBT Open and Affirming Congregation. N. Todd, Principal Investigator. $29,980 funded.
- 2012 Louisville Institute Project Grants for Researchers. Understanding Social Networks and Social Capital in Religious Congregations. N. Todd, Principal Investigator. $25,000 funded. | https://psychology.illinois.edu/directory/profile/ntodd2 |
Hosted by the MEP Group chairs, MEP Pernille Weiss and Susanna Solís Perez, the event provided an opportunity for stakeholders to discuss the eagerly awaited publication of the European Commission’s Proposal for a European Health Data Space and to specifically consider the following questions:
The past two years have put a spotlight on the health inequalities faced by people living with obesity and these inequalities have emphasised the need for more robust national obesity strategies and guidelines which support political and clinical decision-making on obesity and address current gaps.
Within this context and as part of ObesityWeek 2021, our panel of experts discussed current and upcoming obesity strategies and guidelines, reviewing what is currently working well and where efforts could and should be optimised.
Prof John Wilding and Carlos Oliveira shared their experiences setting up multidisciplinary centres for obesity in Liverpool and Portugal.
The second in OPEN’s best practice series, this session’s objective was to teach effective ways to advocate for the establishment of multidisciplinary obesity centres and how to ensure access to transdisciplinary care for people with obesity.
Dr Robert Kushner presented a US-based case study on embedding obesity in learning curricula as part of the OPEN’s Best Practice Webinar series.
The session’s objective was to identify ways in which obesity can be integrated in learning curricula across obesity-related professions to support more effective and informed care for people with obesity.
In connection with the European Congress on Obesity 2021, our panel reviewed developments in Europe and looked at what is working well in current strategies and initiatives, what is missing, and provided further insight and guidance on what is needed to ensure government strategies incorporate a whole-systems approach to obesity.
In one intense week, the European Congress on Obesity and the Canadian Obesity Summit are setting the bar high for translating research and guidelines into policies and action. A year ago, new Canadian guidelines emerged. The driving concept was simple – health first, before weight. Then in March, the European Commission redefined obesity. It’s a chronic disease and a gateway to other diseases. Again, it is all about health. Around the world, it is impossible to ignore because it is driving an epidemic of non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
Speakers discuss the latest developments in countries leading the charge on disease recognition for obesity, delving into whether this achievement makes a difference to the wider landscape of obesity policy, drawing on insights from the German Obesity Alliance and OPEN Italy. Learnings are also shared from diabetes experts in Belgium to understand similarities and challenges faced in pushing for change in awareness, care and treatment.
6 July 2020: Obesity Canada released their much anticipated Canadian Adult Obesity Clinical Practice Guidelines, providing evidence-based and experience-based, patient-centred framework for healthcare professionals, patients and policy makers. They represent the first comprehensive update in Canadian obesity guidelines since 2007, and perhaps the most extensive review of published evidence yet conducted in obesity worldwide.
A special Parliament Magazine supplement calling upon EU policymakers to take a fresh look at helping people with obesity.
Hear from international experts on key issues in obesity, insights on how to effectively address these issues through
grassroot efforts, advocacy, lobbying and the effective use of language and communications. | https://obesityopen.org/news-updates/ |
Educational Technology Unit of C-DAC, Mumbai has been working on building technologies for enhancing teaching learning experience. It aims to integrate the various scattered pieces of effort towards a better educational environment and spearhead new models and technologies for the Centre as well as for others. This covers development of technologies and infrastructure for improving the educational environment and seamless integration of these various constituents of the educational process.
Concerns such as shortage of good quality teachers at most levels of education, fast changing content, need to reach to remote areas, etc have been driving the introduction of various technologies into the domain of education.
They serve different functions including:
- Amplify the teacher’s efforts and availability
- Increase the exposure to practical skills
- Make the instruction and assessment more effective
- Relax constraints of time and space synchronisation
The ETU group has been working on building technologies for such functions for many years. The current activities of the group include:
Tools Development – Online Labs, eBasta - School Books to eBooks, Assessment and Monitoring feedback, Parikshak – An online program grading tool, Descriptive Examination System, OBRIC – Objective Responses Image Based capture
Research – Interest areas - Instruction Design, Constructive Learning Environments, Assessment Technologies, Content Creation and Management, E-Learning Framework & Tools, Qualitative Analysis of Results, etc.
Creating Awareness on eLearning and related tools – Orientation workshops
Consultancy – Orientation, training & user handholding on setting up eLearning setup in organisations on use of select open source tools. | https://vidyakash.in/ |
ATK (NYSE: ATK) received a $16.8 million engineering and manufacturing development contract modification from the U.S. Army's Program Executive Office (PEO) Soldier for its XM25, Individual Semi-Automatic Airburst System. The contract funds the continuing design, integration, production and testing of fully functional systems to ensure the weapon's final design meets performance requirements and is production-ready prior to fielding.
The XM25 is a rifle that fires a 25mm airbursting round programmed by the weapon's integrated target acquisition and fire control system to burst directly above a designated target. The system allows soldiers to quickly and accurately engage targets by producing an adjusted aimpoint based on range, environmental factors, and user inputs.
Global Small Caliber Ammunition Market - Forecast & Analysis 2016 - 2022
The Army conducted Forward Operational Assessments (FOA) with early XM25 prototype weapons deployed in Afghanistan from November 2010 through May 2012 with soldiers actively employing them on patrols in areas experiencing high levels of enemy activity. Soldier feedback validated that the XM25 provides a unique combat advantage. Furthermore, the FOA provided information that will inform decisions regarding tactics, training, basis of issue, and system improvements prior to the weapon's fielding. ATK will be supporting another Army XM25 FOA scheduled for 2013 with a 36-gun battalion set of new pre-production prototypes.
"The XM25 has been battle-proven by our soldiers during U.S. Army operational assessments conducted in Afghanistan. We are very pleased with this system's performance and the overmatch capability it delivers to our warfighters," said Bruce DeWitt, Vice President and General Manager of ATK's Armament Systems Division. "We are focused on quickly making this weapon ready for production." | http://www.asdnews.com/news-44904/ATK_Awarded_Manufacturing_Development_Contract_for_XM25,_Individual_Semi-Automatic_Airburst_System.htm |
Making a medical form is somewhat a simple task once you know the exact format of the document you are trying to make. To do so, you just have to keep track of some of the ideas when it comes to making a medical form. Ideas such as what exactly a medical form should be used for will be discussed later on in this article.
Now, the act of filling out a medical form is a bit complicated due to the fact that what is involved is the person’s health and therefore must be taken all the more seriously.
What are the Components of a Medical Form?
When making a medical form, it is important to note the different components of a medical form, or they could use some Free Medical Forms to use as a reference. However, the exact components of a medical form are:
- The identification of the patient and the identification of the medical practitioner.
- The nature of the medical form. This refers to the exact purpose of that medical form.
- The insurance information of the patient or the representative of the patient.
- Inside the medical form should also state the nature of the ailment or injuries sustained by the patient.
What is the Purpose of a Medical Form?
The purpose of a medical form would be to act as a means of emergency information about a patient’s medical history or background. This is especially important when the doctors have no idea about the patient’s medical history. For example, they would not know if the medication they are injecting into the patient would cause an allergic reaction or not.
Furthermore, some types of medical forms can be used as evidence of the patient’s consent to allowing the doctors to operate in this certain manner. To learn how this is done exactly review some Medical Consent Sample Forms to learn more.
Guidelines for Creating Your Own Medical Forms
Making your own medical forms is admittedly a lot harder than filling up a medical form this is because of the required format whenever you need to make a medical form. Here are some guidelines to making your own medical forms now:
- Before beginning always consult a Sample Medical Form for some ideas of the format.
- Now, Begin with identifying the name of the patient and the name of the parent or guardian of the patient.
- Identify any direct relatives, spouses, dependents or any member of the patient’s family.
- Personal information of the patient must be listed such as their date of birth, gender, and even their marital status.
- The patient must be able to list down all known medical history of themselves, as well as all known allergies.
- The patient must also be able to write own their financial information and their insurance information so as to determine the type of medical care that can be available for the patient.
One useful tip if you’re ever planning to travel abroad would be to bring your Travel Medical Forms so as to be sure that when an accident occurs that the doctors will be able to conduct the necessary operations to keep you alive.
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Flashcards in Pulmonary Phys II: Airflow and Pathologies Deck (34):
1
What 3 factors provide resistance to airflow?
Surface tension of alveoli
Pulmonary compliance
Diameter of bronchioles
2
_________helps to reduce the surface tension in alveoli
Surfactant
3
Surfactant molecules pile up into a thicker layer because their _________ regions resist separation from the water below. As they become crowded into a small area and resist layering, they slow and then halt the ________of the alveolus.
hydrophilic
collapse
4
What condition results from insufficent surfactant?
IRDS- Infant respiratory distress syndrome
5
What is IRDS?
Infant respiratory distress syndrome-
Premature infants have a deficiency of surfactant and experience great difficulty breathing
6
What is pulmonary compliance?
The ease with which the lungs expand
7
Whta happens with greater pulmonary compliance?
The easier it is for a change of pressure to case expansion of the lungs (ventilation)
8
Name 3 diseases that reduce pulmnocary compliace
Tuberculosis
Pulmonary fibrosis
Black lung disease
9
Which disease occurs when nodules form in the lung?
Tuberculosis
10
What is black lung disease?
Coal dust in lungs reduces compliance
11
What is pulmonary fibrosis?
Replacement of lung tissue with inelastic fibrous CT
12
How to bronchioles change in diameter?
Smooth muscle changes diamter
13
What is the term for increasing or decreasing the diamter of bronchioles?
Increase: Bronchodilation
Decrease- Bronchoconstriction
14
What are 2 bronchodilators?
Epinephresine and SNS
15
What are 6 bronchoconstrictors?
Anaphylactic shock
Histamine (also vasodilates)
PNS
Cold Air
Chemical irritants
Asthma
16
Whta is the volume of anatomic dead air space?
150 mL
17
With pulmonary disease, which 2 fators decrease pulmonary exchange?
1- Low flow to damaged areas
2- Edema in the lungs/ thickening of respiratory membrane
18
What is pathalogic dead air space?
Dead air space caused by tissue damage or injury
19
What is physiological dead air space?
Anatomic dead air space and any pathologic dead air space
What is not used for gas exchange
20
What is blood acidosis?
blood pH lower than 7.35
21
What is blood alkalosis?
blood pH higher than 7.45
22
What is the normal range for blood PCO2?
37-43 mmHg
23
What is the most common cause of blood acidosis?
What is the PCO2?
Hypercapnia
PCO2 >43 mmHg
24
What is tx for hypercapnia?
hyperventilation to blow off extra CO2.
Equation shifts to the right, so H+ is consumed
pH rises and blood returns to normal range
25
What is the most common cause of blood alkalosis?
What is the PCO2?
Hypocapnia
PCO2
26
What is the tx for hypocapnia?
Hypoventilation, allowing CO2 to accumulate in the body fluids faster than is exhaled.
Equation shifts right, raising H+ concentration
pH lowers to normal range
27
______ is a deficiency of O2 in a tissue, or the inability to use O2 is often marked by ________, or a blue tinge to tissue.
Hypoxia
Cyanosis
28
Whta is ischemic hypoxia?
Inadequate circulation of blood
29
Whta is the cause of histoxic hypoxia?
Caused by metabolic poison,
30
Whta in an example of a poison that causes hystotoxic hypoxia? How does it work?
cyanide which prevents tissues the tissues from using the O2 delivered to them by stopping e- transport
31
What causes hypoxemia hypoxia?
Inadequate pulmonary gas exchange
32
What are some potential causes of hypoxemic hypoxia?
high altitude, drowning, aspiration of foreign object
Respiratory arrest
CO poisoning- prevents Hb from carrying O2
33
What is AVR? | https://www.brainscape.com/flashcards/pulmonary-phys-ii-airflow-and-pathologies-3734804/packs/5525171 |
I personally identify more with the modern definition of social Justice because I believe that Justice does exist as an obtainable, achievable goal for all when the right tools and opportunities are available to everyone. I believe it is important to promote the common good, not only to groups but to all of humanity. In a modern society there would be an equal distribution of resources and encouraging people to strive for self-determination so that they can have a say in their own fate and take the appropriate course of action to help themselves or be helped by others.
I believe hat it is also important for individuals to have a relationship with others where they can share a mutual dependence. This promotes social Justice because there is a feel of community and people are more inclined to make ones problem their own thus concerned with assisting in solving the overall issues. I believe that this supports the liberal philosophical approach which is most congruent with my views. Liberalism focuses on the wellbeing of a society and not Just individual people. The liberal view of Justice is what generates the greatest good for the greatest number of people. | https://lawessay.net/social-justice-3/ |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
TECHNICAL FIELD
This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202010249520.1 filed in China on Apr. 1, 2020, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
The present disclosure relates to the technical field of manufacturing liquid crystal products, and particularly to a Fresnel liquid crystal lens structure and a display device.
BACKGROUND
Fresnel lens, also known as threaded lens, is typically made of polyolefin material by injection molding into a thin sheet, also made of glass. One surface of the lens is a smooth surface, the other surface of the lens is engraved with small to large concentric circles, and the width between adjacent concentric circles gradually decreases from the center to the edge. Its texture is designed according to the interference and diffraction of light and the requirements of relative sensitivity and receiving angle. A phase retardation curve of an ideal Fresnel lens is simulated by using a Fresnel liquid crystal lens. The Fresnel liquid crystal lens, which generally includes a first substrate and a second substrate which are oppositely arranged, and a liquid crystal layer, a first electrode, and a second electrode which are located between the first substrate and the second substrate, wherein the first electrode or the second electrode is a plurality of concentric ring electrodes; the liquid crystal layer is divided into multiple regions; for one region, different voltages are applied to the concentric ring electrodes at different positions corresponding to the region, so that the liquid crystals of the region deflect at different angles to form a lens region of the Fresnel liquid crystal lens; each lens region includes a step structure corresponding to a concentric ring electrode corresponding to the region on a one-to-one basis; the smaller the quantity of steps, the lower the efficiency of fitting an ideal Fresnel lens morphology, and the lower the available light efficiency; according to the lens region of the Fresnel liquid crystal lens, the concentric ring electrodes are divided into a plurality of electrode groups; then from the center to the edge, the width of the electrode groups gradually decreases; and since the line width of the electrode is limited and cannot be infinitely small, the quantity of steps of each lens region of the Fresnel liquid crystal lens is limited, i.e., the light efficiency utilization rate is low.
SUMMARY
In order to solve the above-mentioned technical problems, the present disclosure provides a Fresnel liquid crystal lens structure and a display device, which solve the problem of low light efficiency of the Fresnel liquid crystal lens.
In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present disclosure provides in some embodiments a first substrate, a second substrate, a first electrode, a second electrode, and a liquid crystal layer, wherein the first substrate and the second substrate are arranged opposite to each other, and the first electrode, the second electrode, and the liquid crystal layer are located between the first substrate and the second substrate,
the first electrode is a plate-shaped electrode, the second electrode is a plurality of concentric ring electrodes, and a pre-set voltage is applied to the first electrode and the second electrode to deflect liquid crystals to form a Fresnel liquid crystal lens;
the plurality of concentric ring electrodes is divided into a plurality of electrode groups in a first direction, to divide the formed Fresnel liquid crystal lens into a plurality of lens regions;
each of the electrode groups is divided in the first direction into a plurality of sub-electrode groups arranged periodically, to divide each of the lens regions into a plurality of sub-lens regions arranged periodically; and
each of the sub-electrode groups includes a plurality of electrodes, to form a sub-lens region having a step topography, and a respective quantity of electrodes in each of the sub-electrode groups located in any one of the electrode groups is different, to enable that a respective quantity of steps in each of the sub-lens regions located in any one of the lens regions is different;
wherein the first direction is a direction from a center to an edge of the plurality of concentric ring electrodes.
Optionally, a respective width of each of the electrode groups in the first direction gradually increases in the first direction.
Optionally, the respective quantity of electrodes in each of the sub-electrode groups located in the electrode group gradually decreases in the first direction.
Optionally, the plurality of electrode groups include a first electrode group, sub-electrode groups in the first electrode group are first sub-electrode groups, an electrode group adjacent to the first electrode group and distal to the center of the concentric ring electrodes is a second electrode group, and sub-electrode groups in the second electrode group are second sub-electrode groups;
the Fresnel liquid crystal lens structure further includes a plurality of leads that is connected to the plurality of concentric ring electrodes to provide voltages, wherein the leads connected respectively to the electrodes in the first sub-electrode group are first leads, the leads connected respectively to the electrodes in the second sub-electrode group are second leads, and each of the second leads is connected to a first lead of the plurality of the first leads that is arranged at a preset position, to share a same voltage.
1
2
n
1
2
k
k
k*m
th
th
th
th
Optionally, the electrodes in the first sub-electrode group in the first direction are numbered respectively as a, a, . . . , a, the electrodes in the second sub-electrode group in the first direction are numbered respectively as b, b, . . . , b, the quantity of the electrodes in the first sub-electrode group is m times the quantity of the electrodes in the second sub-electrode group, and the quantity of the first leads is m times the quantity of the second leads, wherein a kone of the second leads and a (k*m)one of the first leads are connected to share the same voltage, wherein the ksecond lead is connected correspondingly to the electrode that is in the second sub-electrode group and numbered as b, and the (k*m)first lead is connected correspondingly to the electrode that is in the first sub-electrode group and numbered as a.
Optionally, an end of each of the leads that is adjacent to the center of the concentric ring electrodes is connected to the respective electrode in the sub-electrode group.
Optionally, the quantity of electrodes in the sub-electrode groups of the electrode group that is located at the center of the concentric ring electrodes is a maximum quantity of electrodes that is capable of satisfying a preset aperture ratio.
Optionally, the quantity of electrodes in the sub-electrode groups of the electrode group that is located at the edge of the plurality of concentric ring electrodes is greater than or equal to a minimum quantity of electrodes that is capable of forming the Fresnel liquid crystal lens topography.
Optionally, the quantity of electrodes in each of the sub-electrode groups of the same electrode group is same.
Optionally, a width of each of the electrodes in the same sub-electrode group is same, and the respective widths of the electrodes in different sub-electrode groups in the same electrode group gradually decreases in the first direction.
The present disclosure further provides in some embodiments a display device including the Fresnel liquid crystal lens structure described above.
The present disclosure further provides in some embodiments a method for driving the Fresnel liquid crystal lens, wherein a Fresnel liquid crystal lens structure includes a first substrate, a second substrate, a first electrode, a second electrode, and a liquid crystal layer, wherein the first substrate and the second substrate are arranged opposite to each other, and the first electrode, the second electrode, and the liquid crystal layer are located between the first substrate and the second substrate, the first electrode is a plate-shaped electrode, the second electrode is a plurality of concentric ring electrodes, and a pre-set voltage is applied to the first electrode and the second electrode to deflect liquid crystals to form the Fresnel liquid crystal lens; the plurality of concentric ring electrodes is divided into a plurality of electrode groups in a first direction, to divide the formed Fresnel liquid crystal lens into a plurality of lens regions; each of the electrode groups is divided in the first direction into a plurality of sub-electrode groups arranged periodically, to divide each of the lens regions into a plurality of sub-lens regions arranged periodically; and each of the sub-electrode groups includes a plurality of electrodes, to form a sub-lens region having a step shape, and a respective quantity of electrodes in each of the sub-electrode groups located in any one of the electrode groups is different, to enable that a respective quantity of steps in each of the sub-lens regions located in any one of the lens regions is different; wherein the first direction is a direction from a center to an edge of the plurality of concentric ring electrodes;
the method includes: providing the plurality of electrodes in each of the sub-electrode groups with respective different voltages, to deflect the liquid crystals at different angles to form the sub-lens region having the step shape.
Optionally, the plurality of electrode groups include a first electrode group, sub-electrode groups in the first electrode group are first sub-electrode groups, an electrode group adjacent to the first electrode group and distal to the center of the concentric ring electrodes is a second electrode group, and sub-electrode groups in the second electrode group are second sub-electrode groups;
the Fresnel liquid crystal lens structure further includes a plurality of leads that is connected to the plurality of concentric ring electrodes to provide voltages, wherein the leads connected respectively to the electrodes in the first sub-electrode group are first leads, the leads connected respectively to the electrodes in the second sub-electrode group are second leads, and each of the second leads is connected to a first lead of the plurality of the first leads that is arranged at a preset position, to share a same voltage;
wherein the method further includes: providing, through the first leads, the plurality of electrodes in the first sub-electrode group with respective different voltages, and providing, through the second leads, the plurality of electrodes in the second sub-electrode group with voltages that are same as the voltages at the first leads arranged at the preset positions, respectively.
1
2
n
1
2
k
k
k*m
th
th
th
th
Optionally, the electrodes in the first sub-electrode group in the first direction are numbered respectively as a, a, . . . , a, the electrodes in the second sub-electrode group in the first direction are numbered respectively as b, b, . . . , b, the quantity of the electrodes in the first sub-electrode group is m times the quantity of the electrodes in the second sub-electrode group, and the quantity of the first leads is m times the quantity of the second leads, wherein a kone of the second leads and a (k*m)one of the first leads are connected to share the same voltage, wherein the ksecond lead is connected correspondingly to the electrode that is in the second sub-electrode group and numbered as b, and the (k*m)first lead is connected correspondingly to the electrode that is in the first sub-electrode group and numbered as a,
wherein providing, through the second leads, the plurality of electrodes in the second sub-electrode group with the voltages that are same as the voltages at the first leads arranged at the preset positions, respectively, includes:
th
th
k
providing, through the ksecond lead, the electrode that is in the second sub-electrode group and numbered as bwith the same voltage as the voltage at the (k*m)first lead.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
is a schematic view of a Fresnel lens structure;
FIG. 2
is a part of morphology of a Fresnel liquid crystal lens with a six-step shape;
FIG. 3
is an optical simulation result 1 of a Fresnel liquid crystal lens with a six-step shape;
FIG. 4
is an optical simulation result 2 of a Fresnel liquid crystal lens with a six-step shape;
FIG. 5
is an optical simulation result 3 of a Fresnel liquid crystal lens with a six-step shape;
FIG. 6
is a part of morphology of a Fresnel liquid crystal lens in an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 7
is a schematic structural diagram of a Fresnel liquid crystal lens in an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 8
is a schematic distribution diagram of a second electrode in an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 9
is a schematic distribution diagram three electrode groups in an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 10
is a schematic diagram of the connection between electrodes and leads in an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 11
is a schematic morphology diagram of a Fresnel liquid crystal lens in an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 12
shows a step shape formed by three electrode groups sharing a voltage in an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 13
is a schematic distribution diagram of leads in the related art;
FIG. 14
is a schematic distribution diagram of leads in an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 15
is an optical simulation result 1 of a Fresnel liquid crystal lens in an embodiment of the present disclosure;
FIG. 16
is an optical simulation result 2 of a Fresnel liquid crystal lens in an embodiment of the present disclosure; and
FIG. 17
is an optical simulation result 3 of a Fresnel liquid crystal lens in an embodiment of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
To further clarify the objectives, features and advantages of the embodiments of the present disclosure, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure will be clearly and completely described below in combination with the drawings in the present disclosure. It is apparent that the described embodiments are not all embodiments but part of embodiments of the present disclosure. Based on the embodiments in the present disclosure, all other embodiments obtained by a person of ordinary skill in the art without inventive effort are within the scope of protection of this disclosure.
In the description of the present disclosure, it should be understood that the orientation or positional relationship indicated by the terms “center”, “upper”, “lower”, “front”, “rear”, “left”, “right”, “vertical”, “horizontal”, “top”, “bottom”, “inner”, “outer”, and the like is based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, and is merely for convenience of describing the disclosure and simplifying the description, but not intended or implied that the referenced device or element must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operated in a particular orientation, and thus should not be construed as limiting the present disclosure. The terms “first”, “second” and “third” are used for descriptive purposes only and are not to be construed as indicating or implying relative importance.
FIG. 1
j
j
j
j−1
j
j−1
th
The electrode forming the Fresnel liquid crystal lens is composed of a series of concentric circular ring arranged periodically, wherein each period is a sawtooth structure, as shown in , one sawtooth structure in each dotted box is a respective one period, and the period width is calculated according to a calculation formula derived from the Fraunhofer diffraction theory: r=√{square root over (jfλ)} d=r−r(the width of each ring is determined by designed target focal length and wavelength), where ris the distance from the boundary far from the center of the current period to the center, ris the distance from the boundary adjacent to the center of the current period to the center, j represents the jperiod arranged from the center to the edge, and f represents the focal length. The width of the resulting set of concentric ring electrodes corresponding to each period gradually decreases from the center to the edge.
FIGS. 1 and 2
FIG. 1
FIG. 2
The Fresnel liquid crystal lens with a periodic change is formed by controlling the deflection of the liquid crystals at different positions by applying different voltages, and a six-step equivalent Fresnel lens is formed by correspondingly applying six electrodes with different voltages in each period, as shown in , wherein is an ideal morphology of the Fresnel liquid crystal lens, is an actual simulated morphology of the Fresnel liquid crystal lens part formed by six different voltages, and examples of voltages applied by one six-electrode are: 0V, 1.77V, 1.89V, 2.16V, 2.28V, and 2.72V, which increases from the highest position of the step to the lowest position of the step, and controls the deflection of the liquid crystals at different positions, so as to enable the refractive index to gradually reduce at different positions and realize an equivalent six-step Fresnel lens structure.
The six-step is designed for the following reasons: the electrodes are multiple concentric ring electrodes. According to the Fresnel periodic line width design method, the width of the electrode group corresponding to the period of the Fresnel lens gradually decreases from the center to the edge. Therefore, due to the limitation of the current process line width (the minimum electrode line width is 3.92 microns), only the six-step design may be implemented if the lens performance parameter requirements of the focal length of 350 mm and the aperture of 16.7 mm is required.
FIG. 1
FIGS. 3-5
FIG. 3
FIG. 4
FIG. 5
However, according to the results of manufacturing and testing, a ghost phenomenon appears when viewing. The ghost phenomenon is caused by stray light in addition to a part of light converging to a designed main focus. As shown in , since the period of the Fresnel lens central region is wider, the Fresnel lens morphology step formed by six electrodes is wider. When the light is incident to a large width of the electrode, the light will exit without being modulated, resulting in stray light. The results of the optical simulations are shown in , wherein shows light tracing, and shows imaging quality, wherein the solid line shows the meridional modulation transfer function curve at different viewing angle positions and the dashed line shows the sagittal modulation transfer function curve at different viewing angle positions. is a dot diagram.
FIG. 3
1. The light beams in the central region exit in parallel (as shown in ), a focused spot is large, a spot size is 4 mm, and blurred spots generate a ghost blur phenomenon.
FIG. 4
2. Poor image quality: MTF≈0.1/0.1 lp/mm, which cannot meet the imaging requirements (where MTF is modulation transfer function, a horizontal axis represents spatial frequency, and a vertical axis represents that the curve of contrast value is an MTF curve, as shown in ).
FIG. 5
3. Dot diagram: the spot size of 4 mm is large, wherein an RMS radius (root mean square radius) is 5490.79 um and a GEO radius (geometric radius) is 8500.00 um, as shown in .
The results show that the available luminous efficiency is only about 60%; loss of light efficiency is due to: 1. since the morphology efficiency of the six-step fitting to an arc-shaped morphology is only about 80%, and 2. six-electrode equivalent fitting to the ideal refractive index curvature is only about 80%, and thus the available light efficiency is only about 60%.
FIGS. 7-11
1
2
11
21
4
1
2
With regard to the above-mentioned technical problems, this embodiment provides the Fresnel liquid crystal lens structure, and with reference to , the Fresnel liquid crystal lens structure includes a first substrate and a second substrate arranged opposite to each other, and a first electrode , a second electrode , and a liquid crystal layer arranged between the first substrate and the second substrate ,
11
21
11
21
the first electrode is a plate-shaped electrode, the second electrode is a plurality of concentric ring electrodes, and the pre-set voltage is applied to the first electrode and the second electrode to deflect liquid crystals to form a Fresnel liquid crystal lens;
FIG. 8
the plurality of concentric ring electrodes are divided into a plurality of electrode groups in the first direction (referring to an X direction in ) so as to divide the formed Fresnel liquid crystal lens into a plurality of lens regions;
each of the electrode groups is divided into a plurality of sub-electrode groups arranged periodically in the first direction so as to divide each of the lens regions into a plurality of sub-lens regions arranged periodically;
each sub-electrode group includes a plurality of electrodes, so as to form a sub-lens region having a step shape, and the quantities of electrodes in the sub-electrode groups located in different electrode groups are different, so that the quantities of steps of the sub-lens regions located in different lens regions are different;
wherein the first direction is a direction from a center to an edge of the plurality of concentric ring electrodes.
Theoretically, the thinner the electrodes, the more the quantity of electrodes, the more precise the deflection of the liquid crystal can be controlled, and the more accurate the liquid crystal lens can be equivalently fitted with the ideal lens morphology, which will eliminate the stray light to a greater extent.
FIG. 3
FIG. 2
According to the Fresnel design theory, the period of the Fresnel lens gradually decreases from the center to the edge, i.e., the widths of electrode groups corresponding to different periods gradually decrease from the center to the edge, the central region needs more electrodes to fit a better morphology of the Fresnel liquid crystal lens; in order to improve the quantity of steps in each period (improving the effective light efficiency), in this embodiment, the plurality of concentric ring electrodes are grouped, i.e., divided into the plurality of electrode groups in the first direction (the direction from the center to the edge of the plurality of concentric ring electrodes); the Fresnel liquid crystal lens to be formed is divided into the plurality of lens regions corresponding to the plurality of electrode groups respectively; each electrode group is divided into a plurality of periodically arranged sub-electrode groups; each sub-electrode group includes the plurality of electrodes, so as to form a sub-lens region with the step shape; each lens region includes the plurality of periodically arranged sub-lens regions; and the quantities of electrodes in the sub-electrode groups located in different the electrode groups are different, so that the quantities of steps in the sub-lens regions located in different lens regions are different. As compare with the conventional structure, this is equivalent to enlarging each period of the Fresnel liquid crystal lens, then each period is refined and divided into a plurality of sub-periods again, and the quantity of steps in each sub-period proximate to the center is increased, so as to improve the morphology efficiency of fitting an arc-shaped morphology, fitting a better morphology of a Fresnel lens, thereby improving the light efficiency. shows the partial morphology of the Fresnel liquid crystal lens fitted in this embodiment. As compared with the partial morphology of the Fresnel liquid crystal lens in , the morphology efficiency of the Fresnel liquid crystal lens fitted in this embodiment is high.
In this embodiment, the width of the plurality of the electrode groups in the first direction gradually increases in the first direction.
FIG. 8
FIG. 8
FIG. 9
FIG. 9
1
2
1
3
2
1
2
1
3
2
is the schematic diagram showing the distribution of the plurality of concentric ring electrodes, wherein the portion between two adjacent solid circles in represents the electrode, and is the schematic diagram showing group in one implementation of this embodiment, wherein the plurality of concentric ring electrodes are divided into three electrode groups in , the radius of the electrode group in the center is L, and the widths of the remaining two electrode groups arranged successively from the center to the edge are L−L and L−L, respectively, wherein L<L−L<L−L, but this is not limited.
1
2
1
It should be noted that one electrode group corresponds to one lens region forming the Fresnel liquid crystal lens. According to the Fresnel lens theory, the width of the period decreases gradually from the center to the edge, and sub-lens regions of different lens regions of the Fresnel liquid crystal lens corresponding to sub-lens groups in different electrode groups gradually decrease in width in the first direction; in some embodiments, the quantities of sub-electrode groups included in different electrode groups sequentially increase in the first direction, i.e., the quantity of sub-lens regions included in different lens regions gradually increases in the first direction; and the quantity of steps contained in the plurality of sub-lens regions in the same lens region is the same, then the widths of the plurality of the electrode groups in the first direction are set according to actual needs, for example, L=L−L.
11
21
11
1
21
2
It should be noted that the first electrode and the second electrode may be arranged on the same substrate, or may be arranged on different substrates. In this embodiment, the first electrode is provided on the first substrate , and the second electrode is provided on the second substrate , but this is not limited.
In an implementation of this embodiment, the quantity of electrodes in each sub-electrode group in a different electrode group gradually decreases in the first direction, i.e., the quantity of steps in each sub-lens region in a different lens region gradually decreases in the first direction.
In an implementation of this embodiment, the widths of the electrodes of each sub-electrode group in a different one of the electrode groups gradually decrease in in the first direction, i.e., the width of each sub-lens region in a different lens region gradually decreases in the first direction.
In an implementation of this embodiment, the quantities of sub-electrode groups included in different ones of the electrode groups gradually increase in the first direction, i.e., the quantities of sub-lens regions included in different ones of the lens regions gradually increase in the first direction.
In an implementation of this embodiment, the plurality of sub-electrode groups within the same electrode group gradually decrease in width in the first direction, i.e., the plurality of sub-lens regions within the same lens region gradually decrease in width in the first direction.
In an implementation of this embodiment, the plurality of electrodes in the same sub-electrode group have the same width, i.e., the plurality of steps in the same sub-lens region have the same width in the first direction.
FIGS. 10 and 11
FIG. 10
FIG. 10
FIG. 11
10
20
30
100
200
300
101
200
201
300
301
One electrode group corresponds to one lens region forming the Fresnel liquid crystal lens; one sub-electrode group corresponds to the sub-lens region in one lens region; each sub-lens region has the step shape; the width of the lens region proximate to the center in the first direction is large; increasing the quantity of steps of the sub-lens region therein can improve the light efficiency; and the quantity of electrodes in one sub-electrode group corresponds to the quantity of steps of one sub-lens region. According to the Fresnel lens theory, the quantity of electrodes of the sub-electrode groups in the electrode groups proximate to the center in the first direction is large than the quantity of electrodes of the sub-electrode groups in the electrode groups far away from the center, and the quantity of electrodes in each sub-electrode group in different electrode groups decreases gradually in the first direction. With reference to , shows a sub-electrode group in each of three different electrode groups, i.e., the first sub-electrode group , the second sub-electrode group , and the third sub-electrode group distributed from the center to the edge; in , only one sub-electrode group is shown in each electrode group; shows three lens regions formed by three different electrode groups distributed from the center to the edge, and the sub-lens region formed by the corresponding sub-electrode group in each lens region, wherein the first lens region , the second lens region , and the third lens region are shown; and the first lens region includes the plurality of first sub-lens regions , the second lens region includes the plurality of second sub-lens regions , and the third lens region includes the plurality of third sub-lens regions .
Theoretically, the thinner the electrodes, the more the quantity of electrodes, the more precise the deflection of the liquid crystal can be controlled, and the more accurate the liquid crystal lens can be equivalently fitted with the ideal lens morphology, which will eliminate the stray light to a greater extent.
FIG. 13
3
2
However, the greater the quantity of electrodes, the greater the quantity of leads required. In addition, the leads serve to supply voltage signals to the electrodes, which are arranged radially outwards from the center. Referring to , each lead extends from the center of the concentric ring electrodes . Due to the limitations of known technology, the leads are made of opaque metal; thus, the more leads, the lower aperture ratio, resulting in lower transmittance, at the same time, the periphery of the metal leads will affect the liquid crystal deflection, resulting in the stray light phenomenon. As a result, the greater the quantity of leads, the more stray light is produced; therefore, the quantity of metal leads should be limited to ensure transmittance and stray light.
In this embodiment, in order to make the sawtooth morphology of the formed Fresnel liquid crystal lens (the step shape of each sub-lens region) fit well and improve the image quality and reduce the stray light, we increase the quantity of electrodes and make the sawtooth morphology fit well; however, the quantity of leads are also increased accordingly. The leads affect the aperture ratio of the display panel as a whole and reduce the transparency, so the quantity of leads should not be excessive. In order to ensure the transparency to be above 95%, according to the state of the art, a maximum of 24 leads may be provided, so a maximum of 24 voltage leads are arranged in this embodiment.
In order to realize that voltage is applied to three electrode groups through 24 leads, this embodiment adopts a method of sharing leads.
In particular, the plurality of electrode groups include a first electrode group, sub-electrode groups in the first electrode group are first sub-electrode groups, an electrode group adjacent to the first electrode group and distal to the center of the concentric ring electrodes is a second electrode group, and sub-electrode groups in the second electrode group are second sub-electrode groups;
the Fresnel liquid crystal lens structure further includes a plurality of leads that is connected to the plurality of concentric ring electrodes to provide voltages, wherein the leads connected respectively to the electrodes in the first sub-electrode group are first leads, the leads connected respectively to the electrodes in the second sub-electrode group are second leads, and each of the second leads is connected to a first lead of the plurality of the first leads that is arranged at a preset position, to share a same voltage.
1
2
n
1
2
k
k
k*m
th
th
th
th
In this embodiment, the electrodes in the first sub-electrode group in the first direction are numbered respectively as a, a, . . . , a, the electrodes in the second sub-electrode group in the first direction are numbered respectively as b, b, . . . , b, the quantity of the electrodes in the first sub-electrode group is m times the quantity of the electrodes in the second sub-electrode group, and the quantity of the first leads is m times the quantity of the second leads, wherein a kone of the second leads and a (k*m)one of the first leads are connected to share the same voltage, wherein the ksecond lead is connected correspondingly to the electrode that is in the second sub-electrode group and numbered as b, and the (k*m)first lead is connected correspondingly to the electrode that is in the first sub-electrode group and numbered as a.
The quantity of the first leads is m times the quantity of the second leads, where m is greater than or equal to 2, such that the voltages at the electrodes of the respective first sub-electrode group and the voltages at the electrodes of the second sub-electrode group gradually decrease, to comply with the Fresnel lens principle.
FIG. 10
FIG. 10
FIG. 12
10
20
30
10
1
24
101
10
10
With reference to , which shows sub-electrode groups in three different electrode groups, i.e., the first sub-electrode group , the second sub-electrode group , and the third sub-electrode group distributed from the center to the edge (in , each electrode group only shows one sub-electrode group, which is for illustration purpose only, and the quantity of sub-electrode groups in each electrode group can actually be set according to actual needs). The first sub-electrode group includes 24 concentric ring electrodes, and 24 different voltages o-o are provided for corresponding electrodes; and the 24 voltages are fitted to form the step shape of one sub-lens region of one lens region in the Fresnel liquid crystal lens, as shown in . The reference numeral shows the phase schematic diagram formed by applying the 24 voltages to one sub-electrode group in the first sub-electrode group (i.e., corresponding to the step shape of the sub-lens region in the first sub-electrode group ).
20
1
12
201
1
2
2
4
12
24
FIG. 12
The second sub-electrode group includes 12 concentric ring electrodes, and 12 voltages V-V are applied, and the 12 voltages are fitted to the step shape of the second sub-lens region shown in , wherein the voltages V=o, V=o. V=o.
30
1
6
301
1
2
4
2
4
8
6
12
24
FIG. 12
The third sub-electrode group includes six concentric ring electrodes, and six voltages V-V are applied to form a step shape of the third sub-lens region as shown in , wherein the voltages V=V=o, V=V=o, V=V=o.
30
30
1
6
1
2
6
It should be noted that different sub-electrode groups in the same electrode group include the same quantity of electrodes and the same width of electrodes; the different sub-electrode groups in the same electrode group form the same Fresnel lens morphology; the electrodes that are in the different sub-electrode groups in the same electrode group and form steps of the same height have the same voltage; for example, in the first direction, the electrodes contained in the different sub-electrode groups in the same electrode group are numbered, and the voltages applied to the electrodes with the same number are the same; specifically, the above-mentioned plurality of third sub-electrode groups located in the same electrode group are numbered in the first direction, each of the third sub-electrode groups includes electrodes -, and the voltage applied to the electrodes numbered as is the same, and similarly, the voltage applied to the electrodes numbered as - is the same.
3
FIG. 14
In this embodiment, an end of each of the leads that is adjacent to the center of the concentric ring electrodes is connected to the respective electrode in the sub-electrode group, as shown in .
FIG. 13
FIG. 14
FIG. 14
FIG. 13
3
2
The function of the leads is to supply voltage signals to the electrodes. shows the distribution of the leads in the conventional art, which are arranged radially outward from the center, and each lead extends from the center of the concentric ring electrodes , regardless of which ring electrode is the starting end of the lead adjacent to the center. Due to the limitations of the known process, the leads are made of opaque metal, and the more leads, the lower the aperture ratio, and the lower the transmittance. In this embodiment, the distribution mode of leads is changed, and the lead is connected to the corresponding electrode at the initial end of one side of the lead adjacent to the center, rather than the center. shows a schematic diagram of one lead for one electrode, and each lead extends from the position of the connected electrode. For example, with respect to the outer ring electrode located at the outermost side in , the lead connected to the outer ring electrode extends from the outer ring electrode, rather than extending outward from the center, crossing over all the ring electrodes, and being connected with only the corresponding electrode, i.e., the inactive part of the lead between the outer ring electrode and the center is removed as compared with the lead distribution in . In the above-mentioned solution, the lead is arranged according to the electrode arrangement position, and the lead is arranged at the lead-out position, i.e., the lead-out position of the lead is not the center of the concentric ring electrodes, but the electrode proximate to the center, so that the length of the invalid lead is reduced, the aperture ratio is increased, and the stray light is reduced.
In this embodiment, the quantity of electrodes in the sub-electrode groups of the electrode group that is located at the center of the concentric ring electrodes is a maximum quantity of electrodes that is capable of satisfying a preset aperture ratio.
According to the Fresnel theory, the quantities of steps in the sub-lens regions of the central lens region gradually decrease from the center to the edge, and the quantities of steps in the sub-lens regions of the edge lens region correspondingly increase, i.e., the quantity of steps in the sub-lens region of the edge lens region is limited by the quantity of steps in the sub-lens region of the central lens region; therefore, the quantity of electrodes in the sub-electrode group in the electrode group in the center of the concentric ring electrodes is the maximum quantity of electrodes capable of satisfying a preset aperture ratio, so that the light efficiency can be maximally improved.
In this embodiment, in order to make the sawtooth morphology of the formed Fresnel liquid crystal lens (the step shape of each sub-lens region) fit well and improve the image quality and reduce the stray light, it increases the quantity of electrodes and make the sawtooth morphology fit well; however, the quantity of leads are also increased. The leads affect the aperture ratio of the display panel as a whole and reduce the transparency, so the quantity of leads should not be excessive. In order to ensure the transparency above 95%, according to the state of the art, a maximum of 24 leads is available, therefore, 24 voltage leads are arranged in this embodiment, and in an implementation of this embodiment, the maximum quantity of electrodes is 24.
In this embodiment, the quantity of electrodes in the sub-electrode groups of the electrode group that is located at the edge of the plurality of concentric ring electrodes is greater than or equal to a minimum quantity of electrodes that is capable of forming the Fresnel liquid crystal lens topography.
In this embodiment, by arranging the plurality of concentric ring electrodes in groups, i.e., arranging the Fresnel liquid crystal lens to be formed in regions, the quantity of electrodes is increased and the light efficiency is improved; however, the electrode group located at the edge is also to form the morphology of the Fresnel lens, so the quantity of electrodes in the sub-electrode group located in the electrode group at the edge of the plurality of concentric ring electrodes cannot be less than the minimum quantity of electrodes capable of forming the morphology of the Fresnel liquid crystal lens.
It should be noted that the electrode group located at the edge of the plurality of concentric ring electrodes is the electrode group located at the outermost ring.
It should be noted that in this embodiment, the quantity of electrodes in the sub-electrode groups of the electrode group located in the innermost ring can be set according to actual needs, and in this embodiment, the quantity of electrodes in the sub-electrode group of the electrode group located in the innermost ring is 20-36, but this is not limited.
FIGS. 10-12
In a specific implementation of this embodiment, 24 leads are provided, and 24 concentric ring electrodes are provided corresponding to the 24 leads, i.e., the sub-electrode group of the sub-lens region forming the central lens region includes 24 electrodes; in addition, in order to improve the aperture ratio, the leads connected to the plurality of electrode groups share the voltage; at the same time, in order to satisfy the principle of gradual decrease of the Fresnel lens, the quantities of the electrodes of the sub-electrode groups in the plurality of electrode groups in the first direction gradually decrease in a multiple relationship, and the multiple of 24 is 12 or 6; therefore, it is preferable in this embodiment, the plurality of concentric ring electrodes are divided into three electrode groups, the quantities of electrodes of sub-electrode groups in different electrode groups in the first direction are 24, 12, and 6 respectively, the Fresnel liquid crystal lens correspondingly formed includes three lens regions, the quantities of steps of sub-lens regions in different lens regions in the first direction are 24, 12, and 6 respectively, the three electrode groups in the first direction are named as a first electrode group, a second electrode group, and a third electrode group, and the corresponding Fresnel liquid crystal lens includes the first lens region, the second lens region, and the third lens region; referring to , the following detailed description is provided.
A first electrode group includes 11 sub-electrode groups in the first direction from a center 0 mm to a position with a radius of 2.1 mm, and a correspondingly formed lens region includes 11 sub-lens regions (the sawtooth structure), wherein each sub-electrode group is composed of 24 concentric ring electrodes, i.e., each sub-lens region is formed by 24 voltages. In the electrode group, there are a total of 11*24=264 concentric ring electrodes, wherein the widths of the electrodes gradually decrease from the center to the edge. The widths of the sub-electrode groups in the electrode group gradually decrease in a range of 627 μm-94 μm (i.e., the width of each electrode gradually decreases in a range of 26 μm-3.9 μm), the width of the sub-electrode group (a central electrode group) proximate to the center is between 627 μm-200 μm in the first direction, and the width of the electrode group adjacent to the central electrode group is between 199 μm-350 μm, so that the 24 voltages are used to fit the aspheric arc-shaped morphology, so that the light in the central area aggregates at the main focus. The width of the remaining sub-electrode group in the first direction is between 186 μm and 94 μm, the 24 voltage fits are used to form the ideal arc-shaped morphology, so that the effective efficiency is greatly improved to 98%, and the stray light is greatly reduced.
FIG. 12
1
24
1
12
A second electrode group includes 33 sub-electrode groups in the first direction from 2.1 mm in the center to a position with a radius of 4.2 mm, and the correspondingly formed lens region includes 33 sub-lens regions (the sawtooth structure), i.e., from 12 periods to 45 periods. The simulation result shows that 12 electrodes can be used to fit the arc-shaped morphology of the Fresnel lens, i.e., each sub-electrode group is composed of the 12 concentric ring electrodes, i.e., each sub-lens region is formed by 12 voltages, and there are 33*12=396 concentric ring electrodes in total. However, in order to reduce the quantity of the electrode leads, the voltage is applied without increasing the electrode leads, and the voltage design scheme of sharing the first electrode group is adopted. The phase implementation is shown in , wherein O-O represents a phase equivalent schematic diagrams after 24 voltages of the first electrode group are applied, and V-V represents a phase equivalent schematic diagram formed by 12 voltages used by the second electrode group; it can be seen that the second electrode group uses 12 voltages in the first electrode group so as to realize a 12-step phase of the sub-lens region corresponding to the sub-electrode group of the second electrode group, and it can be seen from the optical simulation result that the sub-lens region which can be formed by 12 voltages is the arc-shaped morphology having the wavelength difference of λ, wherein the width of the electrodes gradually decreases from the center to the edge. The widths of the sub-electrode groups in the first direction gradually decreases (i.e., the width of the electrode gradually decreases in the range of 7.8 μm to 3.9 μm) within the range of 94 μm to 47 μm, and the effective efficiency increases to 98%.
FIG. 12
1
24
1
12
A third sub-electrode group includes 132 sub-electrode groups in the first direction from a central 4.2 mm to a radial 8.35 mm position, i.e., from 46 periods to 178 periods. There are a total of 132*6=792 concentric ring electrodes, wherein the width of the electrode gradually decreases from the center to the edge. The widths of the sub-electrode groups gradually decrease within the range of 47 μm-24 μm (i.e., the widths of the electrodes gradually decrease within the range of 7.8 μm-4 μm), and it is obtained through simulation that the arc-shaped morphology of the Fresnel lens can be fitted by using six electrodes in the width range; however, in order to reduce the quantity of the electrode leads, voltage is applied without increasing the quantity of electrode leads, and the voltage design scheme sharing the first electrode group is used; the phase implementation is shown in , wherein O-O represent a phase equivalent schematic diagram after 24 voltages of the first electrode group are applied, and V-V represents a phase equivalent schematic diagram formed by six voltages used by the third electrode group; it can be seen that the third electrode group uses six voltages in the first electrode group to realize the six-step phase of the sub-lens region corresponding to the sub-electrode group in the third electrode group, and it can be seen from the optical simulation result that the 12 voltages can form the sub-lens region with the arc-shaped morphology with the phase difference of λ wavelength, and the effective efficiency thereof is improved by about 20%, and can be improved to 98%, and the stray light is greatly reduced.
FIGS. 15-17
FIG. 15
FIG. 16
FIG. 17
The result of the optical simulation of the Fresnel liquid crystal lens structure in this embodiment is as follows. With reference to , wherein shows light tracing, shows imaging quality, wherein the meridional and sagittal modulation transfer function curves at different viewing angle positions coincide, and shows a dot diagram.
1. The light is well focused, the focused spot is small, the spot size is 0.4 mm, and the phenomenon of blurred large spot phenomenon does not occur.
2. Good image quality: MTF≥0.2/45 lp/mm, which can meet the general system requirements such as Virtual Reality (VR)/Augmented Reality (AR), detection sensing, mobile phone lens.
3. The dot diagram: spot size is 0.4 mm, wherein the RMS radius (root mean square radius) is 320.119 μm and the GEO radius (geometric radius) is 377.585 μm.
2
201
202
5
201
202
In this embodiment, the plurality of concentric ring electrodes are arranged in two layers in the direction perpendicular to the second substrate , i.e., the plurality of concentric ring electrodes include the first layer electrode and the second layer electrode , an insulating layer is arranged between the first layer electrode and the second layer electrode , and the electrodes located in different layers are staggered to prevent a short circuit between adjacent electrodes.
In this embodiment, the electrode is an Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) electrode, but this is not limited.
This embodiment also provides a display device including the Fresnel liquid crystal lens structure described above.
The embodiments of the present disclosure also provide a method for driving the Fresnel liquid crystal lens, wherein a Fresnel liquid crystal lens structure includes a first substrate, a second substrate, a first electrode, a second electrode, and a liquid crystal layer, wherein the first substrate and the second substrate are arranged opposite to each other, and the first electrode, the second electrode, and the liquid crystal layer are located between the first substrate and the second substrate, the first electrode is a plate-shaped electrode, the second electrode is a plurality of concentric ring electrodes, and a pre-set voltage is applied to the first electrode and the second electrode to deflect liquid crystals to form the Fresnel liquid crystal lens; the plurality of concentric ring electrodes is divided into a plurality of electrode groups in a first direction, to divide the formed Fresnel liquid crystal lens into a plurality of lens regions; each of the electrode groups is divided in the first direction into a plurality of sub-electrode groups arranged periodically, to divide each of the lens regions into a plurality of sub-lens regions arranged periodically; and each of the sub-electrode groups includes a plurality of electrodes, to form a sub-lens region having a step shape, and a respective quantity of electrodes in each of the sub-electrode groups located in any one of the electrode groups is different, to enable that a respective quantity of steps in each of the sub-lens regions located in any one of the lens regions is different; wherein the first direction is a direction from a center to an edge of the plurality of concentric ring electrodes;
the method includes: providing the plurality of electrodes in each of the sub-electrode groups with respective different voltages, to deflect the liquid crystals at different angles to form the sub-lens region having the step shape.
In this embodiment, the plurality of electrode groups include a first electrode group, sub-electrode groups in the first electrode group are first sub-electrode groups, an electrode group adjacent to the first electrode group and distal to the center of the concentric ring electrodes is a second electrode group, and sub-electrode groups in the second electrode group are second sub-electrode groups;
the Fresnel liquid crystal lens structure further includes a plurality of leads that is connected to the plurality of concentric ring electrodes to provide voltages, wherein the leads connected respectively to the electrodes in the first sub-electrode group are first leads, the leads connected respectively to the electrodes in the second sub-electrode group are second leads, and each of the second leads is connected to a first lead of the plurality of the first leads that is arranged at a preset position, to share a same voltage;
wherein the method further includes: providing, through the first leads, the plurality of electrodes in the first sub-electrode group with respective different voltages, and providing, through the second leads, the plurality of electrodes in the second sub-electrode group with voltages that are same as the voltages at the first leads arranged at the preset positions, respectively.
1
2
n
1
2
k
k
k*m
th
th
th
th
In this embodiment, the electrodes in the first sub-electrode group in the first direction are numbered respectively as a, a, . . . , a, the electrodes in the second sub-electrode group in the first direction are numbered respectively as b, b, . . . , b, the quantity of the electrodes in the first sub-electrode group is m times the quantity of the electrodes in the second sub-electrode group, and the quantity of the first leads is m times the quantity of the second leads, wherein a kone of the second leads and a (k*m)one of the first leads are connected to share the same voltage, wherein the ksecond lead is connected correspondingly to the electrode that is in the second sub-electrode group and numbered as b, and the (k*m)first lead is connected correspondingly to the electrode that is in the first sub-electrode group and numbered as a,
wherein providing, through the second leads, the plurality of electrodes in the second sub-electrode group with the voltages that are same as the voltages at the first leads arranged at the preset positions, respectively, includes:
th
th
k
providing, through the ksecond lead, the electrode that is in the second sub-electrode group and numbered as bwith the same voltage as the voltage at the (k*m)first lead.
The above are the preferred embodiments of the present disclosure. It should be noted that a person skilled in the art may implement various improvements and modifications without departing from the principles of the present disclosure, and theses improvement and modifications shall fall within the scope of protection of the present disclosure. | |
Factor investing is a well-known investment strategy used mostly by quant funds. Even though the factors are well published, it’s important to distinguish 2 types of factors:
- Explicit factors: these are for example momentum, value, size, quality, etc.
- Implicit factors: these are statistical features determined by using e.g. maximum likelihood, Principal Component Analysis (PCA).
Thanks to their statistical nature, the implicit factors are often easier to calculate. However, we often don’t know what they exactly are, and we need to use intuition and statistical techniques in order to assign sensible economic variables to them. For example, in fixed income, the first PCA eigenvector (factor) can be interpreted as the level of the interest rate, while the second one would be the slope of the yield curve. Similarly, in the volatility space, the first eigenvector would be associated with the volatility level, while the second one would be the volatility skew.
Applying Principal Component Analysis to a basket of stocks and assigning sensible market variables to the eigenvectors is, however, less trivial. The first eigenvector is usually the market level, but the second and higher ones often carry no meaning and/or are difficult to interpret.
To mitigate this problem, Reference proposed a so-call Hierarchical Principal Component Analysis (HPCA), a variant of the PCA method in which stocks are divided into clusters that are believed to share common features such as an industry sector, a country, or a statistical measure,
To mitigate this problem and account for hidden risk factors, we adopt a purely statistical technique. This is a simple and still powerful tool that dynamically adapts to changes in market conditions over time, which makes it suitable for managing trading portfolios. Also, it is a parsimonious approach since it does not rely on too many parameters. The user only needs to define the number of clusters, which depends on the number of K eigenvectors, without specifying any other parameters or hyper-parameters
Using a statistical clustering technique, the authors developed an investment portfolio and managed to outperform the market,
To illustrate an application, we show it in the context of portfolio optimization for the US stock market. We provide evidence that using HPCA statistical-based factor models outperform other classical portfolio construction methodologies such as the shrinkage covariance matrix and the HPCA GICS-based factor models.
We find that it makes sense to use statistical features to partition stocks into clusters. We believe, however, that the traditional PCA can also be used, in conjunction with common sense and intuition, to identify clusters; e.g. we were able to use the second eigenvalues to divide utility stocks into regulated/unregulated groups. Similar results were also obtained in the fixed income space.
References
M. Avellaneda and JA. Serur, Hierarchical PCA and Modeling Asset Correlations (2020). https://ssrn.com/abstract=3903460
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Investors made a large shift away from short-bets on bitcoin last week. The token's price has climbed about 40% in January.
India’s Adani Group is planning to hire one of the “big six” accounting firms to assess its corporate governance and audit practices following allegations of fraud by short-selling firm Hindenburg, Mint newspaper reported on Monday. The audit will be commissioned after the group’s unit, Adani…
Good news for business leaders, not so much for the work from home die hards.
Markets are pricing in a 59% chance of a recession, down from 90% in October. But even that could be too optimistic, JPMorgan said.
The decision to use tech from ChatGPT maker OpenAI to produce content is part of BuzzFeed's broader cost-cutting strategy in a challenging economy. | https://harbourfronts.com/factor-investing-through-principal-component-analysis/ |
This package was designed mainly for interactions in statistical plots, a feature (nearly) missing in R for long. It contains most common statistical plots like histograms, scatter plots, bar charts, parallel coordinates plots, density plots, mosaic plots, boxplots, maps, missing value plots and time series plots. All plots support some common interactions as well as plot-specific interactions with the keyboard or the mouse.
Details
The actual drawing is based on two packages qtbase and qtpaint,
which connect R to Qt. The data structure is based on plumbr and
objectSignals; the
mutaframes and reference
classes are used extensively in this package. Usually there are listeners
(
add_listener) and signaling fields
(
properties) attached to data objects
(created by
qdata), so the plots can listen to the changes in
data (hence get updated). Note all the plots based on the same data object
are linked by default, so the interactions in one plot will be reflected in
other plots as well.
A plot can be in either the brush mode (default) or the identify mode. In the brush mode, we can use a rectangle brush to select elements in the plot; in the identify mode, the information about the identified elements under the mouse will be shown in the plot.
See
common_mouse_press,
common_mouse_move,
common_mouse_release,
common_key_press and
common_key_release for common interactions in all plots, and
the documentation of specific plots for other possible interactions. | https://www.rdocumentation.org/packages/cranvas/versions/0.8.5/topics/cranvas-package |
Using a two-space gap, instead of just one, in between sentences might be a weird concept to millennials who grew up in a post-typewriter world, but that actually used to be a norm. When typewriters dominated schools and offices, it was usual for people to insert two spaces after a period due to the imperfections of typewriters’ presentation of letters.
When word processing programs became better at producing more aesthetically pleasing typography, it soon became unnecessary to add two spaces after a period, and the practice was eventually reduced to a historical quirk. However, there might be good reason to bring this practice back. According to Rebecca Johnson, Becky Bui, and Lindsay Schmitt, researchers from Skidmore College, adding two spaces after a sentence can improve readers’ ability to process them.
The researchers enlisted 60 volunteers to determine whether spacing twice after a sentence had cognitive effects on readers. First, they had each participant type a page of text to determine whether they were natural one-spacers or two-spacers, and then had them read different types of text: some materials have two spaces after commas and periods, some have two spaces only after periods or only after commas, and the rest have standard, single spaces after commas and periods.
Using an eye-tracking mechanism, the researchers followed how the readers absorbed these different types of texts and, afterwards, measured their comprehension. They found out that two spaces after the period did aid the readers in processing the sentences faster, noticing that the readers did not rest as long at the end of these sentences. No difference in comprehension between single space and two spaces were found, however.
The study, titled “Are two spaces better than one? The effect of spacing following periods and commas during reading,” is published in the journal Attention, Perception, and Psychophysics.
Also on Psychatory: One In Three Female Grad Students Report Being Depressed
Past researches have long established the fact that minute details in text, like spacing, font size, and font type, do have specific and significant cognitive effects on readers. One intriguing study reported by the New York Times found that font sizes don’t have any effect on memory, but font type does. Specifically, unfamiliar, hard-to-read fonts made retaining information more efficient than using standard font types.
Font sizes appear to have other effects, however. Another study recommends text-heavy websites, such as Wikipedia, to use font sizes 18 or larger because it increased the readability and comprehensibility of the text. | https://www.psychatory.com/two-spaces-instead-of-just-one-after-a-period-help-readers-process-sentences-faster/ |
Bas relief mixed media mural includes handmade clay, glass beads, stone and turquoise, sculpted clay “pockets”, river rock artist/designer/team,
Created for a children’s hospital chapel, Healing the Spirit is an interactive artwork to inspire meditation, connection, strength, and serenity. The composition includes unique ‘clay pockets’ to be used by the visitors to leave messages. Spirituality and hope are represented symbolically by clay birds placed as if soaring above the main images. The artists designed the organically shaped mosaic to include water imagery that flows along the bottom edge, the four natural elements, a great blue heron to evoke calm, a dove, and the phoenix to symbolize growth and new beginnings. Other design elements for the mixed media mosaic includes details of the southwest, flora, fauna, and geology. “The artists are inspired by the small daily miracles of sunsets, the calming effects of running water, and the importance of the surrounding natural world to help soothe and heal” the body, mind, and soul.
Healing the Spirit was part of a group of projects for Phoenix Hospital funded through the One-percent for the Arts Program. Niki Glen and Helen Helwig worked with students from North High School and Girl Scout Troup 2300. | https://glenstudios.com/projects/healing-the-spirit-a-journey-of-hope/ |
CALL:
Please email replies to [email protected], by 29th February 2016 at the latest.
The Materiality of Mourning: A 2-day interdisciplinary workshop at the University of Warwick, 19-20th May 2016. Funded by the Wellcome Trust
Organiser: Dr Zahra Newby, Dept of Classics and Ancient History, University of Warwick, UK.
Papers are invited for this interdisciplinary workshop, which aims to bring together scholars and practitioners across a range of disciplines for a two-day workshop exploring the roles and uses of images and objects in contexts of grief and mourning. Speakers’ UK travel and accommodation expenses will be met by funding provided by the Wellcome Trust.
Grief and bereavement are human constants, affecting all of us, across time, religions and cultures. Yet our responses to them are both emotionally and culturally conditioned, and can take a variety of forms. For historians, the remnants of past grief are often revealed to us through physical memorials: a tombstone, a carved epitaph, or a cherished possession which passes into the ownership of the bereaved. The physical object stands as a tangible remnant of embedded sets of relationships, emotions and desires which it is the job of the he historian to unpick.
This workshop sets out to explore the role of material objects and images in the processes of grief, mourning and commemoration, across a range of time periods and cultures. The aim is to open up awareness of the different ways of studying this material, allowing for cross-disciplinary insights which will deepen our understanding of both present and past societies, while allowing for the recognition of social and cultural differences. Papers are invited from both academic researchers and practitioners involved in supporting the bereaved, or the terminally ill and their families. There are two main themes:
1: Objects and images in grief, mourning and remembrance.
This session will explore the use of material objects in contexts of grief, mourning and memory in both contemporary society and the past, from a number of different perspectives: how are tangible objects, mementoes and memorials seen as beneficial aids to the process of mourning? What roles can they play in the different rituals around death? Papers may include examinations of group responses to death, as well as those of individuals and families. Discussions of the ways material objects are presented in the contexts of grief in literature and thought are also welcome.
2: Embodied Emotion: accessing historic grief and mourning through material remains?
This session will ask how far we can gain access to the lived experience of grief and mourning through the material remains of the past. Archaeologists, historians and art historians often seek to understand past societies and cultures through the physical remains they have left behind; yet cultural values and practices around death and mourning can vary widely from one society to another, and issues such as changing rates of mortality can affect the ways in which societies approach death and bereavement. Papers will address the question of how much we can glean about past emotions through the physical monuments which remain, and the representation of such objects in literature or philosophy, as well as the question of agency and responsibility: whose grief is expressed; to what extent is it ‘real’, or the reflection of societal expectations, and which agents are involved in the creation of the tomb and its imagery?
Confirmed Speakers:
Sarah Tarlow, Professor of Archaeology, University of Leicester: ‘Body, Thing, Memory'
Michael Brennan, Senior Lecturer in Sociology, Liverpool Hope University. 'Why materiality matters'
Douglas Davies, (Professor of the Study of Religion, Durham): ‘Grave and hopeful emotions’
Lucy Noakes (History, Brighton): Memorials and grief in WWII Britain
Su Chard (independent funerary celebrant) 'When the mantelpiece spoke.'
Dawn Nevin, Director of Counselling and Family Support at Myton Hospices, Warwickshire.
Pam Foley, Sculptor ‘Routes of Sorrow: grieving without finality’
Academics and practitioners across all disciplines are warmly invited to offer papers exploring the research questions outlined above. PhD candidates and Early Career Researchers are particularly welcome. Disciplines may include, but are not limited to: Psychology, Sociology, History, Medical Education, Philosophy, Bereavement Counselling, Religious studies, History of Art and Architecture, Classics and Ancient History, Literary studies, Politics and Public policy. Please send a title and brief abstract (up to 200 words) [email protected] by 29th February 2016.
Tags: | https://www.fasticongressuum.com/single-post/2016-1-31-call-29022016-the-materiality-of-mourning-a-2day-interdisciplinary-workshop-at-the-univers |
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**Welcome To The World of Free Plain Vanilla Electronic Texts**
**eBooks Readable By Both Humans and By Computers, Since
1971**
*****These eBooks Were Prepared By Thousands of
Volunteers!*****
Title: In the Court of King Arthur
Author: Samuel Lowe
Release Date: September, 2004 [EBook #6582] [Yes, we are more than
one year ahead of schedule] [This file was first posted on December 29,
2002]
Edition: 10
Language: English
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*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IN THE
COURT OF KING ARTHUR ***
Produced by Alan Millar and the Online Distributed Proofreading
Team.
IN THE COURT OF KING ARTHUR
by Samuel E. Lowe
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter
I. Allan Finds A Champion
II. Allan Goes Forth
III. A Combat
IV. Allan Meets The Knights
V. Merlin's Message
VI. Yosalinde
VII. The Tournament
VIII. Sir Tristram's Prowess
IX. The Kitchen Boy
X. Pentecost
XI. Allan Meets A Stranger
XII. The Stranger And Sir Launcelot
XIII. The Party Divides
XIV. King Mark's Foul Plan
XV. The Weasel's Nest
XVI. To The Rescue
XVII. In King Mark's Castle
XVIII. The Kitchen Boy Again
XIX. On Adventure's Way
XX. Gareth Battles Sir Brian
XXI. Knight Of The Red Lawns
XXII. Sir Galahad
XXIII. The Beginning Of The Quest
XXIV. In Normandy
XXV. Sir Galahad Offers Help
XXVI. Lady Jeanne's Story
XXVII. Sir Launcelot Arrives
XXVIII. A Rescue
XXIX. Facing The East
XXX. Homeward
XXXI. The Beggar And The Grail
WHO WAS KING ARTHUR?
King Arthur, who held sway in Camelot with his Knights of the Round
Table, was supposedly a king of Britain hundreds of years ago. Most of
the stories about him are probably not historically true, but there was
perhaps a real king named Arthur, or with a name very much like
Arthur, who ruled somewhere in the island of Britain about the sixth
century.
Among the romantic spires and towers of Camelot, King Arthur held
court with his queen, Guinevere. According to tradition, he received
mortal wounds in battling with the invading Saxons, and was carried
magically to fairyland to be brought back to health and life. Excalibur
was the name of King Arthur's sword--in fact, it was the name of two
of his swords. One of these tremendous weapons Arthur pulled from
the stone in which it was imbedded, after all other knights had failed.
This showed that Arthur was the proper king. The other Excalibur was
given to Arthur by the Lady of the Lake--she reached her hand above
the water, as told in the story, and gave the sword to the king. When
Arthur was dying, he sent one of his Knights of the Round Table, Sir
Bedivere, to throw the sword back into the lake from which he had
received it.
The Knights of the Round Table were so called because they
customarily sat about a huge marble table, circular in shape. Some say
that thirteen knights could sit around that table; others say that as many
as a hundred and fifty could find places there. There sat Sir Galahad,
who would one day see the Holy Grail. Sir Gawain was there, nephew
of King Arthur. Sir Percivale, too, was to see the Holy Grail. Sir
Lancelot--Lancelot of the Lake, who was raised by that same Lady of
the Lake who gave Arthur his sword--was the most famous of the
Knights of the Round Table. He loved Queen Guinevere.
All the knights were sworn to uphold the laws of chivalry--to go to the
aid of anyone in distress, to protect women and children, to fight
honorably, to be pious and loyal to their king.
CHAPTER ONE
Allan Finds A Champion
"I cannot carry your message, Sir Knight."
Quiet-spoken was the lad, though his heart held a moment's fear as,
scowling and menacing, the knight who sat so easily the large horse,
flamed fury at his refusal.
"And why can you not? It is no idle play, boy, to flaunt Sir Pellimore.
Brave knights have found the truth of
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All the Whole numbers negative numbers and also zero are integers. Because an integer should not have any decimals they should be a whole number.
The Real Number System Real Number System Real Numbers Number System
All the integers are included in the rational numbers since any integer z can be written as the ratio z 1.
Are all rational numbers integers. Using the information listed above the following numbers which arent integers are also rational numbers 0444444 0242424 and 05555. This distance between a number x and 0 is called a numbers absolute value. All of which follow the rules for rational figures and which can all be easily expressed as whole fractions.
Let us determine whether the following rational numbers are integers or not. But numbers like ½ 11 and 35 are not integers These are all integers click to mark and they continue left and right infinitely. Rational Numbers The rational numbers include all the integers plus all fractions or terminating decimals and repeating decimals.
Hence every integer is clearly a Rational Number. All rational numbers belong to the real numbers. Therefore every integer is a Rational Number but a Rational Number need not be an Integer.
A rational number in Mathematics can be defined as any number which can be represented in the form of pq where q 0. An integer is a number with no fractional part. Are all Rational Numbers but not Integers.
In mathematics a rational number is a number such as 37 that can be expressed as the quotient or fraction pq of two integers a numerator p and a non-zero denominator q. For example the fractions 1 3 and 1111 8 are both rational numbers. Rational numbers have integers AND fractions AND decimals.
Both 4 and 5 are rational numbers9 is also a. Rational numbers are quotients of integers so to say that r and s are rational means that. 16 3 0 1 and 198 are all integers.
Hence every integer is a rational number but a rational number need not be an integer. The rational numbers are those numbers which can be expressed as a ratio between two integers. Also we can say that any fraction fits under the category of rational numbers where the denominator and numerator are integers and the denominator is not equal to zero.
The square root of two is an example of an irrational number. In decimal form irrational numbers continue on forever without ever repeating. It follows by substitution that contd.
Some People Have Different Definitions. Example 2 Solution You need to show that r s is rational which means that r s can be written as a single fraction or ratio of two integers. Any number for which it is possible to express as the ratio or quotient of integers is a rational numberSo yes 5 is rational because it is possible to express this as frac 51 frac 102.
A rational number is a number a b b 0 Where a and b are both integers. Repeati ng decimals are irrational numbers. Clearly 52-43 37 etc.
Rational Numbers A Rational Number can be made by dividing two integers. For example 3 can be written as 31 -0175 can be written as -740 and 1 16 can be written as 76. Frac 12 is an integer.
Rational numbers are which can be written in a pq form. Every integer is a rational number. Thus every integer is a rational number.
Are rational numbers but they are not integers. Irrational numbers can be written as one integer divided by another integer. Now you can see that numbers can belong to more than one classification group.
Irrational numbers can NOT be written as fractions. Every rational number can be written as a fraction ab where a and b are integers. Every integer is a rational number but not all rational numbers eg.
5 is also an integer. Check all that are true. If you look at a numeral line You notice that all integers as well as all rational numbers are at a specific distance from 0.
As it so happens a rational number is a numberany numberthat can be created by dividing one integer by another integer. 45 is a rational number. So all the integers are rational numbers but not all the rational numbers are integers.
Further examples of rational numbers that are not integers. For example 5 51The set of all rational numbers often referred to as the rationals citation needed the field of rationals citation needed or the field of rational numbers. All integers belong to the rational numbers.
Check out the following sections and get a complete idea of the statement. | https://virallistclub.com/678/ |
Here are two ways to prepare your D-Group for multiplication:
Give The Group Away
Give each member of your D-Group a chance to lead the discussion from time to time. Let them learn in a safe environment what it looks like to lead a group.
Intentionally Invest In Others
Jesus didn’t do anything by accident. Encourage your D-Group to add intentionality to every aspect of their lives, always on the lookout for opportunities to build relationships that could be leveraged for discipleship.
Spheres Of Influence
Each circle represents a sphere of influence God’s given you (work, family, neighborhood, etc). After identifying your unique spheres of influence, begin thinking through the one person God’s granted you favor with in that particular sphere. Share these names with your DGroup and begin praying for these people by name.
THE ROLE OF multiplicaton IN MAKING DISCIPLES
When calling His first disciples, Jesus not only invited them to share life with Him, but He gave them a glimpse of what was to come (Matthew 4:19). Mark 3 teaches that Jesus “appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with Him and He might send them out to preach.”
While they were with Him, they realized that Jesus was acutely aware of His sentness. John captures this truth in His gospel, reminding us over 25 times that Jesus was the Savior sent by God. Jesus found satisfaction in doing the will of the One who sent Him (John 4:34). Everything He taught (John 7:16) and did (John 6:38) stemmed from being sent.
Then, in John 20:21, Jesus did something spectacular. He said to His disciples, “As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” Of course this sending is captured in Matthew 28:19, when Jesus says, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
The Sent One had now sent them to join His Spirit in continuing this redemptive work. He started with “come and follow” so that they could eventually “go and make.” We are here today because of their faithfulness and we too have been sent to live on mission.
As you begin this new D-Group, make multiplication the new norm. Challenge members to make a commitment to do with others what you will do with them. Remind them often that they are learning in order to teach (2 Timothy 2:2). Spend time praying for potential people they will invite to be part of their D-Group. Continually consider the power of personal discipleship and encourage them to cultivate relationships that can be leveraged into discipleship opportunities. | https://www.pbctallapoosa.com/copy-of-d-group-prayer-1 |
What is carpal tunnel syndrome?
Carpal tunnel syndrome is numbness, tingling, weakness, and other problems in your hand because of pressure on the median nerve.
What causes carpal tunnel syndrome?
The pressure on the median nerve can come from swelling or anything that makes the carpal tunnel smaller. Although there are many causes, some of the most common are repetitive movement’s of the wrist and hand (like typing) or a misalignment of the shoulder, elbow or wrist. Some other causes include: rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, and other inflammatory conditions.
What are the symptoms?
Symptoms most often occur in the thumb, index finger, middle finger, and half of the ring finger. If you have problems with your other fingers but your little finger is fine, this may be a sign that you have carpal tunnel syndrome. A different nerve gives feeling to the little finger.
Tingling, numbness, weakness, or pain in the fingers or hand. Some people may have pain in their arm between their hand and their elbow.
How is it treated?
There are many treatments available that provide temporary relief such as anti-inflammatories, rest, icing, etc. However, at Tamarindo Muscle Therapy we believe it’s important to get to the root of the problem.
In carpal tunnel syndrome, although much of the focus may be on the wrist area, more than one structure may be involved, the probability of other muscles being out of balance is high. Typically people with carpal tunnel syndrome will present with an internal rotation of shoulder and arm affecting the nerve that supplies the sensation in the carpal tunnel that originates in the neck and shoulder area. It is important to release any scar tissue along the entire nerve pathway.
The Koontzin method has been very effective in treating this condition through stretching and specific manual manipulation of the soft tissue. This method relieves pressure and pain and provides a more permanent solution by treating the cause and not just the symptom. | https://www.tamarindomuscletherapy.com/tag/results/ |
BACKGROUND
SUMMARY
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
FIG. 1
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Online trading applications allow users to buy and sell securities using a computing device. illustrates a block diagram of a trading system. A user can access a web server by using a client . The web server can access a trading platform . The web server can receive requests from the client and send content to the client . For example, the web server can receive a create order request from a client , build a fill order request, send the fill order request to the trading platform , receive a confirmation from the trading platform in response, and send an indication of the confirmation to the client .
Instructions sent to a trading platform can include an order request, such as a fill order request. A fill order request can identify a security, the quantity of the security that a user wishes to purchases, and the price at which the user wishes to purchase. In some cases, stocks may need to be sold if the share value of the stocks falls below a predetermined value. For example, a fill order can exist for a user in which a specified quantity of a particular stock is to be purchased. The trading platform can execute the fill order by purchasing the specified stock. If, however, the stock value decreases by a particular value, the user can determine that the purchased shares should be sold to avoid further loss of value. In such a case, existing systems require that the user submit a sell order for the shares. Because users are required to create and submit a separate sell order request for the shares, the process of selling shares bought in a previous fill order can be cumbersome and inefficient in fast moving markets. Users can contain the risk associated with fast moving markets by reducing the overall time and complexity of creating multiple orders. Additionally, sophisticated investors can create larger strategies more quickly if the complexity of creating second orders is reduced.
In general, one aspect of the subject matter described in this specification can be embodied in methods for creating a conditional order in response to receiving a create order request. Receiving a create order request from a client. Building a fill order request based on the create order request and comprising a security identifier and a quantity. Extracting a conditional order price from the create order request. Building a conditional order request based on the fill order request and the conditional order price. Sending an open order request to the trading platform, the open order request comprising the fill order request and the conditional order request, wherein the trading platform creates a fill order and a conditional order based on the open order request. Other implementations of this aspect include corresponding systems, apparatuses, and computer-readable media configured to perform the actions of the method.
Like reference numbers and designations in the various drawings indicate like elements.
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The implementations that follow are aimed at improving the efficiency of executing an order related to a previously executed order. The various implementations can be used with various online trading platforms. In one implementation, a user, by accessing a client , can submit a create order request with a conditional order price. The conditional order price may be for a “sell” stop order, i.e. when the price of the security reaches the conditional order price, the security is sold at the market price. The conditional order price may be for a “buy” stop order, i.e., when the price of the security reaches the conditional order price, the security is purchased at the market price. For example, the user can submit a create order request to purchase a quantity of a particular stock. The user can include information with the create order request such that the information can identify the minimum value at which the stock should automatically be sold. The client can send the create order request to a web server .
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The web server can receive the create order request from the client and build a fill order request and a conditional order request. For example, the web server can receive a create order request to purchase a number of shares of stock ABC, the user can include the number of shares to be purchased, such as, but not limited to, 5,000 or 10,000 shares. The web server can build a fill order request for stock ABC with the number of shares sought, for example, 10,000 shares. The web server can determine if the create order request received from the client includes a conditional order price. If a conditional order price is available in the create order request, the web server can build a conditional order request that can include the conditional order price and the stock information from the fill order request. Thus the conditional order can sell the same number of shares that were bought by the fill order at the conditional order price. The web server can build an open order request that includes both the fill order request and the conditional order request and the send the open order request to the trading platform .
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The trading platform can create a fill order based on the fill order request included in the open order request and a conditional order based on the conditional order request included in the open order request that is received from the web server . In an implementation, a conditional order can be an order that activates if particular requirements are met. For example, the conditional order can be activated if the share price of a stock falls below a particular value, such as, but not limited to, the conditional order price included in the create order request. An activated conditional order can create a new order, cancel another order, or do both. For example, a fill order can be submitted to purchase 10,000 shares of stock ABC at market price. The market value of stock ABC at the time the fill order is created can be $10.00 per share. A conditional order can be created to sell shares bought as a result of the fill order if the share price falls below $9.00. Thus, the shares are automatically sold without the need for the user to manually create a separate sell order. In another example, the conditional order can have a conditional order price above the market value at which the shares were bought. For example, if the market value of the shares is $10.00 per share, the conditional order price can be set at $15.00 per share. Thus, if the market value of the shares meets or exceeds the conditional order price, the conditional order can be triggered and the shares can be sold. In yet another example, the conditional order can sell only a percentage of the shares purchased, thereby allowing a user to set multiple stop market action prices.
FIG. 2
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is an illustration of a trading interface based upon a create order request in accordance with an illustrative implementation. A client can display a user interface to a user. The user can enter information related to a new create order request. In an implementation, the user interface can include fields for entry of stock information. For example, the user interface can include a field for a stock or option identifier and the number of shares that should be purchased. The user interface can also include additional fields for the user to enter optional data. For example, a user can indicate that additional fields should be included by toggling a checkbox . If the checkbox is toggled to a checked state, the conditional order type dropdown and the conditional order parameter field can be enabled. Once enabled, the user can select the field type using the conditional order type dropdown and enter a value in the conditional order parameter field. In a further example, the conditional order parameter field can be labeled based on the selected conditional order type . For example, if the user selects a conditional order type of stop market activation, the conditional order parameter can be labeled as a conditional order price. The number of conditional order parameter fields can vary based on, for example, the type of order being submitted. The conditional order type can be, but is not limited to, a stop market sell order, a stop market buy order, a stop market limit buy order, a trailing stop buy order, a stock market limit sell order, a limit sell order, a trailing stop sell order, or a limit buy order. Thus, a user can select a stop market sell order to be associated as a conditional order with the fill order. Additional optional fields can also be displayed in the same manner (not shown).
FIG. 3
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is a flow diagram of a process for building a conditional order in accordance with an illustrative implementation. The process can be implemented on a computing device. In one implementation, the process is encoded on a computer-readable medium that contains instructions that, when executed by a computing device, cause the computing device to perform operations of process .
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The web server can receive a create order request from a client (). In an implementation, a web server can receive a create order request from a client to create a fill order on the trading platform at the market price. The create order request can include, for example, the stock or option identifier, the number of shares to be purchased, and a conditional order price. The create order request received from the client can be formatted in any number of ways. For example, the request can be formatted as XML data, wherein the XML data includes all of the data entered by the user at the client . In one implementation, the web server can send the create order request to the trading platform (not shown). In another implementation, the web server can create one or more order requests which can be submitted to the trading platform.
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The web server can build a fill order request from the create order request (). In an implementation, the web server can extract data related to the fill order request from the create order request. The web server can create a fill order request and include the data extracted from the create order request received in operation . For example, if the create order request includes a stock symbol of ABC and the number of shares is 10,000, the fill order request will be for the stock with the symbol ABC and the number of shares will be set at 10,000. The web server can optionally retrieve additional information not provided by the client and include the additional information in the fill order request. For example, the web server can include a timestamp of the fill order request, a session identifier, a client request identifier, etc.
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The web server can determine if a conditional order request should be submitted to the trading platform based, at least, on the inclusion of a conditional order price in the create order request received from the client (). In an implementation, the web server can determine if the create order request received from the client in operation includes a conditional order price. If a stop order price is not included in the create order request, then the web server can send a request to the trading platform with only the fill order request. If, however, the create order request does include a stop order price, the web server can build a conditional order request and send both the fill order request and the conditional order request to the trading platform .
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The web server can build a order request using the fill order data and the conditional order price (). In an implementation, the conditional order request can be for the stock and for the number of shares identified in the create order request and the conditional order price. The conditional order price can be extracted from the create order request. Because the conditional order request includes the stock information directly, the conditional order request is related to the shares of the stock rather than the fill order.
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FIG. 2
In another implementation, the web server can include a reference to the fill order request in operation in addition to the data in the create order request. The conditional order request can include configuration options to carry out any number of actions including, but not limited to, selling all shares bought in response to the fill order associated with the fill order identifier, selling a percentage of the shares bought in response to the fill order, etc. As discussed above, the conditional order can be activated based on one or more configuration options. For example, a conditional order can be activated if the share price of a particular stock falls below the included conditional order price. In another implementation, the client can provide configuration data for the conditional order in the create order request (e.g., by selecting a conditional order type , referring to ). For example, the client can set the action that should be taken (e.g., setting the percentage or number of shares that should be sold, etc) and the maximum number of shares, if any, that can be sold.
In one implementation, the conditional order can be a stop market sell order as described above. The conditional order can also be a stop market buy order, a stop market limit buy order, a trailing stop buy order, a stock market limit sell order, a limit sell order, a trailing stop sell order, or a limit buy order. Although certain implementations are described with regard to shares of stock, other types of securities, including but not limited to derivatives such as options and futures and multi-leg trades, may be utilized.
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The web server can create and send an open order request with one or more order requests to the trading platform (). In an implementation, the trading platform can receive the open order request and create orders based on each of the received order requests. For example, if the open order request includes a fill order request and a conditional order request, the trading platform can open a fill order and a conditional order. The trading platform can respond to the open order request with an open order confirmation.
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The web server can receive the open order confirmation from the trading platform (). In an implementation, the trading platform can send identifiers for the fill order and conditional order. The open order confirmation can also include additional information about each order request, such as, but not limited to, the status of the fill order and the status of the conditional order.
In one implementation, the trading platform may perform a check regarding the account associated with the conditional order upon the trigger of the underlying condition, i.e. if the stock price is the conditional order price. For example, where the conditional order is a stop market sell order, the account can be checked to determine if the necessary shares are owned. In another example, if the fill order request is canceled or rejected for some reason, the conditional order request can also be canceled. In a further example, if the conditional order request cannot be sent to the market, then it can be canceled. The user can receive a notification of the cancellation or rejection of any order request. The status of a conditional order can be updated to reflect the state of the order including, but not limited to, “pending”, “open”, or “closed”.
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The web server can send a create order confirmation to the client (). In an implementation, the web server can determine the outcome of the create order request based on the fill order request confirmation and the conditional order request confirmation. For example, both the fill order request and the conditional order request can have succeeded. Thus, the web server can build a create order confirmation indicating that the fill order and the conditional order were created. In another example, if the web server determines that no stop market activation price was received (), the web server can send a create order confirmation that the fill order was created and a conditional order request was not submitted to the trading platform .
FIG. 4
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is a block diagram of a computer system in accordance with an illustrative implementation. The computer system or computing device can be used to implement cell phones, clients, servers, cloud computing resources, etc. The computing system includes a bus or other communication component for communicating information and a processor or processing circuit coupled to the bus for processing information. The computing system can also include one or more processors or processing circuits coupled to the bus for processing information. The computing system also includes main memory , such as a random access memory (RAM) or other dynamic storage device, coupled to the bus for storing information, and instructions to be executed by the processor . Main memory can also be used for storing position information, temporary variables, or other intermediate information during execution of instructions by the processor . The computing system may further include a read only memory (ROM) or other static storage device coupled to the bus for storing static information and instructions for the processor . A storage device , such as a solid state device, magnetic disk or optical disk, is coupled to the bus for persistently storing information and instructions.
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The computing system may be coupled via the bus to a display . An input device , such as a keyboard, may be coupled to the bus for communicating information and command selections to the processor . In another implementation, the input device has a touch screen display . The input device can include a cursor control, such as a mouse, a trackball, or cursor direction keys, for communicating direction information and command selections to the processor and for controlling cursor movement on the display .
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According to various implementations, the processes described herein can be implemented by the computing system in response to the processor executing an arrangement of instructions contained in main memory . Such instructions can be read into main memory from another computer-readable medium, such as the storage device . Execution of the arrangement of instructions contained in main memory causes the computing system to perform the illustrative processes described herein. One or more processors in a multi-processing arrangement may also be employed to execute the instructions contained in main memory .
While this specification contains many specific implementation details, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of any inventions or of what may be claimed, but rather as descriptions of features specific to particular implementations of particular inventions. Certain features described in this specification in the context of separate implementations can also be implemented in combination in a single implementation. Conversely, various features described in the context of a single implementation can also be implemented in multiple implementations separately or in any suitable subcombination. Moreover, although features may be described above as acting in certain combinations and even initially claimed as such, one or more features from a claimed combination can in some cases be excised from the combination, and the claimed combination may be directed to a subcombination or variation of a subcombination. Moreover, the separation of various system components in the implementations described above should not be understood as requiring such separation in all implementations, and it should be understood that the described program components and systems can generally be integrated in a single software product or packaged into multiple software products.
Similarly, while operations are depicted in the drawings in a particular order, this should not be understood as requiring that such operations be performed in the particular order shown or in sequential order, or that all illustrated operations be performed, to achieve desirable results. Thus, particular implementations of the subject matter have been described. Other implementations are within the scope of the following claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The details of one or more implementations of the subject matter described in this specification are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, aspects, and advantages of the subject matter will become apparent from the description, the drawings, and the claims.
FIG. 1
is a block diagram of a system in accordance with an illustrative implementation.
FIG. 2
is an illustration of a trading interface based upon a create order request in accordance with an illustrative implementation.
FIG. 3
is a flow diagram of a process for building a conditional order in accordance with an illustrative implementation.
FIG. 4
is a block diagram of a computer system in accordance with an illustrative implementation. | |
As part of the hiring process, many hiring managers will utilize a behavioral interview technique when conducting job interviews. In response, the interviewers expect answers framed with what’s known as the STAR format. STAR stands for Situation, Task, Action, Result. Learn how to answer these questions and you’ll stand out as an obvious top candidate.
STAR Method Components
Situation Describe the situation that you were in or the problem that your employer was facing. Choose a specific instance. Be sure to give enough detail for the interviewer to understand the context. This situation can be from a previous job, from a volunteer experience, or any relevant event.
Task Describe what you were asked to do. What part did you play in resolving the issue? Again, describe a specific example, not just a job duty you routinely performed.
Action Describe the action you took and be sure to keep the focus on you. Even if you are discussing a group project or effort, describe what you did and your contributions– not the efforts of the team. Don’t tell what you might do, tell what you did. Provide good examples.
Results What happened? How did the event end? What did you accomplish? What did you learn? Provide good examples.
Tips for Using the STAR Method
During a behavioral interview, always listen carefully to the question, ask for clarification if necessary, and make sure you answer the question completely.It is helpful to frame your answer as a story that you can tell.Whenever you can, quantify your results. Numbers illustrate your level of authority and responsibility. For example: “I was a shift supervisor.” could be “As Shift Supervisor, I trained and evaluated 4 employees.”Use examples from past internships, classes, activities, team involvements, community service, and work experience.Write down your answers to the questions using the STAR method prior to the interview so that you have your thoughts organized.
Sample Questions
Driving for results: Tell us about a time when there was an obstacle preventing you from successfully completing a project ….How did you get around the obstacle to obtain success?Innovative Solutions: Our company is always looking for innovative people who can achieve solutions. Tell us about a time that required a unique solution and how you achieved it.Customer Focus: Give us an example of how you took negative customer feedback and were able achieve a positive result.Coaching: Time to time we all work with peers who are not performing or doing a good job. How have you handled that in the past?Building trust internally: Tell us about a time where you have worked with an individual who had different opinions from your own and how you handled that.Job satisfaction: Describe an occasion when you had either many or not many opportunities for creativity in your work. How satisfied did that make you? Why? What was the job that made you the most satisfied or dissatisfied in your work? What made it most satisfying or dissatisfying?Pride In One’s Work: In your job at xxxx, what was your definition of a job well done? Do you feel you did a good job? How could you tell? Provide an example. What were the standards for success in your position at xxxx? How did you meet the requirements? Do you have a recent example you can describe? Provide an example of a situation where you knew that a process was being done poorly. What did you do to correct it? How did that turn out?Making Decisions: Describe an instance when you had to analyze and interpret financial or numerical data. Describe a recent problem you discovered in your job at xxxx. What information did you use to identify the problem? Tell me about a complicated problem you encountered at work. What did you do to get a better understanding of the problem?Teamwork: Provide a situation where brainstorming produced differing or conflicting ideas with others. How did the goal get accomplished? Describe a time when you worked with a coworker to come up with roles and responsibilities. Have you ever helped someone come up with an idea? Give an example.Self Awareness: Tell me what areas you excel technically? What technical areas are your weaknesses that you need to improve? | https://www.kcmtech.net/post/behavior-based-interviewing |
POSITION SUMMARY:
The Sr. Business Analyst has responsibility for supporting a broad range of HRIS solutions through the maintenance and monitoring of human resource information. Act as subject matter expert user for UltiPro HCM solution. Act as an escalation point for end-users who are experiencing difficulties in using the system. General technical support of stakeholders who utilize HR information.
KEY DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES:
QUALIFICATIONS:
Education: Bachelor's degree or foreign equivalent in computer science, engineering or other technical or related field or equivalent knowledge and experience.
Experience/ Skills/Knowledge/Abilities:
- Bachelors Degree in Computer Science, MIS, Business or 5 years experience in HRIS and database management
- Minimum of 5 years of experience with well known HRIS solution supporting one or more of the following modules:
- Well versed in HRIS advanced reporting, calculated fields, and business process
- Ability to research new functionality or features and make recommendations on implementing, including configuration
- Ability to apply discretion as it relates to confidential or sensitive information
- Demonstrated ability to meet deadlines while maintaining a high degree of accuracy and attention to detail
- Ability to work independently and within a team in a fast-paced environment
- Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple projects and adapt to changing priorities
- Demonstrated excellence in written and oral communication with a strong customer service focus
- Collaborates with team members and other business leaders to manage changes required
- Proficient in Microsoft Office applications
Physical Requirements –N/A
Travel – Available to occasionally travel when necessary, during weekends.
REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION:
QDOBA will make reasonable accommodations to allow a qualified individual with a disability to enjoy equal employment opportunities and to perform the essential functions of the job. This position description should be applied accordingly. | https://www.apollovetnet.com/en-US/job/sr-business-analyst/J3P84H66YNKV005GS8X |
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT
_____________________
No. 98-31216
_____________________
EDWIN BEDFORD,
Plaintiff/Appellant,
VERSUS
THE CITY OF MANDEVILLE, JAMES TURNER, ET AL.,
Defendants/Appellees,
_____________________
No. 99-30419
_____________________
EDWIN BEDFORD,
Plaintiff/Appellant,
VERSUS
THE CITY OF MANDEVILLE, ET AL.,
Defendants
JAMES TURNER,
Defendant/Appellee.
_______________________________________________________
Appeal from the United States District Court of the
Eastern District of Louisiana
96-CV-737-B
_______________________________________________________
July 11, 2000
Before DAVIS, CYNTHIA HOLCOMB HALL* and SMITH, Circuit Judges.
*
Circuit Judge of the Ninth Circuit, sitting by designation.
DAVIS, Circuit Judge:**
Edwin Bedford (“Bedford”) filed this action following his arrest by Mandeville, Louisiana
Police Officer James Turner (“Turner”) and the State’s subsequent prosecution of Bedford on charges
relating to the arrest. Bedford asserted multiple claims for damages under § 1983 and Louisiana law.
The district court dismissed Bedford’s malicious prosecution claim on summary judgment (“SJ”).
Following a jury verdict in favor of Bedford on the balance of his claims, the district court entered
judgment on a portion of the verdict and granted a Judgment as a Matter of Law (“JML”) on the
balance. We affirm in part and reverse in part.
I
This suit arose out of a traffic stop, an ensuring altercation, and the arrest of Bedford by
Mandeville, Louisiana Police Officer James Turner (“Turner”). Alleging that Turner knowingly used
excessive force in effectuating his arrest, Bedford brought suit against him in his individual and official
capacity. Bedford’s suit included a § 1983 civil rights claim and state law battery, intentional
infliction of emotional distress, and malicious prosecution claims. Bedford sought compensatory
damages for physical pain and suffering, disability, mental anguish, lost income, and medical expenses.
He also sought punitive damages. Before trial, Turner filed a SJ motion seeking dismissal of a
number of Bedford’s claims. The court partially granted Turner’s motion and dismissed Bedford’s
malicious prosecution claim, on the ground that Bedford had failed to establish that Turner acted with
malice. Following a two day jury trial, the jury found in favor of Bedford on both the § 1983 claim
and the related state law claims. The jury awarded Bedford $32,000 in compensatory damages and
**
Pursuant to 5th Cir. R. 47.5, the Court has det ermined that this opinion should not be
published and is not precedent except under the limited circumstances set forth in 5th Cir. R. 47.5.4.
2
$50,000 in punitive damages. The jury itemized Bedford’s compensatory damages as follows:
$12,500 for lost income, $7,500 for past and future medical expenses, and $12,500 for physical pain
and suffering/mental anguish. After this verdict, Turner filed a JML motion addressing all of
Bedford’s causes of action and damage theories, and the district court partially granted this motion
and vacated the jury awards for Bedford’s punitive damages, lost income, and intentional infliction
of emotional distress claims because they were unsupported by the evidence. The trial court then
entered judgment for $7,500, the amount the jury awarded Bedford for medical expenses. In a later
order, t he district court granted Bedford’s post-trial motion for attorney’s fees, but reduced the
requested amount by 50%.
In this appeal, Bedford challenges the district court’s: (1) SJ order dismissing his malicious
prosecution claim; (2) JML order striking his awards for punitive damage, lost income, and
intentional infliction of emotional distress; and (3) order reducing his attorneys’ fees. We now turn
to these arguments.
II
Bedford argues first that the district court erred in granting Turner’s SJ motion dismissing his
malicious prosecution claim. Summary judgment is proper if the "pleadings, depositions, answers to
interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show there is no genuine
issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law,"
Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c), and this court reviews such grants de novo, see Morin v. Carin, 77 F.3d 116,
123 (5th Cir. 1996).
In order to establish a claim of malicious prosecution under Louisiana law, a plaintiff must
establish: (1) the commencement or continuance of an original criminal proceeding, (2) its legal
3
causation by the present defendant against the plaintiff who was a defendant in the original
proceeding, (3) its bona fide termination in favor of the present plaintiff, (4) the absence of probable
cause for such a proceeding, (5) the presence of malice therein, and (6) damage conforming to legal
standards resulting to plaintiff. See Miller v. East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's Dept., 511 So.2d 446
(La. 1987).
The district court concluded that because the District Attorney holds all prosecutorial
responsibility, no malicious prosecution claims can lie against a police officer such as Turner. This
conclusion is not supported by the Louisiana case law. Louisiana courts have permitted recovery by
a number of plaintiffs for malicious prosecution against non-prosecutors, including law enforcement
officers.1 In these cases, the courts have held that plaintiffs can satisfy the tort’s legal causation
element by a showing that a police officer submitted a materially false affidavit or report in support
of the plaintiff’s arrest or prosecution.2 To this end, Bedford’s summary judgment evidence included
numerous allegedly false police reports prepared and signed by Turner. These reports contain a
version of events portraying Bedford as the initial physical aggressor, a theory of the evidence the jury
found at least partially false in reaching its verdict on the plaintiff’s § 1983 and state tort claims.
1
See e.g., Jack v. Johnson, 618 So.2d 448 (La. App. 1993) (involving a malicious
prosecution claim against a bank and bank employee who allegedly improperly had the plaintiff
arrested); Keller v. Schwegmann Giant Supermarkets, Inc., 604 So.2d 1058 (La. App. 1992)
(involving a claim against a supermarket for detaining and having a plaintiff arrested); Winn v. City
of Alexandria, 685 So.2d 281 (La. App. 1996) (involving a claim against police officers).
2
See e.g., Touchtone v. Kroger Co., 512 So.2d 520 (La. App. 1987) (holding that the
causation prong was not met where the officer had not initiated complaints against the plaintiff or
supported the issuance of an arrest warrant through false affidavits); Hughes v. Standidge, 219 So.2d
6 (La. App. 1969) (upholding judgment against a police officer who testified to signing a false
affidavit supporting the plaintiff’s prosecution and affirming a judgment in favor of another officer
who had not signed such an affidavit).
4
Because material issues of fact were presented on Bedford’s malicious prosecution claim, the
district court erred in granting Turner’s motion for SJ.
III
Bedford argues next that the district court erred in striking his $50,000 punitive damage
award. A jury may assess punitive damages in an action under § 1983 if the defendant's conduct is
shown to be motivated by evil motive or intent or involved reckless or callous indifference to the
federally protected rights of others, see Smith v. Wade, 461 U.S. 30, 56, 103 S. Ct. 1625, 1640
(1983). The court held that Bedford had failed to present sufficient evidence that Turner’s conduct
was motivated by evil intent or motive or involved reckless or callous indifference to federally
protected rights.
The jury, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to Bedford, could have accepted
his theory of the case and concluded that Turner’s actions were accompanied by at least a reckless
or callous indifference t o Bedford’s rights. Evidence supporting this conclusion includes the
testimony of Orville Jack Jones (“Jones”), an independent witness to the incident. Jones’s testimony
corroborated much of Bedford’s testimony and supports the jury’s implicit findings that Turner
initiated the violence and used grossly excessive force during the arrest.3 Thus, this evidence supports
the punitive damage award, and the JML order striking such damages must be reversed.
3
See generally, Creamer v. Porter, 754 F.2d 1311, 1319 (5th Cir. 1985) (involving a police
officer’s extensive three-hour search o f the plaintiff’s residence, including files and small personal
spaces, when the search warrant pertained to a large television set that had been seized prior to the
search); Stokes v. Delcambre, 710 F.2d 1120, 1126 (5th Cir. 1983) (involving an officer’s failure to
appropriately control and supervise a parish jail, leading to assaults on the plaintiff by fellow
detainees).
5
IV
Bedford next challenges the district court’s order granting Turner’s JML motion with respect
to Bedford’s intentional infliction of emotional distress claim. Because we agree that Bedford failed
to establish at least one of the elements of this cause of action, we affirm the district court’s JML
order on this claim.
A district court's application of state law is reviewed de novo, see Salve Regina College v.
Russell, 499 U.S. 225, 231, 111 S. Ct. 1217, 1221 (1991); Scottish Heritable Trust, PLC v. Peat
Marwick Main & Co., 81 F.3d 606, 610 (5th Cir. 1996). The Louisiana’s Supreme Court delineated
the elements of an action for intentional infliction of emotional distress in White v. Monsanto Co..
585 So.2d 1205, 1209 (La. 1991):
“In order to recover for intentional infliction of emotional distress, a plaintiff
must establish (1) that the conduct of the defendant was extreme and outrageous; (2)
that the emotional distress suffered by the plaintiff was severe; and (3) that the
defendant desired to inflict severe emotional distress or knew that severe emotional
distress would be certain or substantially certain to result from his conduct.” Id. at
1209 (emphasis added).
The district court held, inter alia, that Bedford failed to prove the second element, severe
emotional distress. We agree. While Bedford testified to making an attempt to receive counseling
after the incident, he admitted to abandoning this effort after finding it too costly and produced no
medical testimony at trial of emotional injury. Mo reover, even Bedford’s Brief in this appeal
characterizes his psychological injuries as “humiliation and fear,” effects traditionally not rising to the
level of severe emotional distress or anguish that no reasonable person could be expected to endure.
See Id; Smith v. Ouachita Parish School Bd., 702 So.2d 727, 736 (La. App. 1997) (holding that
general embarrassment and humiliation do not satisfy this standard); Glass v. First United Pentecostal
Church of DeRidder, 676 So.2d 724, 738 (La. App. 1996); cf. Millon v. Johnston, 1999 WL 104413,
6
*5 (E.D. La. 1999) (holding that slurred speech, dizziness, and a stroke resulting from the defendant’s
conduct may satisfy the standard). Consequently, we affirm the trial court’s grant of the JML on
Bedford’s intentional infliction of emotional distress claim.
V
Bedford next challenges the district court’s order striking his award for lost income as
inadequately supported by the record evidence. In general, a plaintiff can only recover damages that
were proven at trial, see Prunty v. Arkansas Freightways, Inc., 16 F.3d 649, 652 (5th Cir. 1994), with
reasonable certainty, see Silor v. Romero, 868 F.2d 1419, 1422 (5th Cir. 1989) (NO. 88-4147). Our
review of the record leads us to agree that Bedford failed to introduce adequate evidence to support
an award of lost income. See Silor v. Romero, 868 F.2d 1419, 1422 (5th Cir. 1989). See generally
Schmuester v. Burkburnett Bank, 937 F.2d 1025, 1030 (5th Cir. 1991).
Bedford’s evidence on this issue was limited to his own testimony, that of his fiancee, and
scant financial records. While Bedford did produce tax returns for the years of 1992, 1993, 1994,
and 1996, he failed to produce any such records for 1995, the year of his arrest. Moreover, these
returns show inconsistent earnings for these periods4 and even indicate he earned more the year
following his alleged injuries than those prior to the arrest.
In light of the paucity of specific evidence on this damage theory, the trial court’s JML is
appropriate. A plaintiff’s own uncollaborated testimony is ordinarily considered inadequate to
support an award of lost wages, see also Forsyth v. City of Dallas, Tex., 91 F.3d 769, 776 (5th cir.
1996) (upholding JML where plaintiff’s lost income award rested merely on his own testimony). In
4
These records show that he lost $577 in 1992, earned $2,209 in 1993, earned 4,977 in 1994,
and earned $5,709 in 1996.
7
addition, Bedford’s limited tax returns do not provide objective support for his lost wages claim.
Therefore, the district court did not err in concluding that Bedford failed to establish his claim for lost
wages.
VI
Bedford next challenges the district court’s reduction of his attorney fees. An award of
attorneys' fees rests in the sound discretion of the trial court, and its judgment will not be reversed
absent a clear showing that it abused its discretion. See U.S. for Varco Pruden Bldgs. v. Reid & Gary
Strickland Co., 161 F.3d 915, 919 (5th Cir. 1998). Furthermore, all factual findings supporting such
conclusions are reviewed for clear error. Riley v. City of Jackson, Miss., 99 F.3d 757, 759 (5th Cir.
1996).
Bedford made a request for attorney’s fees in the amount of $69,338.50. This figure was
reached by multiplying a $150 hourly rate by the 454.59 total hours Bedford’s two attorneys, G.
Fredrick Kelly (“Kelly”) and William Magee (“Magee”), claimed to have spent on the case. Relying
on recent fee awards for attorney’s with similar experience, the district court found the $150 hourly
rate was reasonable for Magee, but unreasonable for Kelly and reduced the latter’s rate to $130/hour.
Consistent with this rate reduction, the district court originally calculated the lodestar for Kelly and
Magee at $56,353.70 and $3,165 respectively. The court later reduced the fees paid to Kelly by 50%
to take into account his fees’s “egregiously disproportionate” relationship to the $7,500 awarded in
the case after the JML rulings. While Kelly claimed only to have spent 50 hours on Bedford’s
unsuccessful claims, the district court found this estimate unreasonable and determined that a 50%
8
downward adjustment “reflected more accurately time spent on the issues and defendants over which
plaintiff did not prevail.” Bedford now contends that the court abused its discretion in reducing both
Kelly’s hourly rate and the number of legitimately chargeable hours.
In Hensley v. Eckerhart, the Supreme Court announced that a district court should focus on
the significance of the overall relief obtained by the plaintiff in relation to the hours reasonably
expended on the litigation. In particular, the Court offered the following guidance:
"Where the plaintiff has failed to prevail on a claim that is distinct in all
respects from his successful claims, the hours spent on the unsuccessful claim should
be excluded in considering the amount of a reasonable fee. Where a lawsuit consists
of related claims, a plaintiff who has won substantial relief should not have his
attorney's fee reduced simply because the district court did not adopt each contention
raised. But where the plaintiff achieved only limited success, the district court should
award only that amount of fees that is reasonable in relation to the results obtained."
Id. 103 S. Ct. at 1943.
While Bedford asserts that Kelly’s itemized billing statements support his contention that
Kelly spent only 60.8 hours on ultimately unsuccessful claims, the district court was certainly free to
make a contrary factual determination. The court’s unique position of presiding over all stages of this
litigation has afforded it an excellent perspective to independently determine how much preparation
was necessary for each claim, and it is not obliged to accept Kelly’s self-generated billing records in
reaching its reasonableness determination.
However, in light of our disposition of this appeal, in which we reverse the dismissal of
Bedford’s malicious prosecution claim and reinstate Bedford’s punitive damage award, we conclude
that this case should be remanded for reconsideration of the fee award in light of Bedford’s increased
level of ultimate success, see Perales v. Casillas, 950 F.2d 1066, 1073-74 (5th Cir. 1992).
VII
9
For the above reasons, we reverse the lower court’s SJ order dismissing Bedford’s malicious
prosecution claim. We also reverse the court’s JML order striking Bedford’s punitive damage award
and remand the case to the district court for further consideration of an appropriate award for
attorney’s fees in light of our opinion. We affirm the judgment of the district court in all other
respects.
10
| |
In the restaurant industry, there are many different positions, but all are related in some way. No matter what your position is – head chef of a fancy restaurant, or a line cook at McDonald’s – if you work in the restaurant industry you face certain risks for on the job injuries. Let’s take a look at some of the most common injuries in the restaurant industry.
Injuries caused by lifting heavy trays, containers, tables, or chairs.
Injuries caused by reaching or over-extending.
Burn or scalding injuries caused by a stove, oven, dishwasher, deep fryer, or other appliances.
Electrical burns caused by wiring, appliances, or damaged cords or wiring.
Exposure to hazardous chemicals or fumes.
Injuries caused by auto accidents while delivering food.
Any sort of injury could cause to you lose time at work. Serious injuries could result in your being permanently unable to return to work. So what can you do if you have been injured while working in the restaurant industry?
If you have been injured while working in a restaurant, you may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits. You should get medical attention immediately, and then notify your employer that you are injured. If you are concerned about getting benefits, or have been denied benefits, you should contact a workers’ compensation attorney.
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What Happens if a Workers’ Compensation Claim is Fraudulent? | http://ghworklaw.com/blog/2018/12/28/common-injuries-in-the-restaurant-industry/ |
Carla Kihlstedt strummed her megaphone-like violin and sang along; Pauline Oliveros meditated with her solo accordion, amidst a crowd of hundreds; Terry Dame fused the rhythms of Balinese Gamelan with American Funk; and someone played the Bible on a computer - it's an honor that all these unusual performances were a part of the 20-year saga of Music for People & Thingamajigs Festival.
Great time has passed in the collection of rich sonic experiences; and in the discovery of a community across oceans and skies. As Thingamajigs finds itself at the depths of the world of everyday musical explorations, our history calls out to us, to thank all those who have shared this tremendous voyage.
To understand why the event evoked such a deep connection for many, we spoke to Larnie Fox, who has been a long-term collaborator.
He found Thingamajigs (which at that time was the same as the festival) to be a precursor to the maker movement, that encouraged ‘messing in interesting ways’, and created a unique platform with diversity of expression.
The story of Thingamajigs, like many others, began with simple goals. Edward Schocker and Dylan Bolles set up a forum to network with other artists and musicians, only to learn about their works in alternate tuning systems. Music for People & Thingamajigs - a college project, became a music festival the following year, and like history goes, it repeated itself annually for the next two decades.
Dylan Bolles recalls that early on, the festival attracted both aspiring musicians and established performers. The same stage that saw the legendary percussionist William Winant perform Lou Harrison's pieces, also hosted many new-age experimental music mavericks. The network, still niche, widened and strengthened simultaneously. Soon after, along with musicians, the annual event showcased works in collaboration with poets, writers, dancers and artists from various disciplines.
It was only natural that one day, Music for People & Thingamajigs Festival, opened its doors to all in the world of unusual sounds and experimental music.
The varied perceptions and interpretations continued to add new dimensions to the festival, and led to the formation of Thingamajigs - a community that would inspire deeper, insightful conversations around atypical ways to make sounds.
Bart Hopkin believes that Thingamajigs helped create circumstances in which such a dialog could take place. It brought diverse groups of artists together, and provided substance and centrality to underlying questions of how they made musical sounds, took it in, and shared it.
Bart Hopkin, one of the early festival performers, shed light on the spirit that glued the community, through a story he shared with us.
Many years ago, he gathered with other artists for a radio talk on Thingamajigs. The group was posed with a question about John Cage and the composer’s recognition in Thingamajigs’ works. Bart recalled Walter Kitundu's response, which he found to be a revelation.
We, the people of Thingamajigs, are honored to have the friendship, support and artistic contributions of many such great creators. To look at the project of 1997, and see it in the form of an organization that now offers arts and education programs in the field of unusual music, our hearts swell with gratitude.
Thank you for the spectacular road that you paved with us. | http://www.thingamajigs.org/blog/thank-you-20 |
Fishes are used in a wide range of scientific studies, from conservation research with potential benefits to the species used to biomedical research with potential human benefits. Fish research can take place in both laboratories and field environments and methods used represent a continuum from non‐invasive observations, handling, through to experimental manipulation. While some countries have legislation or guidance regarding the use of fish in research, many do not and there exists a diversity of scientific opinions on the sentience of fish and how we determine welfare. Nevertheless, there is a growing pressure on the scientific community to take more responsibility for the animals they work with through maximising the benefits of their research to humans or animals while minimising welfare or survival costs to their study animals. In this review, we focus primarily on the refinement of common methods used in fish research based on emerging knowledge with the aim of improving the welfare of fish used in scientific studies. We consider the use of anaesthetics and analgesics and how we mark individuals for identification purposes. We highlight the main ethical concerns facing researchers in both laboratory and field environments and identify areas that need urgent future research. We hope that this review will help inform those who wish to refine their ethical practices and stimulate thought among fish researchers for further avenues of refinement. Improved ethics and welfare of fishes will inevitably lead to increased scientific rigour and is in the best interests of both fishes and scientists. | https://research-portal.uws.ac.uk/en/publications/ethical-considerations-in-fish-research |
Some forms of attacks on passwords use dictionaries. It is safer to use nonsense passwords like
YunSUanLin,
Artibichoke, etc., which do not seem to pertain to any dictionary?
Some forms of attacks on passwords use dictionaries. It is safer to use nonsense passwords like
-
14If you use a passphrase made up of 10 randomly chosen dictionary words that is going to be way safer than a 10-random characters password... so it depends. Aug 21, 2019 at 7:14
-
13
YunSuanLinlooks like a valid Chinese name and probably pertains to Chinese 3-Pinyin dictionaries, which is a reason random generators are preferred to inventing nonsense words. Aug 21, 2019 at 8:04
-
5@jww A salt does absolutely nothing to protect against dictionary attacks.– user163495Aug 21, 2019 at 13:23
-
8@jww Yes, but dictionary attacks have nothing to do with pre-computed tables. A dictionary attack is an attack where your password candidates are picked from a list of likely candidates, not any possible within a keyspace (i.e. brute force).– user163495Aug 21, 2019 at 13:56
-
5@jww Yes, you generate pre-computed tables from dictionaries, but if you use a table to search if a hash has already been calculated before, then you don't conduct a dictionary attack, you use a lookup attack. These are not the same thing, they are not interchangable.– user163495Aug 21, 2019 at 14:00
5 Answers
Attackers often don't just use dictionaries, but also rules which permute the words in dictionaries.
For instance, a rule could be to substitute certain letters for numbers, which look the same. This would turn
Password into
P455w0rd.
A rule, which could apply in this case, would be to remove single letters from a word. That means just permutating the password by removing one letter or deliberately misspelling it will give you better chances, but it's not guaranteed.
To specifically answer your question: Yes, it is safer to use non-sense words than to use words in a dictionary.
However, it's not as safe as you can get. An offline password manager can generate truly random passwords for you, and will store them in an encrypted manner. This means that you never have to type in your password, except the master password to unlock the password manager.
To demonstrate this, ask yourself which password you consider safer:
YunSuanLin0 or
[D@,7##M]enMd*)j5fxG~KQ~?r\<DdV^?
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Comments are not for extended discussion; this conversation has been moved to chat.– Rory Alsop ♦Aug 26, 2019 at 19:10
This might seem like a question that has an obvious answer, but is not that trivial.
Words that do not appear in dictionaries have more randomness ('entropy') and are thus harder to guess for computers.
But they're also harder to remember for humans. And that leads to password re-use. That's very bad.
If you do not use a password manager (and you should!) using a sentence of random dictionary words is usually safer than random non-words. Learn more about this here: What password should I use? (which has a very accurate and easy to understand visual explanation)
Learn more about password managers here.
"Safer" is a relative term. Safer than what, under which conditions?
Under purely theoretical conditions, assuming a brute-force attack of some kind, yes nonsense words are "safer" in the sense that it is highly likely the attacker will try a dictionary attack before an exhaustive search.
In real-life conditions, dictionary attacks happen under two circumstances: a) brute-forcing your way into some system and b) breaking passwords on a leaked database of password hashes.
The solution for a) is to not use broken software. If your software doesn't lock out the attacker after 10 or 100 or some other number of failed attempts, your software is broken.
For b) it is likely that the attacker will stop after breaking the usual simple passwords that many users will be using. He will likely let it run a bit more, but it would be unusual that he keeps the cracker running until he got all the passwords - he probably has several more leaked databases with easy targets that his time and resources are better spent on.
For b), having a password that's not in the dictionary and not a simple permutation (crackers do know about the usual "replace O with zero" substitutions and much more) dramatically improves your chances of not being on haveibeenpwned.com
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You'll still end up on haveibeenpwned as if the database gets put online (even with the passwords uncracked) there is the chance it'll be cracked, so all the addresses get added to the list. Aug 21, 2019 at 15:15
As far the dictionaries are concerned, they contain a list of most commonly used passwords, and that could be nonsense phrases and words as well. For instance, x+word+123 or x+monkey are some of the most commonly used passwords along with qwerty that don’t really make sense. So, you can use nonsense passwords, but make sure that they are unpredictable and not so common. And if you are looking to add strength in your passwords, you can combine the initial 2 or 3 words of multiple phrases. Moreover, if you can add special characters in your password, you’d much safer.
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6special characters are actually not safer. I'm not aware of a single piece of empirical evidence that proves they improve security. On the contrary, they make passwords harder to remember (which makes them more likely to be written down) and more difficult to type (which makes shouldersurfing easier).– TomAug 21, 2019 at 9:36
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1I agree with Tom's concern but upvoted anyway for pointing out that a "dictionary" for passwords contains way more than actual literal words from an English dictionary. Too many people have this weird idea that if they pick something not in the old edition of Merriam-Webster on their shelf, that they'll be safe.– BenAug 21, 2019 at 13:06
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I would argue that there is no difference between regular characters and special characters, the weight the same, but when you use ALSO special characters the number of combinations per each character is larger so it is best to use any possible value from the ASCII table and not only digits and alphabetical values. That is true when you brute force a password. It will take more time to brute force a password that contains special characters. Aug 21, 2019 at 14:04
TL;DR: The safest way to generate a password is by generally using a password manager
Someone who cracks hashes or bruteforces login attempts has several tools at hand to find possible passwords (or password hashes respectively) in question. Dictionaries or wordlists are only one of these. So to limit your defensive techniques against dictionaries only is not enough.
As others have stated, when an attacker is using tools like hashcat or John the Ripper, rules are defined to sometimes "enhance" the words that are found in wordlists. These rules can be defined with relative ease. But how do the attackers know these rules? And where do these dictionaries come from?
The second question can be answered easily: Like the infamous rockyou.txt a lot of other dictionaries are published after data breaches of major (or minor) companies.
Now you got your wordlist. Where do you get your ruleset?
Let's go back to those dictionaries. IIRC rockyou.txt has ~14 million passwords in it. Millions of user passwords in one place that give you a giant data set which passwords are used most commonly, which letters people capitalize and where they typically put numbers and special characters.
Wordlists have changed a bit over the years because we have taught people to build different passwords than "iloveyou", "password" or "baseball". But the change is slow, because a) a lot of older folks and b) people from emerging countries where password literacy is not widespread get access to digital services.
The gist is: people want to type their passwords easily and they want to remember them easily.
Easy typing is important when it comes to numbers and special characters. In theory there are around 200 special characters that you can just type with ALT+Numpad combinations. But in reality most people use one or two of these characters (depending on keyboard layout): !@#}|) (US), !"§*#= (DE).
You probably see a pattern here, because the same goes for numbers: 1209 are most commonly used afair.
So to come back to your question.
What exactly are you trying to achieve?
You do not want to generate passwords like every other user. You do not want to use a word from a dictionary. So use password manager, right? But you cannot always do that. If you log into your system you do not have access to your password manager yet.
Sometimes you have to remember a password and then you want to have a password that is easily rememberable and also very strong. My suggestion: Try something like diceware, or let a password manager generate a password for you and remember it afterwards. Use weird words and conjugate them. Use special characters that are a bit harder to type than "!". Don't just use one special character or one number.
If you think to yourself, that you thought of a clever rule, be sure, there are a million other people who do the same thing and that attackers will know about this rule as well.
Most importantly: 1. Use really long passwords. 2. Don't use passwords that are built like everybody else's. Because these are the passwords with building rules that every attacker knows. That's how to defend against a dictionary attack.
What you get out of a strong password is time. Time that is useful for changing your password after an account is compromised. The length of your password and the way you create passwords buys you that strength and that time. | https://security.stackexchange.com/questions/215628/defense-against-attacks-using-dictionaries |
President Muhammadu Buhari, in celebration of the new year, confirmed his commitment to fight insecurity, tackle corruption, expand the economy and strengthen the electoral process.
The president also pledged to reinforce the security outfits in the country with modern weaponry, and improve training and employment.
Buhari added that all that the country needs is a democratic government “that can guarantee peace and security to realise the full potential of our ingenious, entrepreneurial and hard-working people,” adding that his administration’s policies are tackled towards realising this.
The President said: “Our policies are designed to promote genuine, balanced growth that delivers jobs and rewards industry. Our new Economic Advisory Council brings together respected and independent thinkers to advise me on a strategy that champions inclusive and balanced growth, and above all fight poverty and safeguard national economic interests.”
He also noted that the government is committed to inclusive growth by signing of the African Continental Free Trade Area and the creation of the National Action Committee to oversee its implementation and ensure the necessary safeguards are in place to allow Nigeria to fully capitalise on regional and continental markets. | https://onyxnewsng.com/2020/01/01/new-year-buhari-sends-messages-of-hope-to-nigerians/ |
On some sites the freshwater pH is too low to achieve optimal growth for fish or shellfish. At other sites the buffering capacity of the water is low, and it is difficult to avoid pH fluctuation in the water. This again results in negative effects on growth. Sites where acid rain is a problem are particularly exposed to this. Further, in re-use systems biological filters are used to remove ammonia and this causes a drop in pH that must be corrected to maintain optimal growing conditions.
pH is the measure of acidity or alkalinity in a solu-tion. It is presented on a number scale between 1 and 14, where 7 represents neutrality and the lower numbers indicate increasing acidity and higher numbers increasing alkalinity. Each unit of change represents a tenfold change in acidity or alkalinity. What is measured is the negative logarithm of the effective hydrogen-ion concentration or hydrogen-ion activity in gram equivalents per litre of the solution.
pH= −log[H+]
If substances are added to the water they may act as acids, bases or be neutral. Acids give free hydrogen ions (H+) and bases free (hydroxyl ions) (OH−).
The alkalinity of the water is a measure of its capacity to neutralize acids, meaning its ability to keep the pH constant. If the alkalinity of the water is low fluctuation in pH occurs easily. The carbon-ate system normally represents the major part ofthe alkalinity in aquaculture systems, together with hydroxides (OH−). In the carbonate system com-pounds are related to each other via different equilibria:
CO2+ H2O ↔ H2CO3
H2CO3↔ HCO−3+ H+
HCO−3↔ CO23−+ H+
where:
H2CO3= carbonic acid; HCO−3= bicarbonate ion; CO23−= carbonate ion; CO2= carbon dioxide. Water with free bicarbonate will take up H+ ions.
The amount of each ion in the water is pH-related: in water of low pH there is excess carbon dioxide/carbonic acid; in water of pH 7 there is excess bicarbonate, and in water of high pH excess carbonate ion. The units for alkalinity are either mg/l as CaCO3 or milliequivalents per litre (meq/l) where 1 meq/l is equal to 50 mg/l CaCO3.
A buffer is defined as a substance capable of neutralizing both acids and bases in a solution and thereby maintaining the original acidity or alkalinity of the solution and the resistance to pH changes when adding moderate amounts of base or acids.
Hardness is sometimes confused with alkalinity, mainly because it can be expressed using the same units. Hardness is, however, a term for the sum of all metal ions in the water. This is dominated by the bivalent cations of calcium (Ca2+) and magnesium (Mg2+), but manganese (Mn2+), iron (Fe2+), sodium (Na+) and potassium (K+) may also be important. Because calcium and magnesium are included, hard water may also have high alkalinity, but this is not necessarily always so. If, for instance, sodium andpotassium are responsible for the alkalinity, the hardness can be low. The following water classifica-tion system can be used: soft water, hardness less than 50 mg CaCO3/l; moderately hard water 50– 150 mg CaCO3/l; hard water 150–300 mg CaCO3/l; very hard water, above 300 mg CaCO3/l.1Conduc-tivity may be used as a unit to determine hardness, measured as microsiemens per cm (μS/cm).
Related Topics
Copyright © 2018-2023 BrainKart.com; All Rights Reserved. Developed by Therithal info, Chennai. | https://www.brainkart.com/article/Adjustment-of-pH---Aquaculture-Engineering_14997/ |
The aim of the this puzzle is to make every row add up to 38. This will take a very logical mind.
The mission of the above puzzle game:
To put all the 16PCS number blocks into the board to make the addition of numbers in any direction line (horizontally, vertically and diagonally) is 34. | https://learnplayshop.com/for-adults-children-iq-3d-educational-wooden-puzzle-mind-brain-teaser-educational-toy/ |
Now more than ever, the words of fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent ring clear as a way of life: “fashion fades, style is eternal.” The Algerian-born designer changed the way women wore clothes, incorporating masculine pieces like the trench, pea-coat and pant-suit into the feminine sartorial language. This change in trends opened up the doors for women to be both comfortable and stylish, introducing a new idea of equality in society, as told through style. Now the iconic designer’s vision is on display at the Seattle Art Museum, exhibiting a glimpse into Laurent’s creative process including his first collection of Paper Dolls he made a teenager, photographs of his life and work, and many of the stunning garments themselves.
To celebrate the opening of the exhibition, What She Said brought in one of the main forces behind the show, Chief Curator of SAM, Chiyo Ishikawa, to talk art, fashion and feminism. The collection counts 110 garments and over 900 objects in total, reflecting on an icon built on dualities, who really knew how to push boundaries in style. | http://theangle.whotels.com/inside-fashion-feminism-life-yves-saint-laurent/ |
Summer vacation is over, and the kids have strapped on their backpacks and headed back to school for what parents and teachers hope will be a fruitful year. Running down the checklist of what students need to be successful in school, we’ll find notebooks, pencils, a calculator, and . . . executive functioning?
Executive functioning has long been a predictor of academic achievement. It comes down to goal-directed behavior and includes skills like organization, time management, and planning, or OTMP. Once children reach the upper levels of elementary school – third through fifth grade – their OTMP skills will have a significant impact on how well they perform in school.
Some students have a hard time learning these skills, despite classroom support they may receive from their teachers and aides. Difficulty in acquiring these skills is often evident when students fail to record homework assignments, turn in late or incomplete assignments, misplace materials, or have trouble getting their materials ready. To address these issues, schools frequently rely on an array of accommodations – peer buddy checking a backpack, teachers checking planners, providing extra textbooks at home. But these accommodations fall short of teaching OTMP skills and fail to prepare students to become independent learners.
Howard Abikoff and Richard Gallagher, investigators from the New York University Child Study Center, previously developed the Organizational Skills Training intervention for children struggling with developing OTMP skills. The intervention was shown to be very effective in improving both children’s OTMP skills and their school performance, but it is an intensive, twice-weekly clinic-based intervention that presents challenges for many families in terms of how to implement it. In collaboration with the intervention’s developers, three Children’s Hospital investigators are now taking the intervention out of the clinic and into the elementary school classroom to see how effective it is.
Thomas Power, PhD, Jenelle Nissley-Tsiopinis, PhD, and Jennifer Mautone, PhD, from CHOP are leading the research team, which includes colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania and New York University. The researchers are conducting a five-year study of the intervention with nearly 300 students across 20 schools in the Philadelphia region.
“For many third through fifth-grade students who are struggling with OTMP skills, difficulty completing and turning in homework leads to conflict with parents and teachers, who spend an inordinate amount of time on homework, and contributes to problems with academic performance,” Dr. Nissley-Tsiopinis said.
This behavioral research, funded by the Institute of Education Sciences of the U.S. Department of Education, involves 20 sessions with selected students who are experiencing academic difficulties as a result of OTMP challenges. The intervention includes OTMP skills training for the students as well as consultation with parents and teachers after each session to reinforce the skills the students have learned.
“The program includes a focus on collaborating with parents and teachers, to ensure that students receive support from important adults in their lives as they learn to use new skills,” Dr. Mautone said.
The students taking part in the study will be randomly assigned to receive OTMP skills training or the standard of care provided in the school with the opportunity to get the OTMP intervention after the study has been completed. The investigators will later compare the results of the two groups to determine how well the OTMP training works in improving organization skills and academic performance. If the OTMP intervention makes the grade, the study team expects that it could be implemented in upper elementary schools throughout the U.S. to help students master these skills that are essential to lifelong learning.
“This research is exciting because it uses a skill building approach with students and is being conducted in schools, which will make this highly promising intervention much more accessible for the large number of students who need it,” Dr. Power said. | https://research.chop.edu/cornerstone-blog/bringing-it-all-together-organization-skills-for-upper-elementary-students |
The SeaDetect project, part of Europe's LIFE initiative, aims to halt the biodiversity loss due to collisions between ships and cetaceans by implementing and developing new technologies. To considerably reduce this risk of collision and protect marine life and biodiversity, the SeaDetect project aims to develop two innovative, complementary systems. The first is a detection system to be deployed on ships composed of multiple highly sensitive sensors, of which the data will be fused and processed with artificial intelligence in order to detect cetaceans up to 1km. The second is a network of Passive Acoustic Monitoring (PAM) buoys that will detect and triangulate the position of cetaceans in real-time in order to prevent collision for all vessels in usual maritime roads.
IPI's role in the project is to develop novel detection algorithms based on raw data fusion to improve the detection capabilities of the on-board systems.
The project coordinator is Naval Group, with partners from France, Italy, and Belgium: Diades Marine Sas, Bureau Veritas Marine & Offshore Registre International De Classification De Navires Et De Plateformes Offshore, Greenov-ites, Nex Vision, Office National D'etudes Et De Recherches Aerospatiales, Quiet Oceans, La Méridionale S.a., Istituto Tethys Onlus, Institut Royal Des Sciences Naturelles De Belgique, and IMEC-IPI. | https://ipi.ugent.be/projects/2022_seadetect/ |
The concept Volcanism represents the subject, aboutness, idea or notion of resources found in Brigham Young University.
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Volcanism
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The concept Volcanism represents the subject, aboutness, idea or notion of resources found in Brigham Young University.
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- Volcanism
50 Items that share the Concept Volcanism
ContextContext of Volcanism
Subject of
- Andesites : orogenic andesites and related rocks
- Basaltic volcanism on the terrestrial planets
- Caldera volcanism : analysis, modelling and response
- Can rain cause volcanic eruptions?
- Carbonatite-nephelinite volcanism : an African case history
- Causes of catastrophe; : earthquakes, volcanoes, tidal waves, and hurricanes
- Depositional environments, lithostratigraphy, and biostratigraphy of the White River and Arikaree groups (Late Eocene to early Miocene, North America)
- Disruptive event analysis, volcanism and igneous intrusion
- Earthquake and volcano deformation
- Environmental effects on volcanic eruptions : from deep oceans to deep space
- Explosive volcanism : inception, evolution, and hazards
- Fundamentals of physical volcanology
- Glaciovolcanism on Earth and Mars : products, processes, and palaeoenvironmental significance
- Historical unrest at the large calderas of the world
- Introduction to planetary volcanism
- Introduction to volcanic seismology
- Large igneous provinces : continental, oceanic, and planetary flood volcanism
- Lectures and discourses of earthquakes and subterraneous eruptions
- Living with disaster
- Magmas, rocks and planetary development : a survey of magma/igneous rock systems
- Magmatic processes and plate tectonics
- Mechanisms of activity and unrest at large calderas
- Melting the earth : the history of ideas on volcanic eruptions
- Ore elements in arc lavas
- Planetary volcanism : a study of volcanic activity in the solar system
- Plates, plumes, and planetary processes
- Pleins feux sur les volcans
- Role of volcanism in climate and evolution
- Sedimentation in volcanic settings
- Stratigraphy and geology of volcanic areas
- Studies in volcanology : the legacy of George Walker
- The making of the earth : volcanoes and continental drift
- The origin, evolution, and environmental impact of oceanic large igneous provinces
- The physics of explosive volcanic eruptions
- The problem of volcanism
- Volcanic geology in parts of the southern Peloncillo Mountains, Arizona and New Mexico
- Volcanic processes : mechanisms in material transport
- Volcanic rifted margins
- Volcanic successions, modern and ancient : a geological approach to processes, products, and successions
- Volcanism on Io : a comparison with Earth
- Volcanoes
- Volcanoes and impact craters on the Moon and Mars
- Volcanoes of the deep
- Volcanoes of the solar system
- Volcanology
- Volcanology and geothermal energy
- What is a volcano?
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an arrangement for suppressing harmonics in a full-scale converter system. The arrangement according to the present invention involves connection of a filter, such as a tuned LC-filter or an active filter, to a tertiary winding of a grid transformer.
US 3,711,760
relates to a power supply system for supplying AC power to a DC load via a rectifier system.
US 3,711,760
In the power supply system suggested in a three phase AC power source supplies AC power to two six phase transformers each having a primary, a secondary and a tertiary winding. The primary windings are directly connected to the AC power source. The secondary windings are operatively connected to a twelve phase rectifier which supplies the DC load with DC power. The windings of each of the two six phase transformers are arranged in such a manner that the fifth, seventh, seventeenth and nineteenth harmonics cancel each other.
The tertiary windings are connected to harmonic filters so that the eleventh, thirteenth, twenty-third and twenty-fifth harmonics are suppressed by said harmonic filters.
US 3,711,760
The power supply system of is intended for supplying large amounts of DC power to a DC load.
US2003227172
relates to a method involves influencing voltage using a converter circuit (29), where the voltage like at a connection point to which an energy generator or an energy consumer is attached. A series connection is designed from an induction coil and a switch.
US3555291
relates to a harmonic filter for an AC power system, particularly for converter installations, which provides damping to diminish the effects of parallel resonance. The filter consists of a plurality of conventional LC shunt filters tuned to the expected harmonic frequencies.
Within the field of wind energy large amounts of AC power is to be delivered from individual wind turbines or wind turbine plants to AC distribution networks. Since wind turbines are often operated at variable speeds the frequency of the generated power varies in accordance with the variable frequency. For that reason AC/AC converters having an intermediate circuit are applied to keep the frequency of the AC power to be injected into an AC distribution network within the limits set by the grid codes of the particular network.
Fig. 1
AC/AC converters of wind turbine systems generate unwanted voltage or current harmonics. These unwanted voltage or current harmonics should be prevented from reaching a power supply grid operatively connected to the wind turbine system. As step-up transformers are normally required between AC/AC converters and associated power supply grids, it is of interest to make use of the transformer reactance. It is well-known, cf. , to use a step-up transformer as a phase reactor and to apply tuned LC-branches on the high voltage side of the step-up transformer. This removes the need for the separate phase reactor, but has two disadvantages: (i) a dv/dt filter (which is physically small) must be inserted between AC/AC converter and step-up transformer, and (ii) the LC-branch is connected at high voltage level.
It may be seen as an object of the present invention to provide a simple solution for suppressing harmonics in wind power systems.
It may be seen as a further object of the present invention to provide a solution where harmonic suppression is performed at a low voltage level.
a power generator adapted to convert mechanical energy to electric energy in the form of AC-power,
an AC/AC converter adapted to receive variable frequency AC-power from the power generator, and adapted to generate substantially fixed frequency AC-power,
a harmonic filter system, and
a grid transformer comprising one or more primary windings being operationally connected to the AC/AC converter so as to receive substantially fixed frequency AC-power therefrom, the grid transformer further comprising one or more secondary windings adapted to be operationally connected to an associated, substantially fixed frequency AC-power supply grid, and
The above-mentioned object is complied with by providing, in a first aspect, a wind turbine facility comprising
wherein the grid transformer further comprises one or more tertiary windings being operationally connected to the harmonic filter system in order to suppress unwanted harmonics, such as selected harmonics generated by the AC/AC converter, and wherein a turn ratio between a primary winding and a tertiary winding is selected in such a manner that a voltage of the tertiary winding is lower than a nominal voltage level of the associated AC-power supply grid voltage.
It should be noted that the term wind turbine facility should be interpreted broadly. Thus, the term wind turbine facility covers a single wind turbine or a group of wind turbines forming a wind turbine farm.
Similarly, the term unwanted harmonics should be interpreted broadly. Thus, the term unwanted harmonics covers any distortions to the electrical current and/or voltage flowing between the wind turbine facility and the associated, substantially fixed frequency AC-power supply grid.
As it will become clear from the following description the harmonic filter system may comprise a single harmonic filter or a plurality of harmonic filters for each phase of the wind turbine facility. For example, a single active filter may be applied for each phase. Alternatively or in combination therewith, a plurality of passive filters may be applied for each phase, each of said passive filters preferably being configured to suppress a selected harmonics. By nominal voltage level is meant the desired voltage level at which the AC-power supply grid is intended to operate. Typically the nominal voltage level of the AC-power supply grid voltage is between 10 kV and 36 kV.
Preferably, the power generator, the AC/AC converter, the harmonic filter system and the grid transformer are all configured to operate in a three-phase configuration. The power generator may deliver a three-phase AC output power voltage having a voltage level in the range 0.4-6 kV. Moreover, the power generator may be capable of generating and delivering AC power in a wide power range, i.e. from a few kW to several MW.
The power generator may be a synchronous generator applying external magnetisation or, alternatively, a synchronous generator applying permanent magnets for magnetisation An induction generator may be applied as well. The wind turbine facility according to the present invention is preferably a so-called full-scale facility. This implies that all power generated by the power generator is passed through the AC/AC converter and the grid transformer.
The grid transformer may be configured to suppress selected harmonics by applying appropriate winding configurations. Thus, suppression of harmonics may be achieved by applying appropriate combinations of for example star, Y and delta configurations of the primary and/or secondary windings of the grid transformer.
The voltage(s) of one or more tertiary windings may be within the range 400-1000 V, such as within the range 600-990 V which is considerable less that the nominal voltage level of the secondary windings (10-36 kV). By operating the harmonic filter system at a relatively low voltage level its cost of manufacturing is reduced accordingly because the harmonic filter system may be implemented using passive components only. Moreover, the filter size may be reduced compared to an arrangement where a harmonic filter system is operated at a significantly higher voltage level.
When connecting wind turbine facilities to power supply grids, there is a risk of interaction in the form of harmonics or other resonances between the harmonic filter system of the wind turbine facility and the power supply grid. In PWM-based AC/AC converters operating with a fixed switching frequency, it is advantageous to use tuned LC- branches to suppress harmonics at or near the PWM frequency, rather than open C-branches. A tuned LC-branch will narrow the range of resonance frequencies between the capacitor of the LC-branch and the grid. Compared to open C-branches the phase reactor (on the converter phase output) is larger when using tuned LC-branches for the same harmonic filtering.
According to the present invention one or more tertiary windings on the transformer may be used for the LC-branch, the LC-branch comprising the harmonic filter system. In the case of a three-phase system a three-winding transformer must be used. This also implies that not all leakage reactance is placed between the AC/AC converter and LC-branch, unlike known high voltage solutions. Smaller reactance means that more capacitance is required in the LC-branch. However, a capacitance C is significantly smaller and less expensive than inductance, L. The amount of required reactance depends on transformer layout. However, the remaining transformer reactance (from the LC-branch and towards the power supply grid) reduces harmonics somewhat.
As indicated above, the harmonic filter system may comprise one or more passive electronic filters. Preferably, the harmonic filter system comprises one or more passive electronic filters operatively connected to each of the phases of the wind power facility. Thus, in the case of a three-phase power generator one or more passive electronic filters, such as for example tuned LC-filters, are provided for each phase. For each phase the respective input ends of the tuned LC-filters are operatively connected to the relevant tertiary winding of the of the grid transformer. The other ends of the filters are interconnected thereby forming a star connection.
Preferably, each passive electronic filter is implemented as a band-pass filter comprising a capacitor connected in series with an inductor and a resistor coupled in parallel. Each passive filter may be tuned to suppress selected harmonics, preferably harmonics being generated by the AC/AC converter. Examples of such harmonics are harmonics of the switch frequency applied by the AC/AC converter. Each passive electronic filter may be configured to suppress a selected harmonics, such as the eleventh, thirteenth, seventeenth, nineteenth, twenty-third and twenty-fifth harmonics.
Since passive filters are tuned filters they will suppress frequencies in a narrow frequency band. A plurality of tuned filters may advantageously be applied in order to suppress a plurality of harmonics including harmonics at or near the switch frequency.
The wind turbine facility according to the present invention may further comprise a dv/dt filter operationally connected to the AC/AC converter and the one or more primary windings of the grid transformer. A dv/dt filter may advantageously be applied in each phase from the AC/AC converter in order to protect the transformer windings.
As an alternative to passive filters, the harmonic filter system may be implemented using active filters. Active filters may be operated with a switch frequency significantly higher than the AC/AC converter. In this way an active filter may be controlled to suppress the harmonics that are not suppressed by a given configuration of the step-up transformer. For example, an active filter may be adapted, but not limited, to suppress harmonics such as the eleventh, thirteenth, twenty-third and twenty-fifth harmonics. The switch frequency of the active filters sets an upper limit to which harmonics that can be suppressed. Optionally, the active filter may be applied to suppress unbalanced voltages from the wind turbine facility. Such unbalanced voltages may originate from small manufacturing deviations between the respective phases of the wind turbine facility.
The AC/AC converter preferably comprises a DC intermediate circuit separating a rectifier and an inverter. Thus, the AC/AC converter may be operated as a frequency converter where the frequency of the AC power supplied by the AC/AC converter is independent of the frequency supplied by the power generator. A common-mode filter operationally connected to the DC intermediate circuit of the AC/AC converter may be provided.
Typically, the wind turbine facility includes components specifically involved in the generation of electrical power and components which are of a secondary nature, the latter being known as auxiliary components. Optionally the auxiliary components may be powered by the tertiary winding.
providing a grid transformer comprising one or more primary windings, one or more secondary windings, and one or more tertiary windings, wherein a turn ratio between a primary winding and a tertiary winding is selected in such a manner that a voltage of the tertiary winding is lower than a nominal voltage level of a secondary winding, and
providing an active filter system being operatively connected to at least one of the one or more tertiary windings of the grid transformer in order to suppress unwanted harmonics, such as selected harmonics generated by an associated AC/AC converter of the wind turbine facility.
In a secondaspect, the present invention relates to a method for suppressing unwanted electrical harmonics in a wind turbine facility, the method comprising the steps of
Since most wind turbine facilities generate AC-power in three phases the grid transformer and the active filter system should be able to operate in a three-phase configuration. However, the method according to the third aspect of the present invention is not limited to three phase systems, and may thus be applied in single and other multiphase configurations.
The active filter system may be operated with a switch frequency significantly higher than the switch frequency of the associated AC/AC converter. Thus, the active filter system may be controlled to suppress harmonics that are not suppressed by a selected configuration of the grid transformer. The active filter system may be adapted, but not limited, to suppress harmonics such as the eleventh, thirteenth, seventeenth, nineteenth, twenty-third and twenty-fifth harmonics. However, it should be noted that the switch frequency of the active filter system sets an upper limit to the order of suppressible harmonics.
An advantage of applying active filters on the tertiary windings is that the filter can work with a higher switch frequency due to a lower voltage on filter.
providing a grid transformer comprising one or more primary windings, one or more secondary windings, and one or more tertiary windings, wherein a turn ratio between a primary winding and a tertiary winding is selected in such a manner that a voltage of a tertiary winding is lower than a nominal voltage level of a secondary winding, and
providing a harmonic filter system being operatively connected to at least one of the one or more tertiary windings of the grid transformer in order to suppress unwanted harmonics, such as selected harmonics generated by an associated AC/AC converter of the wind turbine facility.
In a fourth aspect, the present invention relates to a method for suppressing unwanted electrical harmonics in a wind turbine facility, the method comprising the steps of
Again, since most wind turbine facilities generate AC-power in three phases the grid transformer and the harmonic filter system should be able to operate in a three-phase configuration. However, the method according to the third aspect of the present invention is not limited to three phase systems, and may thus be applied in single and other multiphase configurations.
The harmonic filter system may be implemented as discussed in connection with the first and second aspects of the present invention, i.e. as a passive or an active filter. Thus, the harmonic filter system may be configured to, but not limited to, suppress the eleventh, thirteenth, seventeenth, nineteenth, twenty-third and twenty-fifth harmonics.
The harmonic filters may be implemented as discussed in connection with the first and second aspects of the present invention, i.e. as passive or active filters.
Thus, the harmonic filters may be configured to, but not limited to, suppress the eleventh, thirteenth, seventeenth, nineteenth, twenty-third and twenty-fifth harmonics.
Fig. 1
shows a prior art power supply system having harmonic filters connected to the high-voltage side of a step-up transformer,
Fig. 2
shows wind power supply system, and
Fig. 3
shows a harmonic filter operatively connected to low-voltage tertiary winding of a grid transformer.
The present invention will now be explained in further details with reference to the accompanying figures, wherein
While the invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the figures and will be described in detail herein. It should be understood, however, that the invention is not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Fig. 1
shows a full-scale power system applying a prior art solution for suppressing harmonics. As seen in a three-phase supply line 101 provides AC power to a full-scale AC/AC converter 102 which is operatively connected to a grid transformer 103, the latter typically being a step-up transformer. Passive tuned harmonic filters 104 are connected to the power lines 107. Moreover, dv/dt filters 105 and common-mode filters 106 are provided. The power lines 107 typically supply voltages in the range 10-36 kV. It is a disadvantage of the prior art system shown in that the harmonic filters 104 must be dimensioned to operate at this relatively high voltage level.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
In a full-scale wind power system is depicted. A seen in the system comprises a power generator 201, a full-scale AC/AC converter 202, a grid transformer 203 and a set of terminals 204 interconnecting the wind power system and an associated power supply grid 205. The power generator 201 is configured to be operated at variable speeds and for that reason the full-scale AC/AC converter 202 is operated as a frequency converter comprising a rectifier 206 and an inverter 207 separated by a DC intermediate circuit 208. The rectifier 206 and the inverter 207 may involve traditional bridge rectifier/inverter configurations.
Fig. 2
In the full-scale system depicted in all power generated by the power generator 201 is passed through the full-scale converter 202. The frequency of the AC-power supplied to the rectifier 206 varies with the speed of rotation of a rotor (not shown) of the power generator 201. However, the AC-power delivered to the associated power supply grid 205 must have a frequency that substantially matches the frequency of the associated power supply grid. This is accomplished by selecting an appropriate switch frequency of the inverter 207 so that the fundamental frequency of the voltage output of the inverter 207 matches the nominal frequency of the power supply grid 205.
The power generator 201 can be a synchronous generator applying external magnetisation or, alternatively, a synchronous generator applying permanent magnets for magnetisation. Alternatively, an induction generator can be applied.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
shows an embodiment of the present invention. As seen in a three phase power line 301 feeds an AC/AC converter 302, the AC/AC converter comprising a rectifier 303, a DC intermediate circuit 304 and an inverter 305. The inverter 305 is operatively connected to three primary windings 310 of a grid transformer 308 via an optional dv/dt filter arrangement 306. A common-mode filter arrangement 307 is inserted between the three phases 313 and the DC intermediate circuit 304.
The primary windings 310 of the grid transformer 308 are connected in a star connection. The grid transformer 308 further comprises three secondary windings 309 connected in a delta connection. Moreover, three tertiary windings 311 connected in a star connection are provided.
The voltage level on the primary side of the grid transformer 308 is typically within the range 0.4-6 kV whereas the voltage level on the secondary side of the grid transformer may typically be in the 10-36 kV. The voltage level of each of the tertiary windings is typically below 1 kV.
The grid transformer can be configured to suppress selected harmonics. For example, if the grid transformer is configured in a star/delta configuration harmonics fulfilling the formula 6n±1, where n is a positive integer, are suppressed. Other transformer configurations eliminate other harmonics.
Each of the three tertiary windings 311 are connected to one or more tuned LC-filters 312 in order to suppress selected harmonics, i.e. harmonics not being suppressed by the grid transformer itself. A majority of the harmonics to be suppressed by the tuned LC-filters 312 are switch harmonics generated by the inverter 305. In case the inverter 305 of the AC/AC converter 304 switches with a frequency of for example 5 kHz, and the grid frequency is 50 Hz, harmonics will be generated at 4950 Hz and 5050 Hz. In order to suppress these harmonics at least two tuned LC-filters are required for each phase. One of the filters is tuned to suppress the 4950 Hz harmonic, whereas another filter is tuned to suppress the 5050 Hz harmonic. Thus, a tuned LC-filter is preferably provided for each harmonic to be suppressed in each phase.
The composition of filters is preferably identical for all phases. Thus, if one phase is equipped with first and second tuned LC-filters for suppressing the 4950 Hz and the 5050 Hz harmonics, respectively, the remaining phases are preferably equipped with identical filters.
As stated above the filters for suppressing harmonics may be implemented as active filters. Preferably, the active filters are operated with a switch frequency significantly higher than the switch frequency of the AC/AC converter. The active filters can be configured to suppress harmonics, such as the eleventh, the thirteenth or other harmonics fulfilling the formula 6n±1, where n is a positive integer. The active filters may be implemented as voltage-source converters. | |
Hier finden Sie wissenschaftliche Publikationen aus den Fraunhofer-Instituten.
Using empirical studies during software courses
:
Carver, J.
; Jaccheri, M.L.
;
Morasca, S.
;
Shull, F.
Conradi, R.:
Empirical methods and studies in software engineering : Experiences from ESERNET
Berlin: Springer, 2003 (Lecture Notes in Computer Science 2765)
ISBN: 3-540-40672-7
ISSN: 0302-9743
S.81-103
Englisch
Aufsatz in Buch
Fraunhofer IESE
(
)
Abstract
A number of empirical studies using students as subjects has been carried out in the last few years. These studies are usually conducted as pilot experiments that allow researchers to fine-tune an experiment before deploying it in an industrial environment. Though one of the issues usually taken into account with these experiments is their external validity, other issues need to be considered, such as the usefulness of these experiments in the context of a software engineering course. This chapter concisely reports on three empirical studies performed at the Universita degli Studi dell'Insubria during the ESERNET project and two other empirical studies that we carried out previously, all with students as subjects, so as to provide the context for a discussion on the research and the educational goals that should be taken into account when carrying out an experiment with students to make it successful from both an empirical and an educational viewpoint. Finally, we provide some advice on how to carry out empirical studies with students based on our experiences.
: | http://publica.fraunhofer.de/dokumente/N-37277.html |
Kaanb is an Istanbul based clothing sourcing agency that was founded in Nov 2010 by M. Pınar Bayoğlu. Offering valuable services in supply chain & materials management, garment development and sustainable production, Kaanb manages a network over 60 manufacturing sites specialized in flat knit, jersey, woven, denim and swimwear products to meet their customer demands.
Thanks to Bayoğlu family’s’ 55 years background in yarn production, the agency is blessed with a discrete portfolio of fabric mills which offer a wide range of sourcing capabilities as well as competitive price points.
Supplier Compliance and Governance, Audits, Supply Chain Transparency, Traceability, Visibility and Sustainability are key areas covered through their team of 35 experienced members. Kaanb has been a key supplier for major brands in United Kingdom for over a decade and strives to grow their contribution to English Fashion for many years to come. | https://kaanbmumessillik.com/ |
By AmayaAs an author of fanfiction, sometimes reviews can be a wonderful thing, and sometimes they can be…less so, but sometimes, reviews make you think, and that was the situation that led to this little essay. I realized that I had done my readers a great disservice and forgotten to give them the appropriate background assumptions from which I was working for my determination of the rites of passage to adulthood in Na’vi culture. This is, of course, only my interpretation, there is plenty of debate on this subject on the forums at learnnavi.org, but having read through the Activist Survival Guide (an imperfect resource, but one of the only ones yet available) the Pandorapedia (similar disclaimer applies) and the Avatar script, I was not able to find anything definitive, and so had to make some assumptions.
Having some training in Anthropology myself, I’m fairly familiar with what constitutes a “Rite of Passage” and, more importantly, how rites of passage vary between different groups even within one clan. Generally there are more and more physically difficult rites of passage for those who wish to attain a higher status, such as warrior. In this essay there are two main rites of passage I will deal with: Iknimaya and Uniltaron.
About iknimaya, Neytiri herself tells us “You will bond with your ikran and then become taronyu, hunter.” Therefore I interpret this to mean that iknimaya is a rite undertaken only by those who will be hunters. Weavers, singers, and other craftspeople do not generally undertake the rigors and possible death involved with iknimaya.
Uniltaron, on the other hand, I interpret to be a general rite of passage into adulthood. This is harder to understand from the movie alone, as the scenes detailing Jake’s uniltaron were omitted from the final copy, but they are still in the script which is/was online, and the uniltaron scene was included with other deleted scenes in the Collector’s Edition. Uniltaron is what Jake is talking about when he says “I just have to do this one last thing, the last stage of becoming a man, and then I can speak and they have to listen.” It is spoken of as a “second birth” and the rite following which one takes one’s place among the clan. “The Na’vi say everyone is born twice”. This is actually a very telling statement. In many, many human societies, the rite of passage into adulthood involves a “death” of the child and “rebirth” as an adult. Uniltaron, then, I interpret to be the rite EVERYONE undertakes in order to become an adult member of the tribe. As Neytiri says, it is only after uniltaron that Jake can “make his bow from the wood of hometree and (more importantly) take a woman.” If only those who have passed through uniltaron may mate, and if uniltaron was only for warriors, (a misinterpretation I have seen more than once) then either EVERY member of the tribe would be a warrior (unlikely, as a warrior class tends to be a rather elite class in any society. Anyone can fight if pressed, of course, but a trained warrior is special) or mating would be limited to those who were of that elite class, an equally unlikely situation.
As far as rites of passage to become a warrior, I don’t believe we’ve actually seen or been told of any as yet, and that also makes a lot of sense since these sort of rites are usually EXTREMELY well-protected by their individual groups and kept VERY private. It’s actually unlikely that even Na’vi outside the warrior class know all of what is involved in the rites to become a warrior, and if they do not know, why would any warrior trust an uniltìranyu enough to share such privileged information?
So, in short, uniltaron and iknimaya are separate rites of passage, neither one necessitating the other to come first or second, (although it is likely that iknimaya generally comes first) and iknimaya is a specialized rite, pertaining only to the hunter class within the Na’vi society. | http://www.avatarnation.net/ikrans-perch-1-navi-rites-of-passage/ |
Why International Day of Yoga is Celebrated on June 21?
What is Yoga?
The word ‘Yoga’ is derived from the Sanskrit word ‘Yuja’ which simply means to unite and align. It is the disciplining of the mental, physical and the spiritual self in a manner that promotes harmony, union and balance between the three.
Having originated in ancient India and dating back roughly to its mention in the Rigveda, Yoga is a dominant part of the Hindu philosophical tradition. However, it has undergone significant changes, and the modern form also includes a wide variety of asanas (yoga postures). Recently, Yoga has been gaining popularity across the western world as well. With the result that, since 2015, June 21 is celebrated as the International Day of Yoga.
When and How did International Yoga Day start?
The Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi had first sowed the idea of celebrating International Yoga Day. On September 27, 2014, the United Nations General Assembly unanimously decided to take forward this idea. Consequently, after Mr. Modi’s suggestion, June 21 is globally observed as the International Day of Yoga (or International Yoga Day) every year. Talking about the importance of Yoga, the Indian Prime Minister said, “Yoga has the perfect solution to the problems we face, either as individuals or in society. Yoga is beautiful because it is ancient yet modern,”. Moreover, it is precisely observed on June 21 because that is the day of the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere. Since it is located in the Northern Hemisphere, it is the longest day of the year in India.
Why is Yoga Important?
Apart from uniting the mind, body and soul in harmony, Yoga has a lot of other mental and physical health benefits as well. It trains the body toward natural self-healing and repair. From reducing the stress levels, to controlling high blood pressure, Yoga provides numerous mental and physical health benefits.
-
Physical Health Benefits
Yoga helps to control weight, increases muscular strength, boosts the immune system and strengthens the respiratory glands. It also reduces the blood sugar levels and increases blood flow, apart from providing a straight posture and fast repair of body tissues. Moreover, it is known to improve the bone density and prevent cartilage breakdown, as well as create an effective and balanced metabolism .
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Mental Health Benefits
Today, mental health has become a priority for a large section of our society. With mankind’s constant involvement into various stress inducing 9 to 5 jobs and around the clock work schedule, mental health has become a major concern. Here, Yoga comes to the rescue, acting as a natural therapy to manage stress and other psychological problems. It has become so essential for the well being, since it brings clarity, calmness and improves concentration in individuals.
Global Reach of Yoga
India has certainly set a new benchmark in the global market with its launch of the International Yoga Day, landing India a strong foothold in the international community. Yoga is now no longer an integral part of India only, but of several other countries across the globe. Other than the idea of promoting health and healing, the global inception of Yoga has helped in fostering better relationships and connectivity across state and country borders. This has also strengthened the idea of global citizenship keeping in mind both the political and economic context.
Celebrity cricketers Chris Gayle (West Indies) and Shane Watson (Australia) have credited the powerful effects of breathing, meditation and exercises related to Yoga to perform well in their careers. Other celebrities like actor Jennifer Aniston, supermodel Gisele Bundchen, and singer Beyonce have also been documented in Yoga poses, attesting to its appeal in maintaining mind-body balance. Yoga also received a boost when an all women mountaineering team of Indian Army officers performed Yoga at an altitude of 19,022 ft on Mt. Bhagirathi in summer 2018.
Related Links: | https://www.mapsofworld.com/answers/world/why-international-day-of-yoga-is-celebrated-on-june-21/ |
The movement is most prominent in Japan, where the influence of Zen Buddhism instills a desire for simplicity. There, less is more.
There's also practical concerns. It's cheaper to be a minimalist, and because Japan is regularly beset by earthquakes, it doesn't always make sense to have a lot of valuable possessions lying around in your house. Nearly half of earthquake injuries come from falling objects.
Take a fascinating look into the sparse aesthetic of minimalism:
In Japan, some bedrooms are so stripped down that they don't even have beds.
What does a minimalist keep in his fridge? Not much.
The bathrooms also keep it simple.
This one couldn't be more austere. There aren't any consumerist products in sight.
Sink counters exist to keep stuff on them. All you need is a toothbrush, and that doesn't require one.
A window ledge can be just as useful as a sink counter.
Everything has its place.
Just one spoon and one fork is necessary.
Minimalist Saeko Kushibiki stores away her futon mattress in her apartment. Out of sight, out of mind.
Even living rooms are decluttered. The only furniture items here are a desk and a chair.
But sometimes not even a chair.
It's all about having only simple objects ...
... but that doesn't mean they can't be beautiful.
The lack of furniture means more space to stretch out.
It's easy to keep your kitchen counter clean if you don't have much to put on it.
This ceiling lamp is just a plain white circle.
Because there aren't many items in the first place, the ones you need are easy to find.
They're easily within reach.
Hanging objects on simple hooks is a clean, popular storage strategy among minimalists.
Part of the minimalist philosophy is keeping together the objects that belong together.
It's a way to declutter your life ...
... and your mind.
Each object has its own place and purpose ...
... but sometimes minimalism means not owning a mop.
There's a certain beauty to it.
There's nothing to distract you ...
... and you never need to think about which pot to use for which dish.
Windows and decorations don't compete with each other.
Some scenes are perfect for Instagram ...
... even in the least likely situations.
You get to think of your possessions in a fresh way.
The negative space speaks louder than the spaces filled with stuff. | http://amorq.com/article/53/32-photos-that-show-how-obsessed-japan-is-with-minimalism |
Please read the following prior to the statements for each service area below.
There is a lot of pressure on Essex County Council budgets due to austerity and increased demand however we also recognise that there is cost pressure within the market place in terms of minimum wage, pensions, and general cost inflation.
Essex County Council also wanted to develop a standardised approach to the market for 2018/19. Therefore balancing all these factors we have agreed an uplift of 2% commencing from 1st October 2018. This uplift does not apply to services that have been through a procurement process in the last year or to placements made after April 2016.
This amount will need to be rounded (to 2 decimal places). To administer the uplift on our systems, the total weekly fee needs to be divisible by 7 for residential placements and the hourly rate needs to be divisible by 4 for supported living.
We will start to implement the uplift as soon as possible but as this process is manual this will take some time to complete. Suppliers whose uplifts are applied later in the process will have their uplift backdated
Out of county placements are not included
Essex County Council (ECC) has conducted its market sustainability review this year and as a result we are currently in the process of identifying service user(s) who meet the agreed uplift criteria as per the letter sent out to care providers across Essex. If you have read the letter and believe that service users who are residents at your home qualify for the 2017/18 uplift we will be more than happy to investigate this, please contact us at [email protected] detailing the Residential/Nursing Home Name, resident(s) name and Date of Placement.
To enable ECC to target resources to where they are most needed the increase is targeted to all spot packages that are below a cap of £668.37 for residential care and £681.02 for nursing care and where the placement was made before April 2016.
Packages where the 2% increase would take them above the cap will be increased to the cap only.
The same applies for packages pre the current IRN contract.
Please refer to the uplift statement (October 2018) at the top of this page.
Essex County Council is committed to ensure the stability of the market and ensuring people are paid a fair wage. Therefore following our market analysis ECC consider the minimum rate for a supplier to be able to meet all of its legislative requirements is £14.68 per hour for standard domiciliary personal care (£11.76 for 24hr care and night sleeping services). Any package below this rate was increased to the new minimum on 12th February 2017.
The above only applies to placements made under the Live at Home Framework Agreement (LAH), Home Support Services Spot Contract (HSS Spot contract), or the Best Value Ranked List (BVRL) Framework Agreement.
If you believe you are delivering standard domiciliary personal care at a rate below the minimum then please contact us at [email protected] detailing the service user(s) name and packages details for the Procurement Team to investigate.
Providers who are part of the Live at Home Framework are able to select a rate from the published matrix, which they are able adjust at each annual review point. Please note existing packages will only transfer to the newly selected rate if there is a change to the current package.
Attachment: Copy of the letter sent to the market regarding uplifts for 2018/2019.
Intensive Enablement and Supported to Independence are not included as these have recently been through a tender exercise and the chosen supplier pricing will apply to historic placements. | https://www.livingwellessex.org/working-with-us/rate-uplifts/ |
Life Cycles of Frogs and Butterflies What We Will Be Learning About… Life Cycles of a Frog and a Butterfly Metamorphosis Pupas Larvae Tadpoles Metamorphosis… Is defined as an extreme change in form from one stage to the next in the life of an organism.
Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author.While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server.
Larva: the wingless stage of an insect before it undergoes metamorphosis, commonly referred to as a caterpillar.
Pupa:the life stage following larval and prior to adult life, often referred to as chrysalis and/or cocoon. This is the part of metamorphosis when a butterfly encloses itself in firm case.
Tadpole: the aquatic larva or immature form of frogs and toads
(Change in form through different stages of an organism’s life.)
Larva (Caterpillar), Pupa (Cocoon), Adult Butterfly
Eggs, Tadpole (Aquatic Larva), Adult Frog
Using the provided websites, choose either the butterfly or the frog and search for pictures of each stage of the organism’s life cycle.
Once you have printed your images, cut them out and paste them on a piece of paper in the order that the occur. | https://www.slideserve.com/Sharon_Dale/life-cycles-of |
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to decks, and more particularly to a protective deck plank cover. Specifically the present invention relates to a protective deck plank cover which has features which allow the cover to cling to and provide protection from the elements for the deck plank.
A common problem exists with decks of typical wooden construction. When a deck surface is constructed of wood, it is subject to rotting, warping, splintering, discoloration, deterioration and other tendencies inherent to the wood itself. Therefore, wooden decks must generally be frequently treated with a chemical preservative to help the wood withstand the effects of exposure to an outdoor atmosphere. Such treatment is usually very time consuming, costly and laborious, and typically must be repeated frequently. Additionally, even with proper treatment, there is no guarantee that the wood will not deteriorate. There are a number of reasons for this, including moisture present in the wood prior to treatment, areas of the wood which are difficult to access during treatment, and entry ways into the wood, such as nail holes, which allow moisture to intrude. Furthermore, the wood may also be damaged by temperature fluctuations leading to expansion and contraction, and by exposure to ultraviolet radiation via sunlight.
Once a wooden deck has begun to deteriorate there is generally little that can be done to halt the process. The typical solution is to remove and replace the wooden boards once they reach a point where their appearance can no longer be tolerated or they become unsafe. Replacement of boards is not only costly, but can also be difficult depending on the construction of the deck and the particular location of the damaged board. In addition, deteriorating boards can prove a danger, as they often produce splinters, result in an uneven walking surface. Also, the deterioration may occur from within causing the deck to become structurally unstable without appearing as such from the outside.
Many decks are being built now with composite or plastic planks which are either solid or cored. These products eliminate the problems of long term care of wooden decks, yet the cost is prohibitive as it is 2 to 3 times the cost of wood. Thus it would be highly desirous, to have a lower cost alternative to such plastic planks. Such an alternative would be to cover the surface of the planks of a wooden deck, whether or not it has already begun to show signs of deterioration, with an aesthetically pleasing and stable surface.
Early attempts at such a cover are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,885,882 (the '882 patent) to Forshee issued on Dec. 12, 1989 entitled “Deck Covering” and U.S. Pat. No. 4,907,387 (the '387 patent) to Turnbull issued Mar. 13, 1990 and entitled “Patio Deck Sheath”, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference. These plank covers comprise a flat top portion to cover the top of the plank and two flat side portions attached perpendicularly to either edge of the flat top portion to thereby cover the sides of the plank. These covers were innovative for their time, but deficiencies in their design and construction have come to light.
One such deficiency is that the cover must be fastened to the deck plank by some sort of fastener such as glue, nails or screws, etc. This fastening causes problems. First, the thermal expansion of the wood and the plastic coverings is substantially different. Thus, the temperature differential between summer and winter will cause the glued covers to break free and those fastened by nail or screw to warp and/or bulge. Also screwing or nailing through the cover allows moisture to enter through the covering and attack the wood underneath the covering resulting in unseen deterioration and rotting.
A second deficiency of these early covers stems from the fact that such wooden deck planks are not the same size (particularly weather treated lumber) throughout their entire lifetime. When the lumber is fresh out of the mill, it is a different size than when the plank has dried for a significant amount of time. Thus, once the glue holding the cover down has broken because of the stress of thermal expansion/compression or weathering, and the deck plank has shrunk with age, the cover will not be held in place by anything and will come loose. Also, the shrinkage of the wood over time means that multiple widths of the cover will be needed to accommodate the differing sizes of wood on different age decks, making production costs prohibitively high.
A later attempt to produce a plank cover is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,070,664 (the '664 patent) to Groh, et al. issued on Dec. 10, 1991 and entitled “Thermoplastic Cover for Stadium Seating, Picnic Tables, Boat Docks and the Like”, the disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference. The cover disclosed in this patent has the same basic structure as the '882 and '387 patents, but adds “marginal flange portions” to the bottom edges of the side portions which are perpendicular to the side portions and extend partially inward toward each other. These flange portions are adapted and configured to engage the undersurface of the wooden plank.
Unfortunately this configuration while attempting to eliminate the deficiencies of the prior art, added additional deficiencies and retained others. First, in this configuration, the plank cover is deficient in that it cannot be added to existing structures. That is, because the flange portions engage the flat underside of the wooden planks, they cannot be placed onto the planks after the planks have been installed onto a deck. The covers must be placed on the wooden planks before construction of the deck. Thus, the deck fasteners (nails, screws, etc.) must be driven through the cover to construct the deck. This gives rise to the moisture leakage and thermal warping/bulging deficiencies of the prior art discussed above and once again, this cover structure does nothing to account for the shrinkage of the wood as it ages. Finally the cover structure must be cut/notched to accommodate joists, ledgers and other supporting structure to which the cover planks will be attached, thus complicating installation and construction.
Finally, a very recent attempt to design a deck plank cover is disclosed in U.S. Patent Application Publication 2002/0023395 (the '395 publication) A1 to Pasterchick, published Feb. 28, 2002 and entitled “Deck Master”, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. The cover has the same basic structure as the '882 and '387 patents, but adds locking tabs to anchor the cover to the under side of the wooden plank. These locking tabs seem to be very similar to the flange portions of the '664 patent and are adapted and configured to engage the undersurface of the wooden plank. Again, it seems that this configuration would require the covers to be placed on the wooden planks before construction of the deck. However, if not the cover structure must still be cut/notched to accommodate ledgers, joists and other supporting structure to which the cover planks will be attached, thus complicating installation and construction. Additionally, this cover design seems to have side panels that do not extend all the way down the edges of the wooden plank and therefore leave a portion of the wood exposed to the elements to deteriorate/rot. Finally, as with all of the previous designs, this cover design does nothing to account for the shrinkage of the wood as it ages.
Thus there is a need for a deck plank cover that can be applied over the planks of a new or existing wooden deck after construction thereby giving the benefits of a plastic or composite deck, for fraction of the cost. The plank cover should adhere to the wooden plank at any ambient temperature without the use of glue or fasteners and remain adherent even as the wooden plank it covers shrinks upon aging.
A protective covering for a deck plank. The deck plank has a top surface, two side surfaces, and two lower radial portions. The protective cover has a top portion which has a length and width and covers the top surface of the deck plank. The top portion also has an outer surface which is remote from the deck plank and an inner surface which is adjacent the deck plank. The protective cover also has two side portions, each of which has a length and a height and covers one of the side surfaces of the deck plank. The side portions are attached to the top portion such that the length dimension of the top portion and the side portions coincide. Both of the side portions projecting from the top portion in a direction generally opposite that of the outer surface of the top portion and at angles that deviate from perpendicular such that each of the side portions angles inward toward each other. The inward angle providing said cover with a frictional adhesion to the two side surfaces of the deck plank. The cover further includes wood engaging fillets attached to the edges of the side portions which are distant from the top portion. The fillets are designed to grip the lower radial portions of the deck plank thereby providing for additional frictional adhesion to the deck plank. The wood engaging fillets may extend the entire length of the side portions and may also include a drip edge designed to prevent water from contacting the deck plank.
The cover is preferably formed from materials such as a plastic/wood composite, polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride, polypropylene and mixtures or composites thereof. The outer surface of the top portion of the cover may include a texture on at least a portion thereof which may have the purpose of increasing the coefficient of friction of the outer surface of the deck plank cover.
The present invention is a plastic deck plank cover which can be applied individually over existing wooden deck planks. The deck plank cover can be applied using the inherent cohesion between the longitudinal radii of the deck plank cover bottom edges and the bottom radii of the original deck plank. The deck plank cover of the present invention can be applied to a deck at the early stages of deterioration to prolong its life, and to new decks to help prevent the onset of deterioration and eliminate the need for frequent cleaning and staining to maintain appearance.
FIG. 1
10
15
10
10
20
30
35
10
shows a typical wooden deck with a multitude of deck plank covers attached thereto. Although in this example, the deck is of wood construction, it should be understood that the deck could also be of a plastic or metal construction. The deck consists of a number of wooden deck planks mounted to a sub-frame. The sub-frame will typically consist of a number of ledgers and joists , to which support legs (not shown) are attached for anchoring the sub-frame to the ground. The construction of the deck is shown for purposes of illustration only, and many alternate configurations are possible.
20
15
20
15
20
FIG. 1
The wooden deck planks may be of many common lumber sizes, such as 2″×2″, 2″×4″, 2″×6″ or 5/4″×6″. Alternatively, the wooden deck planks may also be of a non-standard width. The deck plank covers should preferably be substantially the same width as the wooden deck planks , to facilitate complete coverage of the top surface of the wooden deck planks by the deck plank covers. It can be seen by reference to that the deck plank covers are designed to run longitudinally along with the wooden deck planks , and to reside directly on the top surface thereof.
15
20
15
The deck plank covers are preferably affixed to the wooden deck planks by a “snap on” frictional adherence but any of several other means traditionally used in wooden deck construction, including nails and screws may also be used. Additionally, the deck plank covers may be attached using an adhesive, or a combination of an adhesive and traditional mounting means.
15
15
15
15
FIG. 2
A cross-section of a preferred embodiment of the deck plank cover of the present invention can be seen by reference to . As mentioned above, the deck plank cover should preferably be substantially the same width as the wooden deck plank to which it will be attached. The deck plank cover may therefore be produced in various standard widths to mate to common lumber sizes. The deck plank cover may also be produced in custom widths within reasonable manufacturing parameters.
FIG. 2
15
16
17
16
17
17
16
17
18
17
16
18
17
17
As seen in , the present plank cover is composed of a top portion which covers the top exposed surface of the deck plank and two side portions which are attached at opposite edges of the top portion . The side portions are designed to cover the side surfaces of the decking plank. The side portions are not connected perpendicular to the top portion , but are attached so and to angle inward toward each other. The inward angle of this configuration is chosen to allow for a snap tight fit to the deck plank, and to maintain such a snug frictional fit even when the wood to which the cover is attached shrinks upon aging. Each side portion has attached thereto a wood engaging fillet on the ends of the side portions which are distant from the top portion . These fillets are designed to grip the lower radial portions of the wooden plank for greater self adhesion and are attached to the side portions at an angle which allows for maximum adhesion. The angle is approximately perpendicular to the plane of the side portions respectively.
FIG. 3
18
17
16
18
18
15
18
15
18
17
15
is a three dimensional view of a portion of a deck plank according to the present invention, from which can be seen the relationship of the fillet to the side portions and the top portion . A fillet should always be provided along each longitudinal edge of the deck plank cover. Preferably, the fillets run the entire length of the deck plank cover , but other embodiments can be envisioned wherein the fillets can be broken into segments that do not run the entire length of the plank cover. The fillets contact the bottom radii of the wooden deck plank when the deck plank cover is attached thereto. The fillets along with the inward angle of the side portions form the cohesion between the deck plank cover and the wooden deck plank to which it is attached.
19
15
15
The top surface of the deck plank cover may employ texturing at various locations. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the texturing may run longitudinally along the length of the deck plank cover and be configured to appear as wood grain. Many other textures and designs are possible, however.
FIG. 4
15
20
15
20
18
21
20
Now referring to , a preferred embodiment of the deck plank cover of the present invention can be seen affixed to a wooden deck plank . This figure shows how the plank cover engages the wooden plank . Specifically shown is the way in which the fillet engages the lower radial portions of the wooden plank .
FIG. 5
22
shows an alternative embodiment of the deck plank cover of the present invention in which the fillet also includes a drip edge . This drip edge helps to allow water to drip off of the cover in cases where the water may be apt to follow the curvature of the fillet and contact the wooded plank. The drip edge thus further protects the wooden deck planks.
15
20
15
20
15
20
20
The width of the deck plank cover can be seen to be substantially the same as that of the wooden deck plank . This is important for several reasons. First, in one embodiment of the present invention, it is contemplated that the deck plank cover will be utilized to cover a wooden deck plank which is suffering from the initial stages of deterioration due to exposure to the elements. Employing a deck plank cover with a width equivalent to that of the subjacent wooden deck plank , helps to ensure that rain and sunlight will be unable to contact substantially all of the top surface and sides of the wooden deck plank. Therefore, a majority of the wooden deck plank will be sheltered from direct exposure to the elements. Preventing further contact with the elements will aid in preventing further deterioration of the wooden deck plank.
20
15
15
15
While one aspect of the present invention is to cover a wooden deck plank that has begun to deteriorate, it should be realized that a deck plank that is rotted or otherwise structurally unsound must be replaced prior to the application of the deck plank cover . Replacement of a rotted deck plank is required, as application of the deck plank cover may not provide the extra strength needed to make the deck plank structurally sound, particularly if deterioration continues. Therefore, the deck plank cover of the present invention should only be applied to deck planks that are suffering from primarily visual deterioration, such as fading, cracking, or splintering, for example.
The deck plank cover of the present invention can be made from wood replacement materials such as homopolymers and copolymers of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), high density polyethylene (HDPE), polypropylene (PP), or a mixture of these polymers. Preferably the wood replacement material includes cellulose material to help create the appearance of real wood. The cellulose material may be in the form of cellulose fibers (e.g., wood flour and the like). A suitable wood replacement material composition and method are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,516,472 entitled “Extruded Synthetic Wood Composition and Method for Making Same”, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. Typically, the deck plank cover of the present invention is produced by extrusion, but other methods of production are possible.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the deck plank cover may have a width equivalent to a standard 2×6 inch or a 5/4×6 inch wooden board. It should be understood, however, that the deck plank cover may be designed to be equivalent to any of a number of common lumber widths, or to many other sizes and shapes without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and may be used to cover existing plastic or composite, molded or extruded decks to change the color or texture of said decks.
15
15
Although the deck plank of the present invention has been generally described above as applied to a wooden deck in a mildly deteriorated condition, such does not have to be the case. The deck plank cover of the present invention may also be applied to decks with wooden deck planks in good condition, thereby eliminating the need for frequent cleaning and staining by obtaining the benefits of a plastic deck at less cost. Utilization of deck plank covers on newer wooden decks may serve to alleviate the need for the repeated application of chemical preservatives, such as stains and paints, and may retard the deterioration of the underlying deck planks by minimizing exposure to the elements.
Furthermore, it should be understood that the deck plank cover of the present invention may be produced in a variety of cross-sectional shapes and sizes in any of the materials mentioned above, and nothing in the foregoing description of the preferred embodiments should be construed to limit the deck plank cover of the present invention to any particular cross-sectional shape or size.
Although, the deck plank cover is preferably designed to simulate the look and color of wood, it may also be painted or stained. The moisture resistant properties of the material comprising the deck plank cover eliminates the splitting, splintering, decaying, discoloration and rotting common to wooden boards, and also serves to impede moisture from reaching the underlying wooden deck planks to which the deck plank covers are attached. Additionally, because the deck plank covers are moisture resistant, they are ideal for use in areas of high moisture, such as around pools and hot tubs.
It should be noted that the deck plank cover edges at the edges of the deck may be covered after installation by means of a trim strip or board running transverse to the wooden deck planks and deck plank covers.
The deck plank covers may be, if needed, attached to the wooden deck plank by screws, nails, adhesives and combinations thereof. If screws or nails are utilized for attachment, they may be driven through the deck plank cover just as they would if a wooden deck plank were used. The deck plank cover of the present invention may also be cut to size or shape as required.
The scope of the invention is not to be considered limited by the above disclosure, and modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention as evidenced by the following claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention installed on an existing wood deck;
FIG. 2
is a cross-section of a preferred embodiment of the deck plank cover of the present invention;
FIG. 3
is a three-dimensional view of a portion of a deck plank cover of the present invention;
FIG. 4
is a cross-section of a deck plank cover of the present invention installed on a wooden deck plank;
FIG. 5
is a cross-section of an alternative deck plank cover of the present invention installed on a wooden deck plank | |
Discovery of talmapimod analogues as polypharmacological anti-inflammatory agents.
Twenty novel talmapimod analogues were designed, synthesised and evaluated for the in vivo anti-inflammatory activities. Among them, compound 6n, the most potent one, was selected for exploring the mechanisms underlying its anti-inflammatory efficacy. In RAW264.7 cells, it effectively suppressed lipopolysaccharides-induced (LPS-induced) expressions of iNOS and COX-2. As illustrated by the western blot analysis, 6n downregulated both the NF-κB signalling and p38 MAPK phosphorylation. Further enzymatic assay identified 6n as a potent inhibitor against both p38α MAPK (IC50=1.95 µM) and COX-2 (IC50=0.036 µM). By virtue of the concomitant inhibition of p38α MAPK, its upstream effector, and COX-2, along with its capability to downregulate NF-κB and MAPK-signalling pathways, 6n, a polypharmacological anti-inflammatory agent, deserves further development as a novel anti-inflammatory drug.
| |
of all regulated marketed medical products.
MedWatch, The FDA Safety Information and Adverse
Event Reporting Program, serves both healthcare professionals
and the medical product-using public. We provide important
and timely clinical information about safety issues involving
medical products, including prescription and over-the-counter
drugs, biologics, medical and radiation-emitting devices,
and special nutritional products (e.g., medical foods, dietary
supplements and infant formulas).
Medical product safety alerts, recalls, withdrawals,
and important labeling changes that may affect the health
of all Americans are quickly disseminated to the medical community
and the general public via this web site and the MedWatch
E-list. Select Safety Information
to see reports, safety notifications, and labeling changes
posted to the website since 1996.
MedWatch allows healthcare
professionals and consumers
to report serious problems that they suspect are associated
with the drugs and medical devices they prescribe, dispense,
or use. Reporting can be done on
line, by phone, or by submitting the MedWatch 3500 form
by mail or fax. Select How to Report
for more details. | https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20090117042757/http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/What.htm |
Q:
How to display values in a single column into multiple and group by another column
I have a database table "table_name1" in SQL Server 2012 created using:
CREATE TABLE table_name1 (
created_date date,
complete_hour int,
col_percent float
);
INSERT INTO table_name1 values
('2017-06-14', 8, 0.3),
('2017-06-14', 9, 1.96),
('2017-06-14', 10, 3.92),
('2017-06-07', 8, 0.17),
('2017-06-07', 9, 2.87),
('2017-06-07', 10, 3.72),
('2017-05-31', 7, 0.14),
('2017-05-31', 8, 0.72),
('2017-05-31', 9, 3.77),
('2017-05-31', 10, 5.8);
What I want to do is get result like:
created_date col1 col2 col3 col4
2017-06-14 BLANK 0.3 1.96 3.92
2017-06-07 BLANK 0.17 2.87 3.72
2017-05-31 0.14 0.72 3.77 5.8
I tried using pivot and as the number of rows in table_name1 will keep changing I think I'll have to use dynamic sql. So I tried using the answer from Efficiently convert rows to columns in sql server post but unable to tweak it to solve my problem. There are 3 columns instead of two that I need to consider and have to group by created_date as well.
Can I get some suggestions on how to do this?
EDIT: Little modified version of answer I am trying to follow is:
DECLARE @cols AS NVARCHAR(MAX),
@query AS NVARCHAR(MAX)
select @cols = STUFF((SELECT ',' + QUOTENAME(col_percent)
from table_name1
group by created_date, complete_hour, col_percent
order by complete_hour
FOR XML PATH(''), TYPE
).value('.', 'NVARCHAR(MAX)')
,1,1,'')
set @query = N'SELECT ' + @cols + N' from
(
select created_date, col_percent
from table_name1
) x
pivot
(
max(created_date)
for col_percent in (' + @cols + N')
) p '
exec sp_executesql @query;
And it gives result as:
0.14 0.72 0.17 0.3 3.77 2.87 1.96 5.8 3.72 3.92
2017-05-31 2017-05-31 2017-06-07 2017-06-14 2017-05-31 2017-06-07 2017-06-14 2017-05-31 2017-06-07 2017-06-14
I know I am doing it wrong to get my desired output, but when I try to change column names in the pivot, I get or some other changes I get either "invalid column name" or "The incorrect value "0.14" is supplied in the PIVOT operator."
A:
If we take things one step at a time, let's try and do this first without using dynamic sql.
I believe this query yields the results you are looking for:
SELECT created_date, [7] AS col1, [8] AS col2, [9] AS col3, [10] AS col4
FROM
(
select created_date, complete_hour, col_percent
from table_name1
) x
pivot
(
max(col_percent)
for complete_hour in ([7],[8],[9],[10])
) p
ORDER BY created_date DESC
Output:
created_date col1 col2 col3 col4
2017-06-14 NULL 0,3 1,96 3,92
2017-06-07 NULL 0,17 2,87 3,72
2017-05-31 0,14 0,72 3,77 5,8
**** Update: OP confirmed results look correct. Now for some dynamic sql ninja-stuff
To make this a bit more dynamic, the following would work:
We start by declaring the two variables that will hold the columns and the query:
DECLARE @cols AS NVARCHAR(MAX), @query AS NVARCHAR(MAX)
Next up, we determine the columns we want to grab from the table. In our case, this is the complete_hour. Seeing these most likely repeat over several days, and we only want them once, we GROUP BY complete_hour:
SELECT @cols = STUFF((SELECT ',' + QUOTENAME(complete_hour)
from table_name1
group by complete_hour
FOR XML PATH(''), TYPE
).value('.', 'NVARCHAR(MAX)')
,1,1,'')
We can now test what is in our variable:
PRINT @cols
Based on the test data provided, currently it would contain
[7],[8],[9],[10]
In real life, this would be a value for every distinct complete_hour value.
On-wards with building the query:
set @query = N'SELECT created_date, ' + @cols + N' from
(
(
for complete_hour in (' + @cols + N')
) p
ORDER BY created_date DESC
'
As you want the created_date column, that needs to be in the SELECT statement. We also want every value of complete_hour, which is what we stored in @cols.
We actually want to grab everything, so we select all three columns, and then pivot the col_percent for every complete_hour.
Lastly, we sort by created_date, with the latest date showing first.
We can then execute:
exec sp_executesql @query;
| |
ENDANGERED SPECIES -- Washington’s wolf population continued to grow last year and added at least four new packs, according to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s annual survey. By the end of 2015, the state was home to at least 90 wolves, 18 packs and eight breeding pairs.
- Oregon recently documented that wolves were expanding in within its borders, too, in the annual reports required under Endangered Species rules.
Washington's recently completed survey shows the minimum number of wolves grew by 32 percent last year, despite the deaths of at least seven wolves from various causes, the agency announced today in a media release.
Since 2008, when WDFW documented just one pack and five wolves, the population has increased by an average of 36 percent per year.
“Wolf populations in Washington are steadily increasing, just as we’ve seen in the upper Midwest and Rocky Mountain states,” said WDFW Director Jim Unsworth. “This increase – and the wolves’ concentration in northeast Washington – underscores the importance of collaboration between our department, livestock producers, and local residents to prevent conflict between wolves and domestic animals.”
Donny Martorello, WDFW wolf policy lead, said the new Beaver Creek, Loup Loup, Skookum, and Stranger packs were confirmed in Ferry, Okanogan, Pend Oreille, and Stevens counties, respectively. (See updated wolf pack map above.)
However, researchers found no evidence of the previously documented Wenatchee Pack, and the Diamond Pack shifted its activity to Idaho and is no longer included in Washington state totals.
The minimum number of breeding pairs in Washington increased from five to eight – the first increase since 2011, Martorello said.
WDFW conducted the research using aerial surveys, remote cameras, wolf tracks, and signals from 22 radio-collared wolves from 13 different packs. Twelve wolves were fitted with radio collars during the year, while one pup was marked and released without a collar due to its small size.
Despite their growing numbers, wolves were involved in fewer conflicts with livestock than in 2014. Martorello said the department determined wolves from four packs were responsible for killing a total of seven cattle and injuring one guard dog.
Three of the seven wolves that died in 2015 were killed legally by hunters on the reservation of the Spokane Tribe of Indians, which authorized the harvest up to six wolves per year by tribal members. The four other deaths included one wolf killed in a collision with a vehicle, one shot in self-defense by a property owner, and one that died during an attempt to capture it. One wolf’s cause of death is unknown.
The state agency took several steps in 2015 to expand public involvement in wolf conservation and management. Unsworth said the most important actions were doubling the size of the department’s Wolf Advisory Group to 18 members, and initiating a “conflict transformation” process to improve working relationships among the members and the groups they represent and the department.
The state will continue to emphasize the importance of preventive actions to minimize wolf attacks on livestock and domestic animals, Martorello said. Agency wildlife conflict specialists are available to work with residents of communities where wolves are present.
WDFW has also adopted a “range rider” program to provide an increased human presence in grazing areas. The agency continues to offer cost-sharing agreements for ranchers through a program designed to help them reduce their expenses for preventive measures.
Gray wolves, all but eliminated from western states in the last century, are protected under Washington law throughout the state and under federal law in the western two-thirds of the state
Because of the difficulty of confirming the presence of every single wolf, survey results are expressed in terms of the minimum number of individuals, packs, and breeding pairs. The state Wolf Conservation and Management Plan defines a pack as two or more wolves traveling together in winter and a successful breeding pair as an adult male and female with at least two pups that survive to the end of the calendar year.
Under the state management plan, wolves can be removed from the state endangered species list once 15 successful breeding pairs are documented for three consecutive years among the three designated wolf-recovery regions.
WDFW’s complete wolf survey for 2015 will be available by the end of March on the department’s website. | https://www.spokesman.com/blogs/outdoors/2016/mar/14/new-report-washingtons-wolf-population-continues-grow/ |
Art of Fashion: Event Curator
The Art of Fashion is looking for an Event Curator for their annual event. The Event Curator is responsible for the interpretation and overall visual presentation of the Art of Fashion Design Competition & Trunk Show “Fashion meets Art Exhibit”. The Curator is responsible for selecting the participants and will act as a liaison with contractors and suppliers during planning and execution of the event. They are looking for a two year commitment from January 2010 in an active role on the Event Committee and in a mentoring role to aid in succession planning in 2011. This is a volunteer position, great for someone who is looking to expand their portfolio or who has an interest in the arts and fashion.
The Art of Fashion is a non for profit organization committed to fostering the career of emerging Canadian apparel and accessory designers by creating platforms for exposure. For further information on the organization please visit www.artoffashion.org.
Reports to: Business Development Manager
The Event Curator’s responsibilities will include but not be limited to:
- Development of annual event theme
- Preparation of theme story board
- Development of theme description
- Development of theme conceptual designs
- Communication of theme conception to necessary team managers.
- Management of theme consistency
- Plans and designs or supervises the planning and design of all exhibits and presentations.
- Selection of top 10 Art of Fashion Design Finalists
- Selection of top 50 Art of Fashion Trunk Show Participants
- In charge of execution of Art of Fashion Window Display.
- Oversee the event set-up, operation, and tear down.
- Assist the 10 design finalist with their day of event exhibits
- Visionary behind theme and event décor for The Art of Fashion Design Competition & Trunk Show
- Update Business Development Manager
- Maintain and track all activity for their own discipline, and send progress updates as required.
- Follow timelines and critical paths.
- Implement and research internal systems that will aid in managing and executing events more efficiently
- Establish practices, policies and/or procedures for the organization.
- Post-event follow-up to ensure designer satisfaction.
- Appoint sub-committees of coordinators, specialists, volunteers, etc. for support, as needed.
- Participate and complete post-event survey, summary, follow-up and debriefings.
- Compile and submit final report to Board of Directors upon completion of the Design Competition and Trunk Show – report should include recommendations for future Art of Fashion events
Preference will be given to candidates with the following qualifications:
- Visual art experience
- Design experience
- Merchandising experience
- Art Curating experience
- Experience in working with non for profit organizations
- Experience leading an volunteer team
- Highly organized and detail oriented
- Ability to multitask and manage timelines and execution on multiple jobs
- Self motivated, and able to work independently
- Strong logistical skills
- Innovative, flexible and open minded
- Resourceful and creative
- MUST be strategic & organized
- Reliability, enthusiasm, initiative and enjoyment of working with people on a team are required
For more information, or to apply contact Michelle Planche, President/Founder at [email protected]. | https://fashionmagnet.ca/2010/03/05/art-of-fashion-event-curator/ |
See also...
If you are interested in birds, you may also like to read what's on our Birds on Magog Down page.
Summary table of 2014 bird sightings
This table shows all the bird sightings by the Stapleford Bird Club on their monthly visits, by month.
2013 Report of a Long term survey of birds breeding on Magog Down Stapleford
Bryan Davies and Robin Cox, Cambridgeshire Bird Club
Summary
A total of 28 species were recorded as breeding in 2013 compared with 29 in 2012. The 5 species not recorded in 2013 were: Long-tailed Tit, Goldcrest, Meadow Pipit, Pied Wagtail and Grey Partridge. Although the absence of these 5 species may have been a real effect, it is more likely to be due to under recording. Three new species were recorded: two summer visitors – Garden Warbler and Sedge Warbler, and the Reed Bunting which is a UK resident.
Apart from the Grey Partridge, none of the species of most conservation concern (Red Listed) declined in numbers and twice as many Song Thrushes were recorded (2 v 4).
Winter feeding with bird seed in the Car Park area and in Vestey Wood attracted a range of birds and helped them to survive a very extended winter. Due to the generosity of visitors to the Down and of Scotsdales the winter feeding programme will be repeated during the winter of 2014.
The number and location of skylark territories in the grassland quadrants of North Down were recorded, and as in 2012 we found that all the territories were confined to quadrants uncut for 3 years. It appears that the denser ‘bottom’ growth in these areas provided extra protection from predation.
Additional conservation measures that will be introduced during 2014 are planting of small trees in several hedges to provide singing perches and the installation of nesting boxes in some of the woods.
There are a large number of magpies on the Down (minimum no.13) which are a potential threat to the chicks of all the breeding species. Trapping to reduce their numbers should be considered.
This is the second report of a long term breeding bird survey on Magog Down using the revised field work methods described in Appendix 1 of the 2012 Report.
|Location||No. of species*
||No. of birds**|
|Car Park and adjacent Picnic area||15||25|
|Colin's Wood, Roadside and Garden hedges||8||12|
|Feoffees fields and edge of Parish Pit||5||6|
|Feoffees field hedges||1||1|
|Clunch pits on Little Trees Hill||10||15|
|Cleared woodland and Magog Wood||9||16|
|Shelter Belt wood||9||14|
|Sheep paddocks and Collin's bank||8||13|
|Memorial Wood||8||11|
|Arable field||3||8|
|Vestey wood and adjacent mature wood||10||12|
|Full length of western boundary hedge||6||18|
|Villedomer wood||7||10|
|North Down||1||21|
** Minimum number of birds breeding
In Villedomer wood, the Shelter belt and the Arable field we recorded the largest increases but these gains were balanced by large decreases at the Clunch pits and on Feoffees field. To some extent these changes reflect the interconnected nature of the Down in which breeding birds fly between locations eg linnets nest in hedges but commonly seek food on the downland.
|Family||Total*
||Locations||UK Status**|
|Thrushes|
|Blackbird||12||8|
|Song Thrush||4||4||red|
|Mistle Thrush||1||1||amber|
|Robin||10||7|
|Tits|
|Blue tit||15||8|
|Great tit||11||6|
|Finches|
|Chaffinch||18||9|
|Goldfinch||4||2||amber|
|Greenfinch||5||2||red|
|Linnet||2||1||red|
|Buntings
|
|Corn bunting||3||2||red|
|Reed bunting||2||1||amber|
|Yellowhammer||3||2||red|
|Warblers|
|Blackcap||8||5|
|Chiffchaff||4||3|
|Common Whitethroat||12||6||amber|
|Garden Warbler||2||1|
|Sedge Warbler||1||1|
|Willow Warbler||1||1||amber|
|Larks|
|Skylark||27||4||red|
|Crows|
|Carrion Crow||2||1|
|Magpie||13||8|
|Jay||1||1|
|Crests and Wrens
|
|Wren||5||5|
|Accentors|
|Dunnocks||4||3||amber|
|Partridges|
|Red-legged Partridge||1||1|
|Woodpeckers
|
|Green Woodpecker||1||1||amber|
|Pigeons and Doves|
|Wood Pigeon||large numbers but not recorded|
** Species on the UK red list have shown a severe decline in numbers during last 40 years, species on the UK amber list have declined by 25-49% during the last 40 years.
|Family||Status
||Breeding probability*|
|Birds of Prey|
|Buzzard||Resident||High|
|Kestrel||Resident||High|
|Hobby||Summer visitor||Low|
|Sparrow hawk||Resident||High|
|Thrushes|
|Fieldfare||Winter visitor||Nil|
|Redwing||Winter visitor||Nil|
|Crows|
|Jackdaw||Resident||Low|
|Rook||Resident||Low|
|Swifts and Swallows
|
|Swift||Summer visitor||Nil|
|Barn swallow||Summer visitor||Nil|
Discussion
Appendices
This report includes three Appendices, which can be found as a separate article here. They are:
- Number of breeding birds recorded at each location
- Bird Feeding Project at Magog Down 2013
- Some thoughts on the welfare of birds on Magog Down
Birds on Magog Down
We publish the monthly reports of Stapleford Bird club here, plus other occasional bird-related articles; hot links in each report will take you to the RSPB information page for each bird spotted.
The gallery below shows a random six of the birds that have been seen on Magog Down. | http://magogtrust.org.uk/news/earlier_bird_reports/bird_reports_2014/?artid=192&pageNum=0&blk=389 |
Since our last update in April regarding efforts to stop clear-cutting on Salt Spring, our committee met a number of times, received a brush-off letter from the provincial government, wrote again to the premier and key cabinet ministers, (no response yet) made a presentation to Islands Trust Council’s quarterly meeting and gathered a lot more information.
A postcard campaign to Premier John Horgan, Opposition Leader Andrew Weaver and our MLA Adam Olsen called for an immediate suspension of clear-cutting and support for the Trust to carry out its “preserve and protect” mandate.
While we continue to press the Local Trust Committee to find a way to stop the loss of our forests, we’ve realized this also requires changes to provincial legislation. The law firm that was recommended to us for issuing an injunction when the logging operation started up again had based their legal opinion on violations of the Islands Trust bylaws. However, this was not helpful, because timber extraction on private property remains under the jurisdiction of the province and repeated attempts by municipalities to allow them to regulate logging have been refused by the provincial government.
Therefore, we need the government of B.C. to institute forest practices legislation ensuring environmental protection on private land. Consideration must be given to preservation of sensitive ecosystems, protection of watersheds and riparian zones, erosion control, carbon sequestration to mitigate the climate crisis and regulations banning clear-cutting. As it stands now, and as incredible as it may seem, a property owner has the right to clear-cut land from boundary to boundary with complete disregard for even the most rudimentary of the Forest Practices Code legislation that applies to the timber industry. The provincial government must also recognize an obligation to protect neighbouring property owners affected by a logging operation regarding noise pollution, impacts on water, and reduction of property values.
On Sept. 10 we met with Olsen and laid out specific requests for provincial action in this regard. We explained that the unique structure and “preserve and protect” mandate of the Islands Trust makes it possible and necessary for the province to allow more regulation of logging and the authority to ensure enforcement by our local government. Concerns regarding water issues, related impacts on affordable housing, economic development, tourism, environmental degradation and loss of our forests’ mitigating effects on climate change were outlined.
Olsen thanked us for our advocacy, agreed with our points and discussed various aspects of this with us. He suggested that the most efficient way to protect Gulf Islands forests is to convince the Minister of Municipal Affairs to change the Local Government Act to allow the Islands Trust to regulate tree-cutting. He will make this a focus during the five-week fall session of the legislature from mid-October to early November. Our task will be to build public support for this, and we have started a petition:
If you can help gather signatures or know of a public place to make this petition available to sign, please contact us ([email protected]).
The writer is part of a group of citizens working to stop clear-cut logging on Salt Spring. | https://www.gulfislandsdriftwood.com/opinion/viewpoint-logging-fight-continues/ |
Cooperative learning in 'Special Needs in Dentistry' for undergraduate students using the Jigsaw approach.
The goals of this study were to (i) describe the use of the Jigsaw approach for the resolution of clinical cases by undergraduate students in the subject 'Special Needs in Dentistry' and (ii) assess the impact of its implementation on academic performance and the students' perception. The Jigsaw approach was applied to the fifth-year in the subject 'Special Needs in Dentistry', as part of the Dentistry degree curriculum of the University of Santiago de Compostela, during the academic years 2012/2013 and 2013/2014. A total of 109 dental students were enrolled in the study, and the final marks of the Jigsaw (n = 55) and the non-Jigsaw groups (n = 54) were compared. Students' perceptions on the Jigsaw technique were assessed using a 13-question questionnaire. Academic performance based on the final examination mark for the Jigsaw and non-Jigsaw groups was 6.45 ± 1.49 and 6.13 ± 1.50, respectively. There were not students in the Jigsaw group who failed to attend the mandatory examination (0% vs. 12.96% in the non-Jigsaw group, P = 0.006). The questionnaire's internal consistency was 0.90. The mean value for all the questionnaire items was 3.80, with the highest response score of 4.35 for the statement 'I have seen the complexity that the resolution of a clinical case can involve'. Based on the students' perceptions, the Jigsaw approach could contribute to a better understanding of the complexity of solving clinical cases in the subject 'Special Needs in Dentistry'. However, further investigations should be conducted to analyse the influence of this technique on students' academic performance in the field of clinical dentistry.
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From Brain Pickings…
For my book club collaboration with The Dish, Andrew Sullivan’s online oasis of intelligence and idealism, I had the pleasure of sitting down with cognitive scientist Alexandra Horowitz to discuss her immeasurably wonderful On Looking: Eleven Walks with Expert Eyes — one of the best books of 2013 and among the most interesting I’ve ever read, a provocative exploration of how powerfully our experience of “reality” is framed by the limitations of our attention and sensory awareness.
Our conversation ranges from Alice in Wonderland to John Cage to Susan Sontag, by way of dog cognition and productivity, in the service of understanding how different minds expose the many everyday wonderlands hidden before our eyes. Highlights below — please enjoy.
From Bii’s Books
In exploring how to see and experience more of our environment, Horowitz took a series of walks with different experts and taking different perspectives. This helps to draw out different aspects of the environment which might otherwise be missed on a city walk. As a starting point Horowitz took and described her own walk, including some interesting information about why it is that we learnnot to see, and she also took a walk with her small son, allowing him to guide her in his own exploration of their neighbourhood. The results were quite interesting. Horowitz discovered that when she walks she walks to be somewhere taking little in and moving swiftly, whereas her son’s walk was far more of an exploration sometimes taking 20 minutes before moving from one interesting sight to another. In her walk with her son Horowitz was surprised to find how frustrating she found it, how much she longed to move determinedly through the streets whereas her son longed to linger and examine and see.
This theme repeats throughout the walks that Horowitz takes with the experts, but in these walks she is much more open to seeing and experiencing the city through the eyes of her fellow walkees. Horowitz walks with Sidney Horenstein an expert on geology, Maria Kalman an illustrator whose willingness to walk into seemingly off-limits places Horowitz found both exciting and disturbing (much notice is taken of personal space), Paul Shaw an expert on typefaces, Charley Eiseman a naturalist who spends most of his time flipping over leaves looking for evidence of creepy crawlies, John Hadidian who has a similar interest but in the larger animals living in the city, Fred Kent an expert on the use of urban space and a man who enjoys a well thought-out shop front, Dr Joseph Bell who can diagnose medical conditions at a glance. By far my favourite walk was that she took with Arlene Gordon whose blindness doesn’t stop her from ‘seeing’ the city, and she also took an interesting walk aimed at hearing the city better and one from a dog’s eye (or more accurately: nose) view.
More discussions with Alexandra.. | http://bookshopblog.com/2014/07/09/alexandra-horowitz-experiencing-wonders-around-us/ |
HAIL refers to frozen rain droplets which usually range between 5 – 50 mm in diameter.
The frozen rain droplets usually have a concentric layer of ice and being white and opaque in character. Hail is a form of precipitation that falls on the earth’s surface in form of small ice pellets or hailstones.It is associated with extreme instability in the atmosphere resulting from uplift of air by convective currents
Hail forms due to the condensation of moisture in the lower atmosphere followed by strong rising air currents. The water droplets are therefore pushed up to the freezing point to form ice pellets which are thick and dense enough to overcome the uprising air currents. Consequently, ice falls on the earth’s surface in the form of hailstones.
It usually occurs in unstable cumulonimbus clouds where vertical uplift or rise of air is strong enough to carry condensed droplets above to great heights of the freezing level where they are turned into ice crystals at a very high altitude
The initial droplets freeze above the freezing point hence condensation nuclei is ice.
After being carried upwards to greater heights by the uprising air currents, an additional layer of ice is formed on the original ice nucleus by collision and coalescence with supercooled water vapour/droplets around. | https://geographypoint.com/2021/04/all-you-need-to-know-about-hail/ |
Hole-punch cloud over Massachusetts
Patricia Evans captured this hole-punch cloud on yesterday (November 21, 2015). She wrote:
I spotted this rare hole-punch cloud this afternoon from the parking lot of a restaurant in Chelmsford, Massachusetts. Since I always carry my camera with me, I was able to take this shot! This is only the second punch hole cloud I’ve ever seen. The first one was just a few miles away from this spot five years ago… in 2010!
Canon SX50HS – ISO 80 f/4.5 1/1000 sec.
Thank you, Patricia!
By the way, these strange-looking clouds are caused by a sky containing small water droplets that are below freezing called supercooled water droplets.
If ice crystals can form in a layer of supercooled droplets, they’ll grow rapidly and shrink or possibly evaporate the droplets completely. Studies have shown that aircraft passing through these cloud layers can trigger the formation of the heavier ice crystals, which fall to Earth and then leave the circular void in the blanket of clouds. | https://earthsky.org/todays-image/hole-punch-cloud-over-massachusetts/ |
Today, more and more contemporary artists go beyond the traditional paint and canvas and start experimenting with new materials and techniques. One of those artists is Philippe Mermi, who draws inspiration from urban aesthetics and creates unique abstract compositions literally from site debris.
Philippe Mermi has graduated from Beaux-Arts de Paris and began his career as an art director for web projects, specializing in luxury brands. He says that his lifelong passions have always been fashion, luxury, lifestyle, and arts. These interests later inspired him to found MERMI, a brand focusing on fashion accessories and textile design. At the same time, he continued to cultivate his passion for contemporary art.
The list of materials Mermi uses in his work is pretty long: metals, bricks, mirrors, wood, plaster, plastics, marble — it will take a long time to list them all. Most materials were found by the artist in Barcelona industrial workshops, combined, and transformed into artworks.
Mermi demonstrates that these discarded, abandoned objects and materials still have a meaning. In his approach, he also underlines the importance of the ecological gesture, recycling, and the weariness of mass consumption. These two notions are essential in his work. | https://visuall.net/2021/06/16/philippe-mermis-minimal-abstract-compositions-made-from-site-debris/ |
To try and identify a ‘feminist’ and a ‘formalist’ in K8 Hardy and Ulrike Müller’s joint exhibition, ‘Feminism Formalism’, would miss the point. Despite the different appearances of their shows, the artists’ shared backgrounds, political agendas and interest in ambiguity made any division of content and form futile. In fact, breaking down such binary systems is the purpose of Hardy and Müller’s endeavour. As members of the New York-based collective LTTR (which has stood for anything from ‘Lesbians to the Rescue’ to ‘Lacan Teaches to Repeat’), the artists have edited a journal and organized events to act out a queer feminist ethics that rejects feminism’s exclusive identification with femininity, in favour of more plural and permeable notions of gender.
This interest in community-building based on shared personal experience manifested itself in the performance Hardy and Müller staged on the opening night. Walking through the crowd, they told a story about a woman who is increasingly failed by her body: shitting her pants on the subway, getting sick in a cab, tripping, stumbling and fainting – all the while straining to keep up appearances. The performance climaxed with the artists shouting: ‘Maybe you meditate, maybe you are straight, maybe you critical think [sic], but this is a performance – it’s how I communicate.’
Queering the familiar to open it up to novel ways of reading was also at the core of Hardy’s and Müller’s solo presentations. By adopting the vocabularies of fashion and Modernism, respectively, the artists challenged semiotic systems conventionally employed to represent the gender binary. At Galerie Sonja Junkers, K8 Hardy showed work from her ‘Position Series’ (2010), photographs resembling fashion snapshots in which the artist (or occasionally her sister) performs various social and cultural archetypes. We see her, for instance, holding a yoga pose; kneeling on a stool in garter belts, mimicking a cat; or swinging from a lamp post in bright red tights and a neon orange wig. From the stuff of other people’s closets, multiple personas are conjured, and all of them – or none of them – are K8 Hardy. Because the artist manipulates the images in the developing process, some photographs feature cuts or splits, and/or negative shadows of the artist’s body in different postures blocking the light during exposure. It appears as if the female form were haunting this masquerade of identities, reminding us that, while there is no innocent viewer, Hardy’s looks aren’t innocent either. The direction of the gaze was complicated by the presence of four mannequin busts on pedestals positioned in the entrance of the gallery. Painted, made up with wigs, glasses, bizarre jewellery and headgear, these ‘heads’ (2010) looked out the window, at Hardy’s photographs, and at an enamel work by Müller hung on the wall.
Müller’s show at Steinle Contemporary addressed the question of style and representation on an entirely different level. Her series ‘Vienna Paintings’ (2010), like the majority of works on display, could be described as abstraction with a twist – or, perhaps more tellingly, an itch. Carefully composed of minimal lines, circles, curves and rectangular forms, Müller’s work audibly converses with Modernist abstraction, yet it voices its own opinion. Where Modernism opted for purity and unambiguousness, Müller’s imagery deliberately puts ambivalence to work. In her 2007 series of drawings, ‘Paraphilia’, titled after the term for repeated sexual arousal by unconventional stimuli, the repeated encounter of round shapes and slightly irregular lines creates a play wherein abstraction flirts erotically with representation. ‘Heatwave’ (2010), a new group of paintings in baked enamel on steel, translates this innuendo of form into a medium formerly associated with sign production. Consequently, and in line with the requirements of the technical process, the artist’s compositions are clearer and simpler. Sensuality, here, is largely a matter of material quality. Complying with the smoothness and precious shine of the enamel’s surface, Müller takes the work to the next logical level. Also available at the show was a special edition of miniature wearable paintings – some of which played with the shape of the women’s symbol – opening yet another avenue in the dialogue between fashion and art, sexual politics and aesthetics, intellect and desire.
Manuela Ammer is an art historian working at the Collaborative Research Centre ‘Aesthetic Experience and the Dissolution of Artistic Limits’ at the Freie Universität in Berlin. | https://frieze.com/article/k8-hardy-ulrike-m%C3%BCller |
Background: The effects of desloratadine-montelukast combination on quality of life (QoL) and nasal airflow of patients with perennial allergic rhinitis (PAR) has not been reported. The objective of this work was investigate the efficacy of desloratadine-montelukast combination on nasal obstruction and health-related quality of life (HRQL) of patients with PAR.
Methods: The patients with PAR (n = 40) were assessed using acoustic rhinometry (AcR) and Rhinoconjunctivitis QoL Questionnaire (RQLQ) before therapy. Desloratadine-montelukast fixed-dose combination treatment was applied to every patient once daily. The AcR and RQLQ score were reevaluated at the first and third months; and statistical comparison of pretreatment and posttreatment results was performed.
Results: Nasal symptoms and signs such as itching, sneezing, discharge, congestion, and edema, and color change of turbinates have been decreased after treatment. In AcR, minimum cross-sectional area (MCA) measurements and volume results were increased after the treatment. Correlation was found between the volume results and nasal discharge and/or congestion in right nasal passages. In left nasal passages, statistical relation was observed between the MCA and itching and/or change of turbinate color (p < 0.05). A significant decrease in the overall RQLQ score was determined at the first and third months of therapy. The difference between scores at baseline and end of the first and third months for all domains was statically significant (p < 0.001). The treatment difference in change from the first month to the end of the third month was statistically significant (p < 0.05).
Conclusion: Desloratadine-montelukast combination therapy causes subjective and objective decrease in nasal obstruction, reduces the other symptoms of PAR and improves the disease-specific QoL.
Keywords: allergic rhinitis; desloratadine; montelukast; quality of life; therapeutics.
© 2013 ARS-AAOA, LLC. | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23733270/ |
The American inventor Thomas Alva Edison was the greatest inventive genius in all history. He had patented more than a thousand inventions, among them the microphone, the phonograph, incandescent lamp and Kinetoscope. Having a sculpted portrait of him in your home or office will be a symbolic reminder of great American ingenuity. The artist Robert R. Toth collaborated with the inventor’s son, Theodore Edison, when creating the likeness. Around 1975, Toth met Theodore Edison, the last surviving Edison son, who helped Toth develop his portrait bust of Thomas Edison. This sculpture has been displayed at the Edison Historic Site, West Orange, NJ. | https://sculptsite.com/sculpture/Robert-Toth/Thomas%20Edison |
Air pollution, specifically diesel exhaust (DE), is associated with the top four causes of mortality in the United States: heart disease, cancer, stroke, and chronic lower respiratory diseases. In spite of the prevalence of these conditions and magnitude of DE exposure in ambient urban and occupational environments, few biologically based attempts have been made to thwart the effects of acute or chronic exposures. Oxidative stress is a prevailing theory in the mechanism of action of air pollutant-induced adverse health effects. Antioxidants, the body's defense against oxidative stress, are commonly employed by CAM practitioners to prevent and reduce the adverse consequences of exposure to pollutants. This research application is intended to examine a CAM product (glutathione (GSH)) and model (prevention) in an attempt to reduce oxidative stress induced by DE exposure. The UW exposure laboratory offers an unparalleled opportunity to examine CAM interventions in augmenting human responses to DE. This nested research application is a double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over experiment to determine if inhaled GSH can blunt the observed oxidative stress associated with controlled DE exposure. While biologically based, scientifically plausible, and currently used in the CAM community, this promising intervention lacks exposure-specific evidence. The long-term objective of this research is to rigorously examine potential CAM interventions in augmenting adverse health effects induced by pollutants that pose a substantial ongoing public health burden.
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One of the most common questions I get when discussing real estate investing is how I evaluate properties to determine the investment potential. While there are many factors that come into play, the one criteria that is critical to get right in the evaluation is the capitalization rate, or cap rate for short.
What’s the Definition of Capitalization Rate?
The easiest way to understand cap rate is the expected return (as a percent) an investment will generate based on the net operating income (NOI) of the asset.
Cap rate is applied against the market value of the property to determine NOI. For example, a property worth $1 million and being sold at a cap rate of 10 would be expected to generate annual NOI of $100K.
$1,000,000 x .10 = $100,000
Mind you, you are not going to find a property with that kind of cap rate these days. This illustration is simply for easier math. Also, cap rate does not include debt service. If you are financing the acquisition, that gets factored in later.
First, let’s talk about some expectations when it comes to cap rates and how to determine what cap rate to use and when.
What Cap Rate to Use
Some variables that come into play include the regional location of the property (Philadelphia, N.Y., Chicago, L.A., etc.), the class of property (Class A, B, C, or D), type of property (multifamily, office, retail, industrial, etc.), market conditions (supply, demand, interest rates), and geographic location (city, suburbs). We rely on a combination of industry research, our local market evaluation and deal marketing, and transactions.
Below is a table of some cap rate expectations based on the current market for multifamily properties. It’s not based on anything more than what I am seeing and the N.Y./L.A. numbers are for comparison only:
The simplest way to define different classes of properties (A, B, C) is:
- Class A: Brand new construction and/or prime location.
- Class B: Buildings that are no longer new and are in need of light renovation (facade, landscaping, common area upgrades) but overall are in well-maintained functional condition and a good location.
- Class C: Older buildings in need of functional and/or infrastructure improvements, with a less ideal location.
Value-add and distressed properties are those in some form of disrepair, outdated, or generally mismanaged.
You can see a big difference in return expectations between the Philadelphia market and coastal cities, as well as between the class of properties. This is why so many investors in these areas are looking to other markets for larger returns.
The numbers I use are expectations based on TRUE cap rates. We’ll talk about how so many deals are misrepresented.
How to Use the Cap Rate
Now, let’s look at some of the ways to use cap rate to determine value when buying and selling. From there, we’ll get into factors that determine the appropriate cap rate to use and then discuss some of the tricks used by brokers and agents to hide the true cap rate.
The general rule of thumb is that you want to buy at a higher cap rate and sell at a lower rate. You’ll see why in a minute.
Suppose you want to invest in the Philly area and are interested in long-term equity appreciation with some positive cash flow, too. We’ll assume that you have $100K to invest and will use financing to acquire a property for around $400K.
Related: 6 Advantages of Buying in an Expensive, Low Cap Rate Market
A 25 percent down payment is standard on investment real estate. Note that there are closing costs, etc., that I am not including to make the math easier.
Let’s look at what kind of net income you can expect between a Class A and C property. Again, we are not including paying the loan here.
Class A: $400K x .055 (5.5 CR) = $22,000
Class C: $400K x .0675 (6.75 CR) = $27,000
Now, let’s look at it the other way. Suppose you wanted to buy an investment property that can generate $50K a year in net income. To determine what you can expect to pay, we divide the number by the cap rate. Using the same examples we get the following:
Class A: $50K / .055 = $909,090
Class C: $50K / .0675 = $740,740
Another way to use a cap rate is in figuring out how much value you can increase a property by through increased rents or reducing expenses. Both will result in an increased NOI.
Suppose the property you are evaluating above has the potential to generate another $5K a year through increased rents or reduced expenses. Again using the same example:
Class A: $55K / .055 = $1,000,000
Class C: $55K / .0675 = $814,814
This is what we call value-add, meaning that there is potential to increase the value in a property. This may be short-term if there are minor changes to be made or longer-term if it will take some time to implement.
In the above examples, you can really start to see the power of using the cap rate in the analyses. You bought a property for just over $900K, increased the NOI by $5K/year and have now increased the value to $1M!
The reason this happens is simple. The market dictates the cap rate, and the cap rate is based on the NOI. In this case, the cap rate at purchase and sale remained the same, but the NOI was raised by 10 percent.
There is a way to re-position the property by moving it from one class to another through upgrades and improvements. This would result in changing the value by using a lower cap rate.
One thing to make clear, though, is that a cap rate is generally applied to commercial properties, which in the view of lenders are properties that are either zoned commercial or residential with more than four units. This is very important, because if you are financing a deal, then it has to appraise. Properties with four units or less are appraised first based on comparable sales and then income.
Where So Many Investors Go Wrong
Even though it should be easy to determine the value by using a cap rate, many new investors don’t factor in all the expenses or dig deep enough into the numbers to uncover the true value. This is often because a seller and his or her agent/broker don’t give the full picture of the performance of a property. That is to say they either don’t include all of the expenses, base the projected rents off pie-in-the-sky numbers, or do a combination of both.
The first red flag is when the term pro forma is used as a basis of the stated cap rate. This means that the rents and expenses are projection-based and in most cases absolute best-case scenario. A more accurate way to determine the actual performance is by getting a trailing 12 months (T12) profit and loss statement. Many agents will only send you a spreadsheet with actual numbers for income, taxes, insurance, and maybe utilities. The rest is up to you to determine.
I will say that, the bigger the deal size, the better information you will or should get.
There are cases where a pro forma is the only way to value a property, like for new construction, and many good brokers are honest with their numbers. But it requires much more due diligence to validate. You will also base purchase decisions on your own pro forma, which is what you will create to determine the value as you see it.
Let’s look at an example.
Say you are looking at a 10-unit property that is being sold for $1 million at a 6 percent cap rate. The net income should be $60K a year ($1,000,000 x .06 = $60,000). The offering docs state that the pro forma rents are $900 a month per unit.
That means $9K a month and $108K a year. So far, so good. The pro forma expenses total $48K, which gets us to the $60K NOI.
Now, let’s say this property actually is generating an average of $800 a month in rent, and the expenses are 45 percent of the income. This brings us to $750 per unit x 10 units = $7.5K per month and $90K per year. Subtract 45 percent in expenses, and you get $49,500.
At the same cap rate, the property is actually worth $825K ($49,500 / .06 = $825,000). You, my friend, just overpaid by $175K!
This happens when the offer is based off projected numbers provided by the seller, and the buyer doesn’t have the know-how or experience to perform proper due diligence.
I see this each and every day!
Here is the minimum list of expenses you should expect to see in an offering—and also dive in deep to validate in your analysis:
- Property taxes (normally accurate, because they are public record)
- Insurance
- Utilities paid by owner
- Maintenance and repairs (1-3% of value per year, depending on class)
- Landscaping and snow removal
- Municipal licensing
- Property management (5-7% of gross rents)
- Vacancy (5%)
- Variable expenses
If you get these right, then you will be much closer to actual costs. Still, this is heavily dependent on the complete and accurate records of the owner/manager of the property.
Let’s Run Some Numbers!
Let’s look at an actual listing that came into my inbox recently.
First the description:
“Fully-leased quadplex in the booming Brewerytown submarket of Philadelphia, Penn., on its main commercial corridor, Girard Avenue. This dramatic corner property features four units fully leased/occupied, generating strong positive cash flow from day one.
“A savvy investor could cosmetically enhance units 2/3/4 with subtle improvements to drive rent increases and boost the performance of the building in no time. These units lease quickly and are in high demand…”
Here are the numbers pulled directly from the listing. Asking price is $764,999 at a 7.5 cap rate, wonderful! The total rent claim is $65,400, with a net income of $57,524.
Wow! Could it really be operating at a 12 percent expense ratio?
No way!
These numbers came from the agent and seller only including obvious expenses, like property taxes and insurance. What I can tell you is that even brand new construction will operate at a 30 to 35 percent expense ratio, and that’s just in the first couple of years.
The rule of thumb is to assume that expenses are 40 to 50 percent of income. This would become clear as a full and detailed analysis was done during underwriting.
If we now factor in a conservative expense number like 35 percent, we get an actual NOI of $42,510. With a sale price of $765K, we are now looking at a real cap rate of 5.5 (NOI / asking price).
Going back to our cap rate expectations, and what we know of its location, we can cross this one off the list of properties to pursue.
Related: 5 of Your Most Burning Questions About Cap Rate, NOI, & More—Answered
The crazy thing about this deal is that, because it is four units, it will be appraised based on sale comps. The market for these types of properties has been out of control, so it would most likely appraise for the sale price.
All of the above is what I call paper napkin analysis, which is only useful for a first level filter when looking at properties. We use tools like the BiggerPockets Buy and Hold Calculator to include all expense categories and numbers that are based on detailed analysis and years of experience—but only after a property passes a sniff test. Unfortunately, a hot real estate market drives many reality TV-watchers and folks with more money than sense to overpay.
Conclusion
There are many other ways to use the cap rate in evaluating properties, so I would suggest going on Zillow or LoopNet and finding a few investment properties to test the math. It becomes much easier the more you analyze, and you will eventually be able to quickly determine which deals are worth looking into.
It’s also worth noting that the bigger the deal and higher the class of property, the more likely you will get actual reports of income and expenses. Larger and higher class projects are more likely to be professionally managed, with all aspects of the asset performance tracked and reported by the management company to the owner. This helps to get a more accurate cap rate to gauge.
If you only get a one-page spreadsheet, or just an offering document from the broker, then you will most likely not be able to get a good picture of the financial performance of the property. This is where a savvy investor will tap into resources with hands-on experience in the immediate market and comparable asset classes to help develop a framework of realistic numbers.
Learning how a cap rate is calculated will help you go a long way in evaluating investment-grade properties. It is even more important to be thorough in your analysis and realize that it’s just one tool to master.
Here are the formulas we discussed, so you can practice:
- NOI / Cap Rate = Property Value
- Property Value x Cap Rate = NOI
- NOI / Property Value = Cap Rate
Happy investing!
Questions about cap rate?
Ask me in the comment section below! | https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/how-to-calculate-cap-rate |
The gardens of the Royal Castle in Warsaw cover a total of over 2 hectares and consist of two basic elements: the Upper Garden located closer to the residence on the roof of Kubicki Arcades and the Lower Garden located below the castle slope, on the foreland of the Vistula River. Upper Gardens have been revitalized in 2015, Lower are currently under reconstruction, which the Castle plans to finish in mid-2019.
The Gardens of the Royal Castle in Warsaw are entered together with Garden Terrace and the Castle in the register of monuments. The Old Town in Warsaw, in which the Gardens are located, was entered on the UNESCO World Heritage List by decision of September 1980. In the justification of the entry of the Old Town in Warsaw on the UNESCO World Heritage List, there was a reconstruction of the urban layout, the market square and tenement houses as well as the reconstruction of the Royal Castle. The reconstruction process was completed with the reconstruction of the Royal Castle. Therefore, the Royal Castle in Warsaw together with the Castle Gardens is not only an object located in the area included in the UNESCO list, but also sets a time frame for the reconstruction of the Old Town in Warsaw; is one of the most important elements of the entire reconstruction.
The Upper Garden, with an area of over 10 000 m2, is located on the roof of the Kubicki Arcades (a building that in the past combined composition of two parts of the gardens, hiding in its interior a road that was a physical division of the gardens). It is a kind of Garden on the Roof. It is located close to the residence, constituting an extension of its interior and immediate vicinity. It is located on a slope. The largest slope of garden lawns exceeds 60 degrees. It is a residential, representative garden that preserves the style of the inter-war period. The heart of the garden is the so-called The Lower Fountain located on the longitudinal axis of the Castle and the entire garden area. The fountain is made of sandstone bowl and patinated bronze chalice stylized on art deco. Its complement is a smaller fountain located in the immediate vicinity of the Castle. Granite paths are delimited diagonally and cross the slopes symmetrically on both sides of the axis. An important element are sandstone seats topped with a pair of vases in which seasonal flowers are planted. At the bottom of the escarpment, the so-called "Small Valley", in which there are quarters designated with boxwood hedges filled with seasonal flowers. Benches were also erected in that part.
Most plantings are boxwood hedges and seasonal plants. An important element of the garden is also a collection of large-flowered roses located on the same line ending the Upper Garden. On the Garden Terrace located directly next to the building, 88 flower pots are laid out. Pots are decorated with patterns taken from Canaletto's paintings. There is also so-called 'Triangular Garden' (Vasa's Garden), which is located in the southern side of the garden. It is a specific reference to the Baroque. It contains intricate patterns arranged from boxwood hedges filled with perennials. There are also roses grafted on the trunk here.
From the Upper Garden there is a beautiful view of the Lower Garden, the Vistula River and the panorama of Warsaw. From the Upper Garden by Parade Stairs, you can go to the Lower Garden.
The Lower Garden of the Royal Castle (around 19 000m2) occupies the area from the Vistula side to the east of Kubicki Arcades. It is part of the garden shaped from at least the beginning of the 19th century.
On May 11th, 2019 it had been opened for visitors after the reconstruction. The revalorisation project aimed to restore the artistic and historical values of the castle complex seen from the river. Reactivating the garden, primarily in the wake of the nineteenth and twentieth-century iconography, made it possible to supplement the panorama of Warsaw from the Vistula river with an important element that has been missing so far. The basis of the Castle view below the Kubicki Arcades is a varied, green space with various garden assumptions. On its northern side there is already existing hornbeam trimmed bosquets. On the south side of the Lower Garden, plant forms imitating the full symmetry of the garden and park setting are created.
The designed Lower Garden refers to the period when, after regaining independence, and shortly before the outbreak of World War II, the renovated castle garden received a robe full of glamor based on the design of the outstanding architect Adolf Szyszko-Bohusz. Traces of this pre-war assumption have survived in the post-war photographs of the ruins of the Royal Castle, and some planting trees from this period have survived to this day.
The most important element of the reconstructed Garden is a grass-like indenter formed in the shape of a garden amphitheater. It is planted with many species of perennial plants. The granite stairs lead the observers to the higher part of the gardens enclosed in molded beech logs. Hedges from cotoneaster also spice up planting. The oldest plant form are hornbeam bosquets with a height of over 6,5 m. They should be located on two sides of the garden axis, however, the transformation and development of the city made it impossible to recreate the southern part of the bosses. They are played only to the extent possible today.
The whole composition is complemented by 12 fountains located symmetrically on two sides of the longitudinal axis of the garden. In the Lower Garden there will also be 25 sculptures, there are 10 sandstone vases and over 100 benches. An important element is the illumination, which will highlights the beauty of the garden also at night.
The completion of works in the Lower Garden means the final stage of reconstructing the Castle gardens. Now the gardens constitute a compositional whole with historical, aesthetic and landscape values. | https://www.zamek-krolewski.pl/en/your-visit/permanent-exhibitions/the-gardens |
Transpiration is the evaporation of water into the atmosphere from the leaves and stems of plants. Plants absorb soilwater through their roots and this water can originate from deep in the soil. (For example, corn plants have roots that are 2.5 meters deep, while some desert plants have roots that extend 20 meters into the ground). Plants pump the water up from the soil to deliver nutrients to their leaves. This pumping is driven by the evaporation of water through small pores called "stomates", which are found on the undersides of leaves. Transpiration accounts for approximately 10% of all evaporating water. | http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/wwhlpr/transpiration.rxml?hret=/guides/mtr/hyd/smry.rxml |
Benchmark assessments are standardised tests that help compare student performance between individuals and school, offering invaluable data on how the school system is performing and what teachers can do to help improve their own classrooms. Benchmark assessment data is reshaping the education industry with its insight into how students, schools and nations are performing and offering everyone the opportunity to learn from each other. Here are four ways that benchmark assessment data is making waves in the education industry:
Benchmark assessment highlights the importance of looking beyond the curriculum
Having a strong curriculum is the backbone of any learning institution. However, since curriculum learning is based mostly on a shorter timeframe it can be difficult to measure performance over time and the impact on skills and competencies not covered in the textbooks.
Professional benchmark testing like the PISA for School test developed by the OECD is designed to look at the development of the student as a whole across a wide range of topics including reading, mathematics and science. By focusing on real-life scenarios they can measure understanding not just of the topics taught in school but also a broader range of capabilities like problem-solving and critical thinking. This is also vital to understanding the skills of students who may not be familiar with the topics taught within the recent school term, such as international students or students that have recently moved schools.
Breaks down school siloes and allows a deeper insight into the performance of the entire education system
One of the great difficulties of education in the modern age is how competitive the job sector has become, where students need to compete not just at the local level but also with candidates who come from abroad. This is why it is so important to ensure that the school is performing well by international standards.
Curriculum testing within schools is important to highlight whether students have understood the material they have been taught, however, this becomes difficult the more we consider performance at the global level, where students are taught a wide variety of topics. Benchmark testing is standardised to be accessible to all students, here and abroad, in order to help facilitate better measurement of performance and offer a more complete picture of what we can do better within our schools locally.
Allows for better decision-making based on hard evidence
Deciding on what needs to be taught, encouraged or improved is difficult if we only take a narrow view of a single classroom, which is why benchmark testing offers better data to educators, based on performance across country lines but also applicable at the individual student level. This allows teachers to better understand what individual students can do to get ahead, but also base decisions on policy, resource allocation and teacher education on hard data.
Encourages learning, collaboration and co-operation between educators
Teaching is a difficult job and many educators might feel isolated as they try and come up with new and innovative ways to improve the learning outcomes for their classrooms. Having data on how other schools and other teachers are performing can help pinpoint where educators are excelling and the types of strategies that work best with students. This knowledge, armed with evidence of what works, can help facilitate dialogue and knowledge sharing between educators who wish to improve the way that they approach their classroom. | https://hbstime.com/how-benchmark-assessment-data-is-shaping-the-education-industry/ |
How do I enable sitemap in robots txt?
txt file which includes your sitemap location can be achieved in three steps.
- Step 1: Locate your sitemap URL. …
- Step 2: Locate your robots.txt file. …
- Step 3: Add sitemap location to robots.txt file.
How do I fix XML Sitemap error?
Upon successfully fixing the errors, you should resubmit the sitemap.
…
To do that in Google;
- Long in to your Webmaster tools homepage.
- Click on the website.
- Click on Sitemaps under Crawl.
- Select the sitemaps you would like to resubmit.
- Click on the Resubmit button to complete the process.
Should Sitemap XML be in robots txt?
Even if you want all robots to have access to every page on your website, it’s still good practice to add a robots. … Robots. txt files should also include the location of another very important file: the XML Sitemap. This provides details of every page on your website that you want search engines to discover.
Where do I put my Sitemap XML file?
The sitemap. xml file is usually saved in the root folder of your domain, e. g. https://www.domain.com/sitemap.xml. Some websites, however, save their sitemap.
Is ignore robots txt illegal?
No, it’s not illegal. The robots. txt is a guide text not the law file. However, you may not commit the crime when scraping a site but may violate the robots.
What is User-Agent * in robots txt?
A robots. txt file consists of one or more blocks of directives, each starting with a user-agent line. The “user-agent” is the name of the specific spider it addresses. You can either have one block for all search engines, using a wildcard for the user-agent, or specific blocks for specific search engines.
How do I find a sitemap error?
How to check your XML Sitemap for errors with Screaming Frog
- Open Screamingfrog and select “List Mode”
- Grab the URL of your sitemap.xml file.
- Head to Upload > Download Sitemap.
- Frog will confirm the URLs found in the sitemap file.
- Click Start to start crawling.
How do I test a sitemap file?
To test the sitemap files, simply login to Google Webmaster Tools, click on Site Configuration and then on Sitemaps. At the top right, there is an “Add/Test Sitemap” button. After you enter the URL, click submit and Google will begin testing the sitemap file immediately.
How do I fix my WordPress sitemap?
Clear the cache of your website and log out of the site. Log in back and Enable XML sitemap again. It might just fix Yoast’s WordPress SEO sitemap 404 error. The second easiest thing you need to try is to deactivate the plugin and reactivating it by clearing the cache and log in back again.
What is the difference between robots txt and sitemap XML?
Robots. txt helps you to tell search engines which pages of your website needs to be crawled or indexed and Sitemap. xml tells the the search engine about the full website structure that how many pages and links are there.
What is robots txt sitemap XML?
A robots. txt file is a file that you can place in your website’s root directory to instruct crawlers how you want your site to be crawled. … When crawlers visit a site, it’s the robots. txt file they usually visit first. It’s also where you should place your XML sitemap location so the crawlers can easily find it.
How do I add a Yoast sitemap to robots txt?
You can edit the robots. txt file through the Yoast SEO and Yoast SEO Premium.
…
Create or edit robots. txt in the WordPress Dashboard
- Log in to your WordPress website. …
- Click on ‘SEO’. …
- Click on ‘Tools’. …
- Click on ‘File Editor’. …
- Make the changes to your file.
How do I add a Sitemap?
How to submit a sitemap in Google Search Console
- Find your sitemap page on your live site. …
- Navigate to “Sitemaps” under “Index” on the left site navigation pane.
- Remove old, outdated sitemaps if any have been submitted. …
- Under “Add a new sitemap” you can add your sitemap URL and click submit.
How do I manually create a sitemap XML?
Manually Creating a Sitemap
- Create a text file and save it with a .xml extension (ie. sitemap.xml)
- First lines of the file: <? …
- Create an entry for each URL. The <loc> tag is required, the others are optional. …
- Last line of the file: </urlset>
- Upload the file to your server and then submit it to the search engines.
How do you update Sitemap?
5 Steps to Updating your sitemap. xml file
- Generate your XML Sitemap file. There are several websites you can visit to generate a sitemap file for your website. …
- Upload your sitemap. xml file to your website’s root server. …
- Make sure sitemap. …
- Verify your sitemap. …
- Submit your new sitemap to Google & Bing. | https://aimlmarketplace.com/automatic-machine/how-do-i-fix-sitemap-xml-is-not-indicated-in-robots-txt.html |
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ADHD and driving: advice for adolescents
Nwanneka N Sargant and Fiona Finlay
Motor vehicle accidents are the leading cause of death among teenagers in the UK, accounting for 30% of male and 17% of female deaths. Statistically, teenage motorists are ten times more likely to be killed or seriously injured while driving than motorists in their 40s. According to the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the National Center for Statistics and Analysis, in 2008, hand-held mobile phone use, impairment due to alcohol, speeding and failure to use a seatbelt were features in more than 80% of fatal crashes among 16- to 24-year-olds. Factors increasing the vulnerability of young drivers include inattention, impulsivity, immature judgement, thrill-seeking tendencies and impaired executive function skills. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is defined as a ‘persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that is more frequently displayed and is more severe than is typically observed in individuals at a comparable level of development’.
ADHD in practice
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Table of Contents
How did Albert Einstein's brain get stolen?
Albert Einstein's Brain Was Stolen By Thomas Harvey
So when he died at age 76 of a burst aorta in Princeton Hospital, his brain was immediately removed from his body by Thomas Harvey.
Where is Albert Einstein's brain now?
The Mütter Museum is one of only two places in the world where you can see pieces of Albert Einstein's brain. Brain sections, 20 microns thick and stained with cresyl violet, are preserved in glass slides on display in the main Museum Gallery.
Who robbed Einstein's brain?
Albert Einstein, the Nobel prize-winning physicist who gave the world the theory of relativity, E = mc2, and the law of the photoelectric effect, obviously had a special brain. So special that when he died in Princeton Hospital, on April 18, 1955, the pathologist on call, Thomas Harvey, stole it.
Related Question Why was Albert Einstein's brain stolen?
Was Albert Einstein's brain smaller?
Albert Einstein is considered to be one of the most intelligent people that ever lived, so researchers are naturally curious about what made his brain tick. The autopsy revealed that Einstein's brain was smaller than average and subsequent analyses showed all the changes that normally occur with ageing.
Why was Einstein so smart?
There were, in fact, unique features to Einstein's brain that may be the answer to how he was so smart. Some parts of the brain were thicker than average, which could mean he had a stronger connection between the two hemispheres.
Why was Einstein's brain different?
Diamond and her team found that Einstein's brain had more glial cells relative to neurons, especially (that is, statistically significant) in an area of the brain called the left inferior parietal area, a region responsible for synthesizing information from different areas of the brain.
Did Einstein have a large head?
2. Fat baby with Large Head: Albert had a fat head at the time he was born. When Albert's mother, Pauline Einstein gave birth to him, she thought that Einstein's head was so big and misshapen that he was deformed.
What happened to Einstein's brain and eyes?
Albert Einstein's Eyeballs are Stored in a Safety Deposit Box in NYC. Harvey preserved Einstein's brain (dividing it somewhere between 170 and over 200 parts), while also removing his eyeballs, which he gifted to Einstein's eye doctor, Henry Abrams.
What color were Albert Einstein's eyes?
What colour did Albert Einstein's eyes have? Einstein had brown eyes (Source: Einstein's passport dated 1923).
Why was Einstein's eye removed?
Before Einstein died 57 years ago, he wrote in his will that he wanted to be cremated, his ashes discarded secretly to avoid creating a shrine. He removed Einstein's eyeballs and gave them to Einstein's eye doctor, Henry Adams.
How do you unlock your whole brain?
How many GB is the human brain?
As a number, a “petabyte” means 1024 terabytes or a million gigabytes, so the average adult human brain has the ability to store the equivalent of 2.5 million gigabytes digital memory.
What percentage of the brain does a genius use?
Thomas misquoted the brilliant American psychologist William James as saying that the average person specifically "develops only 10 percent of his latent mental ability." In fact James had referred more vaguely to our "latent mental energy." Others have claimed that Einstein attributed his intellectual giftedness to
Is Einstein's brain heavier?
Einstein's brain weighed only 1,230 grams, which is less than the average adult male brain (about 1,400 grams). The authors also reported that the thickness of Einstein's cerebral cortex (area 9) was thinner than that of five control brains. However, the DENSITY of neurons in Einstein's brain was greater.
What was Stephen Hawking's IQ level? | https://almazrestaurant.com/why-was-albert-einsteins-brain-stolen/ |
How big is an indoor soccer field? Football pitches are an integral component of the sport. It is only not a pitch be the difference between winning & losing or enjoyment & frustration. Still, it can also even be the difference between playing and not playing, conditional on where you sit within the football pyramid.
A pitch’s size varies depending on the format of football you play, as not all football pitches are the same size. That is why it is essential to know the dimensions of a football pitch doesn’t matter your role at a club – whether you’re a player, coach, groundsman, or chairman.
- Required Size of a 5-A-Side Football Pitch
The size of a 5-a-side football pitch, generally on The FA’s recommendation, is 40 yards or 36.5m long with a width of 30 yards (27.5m). These measurements make sure its rectangular shape remains intact, with a helpful way of remembering that the length should exceed the breadth at a ratio of 2:1. One of the essential features of a 5-a-side football pitch is its curved penalty areas. These are variants from the more traditional 18-yard boxes found on 11-a-side pitches.
- Required Size of a 7-A-Side Football Pitch
According to The FA recommendations, a 7-a-side football pitch size is 60 yards (54.86m) long by 40 yards (36.5m) wide. Unlike with 5-a-side games, pitches with seven teams have rectangular penalty areas, measuring 18 yards (16.5m) wide and 10 yards (9m) from the goal line.
The penalty arcs, or “D’s” as they’re mostly referred to as being, are also a marking at this level. If used- the arcs are positioned at the edge of the penalty area, with the curve facing away from the goal.
- Required Size of a 9-A-Side Football Pitch
Size of a 9-a-side football pitch is about 80 yards,73.1m long by 50 yards, 45.72m wide. These dimensions are given by The FA and are used by U-11 and U-12 teams.
For this pitch size, the center circle must have a radius of 7 yards (6.4m) with the center mark in the middle of the field. The penalty spot should be 8.2m from the line of goal on both sides of the pitch.
- Required Size of an 11-A-Side Football Pitch
Size of the 11-a-side football pitch is not a direct answer. Measurements can vary considerably – more so than any other type of football pitch, depending on a range of various factors.
According to FA regulations, the measurement must fall between 100-130 yards (90-120m) long and 50-100 yards (45-90m) wide. This provides users the flexibility to choose a specific size that suits them, which is more commonly the case in the professional tiers of the game. The penalty area should measure (16.45m) away from the center of the goal line, while the penalty spot should be 12 yards (10.9m) from the goal, regardless of the overall pitch size.
These are some different football pitches, and hopefully, it’s clear from here how big is an indoor soccer field. Size 5 footballs are the standard-sized match football used across the game at both amateur and professional levels of the game from 14 and upwards. | https://stash-magazine.com/learn-how-big-is-an-indoor-soccer-field-and-different-pitch-field/ |
Environment – Environmental Considerations for Value Chain Management
The Mitsubishi Electric Group promotes various countermeasures that are connected to the realization of a sustainable society. Examples include initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, efficiently use resources, prevent environmental pollution, and work in tune with nature in each process of the value chain, from procurement, manufacturing and transportation to use and disposal/recycling. For a more detailed report, click on the initiatives listed below.
- Production
-
- Reducing CO2 from Production Lines
- Reducing CO2 from Utilities
- Reducing Use of SF6, PFC and HFC
- Reducing Resource Inputs
- Thorough Analysis and Separation of Waste
- Sourcing of Disposal Contractors
- Promoting Water Conservation and Water Recycling
The following page shows the material balance for the value chain.
The following page shows greenhouse gas emissions for the value chain. | http://www.mitsubishielectric.com/company/environment/report/valuechain/ |
An important component of all biocontrol projects is assessing how successful they have been.
Proof of impact is needed to back up anecdotal evidence that agents are doing a good job and provide justification for continued investment in biocontrol. It is equally important to also identify where agents are not up to scratch so additional species can be sought to strengthen the attack or alternative control methods developed. However, the cost of undertaking assessment studies has to date proven to be a major obstacle both in New Zealand and worldwide. When a project has clearly been highly successful it is unappealing to channel further resources into a former problem when so many others still require attention. Likewise if a project appears to have failed there is little incentive to spend precious resources documenting this in more detail, although there is a danger here that changes are actually happening but are too subtle to be easily noticed. “However, the National Biocontrol Collective (NBC), the major funder of the development and release of new weed biocontrol agents in New Zealand, has recently strengthened its commitment to ensuring that some assessment is undertaken,” confirmed Lynley Hayes. They asked Landcare Research to develop a suitable protocol outlining minimum standards plus further options where additional resources are available.
Scientists at Landcare Research have thought long and hard about how assessment could be tackled in a simple and cost-effective manner yet still yield useful data. “Our suggested approach is to get NBC field staff to collect simple data from many sites around the country but only when it is essential to do so,” explained Lynley. Members of the NBC have indicated that they are interested in obtaining data they can share with colleagues, managers, councillors and ratepayers, rather than the loftier goal of obtaining data that could convince scientists. Data that demonstrate a correlation will therefore generally suffice, rather than conclusive proof of cause and effect (which is much more difficult and expensive to obtain). Where possible, information that could be published in peer-reviewed journals will be collected. “Landcare Research will continue to use government funding to undertake more complex cause-and-effect population and ecosystem-level studies for a few flagship projects, and to assess the impact of agents that target reproductive structures only,” said Lynley. Because seed-, fruit- and flower-feeders do not impact on existing weed populations, but rather the future replacement of them, this type of assessment is more challenging and so has been excluded from the national protocol, at least for the time being.
The NBC met twice in 2014 to discuss the proposed protocol and suggest refinements. “There are five possible steps, and the number of steps an organisation undertakes depends on results achieved, resources available and the level of proof required,” explained Lynley. A lead organisation will be nominated to take overall responsibility for ensuring adequate follow-up occurs for each biocontrol agent. The lead organisation will generally be the one that acted as the applicant to release that agent, and will act as a project champion, involving other organisations as necessary. NBC members will collect data for the weeds that are considered significant in their region. The lead organisation will compile and share the information with those with an interest in it.
Step One: Agree Desired Outcomes & Collect Baseline Data
A key first step is to clarify what successful weed biocontrol would look like. The NBC agreed to a single desired end outcome: that where weeds are widespread, their harmful impacts will be reduced; and where weeds are less widespread (or absent), they will be prevented from becoming a problem. Intermediate outcomes to show if progress is being made towards the end outcome include demonstrating a reduction in weed abundance, density or vigour.
Due to the limitations of current data it will largely be necessary to start collecting baseline data for current weed targets from scratch rather than build on existing datasets. Nationwide, 10–20 good potential, or actual, release sites will be selected taking into account significant regional and national variation. Photos of the sites will be taken. Some sites/weeds will lend themselves to photos that can be analysed using digital software, but if not, ordinary before-and-after shots will be taken to provide a visual record. If the site is already a release site, the abundance of agents present, or their damage levels, will be assessed and recorded. The weed infestation at the site will be defined as either major (as far as eye can see), moderate (>100 m2), or minor (<100 m2). At the densest accessible point the percentage cover of the weed (and height for some species) will be estimated. These photos and measurements will be repeated every 2–3 years.
Step Two: Check for Establishment
NBC members will visit at least 75% of release sites at least once to check whether agents they have released have established. The release point will be checked for 5 minutes, following by wider searching of the site for 10 minutes. If agents fail to establish then no further monitoring will be undertaken. If establishment is uncertain, a watching brief will be kept for at least 10 years.
Step Three: Assess Agent Population Build-up/Damage Levels
If the agent has clearly established then its population or damage levels will be evaluated. Where it is easy to collect/count individual insects, population size will be estimated using broad categories (tens/hundreds/thousands). The method used will depend on the agent: e.g. beat bushes a set number of times, or estimate the number seen over a set time period, etc. Damage will be estimated for pathogens and also where insect population assessments will be difficult for cryptic species. The following categories will be used: occasional (signs of damage present but not common), patchy (signs of damage are present but are variable throughout the site, e.g. some plants may have no damage, and others may have heavy damage but this would be rare), heavy (the majority of plants are showing signs of damage and at least some plants are beginning to show signs of severe defoliation/damage or stress), and heavy (severe damage is obvious and widespread).
If agent population/damage levels are low, a watching brief will be kept for at least 10 years. If they remain low, more research may be required to understand why. If agent populations are high or damage appears significant then the impact on the weed population will be measured. Some members of the NBC may also check for non-target damage to support Landcare Research’s efforts to follow up on this for all species released, and study how widely dispersed agents are to inform redistribution efforts.
Step Four: Assess Impact on Weed Population
The impact of an agent on the weed population will be assessed by continuing to take photos and measure weed abundance and agent population/damage levels every 2–5 years. Some organisations may choose at this point to set up plots that can be manipulated experimentally to prove cause and effect. If no impact is measured then again further research may be needed to understand why. However, if an impact on the weed population is measured through either method then the ecosystem consequences of this can be evaluated and an economic analysis of the project undertaken.
Step Five: Assess Ecosystem Consequences & Undertake Economic Evaluation
Ecosystem consequences will be evaluated through continuing to take photos and measure weed abundance and agent population/damage levels every 5–10 years. Some organisations may again choose at this point to set up experimental plots from which more detailed measurements of change can be made, such as what species are replacing the weed. Organisations may also opt to undertake an economic evaluation of the costs and benefits provided by the project.
“Assessment activities based on the above protocol will get underway in 2015. Detailed instructions and forms have been prepared for the projects that are ready to begin now: broom (Cytisus scoparius), Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica), lantana (Lantana camara), privet (Ligustrum spp.), tradescantia (Tradescantia flumeninsis), and woolly nightshade (Solanum mauritianum). These are available from the Landcare Research website (see Changes to Pages). “In 2016 we will review how well the protocol is working and if necessary make some tweaks,” concluded Lynley.
The National Biocontrol Collective consists of 12 regional councils/unitary authorities nationwide plus the Department of Conservation. | https://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/publications/newsletters/biological-control-of-weeds/issue-71/assessment-protocol |
The recognized gap between research and implementation in avian conservation can be overcome with translational ecology, an intentional approach in which science producers and users from multiple disciplines work collaboratively to co-develop and deliver ecological research that addresses management and conservation issues. Avian conservation naturally lends itself to translational ecology because birds are well studied, typically widespread, often exhibit migratory behaviors transcending geopolitical boundaries, and necessitate coordinated conservation efforts to accommodate resource and habitat needs across the full annual cycle. In this perspective, we highlight several case studies from bird conservation practitioners and the ornithological and conservation social sciences exemplifying the 6 core translational ecology principles introduced in previous studies: collaboration, engagement, commitment, communication, process, and decision-framing. We demonstrate that following translational approaches can lead to improved conservation decision-making and delivery of outcomes via co-development of research and products that are accessible to broader audiences and applicable to specific management decisions (e.g., policy briefs and decision-support tools). We also identify key challenges faced during scientific producer–user engagement, potential tactics for overcoming these challenges, and lessons learned for overcoming the research-implementation gap. Finally, we recommend strategies for building a stronger translational ecology culture to further improve the integration of these principles into avian conservation decisions. By embracing translational ecology, avian conservationists and ornithologists can be well positioned to ensure that future management decisions are scientifically informed and that scientific research is sufficiently relevant to managers. Ultimately, such teamwork can help close the research-implementation gap in the conservation sciences during a time when environmental issues are threatening avian communities and their habitats at exceptional rates and at broadening spatial scales worldwide. | https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/70222511 |
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Oct. 20, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- K92 Mining Inc. (“K92” or the “Company”) (TSX: KNT; OTCQX: KNTNF) is pleased to announce that it has published its 2020 Sustainability Report. This is K92’s second annual sustainability report, outlining the environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) practices and performance of the Company. The report also marks another significant improvement in disclosure and is in accordance with the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (“SASB”) Metals and Mining Standard. Additionally, this year, an ESG materiality assessment was completed, with a tremendous amount of engagement from both external and internal stakeholders, and its results and feedback are reflected in the report.
The 2020 Sustainability Report is available on the K92 website at the following link: https://k92mining.com/responsible-mining/
Environment, Social and Governance Highlights:
John Lewins, K92 Chief Executive Officer and Director, stated, “Since restarting operations in 2016, declaring commercial production in early 2018 and subsequently expanding the operation, it is with a profound sense of pride to see the positive impact that the Kainantu Gold Mine has had on our local communities and more broadly on Papua New Guinea. We are very pleased to be able to share our ESG practices and performance, our accomplishments and provide an update in this latest sustainability report.
As part of the sustainability report, K92 completed a materiality assessment, listening to our various external and internal stakeholders to better appreciate what matters to them. This report incorporates their feedback and, more importantly, will certainly influence our efforts going forward. We have also improved the disclosure contained in the report to become our first sustainability report outlining ESG practices and performance in accordance with the SASB Metals and Mining standard. In future reports, we plan on enhancing our disclosure further by introducing additional reporting standards.
It is also worth noting that these accomplishments were achieved during a particularly challenging period due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our workforce on site has shown tremendous resourcefulness and dedication to ensure the continuity of community projects, maintain environmental commitments while continuously operating and expanding the operation. The support of the Government of Papua New Guinea and the Government of Australia continues to be a major factor in our success as well.”
About K92
K92 Mining Inc. is engaged in the production of gold, copper and silver from the Kainantu Gold Mine in the Eastern Highlands province of Papua New Guinea, as well as exploration and development of mineral deposits in the immediate vicinity of the mine. The Company declared commercial production from Kainantu in February 2018 and is in a strong financial position.
The Company commenced an expansion of the mine based on an updated Preliminary Economic Assessment on the property which was published in January 2019 and updated in July 2020. K92 is operated by a team of mining company professionals with extensive international mine-building and operational experience.
On Behalf of the Company,
John Lewins, Chief Executive Officer and Director
For further information, please contact David Medilek, P.Eng., CFA at +1-604-687-7130.
CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION: This news release includes certain “forward-looking statements” under applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors which may cause the actual results and future events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. All statements that address future plans, activities, events, or developments that the Company believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur are forward-looking information, including statements regarding the realization of the preliminary economic analysis for the Kainantu Mine, expectations of future cash flows, the planned plant expansion, production results, cost of sales, sales of production, potential expansion of resources and the generation of further drilling results which may or may not occur. Forward-looking statements and information contained herein are based on certain factors and assumptions regarding, among other things, the market price of the Company’s securities, metal prices, exchange rates, taxation, the estimation, timing and amount of future exploration and development, capital and operating costs, the availability of financing, the receipt of regulatory approvals, environmental risks, title disputes, failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate as anticipated, accidents, labour disputes, claims and limitations on insurance coverage and other risks of the mining industry, changes in national and local government regulation of mining operations in PNG, mitigation of the Covid-19 pandemic, continuation of the lifted state of emergency, and regulations and other matters. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
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Few physical recreation programs exist for children with neurodevelopmental challenges, particularly in rural settings and in Indigenous communities.
This project’s goal is to study the implementation of a new physical activity coaching approach (NPAC) for children with neurodevelopmental challenges and their families.
Key components of the approach include personalized child-centred coaching; home-based activity components (using an app); an online networking site for parents and coaches; and social activities for parents. This approach has previously been tested with families in urban settings. The aim is to assess how it can be implemented for those living in rural and Indigenous communities in BC.
The project objectives will be to assess different ways to implement NPAC in diverse communities and to develop a model that outlines the key steps and strategies that can be used with other Indigenous and rural communities. The team will use an Indigenous-inclusive approach and a framework for developing and sharing knowledge that includes community members through all stages of the process. Over the course of three years, the team expects to implement and evaluate the NPAC in a total of 16 sites in close collaboration with their provincial and community-level project stakeholders and partners.
The team seeks to:
- Measure the impacts that implementation of the NPAC across the sites will have on health and well-being at child, family and community levels.
- Examine factors that helped or hindered implementation of the NPAC across the sites and how this information can help to generate a model or set of guidelines to help other rural and Indigenous sites use the NPAC.
- Increase abilities among community members to support physical activity for children and families living with neuro-developmental challenges.
They anticipate the project will contribute to more inclusive and equitable participation in physical recreation for rural and Indigenous families in BC and contribute to their improved health and well-being. | https://www.msfhr.org/1/program/implementation-science-team |
Even as the government delivered the herculean task of achieving Covid-19 immunization in record time on the world stage, the Drug Regulatory Authority (DRA) in a report to the Ministry of Health (MoH) has underlined major hiccups in the vaccination campaigns.
The surveillance report on “regulatory cycle and oversight of Covid-19 vaccination campaigns in Bhutan” outlines the critical aspects observed at each stage of the vaccine regulatory cycle starting from the grant of the emergency use authorization (EUA) to vaccine waste management.
Finding glaring gaps, DRA expresses concern about the absence of its representative in the technical advisory groups (TAG), reluctance to seek regulatory advice, and a poor communication channel between the health ministry and DRA as a leading cause of the lapses.
With most of the committee members from the same professionals, although the committees’ mandates are intrinsically different, the report pointed out the lack of a clear coordinating mechanism among the multiple technical committees/advisory groups in the health system.
Lack of awareness of regulatory requirements by the stakeholders, explicit instructions from the committees or relevant stakeholders, and inadequate resources at the field, among others, have also caused loopholes in the vaccination programs.
According to the report, the ministry submitted incomplete documents along with the applications for EUA, import, and lot release which might delay the timely distribution of vaccines.
Besides, it also found non-compliance to EUA conditions issued by the DRA such as vaccination of pregnant and lactating women, ineligible population, and interchangeability and reverse interchangeability of vaccines.
Despite import authorization being required before the import of the vaccine, the report noted it imported a few vaccines without import authorization from the DRA.
While a few vaccination sites encountered damaged vaccine vials which could have resulted from improper transportation, temperature monitoring devices were also not available during transportation of vaccines to the districts and at some of the vaccination sites. And a backup power generator was also not available in a few centers.
Given the negligence of the personnel involved in screening, Bhutan Vaccine System (BVS) encountered lapses such as improper screening and system errors leading to vaccination of ineligible populations.
And it also found the absence of precautions to prevent the vaccine mix-up at some vaccination sites having over one type of vaccine and reports of quality defects of the syringes from the centers leading to inaccurate dose adjustment and dose delivery.
In the absence of constant monitoring by supervisors and relevant authorities, and proper collaboration and coordination, it noticed the absence of life-saving equipment and drugs in the adverse event following immunization (AEFI) kit such as oxygen cylinder, salbutamol respirator, and dexamethasone that could lead to risks of untimely intervention in case of serious AEFIs.
This has also caused improper set up of AEFI kits for ready use posing a risk of delay in the delivery of life-saving services and inadequate safety signal detection that could compromise the safety of the vaccine.
While noting coordination issues among stakeholders, the report stated that vaccination wastes were not segregated in a few centers and not treated as infectious waste posing a risk of infections, and few centers were found to have mixed the packaging materials with the syringes in the syringe disposal plastic.
Recommendations
During the monitoring, several observations were recorded and analyzed for recommendations and further corrections to serve as a reference for the management of any new vaccine imported in the future.
On this front, DRA recommended involving its representative in technical committees for vaccines, developing a clear coordination pathway among the committees assigning respective terms of references, devising structured plans for vaccine deployment in consultation with the relevant stakeholders including the regulatory bodies.
It also recommended strengthening communication on the regulatory requirements, and coordination and collaboration among relevant stakeholders to assess the quality of syringes before their distribution and for vaccine waste management.
Given the inadequate training on guidelines or protocols of health officials, it recommends training them on the vaccination practices, system, and associated guidelines, and sensitizing on the importance of AEFI kit and mandate to make it available during the vaccination and also enhancing regulatory capacity.
The recommendations also include prioritizing budget allocation for future vaccines deployment and inoculation, system strengthening of regulatory autonomy, periodic surveillance and monitoring of vaccines, reinforcing the need for cold chain equipment such as temperature monitoring devices or backup power or refrigerator in all the vaccination centers, among others.
In addition, it recommended the health ministry consider using the particular syringe – to be used during vaccination – during health workers’ training and reinforce the implementation of national guidelines for infection control and medical waste management.
And it is also recommended health workers periodically review the status of AEFI kits specifically on the list of kits and shelf life of kits while the ministry and regulatory body streamline AEFI reporting systems.
However, the report highlighted that despite the challenges, the country successfully carried out vaccinations of the majority eligible population with united efforts and cooperation from all relevant agencies and stakeholders.
Meanwhile, this surveillance report covered 220 vaccination sites in 17 districts during the first vaccination campaign and 214 sites in 18 districts during the second campaign, involving 21 DRA officials. | https://bhutantimes.bt/index.php/2021/11/09/dra-identifies-major-blotches-in-vaccination-programs/ |
Emotional baggage, trauma, stress - we carry these things around like a piece of luggage. It's only after we finally release some of the tension that we can notice how much unnecessary weight we were carrying.
Emotional baggage, trauma, stress – we carry these things around like a piece of luggage.
We often get so used to the baggage we carry that we don’t even realize it’s there. Sometimes we find comfort in the weight of the baggage, like an old familiar friend, it can be difficult to drop. It’s only after we finally release some of the tension that we can notice how much unnecessary weight we were carrying. That feeling of finally letting go of emotional baggage is unlike any other.
Much of what we carry can be held in our subconscious mind, as experiences or emotions we have repressed. This is why I wanted to create a tarot spread to help you identify some of that extra weight you’ve been lugging around.
I hope that this tarot spread will help guide you on the path of releasing the tension you’ve been carrying. | https://emeraldlotus.ca/2017/09/29/tarot-spread-emotional-baggage/ |
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Hello, My sourdough seems to have suddenly lost its oven spring. It rises on first and second proves as always, but then does... | https://www.sourdough.com/posts/how-does-lifestyle-keto-benefit-you?page=9 |
Writer: Gorazd Čad
[pullquote]It is probably no coincidence that the director of the world’s leading congress destination, Christian Mutschlechner of Vienna, was the first to answer our questions, in fact within just a few hours of us sending out the invitation.[/pullquote]In May this magazine’s editorial board carried out an experiment: we sent out a request for a short interview (Quick Talk) to 42 key persons of convention bureaus and in the invitation we specifically pointed out that for the needs of our experiment we would assess the accessibility and responsiveness of each of the convention bureaus. Most of these convention bureaus work in the public interest and the purpose of our experiment was to create a publication of in-depth content for which the mission was to provide information about congress communities. Given the complexity of answers we needed, the deadline was a full seven days.
Within the allocated response time we received 18 responses, or 42.68% of the total, which together with responses coming late but sent in a timely way (4 in total) came to 52.38%. All of the invited partners from Austria, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Slovenia answered the questionnaire on time, as did colleagues from Istanbul, Athens and one convention bureau from Croatia. From the results it would then appear that the Central European EU border is at the same time a border regarding the culture of communication with the media.
Indeed all of the region’s leading positions on the ICCA scale were the first to answer our questions. None of this is a coincidence, and they have an equally well-developed culture of communication with potential clients.
The broader Southeastern Europe (SEE) region, however, is one in transition, a transition that is also reflected in this realm of public information. In SEE it is clearly inadequate and as a consequence the individual is unable to develop a clear image of the functioning of specific convention bureaus or conference destinations. Meeting planners most likely confront a similar problem when deciding on whether to organise a congress in this part of Europe.
Personal contact is crucial
It is therefore very interesting when we look more closely at each destination’s response to the question “How hard is to get the message out about everything that your destination has to offer?”
Respondees believe that the more the destination is developed, the more effort must be invested in consolidating its image and what sets it apart from the competition. An important role is here played precisely by their media relations, in the form of press trips and partnerships in key industry events.
Moreover, a generally held opinion is that the most profitable route is that of building long-term individual relationships with potential partners interested in the destination, but a shortcoming with this is when we don’t know who our customers are or what their needs are. When this foundation is laid, it can be followed up by targeted communication through relevant storytelling and whilst this may sound easy in the era of total digitalization, it is an entirely different challenge to find good and worthwhile stories. For this the cooperation between convention bureaus and their partners is key. One of the best examples of this is the content network the Slovenian Convention Bureau has built in recent years – only a few bureaus have developed a good CRM system associated with marketing automation tools for this kind of communication.
Of the other various responses received one that it is worthwhile pointing out is the answer that the best thing a destination can do is to bring the client to the destination and convince them ‘live’ of their advantages, so they can become familiar with the stories that they have previously communicated to them.
New destinations have the prevailing opinion that the fact that they are undiscovered destinations is an important factor regarding the general public interest. They mostly rely on their own channels, including the most popular social media and digital marketing, and most of them believe in the personalization of customer relations, but they believe that it is a long-term process. In these cases there are very few innovations in the field of relationships with existing congress participants, who are the best ambassadors of convention destinations. Only a few congress bureaus really work in this area and better communication innovation is lacking here. The story of Athens, which has had to face waves of negative publicity during the European economic crisis, is an interesting one. As a destination and precisely during this period they made the highest investment in intensive communication with their customers, with a big role in this also played by the positive experiences of individual organisers and participants.
A resounding ‘Yes’ for content marketing
The meeting industry is an industry of storytellers. It’s therefore one where content marketing fits in very well. ‘Without content there are no congress participants’. It’s hard to disagree with this statement and we were pleased that 98% of those interviewed said that content marketing today is the foundation of marketing congress destinations.
It is important to emphasize, however, that the absolute foundation is a quality infrastructure and a renowned level of service, something the Vienna Convention Bureau’s Christian Mutschlechner was particularly keen to emphasize. It is only upon this kind of platform that quality content marketing can begin to be built and only honest, real stories that do not promise experiences that the destination cannot deliver will help bring success to a destination. Content marketing therefore has to be coordinated with the promise of the destination as a brand. The keywords for this are clear, relevant, authentic, useful and, finally, inspiring. The generic, easy-destination content of yesteryear no longer works today and more often than not ends up as spam and respondees were also keen to highlight that content marketing is much more than the basic SEO prevalent in digital marketing today.
The connection between experience marketing and content marketing is also interesting and was highlighted by a number of those who responded. Good content is the basis of the live experience, which congress organisers have been leaning on since time immemorial. The biggest innovation in this field is, of course, in the organisation of fam trips.
In this context Istanbul CVB uses video statements of congress organisers, which has proved to be a very effective method of promotion. Through this organisers become promoters of the destination and the response to Istanbul CVB’s campaign was very positive.
Today only a small proportion of stories attract our attention, as more and more we focus our attention on what is useful to us or entertains us. Through content marketing, however, we offer our buyers the kind of stories that are relevant to them and as a result they reward us with their loyalty and business. If we do not bother to tell such stories by ourselves, it is highly likely that clients will create their own stories, which may sometimes even be negative ones. But when positive and effective stories connect with effective sales, the path to success is wide open.
Communication starts with basic information exchange and it is always a two-way process. Content marketing, namely the deliberate creation and distribution of relevant content for the purpose of enthusing organisers, is one of the great tools of communication.
From our own practice we offer below some tips, experiences and also some of our concerns:
- Customer data management
The success of content marketing is primarily driven by pinpointing the right target groups. Only then can it be followed up by creating the right stories and nurturing creativity in communication methods. Often, a meetings destination devotes much attention to branding and external appearance rather than finding the audience that matches their product and story. If we successfully select the target group we can significantly and quickly acquire new customers, and in doing it this way quality definitely rises above quantity – the properly identified buyers will be drawn to the well-developed content.
To reflect on: Do you use modern CRM tools to manage a database of potential congress customers?
- Understanding the needs of meeting planners
Meeting organisers are overwhelmed with stories these days. For meeting planners the important stories are the ones that address their concerns. According to our analysis of news published on the IMEX system, only 25% of stories are relevant to meeting planners (‘MICE newsworthy’), meaning there is significant room for improvement in in this area. We need to think firstly of for whom, or to whom, we are writing and understand that our content is there to help solve others’ problems. The most widely read stories are therefore best practice, practical tips for organising events, background stories about providers, presentations of the key event planners, ideas for event organisatio and other such useful topics.
To reflect on: Are you measuring which content is most read on your website, and consequently which most interests meeting planners?
- Inventory of stories
The key to successful communication is not in the extent of content generated or frequency of publication, but in the context of what is interesting for meeting organisers. A lot of effort must therefore be invested in finding the right stories that are in line with the business thinking of your customers and potential customers. The key to success is in knowing at any given moment the kind of content you have to provide to your customers on each occasion. Congress stories can in this way be seen as a kind of ‘seed capital’ for successful convention destinations.
To reflect on: In your communication do you have content prepared for different target groups, from associations through to corporative clients?
- The intelligent distribution
If you know your target audience and know what can help guide a user to making a particular positive business decision, the decision on the method of distribution is easy – you need to communicate at the key points where customers collect information. A powerful anchor web (web portal) therefore plays a big role in this, as it is the basic medium of communication and also enables smart analytics. Alongside that several destinations have also built a community on one of the social networks, but direct marketing is still very much alive with all the tools that are available today.
To reflect on: Are you planning weekly publications on social media such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube or Slideshare and do you have a weekly plan for this?
- Personalisation and Automation
Marketing information systems and analyzing web traces is the basis for quality communication personalisation. A marketing system allows monitoring of potential customers through every phase of the purchase process. Such a system also allows the personalisation of digital experiences and connection with the CRM system, which leads to personal sales. According to our observations, meetings destinations that are already using content marketing invest very little investment, or none at all, in measuring the effects of this and adapting the project ends. This is crucial, and not just any measurement, but those relevant for long-term business success.
To reflect on: Does your destination use the appropriate CRM tools and marketing information system?
- Social media are story boosters
Today social media and content marketing are a winning combination. With social networks you can create awareness about your brand and at the same time you can direct customers to additional content on your website. With their viral potential social networks are also evidence that your congress service is trustworthy, which can be done by using the various tools of content marketing, from the publication of informative articles and webinars to demos, videos, case studies of good practice and white papers.
To reflect on: Have you set key performance indicators (KPIs) for the social networks and do you know how to measure social media analytics tools?
- Events are a part of content marketing
Event management is not just the implementation of the programme and all the supporting logistics, but it is the story and everything else that goes with it, from exciting the client and participants about the destination to the positive experiences that happen at the event, including how best to communicate with participants. It is the quality of relations with stakeholders that we create through content marketing that is a crucial aspect of the success of the event. Events are key tools for preserving, nurturing and upgrading relations with stakeholders and their efficacy is made in synergy with other content marketing tools.
To reflect on: Think about events that you remember most and why.
- Excellent texts, attractive design
Content marketing is often equated to preparing texts, which is very far from the truth. Professionals in the realm of content distribution (photographers, graphic designers, video producers, journalists) are certainly all key to the success of content distribution, but communication is a skill that is becoming increasingly important and today it is not possible to think of convention destination representatives without also thinking of public speaking and communication skills.
To reflect on: Are you thinking about employing a content marketing manager, social media manager…?
- Create your own media
In the digital age the creation of your own media is easy, logical and certainly cheaper than in the analog age. It can be as easy as a LinkedIn profile with the relevant target group, a corporate magazine or just a blog. Good content is the communication capital of your company. Just think of incentive programmes that you have developed and maybe even protected by copyright – this is a kind of seed capital that can yield great results. Of course, such capital is totally valueless if you do not take care of properly distributing the content, and preferably through your own media.
To reflect on: Which media you have developed at your destination: a web page, corporate magazine, blog, social network LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter…?
- Destination editorial
Planning, preparing and effectively curating content is a key part of a convention and destination organisation’s activities. With social media the importance of relevant, timely and appropriate content is even bigger. Destination organisations have to teach their partners how to recognize a good story and how to use the various modes of digital and social content, and are thereby becoming more and more a destination guide editorial board. Destination organisations also have the task of verifying which posts are suitable for publication and which are not. It is therefore surprising that 65% of online portals are offering outdated and irrelevant news.
To reflect on: How many useful stories did you post on your website last month and how do you measure their readership?
PS: The right to information is at the heart of democracy!
The majority of constitutions of European countries give everyone the right to obtain information of public interest, which is one of the fundamental human rights. In addition, public institutions have to provide the public with their work by providing timely, complete and accurate information on issues within their working areas. | https://kongres-magazine.eu/2016/07/pen-mightier-sword/ |
Improvement and analysis of the school cafeteria diet assessment measures. However in reality, one college district has for a number of years been serving wholesome meals to youngsters cooked from fresh — even native, seasonal, and natural — ingredients: Berkeley, Calif. If college students are outdoors, faculties can set up protected sites where children and teachers can meet; depending on the state of affairs, that could possibly be the sting of campus or a close-by park.
Some golf equipment which have been at my faculties are baseball, softball, tender tennis, table tennis, volleyball, basketball, monitor and subject, swimming, kendo, and band. Sure, individuals from the previous Canal Zone in Panama all know and love this consolation food favourite.
Each week or so our group would shift between 5 stations; baking, entree, facet dish, cold meals (salad, sandwich), and cleansing ( dish washing ). after cooking, we might serve the meals we ready as cafeteria meals for the entire school, giving us a restaurant type of really feel contemplating the gourmand food we made. | https://www.lichido.com/tag/mastering |
Our client, a leading global investment bank providing capital market, institutional brokerage, wealth & asset management services to clients is seeking to appoint an Enterprise Risk Manager to join the Enterprise Risk Team.
Principally you will be responsible for Developing & maintaining economic capital models, undertaking group-wide stress testing and scenario analysis, and conduct group-wide portfolio risk analysis across different business lines.
Additionally, you will:
- Support group wide stress testing (and its infrastructure) and scenario analysis across risk disciplines.
- Lead the development & maintenance of group wide stress testing scenario analysis.
- Develop & maintain economic capital models which feed into the group's capital adequacy assessment. This includes; market risk, counterparty risk, settlement risk, operational risk and business risk.
- Lead the coordination of Stress Testing Committees (at both Group and legal entity level) and the development, maintenance and delivery of the Firm's Stress Testing Programme.
- Support the assessment of Group's Portfolio risk across business lines, via top down - firm wide reporting & key metrics.
- Support the maintenance & ongoing enhancement of the Group's Risk Management Frameworks (RMF), Country Risk Framework & Risk Appetite Framework.
- Conduct reviews of risk appetite & calibration of limits, and ongoing review & maintenance of Risk Policies & Procedures.
- Develop & maintain the Risk Taxonomy across financial and non-financial risks.
To be considered for the role:
- Educated to degree level.
- At least 5 years in a similar role working on similar projects & a very strong understanding of risk management frameworks.
- Previously developed, maintained and executed several of the following areas: stress testing & scenario analysis; economic capital models; portfolio risk management; capital planning; risk appetite calibration; risk taxonomies.
- Knowledge of stress testing regulatory requirements and related-industry practices;
- Good knowledge of investment banking business models, of capital market products, and of financial products including fixed income and equity (cash and derivatives)
- Grasp of UK and European prudential regulatory requirements applicable to banks and investment firms.
- Analytical and numerate, comfortable managing financial data and MI, with strong excel / coding skills. | https://www.idexconsulting.com/job/enterprise-risk-manager |
Introduction
============
Anxiety disorders are persistent, cause substantial impairment, and are extremely common, with lifetime prevalence estimates of over 25% ([@b22-ndt-3-59]). As well, it has been reported that the anxiety disorders exert a substantial burden, not only in terms of direct costs of medication and psychotherapy, but also indirect costs associated with impaired functioning in social, educational, and employment aspects of life ([@b17-ndt-3-59]). The annual cost of anxiety disorders in the United States was estimated to be US \$42.3 billion in 1990, and US \$65 billion in 1994 ([@b17-ndt-3-59]; [@b13-ndt-3-59]). Unfortunately, anxiety disorders are frequently only treated to a response rate often defined as a ≥50% improvement on the specific disease specific objective rating scale ([@b5-ndt-3-59]). This can leave patients with substantial morbidity, and in fact, many patients after having what was defined as a "good response" to monotherapy, would still fulfill entry criteria for many trials. Clearly, this is disappointing as it has become quite clear that remission should be the ultimate treatment goal in chronic anxiety disorders ([@b18-ndt-3-59]; [@b5-ndt-3-59]). Remission in anxiety disorders has been defined as a patient who is symptom free and has a restoration of normal functioning, who is in fact indistinguishable from a person who had never suffered an anxiety disorder ([Table 1](#t1-ndt-3-59){ref-type="table"}) ([@b5-ndt-3-59]).
Panic disorder is characterized by recurrent unexpected panic attacks followed by one month or more of persistent worry about having additional panic attacks (anticipatory anxiety), worry about the implications of the attack, or significant changes in behavior (in relation to the panic attack). In addition, in order for the diagnosis of panic disorder to be made, the panic attacks cannot be due to the psychological effects of a substance or a medical condition, nor should the triggers for the panic attacks be better accounted for by anxiety episodes occurring in conjunction with other psychiatric disorders such as social phobia, post-traumatic stress disorder or depression ([@b13-ndt-3-59]).
The criterion for a panic attack according to DSM IV-TR requires 4 of the 13 symptoms. In addition, many sufferers may experience "Limited Symptom Attacks," which are similar to panic attacks but occur with fewer than 4 symptoms. These Limited Symptom Attacks, may still be quite disabling and often appear in combination with the more severe four symptom panic attacks ([@b24-ndt-3-59]). In addition, because panic attacks are usually followed by the development of anticipatory anxiety (fear of having future panic attacks which often leads to agoraphobia and avoidance), a better estimate of severity may be how much the illness prevents the patient from doing. This is further complicated by the comorbidities that often develop in association with panic disorder (including depression, substance abuse, agoraphobia), as well as the significant social and occupational impairment.
Agoraphobia, which often accompanies panic disorder refers, to a patient's "fear or avoidance of situations from which escape might be difficult or embarrassing or from which help may not be readily available" ([@b13-ndt-3-59]).
The frequency of attacks is often used as an indicator of the severity of panic disorder, but this may be misleading, as the number of panic attacks or limited symptom attacks may be decreased by avoidance of situations in which one feels anxious, thus providing a false indicator of improved mental health. Thus, as stated by [@b55-ndt-3-59], the assessment of the severity of panic disorder should not only include panic attack (and limited symptom attack) frequency and severity but also severity of phobic avoidance and interference with level of function. As a result, most recent studies in the treatment of panic disorder have used The Panic Disorder Severity Scale (PDSS) developed by [@b54-ndt-3-59], which is a validated instrument to assess all of these specific aspects of panic disorder.
Drug therapy in panic disorder
==============================
Thus the goals of pharmacotherapy are not only to reduce the severity and frequency of panic attacks and limited symptom attacks, but also to decrease the avoidance, fearful anticipation, and cognitive distortions associated with the diagnosis. The effectiveness of several types of medications is clearly established, but there remains no guarantee that a certain medication will work in a specific case. Thus the development of more treatment effective options is imperative. As well, the potential presence of common co-existing conditions as well as the presence of on-board medications must be included in the initial evaluation, because the presence of these comorbid conditions may affect the outcome of treatment of the specific treatment for panic disorder ([@b32-ndt-3-59]).
In terms of outcome for studies, the definition of remission has been widely debated. Most recently, [@b14-ndt-3-59] proposed the definition given in [Table 1](#t1-ndt-3-59){ref-type="table"}.
Inevitably, the question arises as to what is the first-line pharmacotherapeutic treatment for panic disorder. While much evidence has pointed to the use of SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) as the first choice in treatment, significant research also points to the efficacy of the other antidepressants including the tricyclic/heterocyclic antidepressants (TCAD) and monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOI). Nevertheless, these agents are unable to match the SSRIs in relationship to issues of tolerability, safety in overdose, and their broader range of established efficacy in commonly co-occurring conditions. Thus the American Psychiatric Association Practice Guidelines for panic disorder ([@b46-ndt-3-59]) and the Canadian guidelines suggest that SSRIs ([@b11-ndt-3-59]) remain first-line treatment. Even though evidence clearly supports the role for SSRIs as first-line treatments for panic disorder, the response and remission rates suggest a need for more options in managing panic disorder. Studies examining the effectiveness of the SSRIs in panic disorder are listed in [Table 2](#t2-ndt-3-59){ref-type="table"}.
Venlafaxine
===========
Venlafaxine hydrochloride (Effexor^®^; Wyeth-Ayerst Co., PA, USA), a structurally novel phenylethylamine (C~17~H~27~NO~2~ hydrochloride) antidepressant, was first introduced in 1994 for the treatment of major depression ([@b43-ndt-3-59]) in its immediate-release form. This medication is now available as an extended-release (XR) formulation (Effexor^®^ XR, Wyeth-Ayerst Co., PA, USA), which is indicated for the treatment of major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and social anxiety disorder (social phobia) ([@b60-ndt-3-59]). Venlafaxine itself undergoes extensive metabolism in the liver to N-desmethyl-venlafaxine, N, O didesmethyl-venlafaxine, and a few other minor metabolites, but primarily to O-desmethyl-venlafaxine (ODV), which is equiactive and equipotent to venlafaxine.
Mechanisms of action
--------------------
The mechanism of antidepressant action of venlafaxine in humans is believed to be associated with its potentiation of neurotransmitter activity in the central nervous system (CNS). Venlafaxine and its active metabolite, ODV, are potent inhibitors of neuronal serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake and weak inhibitors of dopamine reuptake ([@b43-ndt-3-59]; [@b60-ndt-3-59]). This weak interaction with dopamine receptors may have clinical applicability at very high doses ([@b14-ndt-3-59]). Specifically, venlafaxine will inhibit reuptake at the noradrenergic reuptake site in the prefrontal cortex (which takes up both noradrenaline in noradrenergic synapses and dopamine in dopaminergic synapses), which specifically will increase concentration of not only noradrenaline but also dopamine in the prefrontal cortex (Moron et al 2002).
However, venlafaxine does not interact with muscarinic cholinergic, H~1~-histaminergic, or α~1~-adrenergic receptors in vitro, which are thought to be associated with the various anticholinergic, sedative, and cardiovascular effects seen with some other psychotropic drugs ([@b14-ndt-3-59]; [@b60-ndt-3-59]). It also possesses no monoamine oxidase inhibitory activity ([@b60-ndt-3-59]). Venlafaxine rapidly decreases central beta-adrenergic responsiveness, which is seen only after chronic administration of other antidepressants and may correlate with the onset of clinical activity. It exhibits a dose response, and at higher doses the adrenergic effects of the drug are increased ([@b14-ndt-3-59]).
Pharmacokinetic profile
-----------------------
Steady-state plasma concentrations of venlafaxine and its active metabolite, ODV, are obtained within 3 days of oral multiple-dose administration and exhibit linear kinetics over the dose range 75--450 mg/day. The mean ± SD steady state plasma clearance of venlafaxine and ODV is 1.3 ± 0.6 and 0.4 ± 0.2 L/h/kg, respectively; apparent elimination half-life is 5 ± 2 and 11 ± 2 hours, respectively. The apparent (steady-state) volume of distribution is 7.5 ± 3.7 and 5.7 ± 1.8 L/kg, respectively. The degree of plasma protein binding is minimal (27% and 30%, respectively) ([@b60-ndt-3-59]).
Approximately 92% of a single oral dose of venlafaxine is absorbed, with a bioavailability of 45%. The bioavailability of venlafaxine or ODV is not affected by food or time of administration ([@b60-ndt-3-59]). When equal daily doses of venlafaxine are administered, as immediate-release or the extended-release, exposure to both venlafaxine and ODV is similar and the fluctuation in plasma concentrations is slightly lower with the venlafaxine XR capsule. Venlafaxine XR formulation provides a slower rate of absorption, but the same extent of absorption compared with the immediate-release tablet.
Venlafaxine is metabolized in the liver, primarily by CYP2D6, but any differences between CYP2D6 and extensive metabolizers are not expected to be clinically important ([@b60-ndt-3-59]).
Excretion of venlafaxine and ODV is primarily through the kidneys, and the approximate elimination half-life is 5 hours for venlafaxine and 11 hours for ODV. Within 48 hours, 87% of a single dose was recovered in the urine as unchanged venlafaxine (5%), unconjugated ODV (29%), conjugated ODV (26%), or other minor inactive metabolites (27%). There is no difference in the elimination half-life between venlafaxine and venlafaxine XR ([@b60-ndt-3-59]).
Venlafaxine in panic disorder
-----------------------------
A number of concerns have been raised as to whether there is a role for venlafaxine in the treatment of panic disorder, related to its role in noradrenergic reuptake blockade. Because of its known efficacy in the other anxiety disorders, studies have been initiated with venlafaxine in panic disorder.
[@b30-ndt-3-59] undertook a placebo-controlled, flexible-dose trial of venlafaxine XR in patients suffering from panic disorder with or without agoraphobia. In this trial, 323 subjects meeting study criteria (including baseline CGI-S \[Clinical Global Impression-Severity Scale\] ≥4, ≥8 full symptom panic attacks in the 4-weeks preceding admission to the study and ≥4 full symptom panic attacks in the 17 days preceding entry into the study) were randomly enrolled in a 10-week trial of venlafaxine (flexible dose range 75--225 mg daily) or placebo, with a 2-week taper period. The primary outcome measure was the number of patients who were free from full symptom panic attacks (≥4 symptoms) as measured on the PAAS (Panic and Anxiety Anticipatory Scale), at the last and final visit on therapy (FOT) evaluation. Secondary outcome measures included the change in the total PDSS (Panic Disorder Severity Scale), and the response rate as measured on the Clinical Global Impression-Improvement at a score of 1 (very much improved) or 2 (much improved). As well, [@b30-ndt-3-59] assessed changes in panic frequency (as measured on the PAAS, Remission Rate (CGI-Severity of 1 and panic free), Phobia Scales (fear and avoidance factors), change from baseline in percentage of time that patients experience anticipatory anxiety, as well as changes reported quality of life (Q-LES-Q; Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Questionnaire), and disability (on the SDS; Sheehan Disability Scale). After the 10-week trial, [@b30-ndt-3-59] reported that with a mean daily dose ranging from 125.6 to 194.1 mg, significant differences were noted in total PDSS change (p ≤ 0.05) beginning at week 4, with significantly more venlafaxine XR patients reaching response at week 4 and 10 than those in the placebo group. While not statistically significant, trends towards significance were observed in terms of remission rate (p = 0.067), percentage of panic-free patients (p = 0.056), and the median change in panic frequency from baseline (p = 0.058). [@b30-ndt-3-59] also reported significant reductions in the phobia scale (fear and avoidance factors) but not the percentage of time patients suffered with anticipatory anxiety (see [Table 3](#t3-ndt-3-59){ref-type="table"}).
[@b9-ndt-3-59] reported on a second 10-week trial (with a 2-week taper period) of venlafaxine (flexible dose range 75--225 mg daily) or placebo in patients suffering with panic disorder with or without agoraphobia. In this trial, 323 subjects meeting study criteria (including baseline CGI-S \[Clinical Global Impression-Severity Scale\] ≥4, ≥8 full symptom panic attacks in the 4-weeks preceding admission to the study and ≥4 full symptom panic attacks in the 17 days preceding entry into the study) were randomly enrolled in the 10-week trial of venlafaxine or placebo. The primary outcome measure was the percentage of patients free from full symptom panic attacks (≥4 symptoms) as measured on the PAAS (Panic and Anxiety Anticipatory Scale), at the FOT evaluation. Secondary outcome measures included the median change from baseline in the panic attack frequency, as measured on the PAAS, change in the total PDSS (Panic Disorder Severity Scale), and the response rate as measured on the Clinical Global Impression-Improvement at a score of 1 (very much improved) or 2 (much improved), Remission Rate (CGI-Severity of 1 and panic free), Phobia Scales (fear and avoidance factors), change from baseline in percentage of time that patients experience anticipatory anxiety, as well as changes in reported quality of life (Q-LES-Q; Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Questionnaire), and disability (on the SDS; Sheehan Disability Scale). After the 10-week trial, [@b9-ndt-3-59] reported that a mean daily dose ranging from 115 to 163 mg resulted in significant differences in reduction of panic attack frequency from baseline, compared with the placebo-treated group (p ≤ 0.05). Interestingly, while there was a significant difference in percentage of patients who were panic free on venlafaxine XR at weeks 4 and 8, no difference was found at the FOT evaluation. This may have been related to the difference in baseline panic attacks in the venlafaxine XR treatment group (with a significantly larger baseline rate in panic attacks in the venlafaxine group). However, [@b9-ndt-3-59] reported significant differences in response and remission rates (p ≤ 0.05), with almost 70% of the patients on venlafaxine XR reaching response as measured on the CGI. As well, significant improvement in the Q-LES-Q and three of the four domains of the SDI was also noted ([Table 3](#t3-ndt-3-59){ref-type="table"}).
In another short-term trial, [@b47-ndt-3-59] reported on a randomized, placebo-controlled, 12-week, multi-center clinical trial of paroxetine at a dose of 40 mg daily, venlafaxine XR at a dose of 75 mg daily, venlafaxine XR at a dose of 225 mg daily, and placebo in patients suffering from DSM-IV diagnosed panic disorder with or without agoraphobia. Six hundred and twenty-one subjects completed the trial. The primary outcome measure was the number of subjects free from full symptom panic attacks (≤4 symptom panic attacks). Secondary outcome measures included the total PDSS (Panic Disorder Severity Scale), the response rate (endpoint CGI-I of 1 or 2), the remission rate (endpoint CGI-S of 1 or 2 and panic free), change from baseline in panic attack frequency as noted on the PAAS (Panic and Anxiety Anticipatory Scale), change in the percentage of time subjects experience anticipatory anxiety, Phobia Scale (fear and Avoidance factors), and the Q-LES-Q (Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Questionnaire). [@b47-ndt-3-59] reported that all three treatment groups showed significant improvement in the primary and secondary outcome measures in relation to the placebo-treated group, but that in particular, the group treated with 225 mg venlafaxine XR per day showed improvement in the percentage of patients who were panic free (p ≤ 0.023) and a greater total score improvement in the total PDSS compared with the group receiving paroxetine at a dose of 40 mg daily (p ≤ 0.033). This difference, while significant, may represent an unfair choice of dosing for paroxetine, suggesting that a higher dose of paroxetine may have been more effective. As well, significant improvements with the venlafaxine XR- and paroxetine-treated groups showed a 75% response rate and roughly a 50% remission rate at completion of the study ([Table 3](#t3-ndt-3-59){ref-type="table"}).
In a comparison of quality of life and functionality with venlafaxine XR and paroxetine and placebo, [@b23-ndt-3-59] reported specifically on a variety of secondary outcome measures of functional impairment including the Sheehan Disability Scale and the Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Questionnaire (Q-LES-Q). Impairment levels were assessed at baseline, and treatment-related improvement measured at FOT evaluation and at 12 weeks. [@b23-ndt-3-59] reported that the group taking 225 mg/day of venlafaxine XR showed significant differences from pre-treatment baseline measures in nine of the ten domains of the Q-LES-Q (p ≤ 0.005), the only domain not showing a significant difference being the School and Coursework domain. This differed from the group taking 75 mg/day of venlafaxine XR, who showed significant changes from pre-treatment baseline measures in eight of the ten domains (p ≤ 0.05), with the only domains not showing difference from baseline being the School and Coursework domain and the Household Duties domain. Interestingly, the group receiving paroxetine at a dose of 40 mg/day showed significant differences from pre-treatment baseline measures in all ten domains of the Q-LES-Q.
As for the results with the Sheehan Disability Scale, [@b23-ndt-3-59] reported that significant changes were noted in all four domains of the SDS (work; social life and leisure activities; family life and home responsibilities; and work and social disability) with venlafaxine XR at 75 mg/day (p ≤ 0.01), venlafaxine XR at 225 mg/day (p ≤ 0.001), and paroxetine at 40 mg/day (p ≤ 0.05).
Ferguson et al (2005) recently undertook a multicenter, randomized, placebo-controlled, parallel group study of 313 patients, 18 years or older, suffering with panic disorder, who were enrolled initially in an open-label trial of venlafaxine XR, with those who met criteria for "responder" (≤1 panic attack per week in the final 2 weeks prior to the end of the open-label phase and a CGI score of 1 or 2) being randomized to a 12-week placebo-controlled, parallel group comparison study. Outcome measures included the primary outcome measure of time to relapse, with secondary outcome measures of the PAAS (Panic and Anxiety Anticipatory Scale) including the percentage of patients who are panic-free and the PAAS panic frequency and the PDSS (Panic Disorder Severity Scale), CGI-S, Phobia Scale Fear Factor, Phobia Scale Avoidance Factor, Overall Phobia Scale, Hamilton Anxiety Scale, Montgomery Asberg Rating Scale (MADRS), Sheehan Disability Rating Scale (SDS), Quality of Life Enjoyment and Satisfaction Questionnaire (Q-LES-Q), Resource Utilization in Panic Disorder (RUPD). Ferguson et al (2005) reported that the 92 subjects randomized to the venlafaxine XR group showed a significantly lower relapse rate (22.5%) compared with the relapse rate (50%) in the 90 subjects randomized to the placebo group (p \< 0.001). Statistical differences were noted between the two groups in the secondary outcome measures including number of panic attacks, PDSS anticipatory, psychic, somatic fear and avoidance subscales and the CGI-S, the SDS subscales of work, social life and leisure activities, family life and home responsibilities, global work and social disability scores (p \< 0.001), and all but one of the Q-LES-Q subscales (school and course work).
[@b36-ndt-3-59] reported on a recent pooled analysis of two short-term randomized placebo-controlled studies of venlafaxine XR (75 mg, 150 mg, and flexible dose), one of which included the paroxetine comparison group ([@b47-ndt-3-59]) during 10--12 weeks of treatment for panic disorder, and on a pooled analysis of four randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies (two of which were also paroxetine controlled). [@b34-ndt-3-59] reported that at baseline, score of the physical health activities subscale of the Q-LES-Q was 2.8 (the lowest of the Q-LES-Q subscales) and that changes in the subscale were substantially changed in both the venlafaxine groups compared with the placebo group.
In summary, while it may have been suggested that venlafaxine as an SNRI would not be an effective treatment for panic disorder, there are clear data showing that it is at least as effective as the SSRI paroxetine, As such, further and larger comparison trial and/or meta-analyses should be undertaken to examine whether there is any clear advantage of venlafaxine over the SSRIs in panic disorder.
Safety and tolerability
-----------------------
In large trials in patients with social anxiety disorder (SAD) or generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), the most common treatment-related adverse events were nausea, insomnia, anorexia, asthenia, dizziness, and sexual dysfunction ([@b17-ndt-3-59]; [@b15-ndt-3-59]; [@b35-ndt-3-59]; [@b60-ndt-3-59]). Side-effects are similar to those seen in patients with depression and generally subside with continued treatment ([@b60-ndt-3-59], [@b35-ndt-3-59]).
Approximately 17%--18% of patients with SAD or GAD withdrew from venlafaxine treatment because of adverse events, compared with 5%--12% of placebo-treated patients ([@b60-ndt-3-59]). The most common adverse event leading to discontinuation and considered to be drug-related was nausea at 4%--8%. Other events leading to discontinuation in 1%--3% of patients were asthenia, headache, dry mouth, dizziness, insomnia, somnolence, nervousness, sweating, and impotence in men.
In studies on panic disorder, the drop out rate because of adverse events on the venlafaxine XR was 9%--10% in the venlafaxine XR groups compared with 2%--5% in the placebo group vs 7% in the paroxetine group. No significant difference was noted in the groups in any of the three short-term studies.
While electrocardiograph changes have been noted in some trials, generally they have been minor and of no clinical significance ([@b21-ndt-3-59]). However, venlafaxine treatment has been associated with sustained increases in blood pressure in some patients (0.5%--1.4%). Pooled analysis of 5 trials including 1839 patients with GAD treated with venlafaxine for 8 weeks reported a non-significant 0.6 mmHg decrease in supine diastolic blood pressure in older patients ([@b21-ndt-3-59]). Venlafaxine-treated patients in GAD and SAD studies experienced significantly higher mean changes in heart rate than placebo-treated patients (a mean increase of 3--5 beats per minute for venlafaxine and no change for placebo) ([@b60-ndt-3-59]). However, analysis of older patients with GAD showed no significant changes in heart rate ([@b56-ndt-3-59]).
In patients with renal impairment or cirrhosis of the liver, the clearance of venlafaxine is decreased, and the elimination half-life is prolonged ([@b60-ndt-3-59]). This suggests that extra care must be taken to ensure the safety of venlafaxine in this population.
Significant weight gain can be an unwanted effect of many antidepressant drugs. However, venlafaxine XR has little effect on body weight, with anorexia and weight loss reported in a small percentage of patients ([@b60-ndt-3-59]).
Rare but important adverse events with venlafaxine have been reported, including hyponatremia and/or the syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion (SIADH) and mydriasis ([@b34-ndt-3-59]). There have been reports of abnormal bleeding (ecchymosis) associated with venlafaxine treatment, but in these rare cases no causal relationship was ever established. Clinically relevant increases in serum cholesterol were recorded in 5.3% of venlafaxine patients treated for at least 3 months in placebo-controlled trials.
Antidepressant therapy has also been reported to cause a switch to mania or hypomania in patients with bipolar disorder. Since anxiety disorders are frequently comorbid with bipolar disorder, this is an important consideration. In anxiety trials, there have been no reports of venlafaxine XR-treated patients experiencing mania or hypomania and only a 0.5% incidence in major depressive disorder trials ([@b34-ndt-3-59]). Nonetheless, venlafaxine should be used with caution in patients with a history of mania ([@b34-ndt-3-59]).
Drug interactions
-----------------
The primary metabolizing enzymes for venlafaxine are CYP2D6 and CYP3A4 and the potential for interaction exists with drugs that produce simultaneous inhibition of these two enzyme systems. Venlafaxine is either a weak inhibitor or does not inhibit other CYP enzymes ([@b60-ndt-3-59]). Venlafaxine appears to have a low potential to inhibit the metabolism of substrates for CYP2D6 such as imipramine, desipramine, and risperidone, and is unlikely to be involved in a pharmacokinetic interaction ([@b2-ndt-3-59]; [@b1-ndt-3-59]; [@b60-ndt-3-59]). Minor but clinically relevant interactions have been reported between venlafaxine and lithium, diazepam, and haloperidol ([@b57-ndt-3-59]; [@b7-ndt-3-59]; [@b37-ndt-3-59]; [@b25-ndt-3-59]; [@b34-ndt-3-59]). Cimetidine should be co-administered with caution in patients with compromised hepatic metabolic function ([@b58-ndt-3-59]; [@b34-ndt-3-59]). In addition, venlafaxine should be used cautiously in patients receiving indinavir, as significant decreases in serum levels of indinavir can result ([@b29-ndt-3-59]; [@b34-ndt-3-59]).
As with most antidepressant drugs, a potential interaction with MAOIs does exist with venlafaxine XR, and serious adverse reactions have been reported ([@b10-ndt-3-59]; [@b16-ndt-3-59]; [@b19-ndt-3-59]; [@b34-ndt-3-59]). Venlafaxine XR should not be used be used in combination with an MAOI, or within at least 14 days of discontinuing treatment with an MAOI. Based on the half-life of venlafaxine, at least 7 days should be allowed after stopping venlafaxine before starting an MAOI.
Conclusion
==========
Venlafaxine is a useful pharmacological choice for the treatment of anxiety disorders, including SAD, GAD, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), OCD, and most recently panic disorder. Its demonstrated short-term and long-term efficacy makes it an obvious choice as a first-line treatment in panic disorder. Anxiety disorders frequently occur with major depressive disorder, and other psychiatric and somatic conditions. With its demonstrated efficacy in major depressive disorder and low risk of serious adverse events, venlafaxine can be used confidently in patients with panic disorder and its depression and anxiety comorbidities. The benefits of venlafaxine in patients with eating disorders and somatic pain syndromes further suggest its potential utility in patients with multiple comorbid conditions.
Information resources
=====================
Informative websites
--------------------
Anxiety Disorders Association of Canada [www.anxietycanada.ca](www.anxietycanada.ca)
Anxiety Disorders Association of America [www.adaaa.org](www.adaaa.org)
Self-help programs for patients with anxiety [www.anxieties.com](www.anxieties.com).
Wyeth Laboratories, makers of Effexor® (venlafaxine HCl) <http://www.wyeth.com/products/wpp_products/pharmaceutical.asp>
**Disclosures**
Dr. Katzman has been a consultant for Wyeth, GlaxoSmith-Kline, Lundbeck, Pfizer, Eli Lilly, Solve, Janssen Ortho, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Astra Zeneca, and Genuine Health. He has also undertaken research with the same companies.
######
Proposed objective remission target in panic disorder ([@b14-ndt-3-59])
---------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Panic Disorder Essentially free of panic attacks, no or mild agoraphobic avoidance\
Or\
Panic Disorder Severity Scale (PDSS) ≤ 3 with no individual item score \>1
---------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
######
List of studies examining the effectiveness of SSRIs in panic disorder
---------------------------------------------------------
SSRI Daily dosage range Studies
------------- -------------------- ----------------------
Fluvoxamine (150--300 mg) [@b8-ndt-3-59])\
[@b20-ndt-3-59]
Paroxetine (40--60 mg) [@b6-ndt-3-59])\
[@b33-ndt-3-59]\
[@b44-ndt-3-59]
Sertraline (50--200 mg) [@b31-ndt-3-59])\
[@b45-ndt-3-59]\
[@b48-ndt-3-59]\
[@b51-ndt-3-59]\
[@b49-ndt-3-59]\
[@b52-ndt-3-59]\
[@b50-ndt-3-59]
Citalopram (20--40 mg) [@b59-ndt-3-59])\
[@b28-ndt-3-59]\
Leionen et al (2000)
Fluoxetine (10--20 mg) [@b39-ndt-3-59])\
[@b40-ndt-3-59]\
[@b38-ndt-3-59]
---------------------------------------------------------
######
Double-blind trials evaluating venlafaxine XR in patients with panic disorder
Duration, patients, baseline score Treatments, daily dose \% Completers \% Panic free on PAAS \% Responders ^1^based upon CGI = 1 or 2 Remission rate based upon CGI = 1 and being panic free + CGI = 1
--------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------- ----------------- ----------------------- ------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------
**Panic disorder**
[@b30-ndt-3-59] Venlafaxine (flexible dose 75--225 mg) 100/155 = 64.5% 79/155 = 51.0% ^1^108/155 = 69.7% 57/155 = 36.8%
10-wk taper period ≤ 2 weeks, n = 310 Mean dose (125.6--194.1 mg/day)
Placebo 112/155 = 72.3% 63/155 = 40.6% ^1^90/155 = 58.1% 42/155 = 27.1%
[@b47-ndt-3-59] Venlafaxine XR
75 mg od 136/160 = 85.0% 101/160 = 63.1% ^1^83.2 70/160 = 43.75%
150 mg od 137/166 = 82.5% 112/166 = 67.5% ^1^88.8 74/166 = 45%
Paroxetine
40 mg od 126/161 = 75.9% 88/161 = 54.7% ^1^83.8 73/161 = 45%
Placebo 119/162 = 73.5% 75/162 = 46.3% 62.3 41/162 = 25%
[@b9-ndt-3-59] Venlafaxine (flexible dose (75--225 mg) 137/177 = 77.4% 88/177 = 48.71% ^1^109/177 = 61.58% 57/177 = 32.20%
Mean dose (115--163 mg daily)
Placebo 137/178 = 77.0% 88/178 = 49.44 ^1^93/178 = 52.24 41/178 = 23%
| |
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Testimony of UFT President Michael Mulgrew submitted to the New York City Council Committee on Education
The United Federation of Teachers (UFT) wishes to thank Chairman Mark Treyger and the Committee on Education for the opportunity to share our views on the Department of Education’s (DOE) special education services and the resolution and series of bills introduced by council members in response to compliance issues; parental complaints about policies governing private tuition and tutoring; new reporting mandates; and the creation of a new DOE position, a special education czar.
The union acknowledges members of this committee, Chair Treyger, Finance Chair Dromm and Councilmember Kallos who have shown particular concern over the Department of Education’s compliance with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs), its provision of early intervention services to preschool-aged children and what can be learned from the department’s data. We likewise acknowledge Councilmember Rosenthal’s concerns with respect to the growing practice of the department paying private school tuition and tutoring costs for its students with IEPs in cases where it was determined that the DOE failed to deliver a free, appropriate, public education (FAPE). As several members of the City Council are former educators and individual members have sponsored the proposed bills under consideration today and you’ve given parents and advocates the opportunity to deliver compelling stories of the often onerous journey navigating the special education bureaucracy, the union believes your oversight will generate positive change.
Before examining each piece of proposed legislation, the union would like to focus on what we believe will support our educators and providers of related services to best help our students learn.
Evidence-based curriculum and instruction for all, especially for our earliest learners
Evidenced-based curriculum and instruction are crucial for successfully educating all students. Providing a sufficient complement of trained educators and school-related therapists and clinicians, delivering services to students with special needs, is equally important. These go hand in hand. Without a structure based on sound instruction in foundational literacy skills and interventions for the students who, due to their differing learning abilities, aren’t responding to it — including those with dyslexia — we’re not advancing learning. And without the requisite training, our educators become hamstrung in their ability to effectively use the instructional resources provided. While this is particularly important to introduce to the earliest learners, this is needed in every school, at every level.
The critical next steps are early identification and intervention. Many young people do not learn to read intuitively. By designing and rolling out the Reading for All initiative, the DOE, we believe, affirmatively moved to address literacy for the early grades. At the core of the Reading for All initiative is appropriate instruction. As outlined in the New York State Education Department’s Minimum Requirements of a Response to Intervention Program, “appropriate instruction” means “scientific research-based reading programs that include explicit instruction in 1) phonemic awareness, 2) phonics, 3) vocabulary development, 4) reading fluency and 5) reading comprehension strategies," commonly referred to as the "five pillars" of literacy.
We applaud the move toward implementing sound, evidence-based literacy instruction and support in early grades, however it’s time to take the next step and provide interventions and support for students who are unable to learn to read, even when provided appropriate instruction, including those with dyslexia.
This instruction is most successful when provided before Grade 3, but older students who have not learned to read need it as well. Currently, there is no systemic infrastructure to support this type of instruction. We reiterate the need to create this infrastructure in all of our schools — elementary (including pre-K), middle and high — and in all of our instructional settings — District 75, District 79, career and technical education (CTE) and programs for incarcerated youth.
For these reasons the union supported the repurposing of the IEP teacher position in 2016, because it strengthened the ability of educators to address literacy learning issues early. However, the system works against itself and the best interests of the children when foundational literacy isn’t the standard. A greater number of students become identified as requiring literacy interventions. In our view, this leads to the problem we have with improper referrals.
IEP teachers and literacy specialists should be supporting a limited number of students. It’s unreasonable and unsound practice for these educators and specialists to be expected to intervene in all cases of students who would have otherwise learned to read with sound instruction.
Compounding these issues is the interrelation of learning and literacy related disabilities to behavioral disabilities. Effectively, students with severe difficulty reading often develop behavior issues and students with behavior disabilities typically develop reading deficits. Clinicians specializing in socio-emotional therapies must work in tandem with educators specializing in literacy.
Focusing on foundational literacy skills and interventions with the appropriate staffing, curriculum and training should be a requirement, in our view, and not an option. The DOE needs to take an affirmative stand and not allow schools to decide whether to “opt-in.” Knowledgeable DOE administrators have acknowledged that evidence-based literacy instruction is provided in approximately 20 percent of schools. Equally important, we recommend that the training is centrally developed and approved.
How the City Council can best support students with special needs, their educators and their parents and guardians
- Within the city budget process, make sure that all special education funds are targeted and discrete and fall outside the city’s Fair Student Funding formula. Currently, related services and student-specific paraprofessional services are funded outside of Fair Student funding, which prevents principals from using the funds for things other than what they were intended for. By designating funds for special education instructional services and supports this way, we believe more students would receive their full slate of mandated services. We receive many complaints from teachers that they are supposed to be one of two teachers assigned to an ICT class, but the principal has found funding for only one teacher in the class. Those students are being denied their mandated services.
- Another widespread problem is principals not finding the funds to pay for a substitute when one of two ICT teachers has an absence. Discrete funding of these services would ensure more students get them. Within the context of current data collection, it would help to evaluate tracking trends for specific services, as well as adequate special education coverage for long-term absences.
- Send whatever additional special education funds New York City allocates directly to the schools. In particular we must note, bilingual special education services are woefully under-resourced and these students are by far the most underserved. We advocate spending any additional funds on clinicians —school psychologists and social workers —who would have a direct impact on students’ lives and a school community’s ability to provide mandated services.
- From our understanding, the DOE has asked for extra clinicians and the Office of Management and Budget hasn’t included this funding in the administration’s preliminary budget.
- Expand the successful IEP Teacher Program, which assigned 960 teachers to 960 schools to provide literacy intervention for both special education and general education students. These intervention specialists were assigned to schools that had high rates of special education referrals.
- Fund more evidenced-basedinstruction, especially for preschool through early elementary grades. Our goal is to provide evidence-based literacy instruction and intervention for struggling readers, to prevent students from falling behind and averting the need for special education services down the road.
- Find ways of working with institutions of higher education. Particularly to address the shortage of bilingual special education teachers, social workers and school psychologists and to prepare more special educators and literacy specialists to unlock barriers to learning from early learners through high school.
Additionally, we continue to seek the City Council’s support to implement the following:
- Align the city’s categorization of dyslexia and language-based disabilities on its IEPs with that of the U.S. Education Department’s Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services;
- Deliver the explicit, sequential, intensive and sustained interventions that students with language-based learning disabilities in the area of reading, including dyslexia need;
- Provide training in evidence-based, foundational literacy skills instruction and dyslexia interventions to special education teachers.
We stand ready to work in partnership with the DOE and the New York City Council as both entities place a greater emphasis on improving outcomes for children struggling with the full complement of needs from attention deficits, to processing issues to dyslexia and related language-based learning disabilities.
The UFT appreciates regulations that compel compliance with student IEPs and parental rights
Res. No. 0749-2019: Establishing a Special Education Czar
Chairman Treyger, you’ve been on the front line in the classroom, often teaching without the full range of resources and supports your students required. We understand your desire for greater accountability from the administration to ensure compliance with IEPs and other requirements for students in special education.
The UFT’s special education team, led by Vice President MaryJo Ginese, works closely with educators, child advocates and parents across the city and state to support our students receiving special education services. So, while we were deeply moved by parents’ recounting of painful, resource-draining, confounding interactions with the special education infrastructure at your oversight hearing on February 25, we were far from surprised.
Respectfully, we think that adding layers to the bureaucracy —even in the name of accountability —undermines the goal. We’re unsure another cabinet level, highly compensated executive would result in dismantling the morass parents face and students are hampered by. The most recent restructuring, as Chief Academic Officer Dr. Linda Chen pointed out, already includes executive superintendents. Rather than add to the central structure, we argue for reallocating some of those dollars directly to school-based special education services. When funding is targeted, discrete and transparent, our students benefit. Our educators and related service providers are already responsible for doing the work —allocate the funding directly to this work.
The reporting and compliance landscape expanded exponentially creating burdensome, duplicative processes and paperwork
Int. No. 1406-2019 Mandating Reporting on Preschool Special Education Services
Finance Chair Dromm, with over 25 years educating students in Queens, we know you’re concerned about the impact of burdensome reporting on our members already engaged in K-12 reporting through the soon to be defunct, but slated for replacement, SESIS.
The union agrees that we lack the data to better inform decisions on resources and services for our preschool students. Currently, files belonging to pre-K students are not in the same format as files belonging to K-12 students. This makes for a tough transition. What the union believes would be helpful is aligning early intervention and pre-K filing and reporting systems to K-12, to better assure a seamless transition for students when they move from early intervention to pre-K and to K-12.
As the department seeks to phase-in a replacement data system for SESIS, the new system should address these alignment issues.In the interim, we respectfully ask the City Council not to place onerous new requirements on SESIS.
Int. No. 0900-2018 Mandating Tri-annual Reporting on Special Education Services
Int. No. 0559-2018 Mandating School-level Data on Student IEP Compliance
These bills aren’t as helpful as the Council intends for our members doing this work. State regulations require special education teachers to file reams of duplicative forms. This compliance paperwork does not directly help students, and in fact wastes educators’ precious time that could be better spent with their students.
Much of the required paperwork is driven by state compliance issues. We would ask that New York City not exacerbate this existing problem by requiring yet more duplicate record keeping. Rather, we respectfully suggest that City Council policy analysts review the data the administration already compiles for the New York State Education Department.
Int. No. 1380-2019 Mandating Reporting on Response to Parent Request for Private Tutoring and Private School Tuition Payments
Council member Rosenthal in this proposed legislation and in her critical questioning at Monday’s hearing, hits to the heart of the frustration so many parents experience. After fiercely advocating for services for their children in district public schools, with precious time elapsing as their children are underserved, and after spending their own money for private diagnostics such as neuropsychological evaluations, parents request reimbursement for private tutoring and private school tuition. The policy enabling parents to request private tutoring and placement for their children has resulted in growing numbers of parents seeking this option. As reported in the January 7 issue of Chalkbeat, “4,431 students with disabilities attended private schools paid for by the education department in fiscal year 2017, according to the most recent data obtained… a third more than in 2014.”
Every story, by every parent, reflects that this option only works for those with the time, resources and skill to navigate the process. Every week, every month and every school year that students in need go without the services that match their needs is precious time lost. Let’s not let this happen. We agree the Council should explore parent access and lack of access to these services. Most important, the district public schools should have the services to meet the needs of all students.
A sense of urgency — closing thoughts for the City Council
Overall, the UFT believes that the oversight of special education services must focus more on why students aren’t receiving services, rather than documenting service delivery failures. Ultimately, where’s the sense of urgency and are we asking the critical questions?
The union needs the City Council to understand that Fair Student Funding serves as a major barrier to children receiving services. If school funding for special education instructional services is discrete, principals will only get the money if they spend it for the teachers and instructional support personnel needed to appropriately staff special education classes and services. The DOE learned that lesson once and then promptly forgot it.
Unfortunately, another funding challenge that will have an impact on delivering services to students is on the horizon. The UFT believes that the current stateExecutive Budget proposal would erode the quality of education for students receiving special education services and diminish the protections these critical resources provide in educating our students with disabilities.
The Executive Budget proposal allows school districts, BOCES and private schools to petition the State Education Department for flexibility in complying with certain special education requirements. In addition, while the Executive Budget fully funds expense-based aids in the upcoming year, starting in the 2020-21 school year, the budget proposal merges 11 expense-based aids (BOCES, transportation, special services, high tax, textbook, school library materials, computer software, computer hardware and technology, supplemental public excess cost, transitional aid and academic enhancement) into one category block grant, called services aid. Going forward, the growth in this aid category would be tied to inflation and student enrollment growth rather than actual expenditures in these critical areas. This proposed cap on expense-based aids would damage programs and services and reduce aid reimbursement to districts. Under this proposal, a school district may have to choose between busing children or shuttering programs and enrichment for students.
The challenges loom large and the number of students who require and deserve quality mandated services grows annually. Nationally, school districts have special education populations that hover around 13 percent of the total student population. In New York City, our 200,000 students identified for these services nears 20 percent and is growing. We question what accounts for so many more children with learning and other disabilities. We believe more education dollars should be focused on providing strong foundational skills in pre-K, kindergarten and 1st grade. Evidence shows that the use of research-based, foundational reading skill programs results in fewer special education referrals down the road.
Our members and students benefit from your critical oversight of the programs and academic resources our students with IEPs need to succeed and soar. | https://www.uft.org/news/testimony/testimony-submitted-new-york-city-council-committee-education-regarding-special-education-services |
From Field in Send an Email
It would be great to have a From field that supports dynamic references. Most business requirements want emails sent from a specific account, which is not supported in NW in O365!
To support this requirement we’ve just release the following features
- Specify a customizable sender display name for both email and task actions, we understand one of the main requests was to be able to supply a custom from email address however due to many of the limitations in the cloud we are currently unable to deliver this request and so hopefully being able to add a From display name will get you one step closer..
- Add a customizable Reply To email address for the email action so you can control the email address when people hit reply.
Hope you enjoy these features and be great to hear any feedback once you try them out.
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Jesper Munk Nielsen commented
Any news on this one? Our client insist on being able to change the "From" e-mail.
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Sridhar Kandadai commented
Do you have any update on when this feature will be included. We are starting with migration to Office 365 from Q3 and we would like to plan for this feature
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Michael Campbell commented
Can the FROM field be reinstated so we can set this for each email action
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Paul Wright commented
We are starting to use workflows to email external customers. They won't know the emails are from us if they don't come from our email address
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Michael Campbell commented
Most of my current On Prem Workflows, which I am migrating to Online, have a pre-determeine FROM. I believe this is an essential field as it make the workflows more personal if they can be sent FROM a person rather than a process.
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Rob commented
Can I also ask for this to be updated in O365 please? It is critical to the use of a workflow for access requests and is preventing our migration.
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Wilfred commented
Ditto, can this be set as a priority in Nintex O365?
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Erik Rombouts commented
I agree ... Any progress on this request please?
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AC commented
Yes, please.
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Anita Lovasi commented
This is a critical feature for our group. We use the FROM field in workflows as part of our contractual approval notification process.
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Please add this feature, it is critical to some of our workflows...
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Tim Weston commented
I encourage the Nintex team to consider adding this feature. As it is now, time-sensitive notification emails are flagged as spam or rejected altogether, causing significant customer service issues.
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Jillian Love commented
Please consider adding this feature so that important, time-sensitive emails are not flagged as spam at our organization!
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Chris Kerry commented
Please provide this feature. This is causing notification emails to go straight to spam. Oddly, it did not used to do that.
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Matt Veatch commented
The absence of this feature is creating customer service issues for our organization. We would strongly encourage the Nintex team to devote development resources to this feature.
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Debosmita Chakraborty commented
Any update when this feature will be available?
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I would like to see this feature added to Nintex. Any progress?
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Any progress on this topic please ??? It's for sure required !
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Benjamin Robinson commented
Allow a "From" Field on communications from Nintex.
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Hi Team,
Fairly large customer that is in the cloud & looking to use more of our products. One item they are concerned with is Change 'from' Address on O365 workflow:
We use a workflow for new employee onboarding. In that, we send an e-mail to our help desk system for each task that needs to happen to prepare for the employee. As we complete the tasks, our help desk system informs the requestor of completion (i.e. new computer, phone, system access, etc.) Without knowing who the request came from, we have to update each of the help desk tickets to change the “client” to the person initiating the request. Right now, the “from” occasionally picks an unrelated person which is easy to miss. The last few have come from a user in Texas who had nothing to do with the request. | https://nintex.uservoice.com/forums/218291-3-nintex-workflow-for-office-365/suggestions/5986020-from-field-in-send-an-email?page=2&per_page=20 |
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