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1988 Tour de France with a champagne reception in the tented village on the Champs-Élysées.
The FICP had been running a low-key pro teams World Cup (based on teams’ results in 10 European one-day races) since the 1960s, and so Verbruggen’s new World Cup for individuals, starting in 1989, was also restricted to the traditional classics (but soon added races in Britain, Canada, Japan and German). His plans included a significant sponsorship package from the French mineral water company, Perrier, whose name would appear on the World Cup leader’s rainbow-themed jersey awarded after each of the races. This soon proved a problem between Amaury and the FICP, when the French organizer objected to Perrier diluting the impact of the company’s individual race sponsors—notably La Redoute at Paris-Roubaix, which for the previous three years had finished outside La Redoute’s factory and not at the Roubaix velodrome!
After Verbruggen was elected president of the UCI—where he negotiated with the head of the all-powerful International Olympic Committee to re-unite the FICP with FIAC to create a far stronger International Cycling Union—he moved its offices from Geneva to Lausanne, Switzerland, where the IOC was based. Verbruggen further increased his influence by helping create official UCI world championships in mountain biking and BMX, and in the late-’90s he helped add the Japanese keirin event to the Olympic track cycling program. In the same time period, it is understood that the Japanese made a significant contribution to building the UCI’s $26 million headquarters (and eventually World Cycling Center) in Aigle, just outside Lausanne, that opened in 2002.
Having its own green-site building (to which an indoor velodrome and training facilities were added later) greatly increased the UCI’s presence along with the hiring of 40 full-time staff similar to that of other major international sports federations. A more powerful UCI further decreased the influence of the French and increased the number of clashes between the Dutchman and Amaury Sport Organisation (as the name of the Société di Tour became in 1992).
By the time the UCI moved to Aigle, Verbruggen was already hatching plans to replace the men’s UCI World Cup (which dropped its Perrier sponsorship early on) and the UCI World Rankings (previously the Classement FICP) to create an all-encompassing UCI ProTour—that would begin a cultural war that has yet to be settled between the traditionalists on one side (led by ASO) and the modernists (led at first by the UCI president and then by business-oriented teams).
I’ll return to this subject in next week’s column.
* * *
You can follow John at @johnwilcockson | 1,269,800 |
SAINT-HUBERT, Quebec, Canada (BulgarianMilitary.com) – In the middle of last week, on 16th January 2019, the Canadian Department of National Defence (DND) announced the opening of a new armoury at Saint-Hubert Garrison, Quebec, Canada, learned BulgarianMilitary.com
The move comes in accordance with the major goals of the Government of Canada, which involve investing in Defence infrastructure for providing the Canadian military personnel with up-to-date, functional, and green facilities for work and training. The total project investment of $50 million in Reserve infrastructure included construction, design fees, contract management, communications, furnishings and landscaping.
Read more: Rheinmetall Announced a Follow-on MASS Contract Awarded by the Canadian Forces
Harjit S. Sajjan, Defence Minister, commented, “Through our defence policy Strong, Secure, Engaged, our government is expanding our Reserve Force, modernizing Defence infrastructure, and taking care of the future training and operational needs of our people. I am proud that we are delivering on the new Saint-Hubert Armoury, a green and modern facility which will support the future success of Canada’s Reserve Force in the Montreal South Shore area.”
The $25-million construction contract under the above project was awarded to Laval-based Groupe Geyser Inc. and the $2.6-million design contract – to Birtz Bastien Beaudoin Laforest, and Stantec.
Read more: Rockwell Collins Weather Radar Selected for the Canadian C-130H Fleet
The ribbon-cutting ceremony on 16th January 2019 for the new armoury was attended by the Defence Minister Harjit S. Sajjan and Parliamentary Secretary to the Defence Minister Serge Cormier.
The centralized new and renovated facilities of 8,824-m2 will be used by Reserve Force units, including Le Régiment de Maisonneuve, 34 Service Battalion, 41 Military Police Platoon, as well as the 34 Canadian Brigade Group Headquarters in the greater Montreal region. The military personnel will be provided with modern administrative spaces, training rooms, an advanced weapons simulator, vehicle and equipment storage areas, common mess facilities, as well as a fitness centre.
The new armoury, which was completed in December 2018, was designed in accordance with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Silver standards with the intention Defence to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from its buildings and non-military vehicles by 40 percent (from 2005 levels) by 2030 and to support the new federal emissions reduction target of 80 percent by 2050.
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Source: Department of National Defence (Canada) | 1,269,801 |
noted a Politico story from 2015. “She’s lobbied for problem-plagued General Dynamics-made tactical radios. And she’s pledged to protect Westover Air Reserve Base from the budget ax—all while saying she supports ‘targeted’ cuts elsewhere.”
When it comes to foreign intervention, Warren has been a reliable opponent of the US-backed Saudi Arabian war in Yemen and a critic of the Trump administration’s bellicose stance toward Iran. But her views have not always aligned with those of other progressive lawmakers and activists. She declined to support a Senate resolution that would have blocked Trump from intervening in Venezuela without congressional authorization. After initially saying in January that she opposed sanctions against embattled Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s regime, she reversed course a month later. “When It Comes to US Militarism, Elizabeth Warren Is No Progressive,” read the headline of a recent article from the left-wing outlet In These Times.
Warren’s climate change proposal has received similar scrutiny. The socialist magazine Jacobin blasted her legislation for allowing waivers in the event of a war or if market conditions demand that the Pentagon prefer one contractor. New York magazine reduced her proposal to a call to make a “cleaner, greener war machine,” but noted, “if we want to get 60 Senate votes on a massive investment in green technology within the next couple of years, Warren’s ‘let’s buy ourselves a cleaner, greener war machine’ may be the best shot we’ve got.” Progressive writer Naomi Klein took aim at the plan, arguing that the defense budget should instead be “slashed to help pay for a Global Green New Deal.”
.@ewarren is running a great campaign but when it comes to climate breakdown, this is *not* a plan for that. The most powerful war machine on the planet is never going to be "green." The outrageous military budget needs to be slashed to help pay for a Global Green New Deal. https://t.co/LWQO74g2pP — Naomi Klein (@NaomiAKlein) May 15, 2019
As for Warren’s advisers, she’s drawn input from Sasha Baker, a former deputy chief of staff to Obama-era Defense Secretary Ash Carter, and Ganesh Sitaraman, a law professor at Vanderbilt University who has sketched a progressive foreign policy vision that is skeptical of international intervention and bullish on redirecting current Pentagon spending to cyber defense and other new technologies that will play major roles in future conflicts.
For now, primary voters have not prioritized foreign policy, despite the fact that the president’s authority in international affairs can be far more significant—and subject to far fewer constraints—than his or her domestic powers. But with Shanahan’s confirmation hearing set for next month, Warren will have ample opportunity to put a spotlight on climate, Defense Department ethics, or even OCO funding.
Kara Voght contributed reporting to this story. | 1,269,802 |
india
Updated: Feb 11, 2016 10:43 IST
With rumours of two more leopards being spotted around the private school near Varthur in Bengaluru, the Education Department declared a holiday on Wednesday for at least 60 schools in the area as a precautionary measure, reported the Hindu.
All the schools in Varthur, Immadihalli, Doddakanelli and Maratha halli, east Bengaluru, will remain closed on Thursday.
Overall, 134 schools in Bengaluru have been asked to declare a holiday but the holiday does not apply for school staff.
The Vibgyor school administration declared an off on Wednesday too as a precautionary measure after big cats were spotted in the area late on Tuesday evening.
However, the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Ravi Ralf has said that no evidence has been found to site that there are more leopards in the area. Teams of forest officials have been combing the area for the last two days after locals claimed they had spotted two more leopards.
“The pug marks locals pointed us to do not belong to a leopard. The marks belong to a dog,” he said. Forest officials are, however, not taking things lightly. “The reason we have launched a massive search operation is because this is leopard country and there is every chance that there are more of them in the area,” he said, adding that dogs and other animals reared by people are attracting the big cats.
Read more: Big cat crisis: Bengaluru school shut after two more leopards spotted
“I have confirmation of one leopard being spotted, but people residing in the area are saying they have spotted two in and around Vibgyor school,” a forest official said.
A surprise entry of an eight-year-old leopard into the school early on Sunday and its rescue after a 12-hour operation in which five people were injured has shocked people in Bengaluru.
Read more: In defence of the Bengaluru leopard: Why big cats are entering cities
“We are launching an online platform to spread awareness on leopards and other animals who may enter villages, towns or cities stealthily but do not harm them as they are not man-eaters like tigers,” said Karnataka chief wildlife warden Ravi Ralph.
“With forest fringes, lakes and other water bodies disappearing for various reasons, wild animals are finding it difficult to hunt for prey and get water to sustain,” said Ralph.
The leopard which was tranquilised and captured had strayed into the city’s eastern suburb on Sunday through bushes, boulders, hills and thick plantations across the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border in search of prey and water.
As it was a holiday, students and teachers were lucky to have escaped from being attacked by the wild animal.
The leopard was put in an iron cage and shifted to the Bannarghatta national zoo park. | 1,269,803 |
Online payment processing giant PayPal said merchants registered with it can now accept payments in bitcoin.
PayPal, an online payment processing company owned by eBay Inc., said merchants registered with it may now accept payments in bitcoin.
In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the company said its platform “supports growth with a variety of value-added services designed to help businesses of all sizes manage their cash flow, invoice clients, pay bills, and reduce the need for merchants to receive and store sensitive customer financial information.”
“A merchant can also integrate with Braintree to begin accepting payments with credit or debit cards, PayPal, Venmo, digital currencies such as Bitcoin, or other payment solutions with a single integration,” it added.
PayPal announced it would accept Bitcoin via integration with Braintree In September last year, and the same month announced partnerships with Coinbase, BitPay and GoCoin. Via the PayPal Payment’s Hub merchants could use customizable APIs to integrate Bitcoin into their shops for digital goods.
“PayPal is playing the role of the intermediary, but the cost will be left up to the merchant and the payment processor,” said Scott Ellison, PayPal’s senior director of competitive intelligence and corporate strategy, at the time of the original announcement.
After Planned Split, eBay and PayPal Promise to Stay ‘Close’ Friends
The SEC filing also said PayPal would split from eBay Inc. at the end of 2015. “As independent companies, we expect eBay and PayPal will be sharper and stronger, and more focused and competitive as leading, standalone companies in their respective markets. eBay and PayPal also will benefit from additional flexibility and agility to pursue new market and partnership opportunities,” the statement said.
PayPal Inc. is forbidden from creating its own marketplace for physical goods, while eBay inc. has promised to steer clear of building a payment processing system.
eBay has agreed to ensure that roughly 80% of gross merchandise sales on its online marketplace are routed through PayPal for the next five years. If PayPal’s share dips below that level, eBay will have to pay its former subsidiary restitution. For its part, PayPal has agreed to pay eBay a commission if its percentage of sales on the marketplace rise above that mark.
eBay CEO John Donahoe, who will leave his post and become chairman of PayPal, said the decision is designed to give both companies flexibility “PayPal is free to pursue any merchant, to pursue an Amazon, an Alibaba,” said Mr. Donahoe said an interview. “And eBay is free to bring other payment alternatives onto eBay.”
The companies joined forces in 2002, when online marketplace eBay acquired PayPal in what became one of the most successful mergers in Silicon Valley history. However, six months ago, under pressure from activist investor Carl Icahn, eBay said it would spin out PayPal into an independent company. The actual split, billed as a way to unlock shareholder value, is expected to take place later this year. | 1,269,804 |
Numerous commercial establishment and businesses understand that employing a qualified janitorial service promotes a clean and hygienic work atmosphere. Janitorial services in MD offers both interior and exterior cleaning services, including a proficient building maintenance services. Though there are dime a number cleaning services, businesses are always on the lookout only for the best companies that can offer impeccable services. Some of the common janitorial services offered include office cleaning, carpet cleaning, window washing, construction cleaning, dryer vent cleaning, air duct cleaning, floor care and green cleaning. Janitorial services are mandatory for office buildings, commercial complexes, hospitals, banks, churches, schools and colleges and shopping malls. Janitorial services allow customers to personalize their cleaning requirements according to their entity requirements and also financial plan.
A daily routine workplace cleaning or monthly or weekly service or one-time janitorial services are available in order to present best cleaning service as per the requirement of the clients. There are many trusted cleaning companies that take care of carpet cleaning, upholstery cleaning, grout and tile cleaning and more. The major and regularly outsourced janitor job is carpet cleaning and floor care. Customers are constantly assessing various services offered by the janitorial team. The technicians are systematic in their approach, specialized and well-mannered with special qualification and experience in the job. Outsourcing the cleaning service and maintenance work to an external qualified service provider will surely save lot of time and money for the organization. In terms of internal workers, companies are forced to administer insurance, worker remuneration, additional payroll and other documentation requirements. Outsourcing commercial cleaning to janitorial service can prove to be beneficial to the organization. Here the organization pays for the service alone and the entire managerial and administrative information are performed by the hired janitorial service in MD.
As many are aware, internal domestic workers are costly. Outsourcing to a cleaning service provider turns out to be more reasonable. Charges are planned based on the janitorial services provided for flooring, rug, wall, window, ceiling and external cleaning. Charges can be discussed with the cleaners so as to create an agreement for a long-standing relationship. Further, the number of cleaners required for a cleaning task can be decided by the company.
The equipments available with the janitorial service team are vacuums, trash carts, extractors, cleaning products, cleaning cloths and mops, dust mops, uniforms, etc. Janitorial services eradicates troubles connected with utilizing your own workers to undertake office maintenance, it transfers the supervision & accountability to a qualified external service provider, it removes cost linked with procurement, protection, registration, tools, materials & uniforms. Janitorial service providers execute sociable green maintenance exercise. Before making a selection, the only suggestion for the companies is to meticulously examine the background of any janitorial service. Make use of janitorial services in MD for your building and other constructions related cleaning in order to end up with a fresh look.
For more details ; http://www.commercialcleaningmd.net/Janitorial.html | 1,269,805 |
About a month ago, I sold almost everything that I owned, moved out of my apartment, and started living out of a single backpack on friends’ couches, extra beds, sleeping bags, etc. It’s been a humbling experience, to say the least, but I wanted to get some practice living this way so I’d be ready for my trip around the world.
I wanted the ability to be able to go anywhere on a moment’s notice, which necessitated that I take only what I can carry in a single carry-on backpack. Not having to deal with checked luggage on flights dramatically simplifies my life. Since I’ll also be in Europe in wintertime for only a week or so, I needed some cheap, warm clothing that I could donate to somebody who needs it before I left for warmer weather. This is a picture of everything that I’m taking (and yes, it all does fit into the backpack):
Here’s a list of the things that I’m bringing, by category:
Storage
Clothing
Shoes: Rockport waterproof leather cap toe oxfords
Sandals
Blazer
Vest
Tie
Bow tie
2 pairs of jeans – 1 black, 1 blue
1 pair of pants
Belt
3 pairs of shorts – 2 workout, 1 regular
2 wrinkle-free shirts
3 undershirts
4 t-shirts
Wool sweater
Down jacket
Down vest
4 pairs of Uniqlo Airism underwear
4 pairs of no-odor light wool socks
Pair of thick socks
Unbranded watch
Electronics
Bathroom
Other
I’m only packing one pair of shoes because I feel that the Rockport waterproof leather oxfords that I bought look classy enough, but are also able to handle pretty much anything. The down jacket and vest from Uniqlo should keep me warm enough, and if not I have a few extra layers to help me out.
I thought for a long time about whether I should or should not bring a DSLR (or even mirrorless camera). I decided that the DSLR would be too large, conspicuous, and heavy, and would be more of a burden than anything. I ended up selling my Fuji X-E1 setup and picked up a Sony RX100 Mk3 instead, which can shoot photos that are just about as good as a DSLR + kit lens, but is infinitely more compact and discreet.
Over the past month that I’ve lived with this minimal amount of stuff, I’ve felt extremely liberated. The real challenge, however, is seeing if I’m able to do this for an extended period. By living with so little, it’s easy to see all the things I’ve taken for granted all throughout my life, and I’m already infinitely more thankful for everything that I have. | 1,269,806 |
I like to think that the NHL can improve its product fairly easily. A few tweaks to the rulebook and a marked improvement with the officials should make the league's product more watchable and understandable.
1. A hit that makes you wobbly means you're done for the night. I'm covering my bases here and saying that any hit that makes a player wobbly ends their night. This rule can be re-visited, but I always rule on the side of caution.
2. Remove the trapezoid. Good-bye dump and chase, hello controlled entries. This change back to the original rule would make the game more watchable in the long run.
3. Have linesmen drop the puck quickly. Minor, but how many centres get tossed from the face-off dot because the lineman is being a jerk? Speed up the game and let centres take more draws.
4. Treat puck over glass like an icing. This is something I see bandied around a lot and I like it. Both plays are to remove pressure and it is hard to see if the puck directly over the glass or if it hits something on the way out. Make the rule less lenient and stop having two-year-olds pointing at the glass whenever the puck goes out.
5. Call penalties tighter. Reward fast teams and call interference more regularly. I bet this also ends a lot of embellishment because the penalties are being called like the rulebook says they should be.
6. Have meaningful suspensions that don't change based on when the incident occurred. Something that happens in the pre-season is just as bad as something that happens in the Stanley Cup Final. Have the incidents equal the same amount of games; always.
7. Have a suspension guideline for offences. Include the number of times a player has faced discipline in the formula. Don't include injury into the equation because an injury does not make a play illegal, the rule book does.
8. Fire Tim Peel and Chris Lee. Please, for the sake of us all rid us of them. Derek may even like them then.
9. Allow a former goalie into the Situation Room for goalie interference calls. They know the position and should be able to determine if a goalies movement was impeded. Also review goalie interference on goals. Allowing goals to be disallowed on the basis of impediment. (Credit to Chris Boyle for the idea)
10. Allow kicked in goals. As long as the goalie isn't interfered with and the skate isn't lifted off the ice, why call back goals because the player might have moved their feet. It's a subjective call IMO.
11. Death to the Kiss Cam. Let fans watch and not be forced to kiss each other unwillingly.
12. End the anthems before games. There are more than two countries in the NHL and maybe we should just stop with all the nationalistic crap before games altogether.
There you have it; twelve easy ways to improve the NHL. Add your own in the comments section. | 1,269,807 |
� and seeks a unipolar nuclear first strike monopoly. Poland’s only hope to avoid being caught in the middle of a nuclear exchange between NATO and Russia is to break free of this program and accept China’s offers to join the BRI which experts have recently stated would make Poland “The Buckle of the Belt and Road”.
It was not lost on Bolton and Pence that Poland is also a key member of the 17+1 Central and Eastern European nations + China group which has deeply tied itself to the BRI while Belarus is a member of the Eurasian Economic Union- making their allegiance to the western technocracy more fragile than some would like to admit.
Breaking Free of the Self-Destructive Psychology of Empire
When objectively assessing the psychological state of the western oligarchy at this particular moment in history, it must be concluded that certain forces operating on behalf of the City of London and Wall Street would go to any length– not excluding nuclear war- in defense of their failing system. There is thus no solution to this dark chapter of the human experience unless:
The bankruptcy of the financial system now sitting atop a $800 trillion derivatives bubble is fully acknowledged such that a serious discussion centered on bankruptcy re-organization can finally occur.
That the neocons and other deep state operatives be flushed from power- following Bolton into the trash bin of history.
That the need for a new system premised upon cooperation and long term development is adopted post-haste. This new system would have to contain certain non-negotiable features such as nationally-guided capital controls to prevent speculative fluctuations of currencies and other vital resources, the separation of investment banking from normal commercial banking functions as was done under the 1933 Glass-Steagall Act (repealed in 1999 in the USA), and long term credit generation for major infrastructure projects.
The BRI as the Foundation for a New System
Russia, China and India are increasingly becoming the foundation for a new multipolar world order founded upon the respect for sovereign nations and improvement of conditions of life of the people driven by Putin’s Far East/Arctic vision and China’s New Silk Road which are winning over dozens of nations to a new paradigm of political economy.
For all of his problems, Donald Trump has maintained a generally consistent (albeit flawed) intention to re-build American industry and infrastructure after decades of post-industrial decay and combat the Deep State which has worked on overtime to overthrow his presidency. On top of this, he has seriously worked to keep the nation out of foreign entanglements while avoiding any new wars (a first for any president in over 50 years). Most importantly, he has attempted repeatedly to create positive relations with Russia and China.
Whether the neo cons infesting the US administration successfully subvert this potential for a new paradigm which would be unstoppable under a Russia-China-India-USA alliance, or not remains an open question, but Trump’s firing of Bolton will hopefully represent a new purge of war mongering sociopaths while opening the door to a new foreign policy doctrine. | 1,269,808 |
I had a couple of pine plywood pieces left from a previous project, that did not work exactly as planned, and thought I could use it to make some novel book covers. I like Coptic stitching and wanted to extend this theme into the cover itself. I thus decided to cut the wooden covers into several pieces and stitch them together again. When I bound it into a book I got the following:
The process of making such a book is quite simple. Here is how I did it:
I start with a 2 blank covers just bigger than an A5 sheet of paper. I stick the covers together with masking-tape. The plan is then printed and pasted onto one of the covers.
First all the holes are drilled where indicated and then all the pieces are cut. Below is an image of all the pieces drilled, cut and sanded.
I used 2 different stains and different numbers of coats in a semi-random fashion to get a few different tones. After the staining was done I added 5 layers of glossy clear lacquer to both sides of each piece.
I wax the thread using some bees wax (I saw this technique online – link below).
The stitching is quite simple. I just stitch trough each hole twice making a cross on the front.
Both covers are done. They show the difference between the front and the back of the stitching pattern. Note also that I added extra holes on the edges to add additional detail where the binding to the paper would be.
I fold 70 A4 pages in half and make signatures of 5 pages each. The 14 signatures are stacked and clamped ready to be cut. Note also the edge stitching is done in the image below.
Usually an awl is used with some template to punch holes in each signature. I prefer cutting the holes with a scroll saw. This way they line up perfectly and small slits are created rather than holes. The Coptic stitches lies also a bit deeper when done, making a much cleaner binding.
The binding then begins with another long piece of waxed thread.
Finally the book is done. I am quite pleased with the result.
I really enjoyed making this book. The final result is quite unique. Some people have mentioned that they prefer look of the stitches on the inside and it is possible to bind it the other way around – this was just my preference. I will sell this book in my shop (buy it here) and possibly make more using a similar technique.
I recently learned how to do Coptic stitching mainly from looking at the following videos by Sea Lemon:
I found this channel as an extremely useful resource for this type of project.
Lastly I want to mention that I used the image of the cut pieces in a competition (here). I will soon make another book that I will give away in a competition. Below is the covers ready to be stitched. I will use Coptic stitching and have a black front cover page. I am quite excited to have this done and see how it turns out!
Robroy | 1,269,809 |
First thing the Prime Minister does when getting in his car is put his seat belt on...Whats your excuse?? Wear you… https://t.co/astsVmAunZ — PIB India (@PIB_India) 1534838653000
@PIB_India @nitin_gadkari @akshaykumar @PMOIndia @narendramodi @mansukhmandviya Great message for the citizens of the country. — Barkha Trehan (@trehan_barkha) 1534909352000
@PIB_India @nitin_gadkari @akshaykumar @PMOIndia @narendramodi @mansukhmandviya Only a law abiding PM can create la… https://t.co/toTk7jA9nV — Manjul Koustuv Samal (@ManjulKSamal) 1534848718000
@PIB_India @nitin_gadkari @akshaykumar @PMOIndia @narendramodi @mansukhmandviya Great to see this! Really important… https://t.co/uq5slCU12u — Karan Agarwal (@KaranAgarwal88) 1534902989000
@PIB_India @nitin_gadkari @akshaykumar @PMOIndia @narendramodi @mansukhmandviya We have to learn from PM... It is best habit for safety — Dharav Patel (@DharavNPatel) 1534863402000
If you are a Prime Minister Modi fan, chances are you might follow his footsteps, and with this thought, the Press Information Bureau of India has shared a video of PM Modi which will definitely inspire you.The video which was tweeted yesterday shows Prime Minister Modi wearing his seat belt as soon as he sits inside his car and was accompanied with the caption: "First thing the Prime Minister does when getting in his car is put his seat belt on...Whats your excuse?? Wear your seat belt."The minute long video is part of Ministry of Road, Transport and Highway's awareness campaign called " Sadak Suraksha Jeevan Raksha. "Since, being shared yesterday the video has garnered over 5000 likes and 2000 retweets.Twitter users were all praises for the video with many mentioning that road safety is extremely important."This is an amazing mention. We need to make people aware," wrote a Twitter user. "Safety first whether he is PM or a normal person," said another.The figures for those killed killed on the roads in India came down by 4,560 or 3% in 2017 from 1.51 lakh the previous year, the Supreme Court Committee on Road Safety said in a report to the apex court earlier this year. Till September last year, the fall in total road deaths was 5,003. Sources said this shows how there is a need to have continuous and concerted efforts to check fatalities due to road accidents. | 1,269,810 |
The state of testing for the novel coronavirus currently spreading globally in the U.S. is abysmal, relative to other developed countries, but there are a number of efforts underway to help improve availability. One company doing their part is at-home lab testing startup Everlywell, which has been offering a number of in-home self collection kits for things like food sensitivity, metabolism, thyroid and more. As of Monday March 23, it’ll also offer a COVID-19 sample collection kit for home use.
Everlywell’s test kit includes swab-based collection equipment, as well as shipping materials that ensure safe transport of a person’s sample as outlined by the CDC and UN Committee of Experts on the Transport of Dangerous Goods to help prevent any possible risk to mail carriers or couriers actually moving the packages. The samples collected are then tested by labs certified for COVID-19 testing under the FDA Emergency Use Authorization issued to help build out America’s testing capacity.
The company also includes overnight shipping labels for the samples, and says that results will be available in a secure, online format within 48 hours. For anyone who tests positive, Everlywell will also be connecting them with certified physicians that can provide them with consultations and guidance via telehealth, and it notes that any positive results will also be sent to federal and state reporting agencies, as is currently required by mandate.
I asked Everlywell about the accuracy of these tests relative to other methods, and they noted that their at-home collection method have been validated by a number of peer-reviewed medical studies. Experts have been calling for use of at-home collection as one way to increase collection volume and lower the risk for front-line medical staff, too. The tests themselves are also all conducted at certified private labs, with results reviewed by board-certified physicians for accuracy.
Initially, Everlywell says it will have 30,000 at-home diagnostic kits available, though it hopes to eventually scale that to up to be able to offer tests to up to 250,000 people weekly. Getting to that target could “take several weeks” or even “a few months,” however, according to the company, because of a global shortage of the nasopharyngeal swabs that are used in COVID-19 testing, which affects not only the startup’s ability to produce test kits, but everyone else’s as well. The company also says that it’s working on potential validation of testing for the new coronavirus using different types of biological samples that would use different collection methods, in case of future approval of their use by health regulators.
Everlywell will have a screening process in place via their website, based on CDC guidelines, to determine who gets the kits. They also carry a $135 charge, which Everlywell says it sees no profit from, and which can also be covered by participating insurance providers. The company is also trying to see if it can provide them free of charge in partnership with government and public health partners. | 1,269,811 |
The UFC returns to Houston this week for the first time in two years, and fans are invited to several pre-fight events in anticipation of UFC 166.
On Wednesday, fans can attend open fighter workouts for UFC 166, on Friday they can attend the official weigh-in event, and on Saturday, the day of the event, fans can attend a pre-show tailgate party.
“UFC 166: Velasquez vs. dos Santos 3” takes place Saturday at Toyota Center in Houston. UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez (12-1 MMA, 10-1 UFC) defends his title against former champ Junior Dos Santos (16-2 MMA, 10-1 UFC) in the main event. It will be the third time to two have fought. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on FOX Sports 1 and Facebook.
In addition to the Velasquez-dos Santos trilogy fight, UFC 166 features a heavyweight bout between Daniel Cormier (12-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) and Roy Nelson (19-8 MMA, 6-4 UFC) in what is expected to be Cormier’s final fight in the division before dropping to light heavyweight. And former Strikeforce lightweight champ Gilbert Melendez (21-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) takes on Diego Sanchez (24-5 MMA, 13-5 UFC).
Wednesday’s open fighter workouts feature Velasquez, dos Santos, Cormier, Nelson, Melendez and Sanchez and take place at House of Blues, 1204 Caroline St. in Houston. The first fighter begins his workout at 1 p.m. CT local time.
Friday’s weigh-in event takes place at Toyota Center. Members of the UFC’s Fight Club can enter the venue at 1:30 p.m. CT. There will be a Q&A with a fighter still to be announced at 2 p.m., following by doors to the general public at 3 p.m. and the first fighter on the scale at 4 p.m.
And Saturday’s tailgate party will take place outside Toyota Center from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. CT. There will be meet and greets and autograph sessions with UFC fighters for fans, prize giveaways, a UFC merchandise tent, music and sponsor booths, in addition to food and beverage vendors.
The full UFC 166 card includes:
MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view, 10 p.m. ET)
Cain Velasquez vs. Junior Dos Santos – for heavyweight title Daniel Cormier vs. Roy Nelson Gilbert Melendez vs. Diego Sanchez Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Shawn Jordan John Dodson vs. Darrell Montague
PRELIMINARY CARD (FOX Sports 1, 8 p.m. ET)
PRELIMINARY CARD (Facebook, 6 p.m. ET)
For more on UFC 166, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.
(Pictured: Cain Velasquez) | 1,269,812 |
“I’ve been in the department for 15 years, and I knew this was going on but didn’t pay too much attention,” says Serita Frey, a soil microbiologist and a professor at the university.“It didn’t have anything to do with climate change at first. Everyone just knew that the ginkgo tree dumps its leaves in one day.”
Why the single-day drop? In the autumn, deciduous trees form a scar between their leaves and stems to protect themselves from diseases and winter’s coming chill. Most flowering trees, like oaks and maples, form the scar at different rates, in different parts of the tree, over the course of weeks. Their leaves then fall off individually. But ginkgoes form the scar across all their stems at once. The first hard frost finishes severing every leaf, and they rain to the ground in unison.
A few years ago, Frey became curious about whether there was data documenting the ginkgo-dump day over the years. According to the National Climatic Data Center, fall temperatures in New Hampshire are now more than 2 degrees Fahrenheit warmer than they were in the late 1970s. Did that affect the flagship ginkgo tree? Had someone even kept records about the contest that far back?
For the first few days of her search, she couldn’t locate the record. “And then I found a piece of paper with handwriting on it that some secretary back in 1977 started, and that someone from the department had been adding to every year,” she said. “I put all that information in a spreadsheet, and I’ve been updating that graph every year since.”
The graph revealed that the ginkgo-dump day had been sliding forward over the ensuing decades. Every decade, the ginkgo tree loses its leaves an average of three days later than it had 10 years prior. When the James Hall ginkgo dumped its leaves this Thursday, November 9, it was the second-latest that the tree had ever hit the autumn milestone.
When Did the James Hall Ginkgo Lose Its Leaves?
“It’s our poster tree—our local example of climate change,” she told me. Frey uses the slide in her classes about global warming.
The James Hall ginkgo is not, of course, the only organism subject to the creeping relocation of the seasons. In 2016, the U.S. National Park Service examined when the first leaf or first bloom of spring arrived in 276 of its parks. In three-quarters of parks, spring was arriving earlier than it had in the past; in half of the parks, spring now arrives earlier than it did in 95 percent of the years since 1901.
Nor is the story of the James Hall ginkgo data trove unique. About two decades ago, climate scientists realized that springtime bloom records were some of the longest-running observations of the climate system available. By examining and digitizing old records, they have found: | 1,269,813 |
(Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
When a white police officer fatally shoots a black man, angry acquaintances often assume the tragedy was triggered by a racist cop.
New research reports that, while some officers may by driven by personal prejudice, the bias that can serve as a catalyst for killings is more institutional than individual.
"White officers do not kill black suspects at a higher rate compared with nonwhite officers," concludes a research team led by Charles Menifield, dean of the School of Public Affairs and Administration at Rutgers University–Newark. "The killing of black suspects is a police problem, not a white police problem."
Menifield and his colleagues constructed a database of all confirmed incidents in which deadly force was used by police in the United States during 2014 and 2015. It includes detailed information on both the officer and victim.
Not surprisingly, they found a huge racial disparity when it comes to who gets killed by officers. "While only about 13 percent of the American population is black," they write, "28 percent of people killed by police are black."
The victims were overwhelmingly male (95.5 percent), and less than 1 percent were unarmed at the time of the incident. "The gun could been in the car, or on them, but it was there at the time they were killed," Menifield noted.
The majority of officers in these situations were white. But this reflects the fact that America's police forces are disproportionately made up of whites, who account for approximately three-quarters of all officers.
Crunching the numbers, the researchers report "white police officers actually kill black and other minority suspects at lower rates than we would expect if killings were randomly distributed among officers of all races."
In contrast, "we find that nonwhite officers kill both black and Latino suspects at significantly higher rates than white officers," they write. "This is likely due to the fact that minority police officers tend to be assigned to minority neighborhoods, and therefore have more contact with minority suspects."
But if individual-level racism isn't the issue, what is? Menifield and his colleagues make a strong argument that the fundamental problem is one of institutional culture.
"We believe that the disproportionate killing of black suspects is a downstream effect of institutionalized racism... within many police departments," they write. At least in part, "disproportionate killing is a function of disproportionate police contact among members of the African-American community."
In other words, if a certain percentage of such encounters between the police and public end in tragedy, and cops are more likely to come into contact with black citizens (for instance, ordering African-American drivers to pull over at higher rates than whites), it stands to reason that black civilians are at greater risk of ending up dead.
Blaming racist cops for this problem is emotionally satisfying (it presents a clear villain) and suggests an easy fix (weed them out). But this research suggests the real problem is the entrenched set of biases and assumptions that pervade police forces, influencing the attitudes and actions of cops of all colors. | 1,269,814 |
In From the Ashes, Sheidheda tells Russell Lightbourne in Trigedasleng that he is now him as the Dark Commander kills the Prime.
In False Gods, while burying the Flame alongside Abby Griffin's ring, Gaia states that "their fight is over" in Trigedasleng.
In Welcome to Bardo, after realizing that Sheidheda is possessing Russell Lightbourne's body, Indra addresses him in Trig, stating that there is a spider on the Dark Commander's shoulder. Realizing that she knows who he really is, Sheidheda responds in kind that its too bad she can't kill him. During their subsequent confrontation, part of it is in Trig.
In Anaconda, Niylah asks Clarke who Bill Cadogan is in Trig and she explains in the same language that his cult built the Second Dawn Bunker. To their surprise, Cadogan is able to understand them, though he requests that they speak slower since it has been so long for him. As the language has survived, Cadogan asks if his daughter Callie has survived in the key: the Flame. Cadogan reveals that Callie created Trigedasleng as a child and suspects that Clarke's knowledge of the language means that Callie has survived inside of the Flame.
In a flashback, Callie says "your fight is over" in Trig after Baltimore is destroyed by a nuclear missile. She later tells Becca Franko that she had learned Latin when she was 10 to help create the language.
In The Flock, after massacring the Faithful, Sheidheda orders that the door be opened in Trig and declares that "my fight is just beginning."
In A Little Sacrifice, after being left with Cadogan, Niylah comments on the awkwardness of the situation in Trig. Understanding her comment, Cadogan asks after his daughter and Niylah tells him what she knows of Callie's ultimate fate from Grounder legend.
In Blood Giant, Indra and Sheidheda use Trig to communicate while tied up together so as to ensure that the Disciples guarding them won't understand their conversation. After noticing a cloaked Disciple sneaking up behind Indra, the Dark Commander yells out a warning in Trig, saving her life. In Indra's hallucinations of her mother due to the Red Sun Eclipse, she and Sheidheda speak in Trig. After deciding not to kill Sheidheda but to let him die, Indra states that "your fight is over" in Trig. During her final argument with Bellamy Blake, Clarke uses Trig for the most important parts of it so that the other Disciples won't understand exactly what she's arguing with Bellamy about.
In A Sort of Homecoming, after defeating the Dark Commander with Gaia's help, Indra tells him that "your fight is over". However, as Indra moves to kill him, Sheiheda replies "not today" in English and stabs himself with the Disciple locator tagging device, escaping through the Anomaly. | 1,269,815 |
Craigellachie has released a portfolio of single malts for the first time in history. The distillery stays true to its traditions of whisky-making, including the use of worm tubs – so called for their coiled copper tubing – to cool the spirit. A challenging Speyside whisky, it was described as “old-fashioned” even in 1891 as it makes no concessions to modern-day trends. Single malt fans appreciate Craigellachie for its remarkable sulphuric, savoury, meaty character. Craigellachie makes its way from the distillery doors this month, with a 13-year-old, 17-year-old, a travel retail exclusive 19-year-old, and a limited 23-year-old.
Coming in summer 2015, The Deveron, a new range of 12-, 18- and 25-year-old single malts, made where the River Deveron meets the open seas. Offering “calm from the storm,” it’s the perfect fireside malt. Soft fruity notes combine with an easy drinking style to make The Deveron a favourite with the work force of the distillery.
With a previous limited edition release of a 35-year-old £10,000 (US$15,000) a bottle, Royal Brackla is a truly regal malt. Founded in 1812, in the northern Highlands, it hails from the first distillery bestowed with a royal warrant and has since been lauded as “The King’s Own Whisky”. Heavily sherried, rich, fruity and full, Royal Brackla is a fine dram to savour as it slowly reveals its complexity. To be released in March as 12-year-old, 16-year-old and 21-year-old expressions.
“We have been patiently reserving casks and we are now ready to share the five distinguished malts with whisky lovers around the world – each release features an age statement,” adds Stephen Marshall. “Up until now, these amazing liquids have been Scotland’s best-kept secret, known only to a few. Now we’re appealing to single malt drinkers – people who like stories and enthusiasts who are interested in exploring the aromas of the world’s most complex spirit.”
The single malts, which will be released in phases, will be available as a complete set of five or in various combinations of the expressions in 10 initial markets around the world including Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Russia, Sweden, Taiwan, UK, US and global travel retail.
The first public showing of the Last Great Malts single malt Scotch collection will be at the Stockholm Beer & Whisky Festival starting September 25.
For more information on the new single malt expressions, the five distilleries, tasting notes, crafting, and heritage, visit www.LastGreatMalts.com.
24 September 2014 - Felicity Murray The Drinks Report, editor | 1,269,816 |
On Dec. 9, Encinitas-based homebuilder Zephyr is set to begin selling the South Cove project at Del Obispo and Pacific Coast Highway. (Courtesy: Zephyr)
Dana Point is getting 168 new condominiums on Pacific Coast Highway. (Courtesy: Zephyr)
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South Cove is next to the landmark Denny’s restaurant and across the street from Doheny State Beach. (Courtesy: Zephyr)
South Cove will offer three styles of homes in 34 structures. (Courtesy: Zephyr)
Zephyr paid $50 million in 2015 for the 9-acre site, once a mobile home park that surrounds a shopping center. (Courtesy: Zephyr)
South Cover comes to market after homebuying in Dana Point outpaced countywide sales activity in the third quarter. (Courtesy: Zephyr)
Dana Point is getting 168 new condominiums on Pacific Coast Highway.
On Dec. 9, Encinitas-based homebuilder Zephyr is set to begin selling the South Cove project at Del Obispo and PCH, next to the landmark Denny’s restaurant and across the street from Doheny State Beach.
South Cove will offer three styles of homes, in 34 structures, running from one to three bedrooms; some with rooftop patios; 10 will have live-work space on PCH …
Aliso: Single-level flats, 1,404-to-1,943 square feet; priced from $936,999.
Trestles: Multi-level townhomes, 883-to-2,126 square feet; priced from $572,990.
Strands: Multi-level twin homes; 2,030-to-2,038 square feet; priced from $1.54 million.
South Cove will sell 17 of the smaller Trestles condos to lower-income buyers: one-bedroom, one-bath homes from 883 to 900 square feet. Successful applicants for the city-mandated sales will have no more than three residents and yearly income under $95,000 — depending on household size.
Zephyr paid $50 million in 2015 for the 9-acre site, once a mobile home park that surrounds a shopping center. South Cove also will include a surf-themed community park
“As the first project of its kind to be built in Dana Point in more than 25 years, the community is filling a void,” says Zephyr Chief Operating Officer Chris Beucler.
South Cove comes to market after homebuying in Dana Point outpaced countywide sales activity in the third quarter. CoreLogic for the July-to-September period vs. a year ago shows sales in Dana Point rose as 181 residences were purchased this year vs. 172 a year ago. That’s a summertime gain of 5.2 percent vs. an increase of 2.2 percent countywide. | 1,269,817 |
MONTREAL—A new study suggests federal and provincial governments can help ease some of the frustrations of travellers and grow the country’s air transport sector by reducing taxes and fees imposed on the industry.
Alexandre Moreau of the right-leaning Montreal Economic Institute says Canada’s massive geography and low population density help keep airline prices high, but even a small reduction in taxes and fees could make a big difference for travellers.
In his study, Moreau writes that comparatively high airport rents and security charges, coupled with provincial taxes, are restricting the potential for growth in the country’s air transport sector.
Canada is ranked 31st out of 32 countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) for the competitiveness of airport fees and taxes.
Moreau says Transport Canada collected $349 million in the 2016-17 fiscal year in airport rents and over the past five years, the federal government collected $404 million more in security fees than it spent on security-related expenses during the same period.
Moreau says in an interview that research indicates consumers are sensitive to modest price decreases, especially for tourism-related travel, adding that a 1-per -cent decrease in the price of a ticket corresponded with a 1.3 per cent to 2-per-cent increase in demand.
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“If we reduced the burden of taxes and fees that weighs down the air transport sector, the resulting increase in economic activity and tax revenue would likely compensate for at least a portion of the lost government revenue,” Moreau said.
Every year, federal and provincial governments collect more than $1.5 billion from airlines and airports.
By reducing taxes and fees, Moreau said airlines could lower prices, which would spark increased demand for flights and more revenues for airlines.
A higher demand for flights makes it easier and potentially more profitable for smaller and lower-cost airlines to enter the market, he said.
Airline ticket prices are felt acutely in Quebec, with many people living outside big cities stuck with airline monopolies and high prices for domestic flights.
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In order to encourage domestic tourism, the Quebec government recently announced $173 million over five years to renovate regional airports, help low-cost and smaller airlines become more competitive and to directly subsidize flights for Quebecers living outside big cities.
Moreau said, however, the Quebec policy could end up increasing fares over the long term.
“With subsidies for airplane tickets, it’s possible the flights stay the same price or even increase because the companies know consumers will have high purchasing power,” he said.
Read more about: | 1,269,818 |
half of China’s largest lakes and rivers were declared unfit for human consumption. More than half of the groundwater sources in northern China are so contaminated that they are not even fit for bathing, let alone for drinking.
Similarly in India, the Supreme Court, in October 2014, slammed the failures of Central and State Pollution Control Boards at all levels for the continuing pollution of the Ganges, considered to be the holiest river of the country. Justice T.S. Thakur chastised the statutory authorities for doing “nothing” against the polluting industries. He told the India’s Solicitor General that “You should have stood up to these people who have both money power and resources.” He noted “your story is a complete story of failure, frustration and disaster. You need to stand up against the polluting units. It will take another 50 years if the task is left to you.”
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The Indian government reported in 2013 that nearly half the country’s 445 rivers are too polluted for drinking in terms of biochemical oxygen demand and coliform alone. If other pollutants like toxic chemicals and heavy metals are considered, water from the vast majority of Indian rivers could no longer be used without expensive and sophisticated treatment.
The industrialized countries have made tremendous progress over the past 25 years in terms of treating domestic and industrial wastewater. Commensurate progress is missing in terms of treating non-point sources of pollution from agricultural activities. For example, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency notes that 40 percent of surveyed rivers, lakes, and estuaries are not fit for swimming or fishing.
The Agency estimates that 850 billion gallons of untreated discharges flow into water bodies annually, contributing to over 7 million illnesses each year.
In London, England, whenever there is 2 mm or more of rain an hour, untreated raw sewage flows into the River Thames. This happens on average once a week. Each year some 30 million tons of raw sewage are discharged to the River Thames, contaminating its waters.
There is absolutely no reason why the quantity and quality of water in both industrialized and developing countries cannot be better managed to alleviate the problems. We already have the knowledge, technology, and management expertise to do so. However, to achieve this will require political will, public awareness of the fact that water is a critically important resource and users must pay for it through appropriate charges and taxes, and the development of appropriate long-term financial models for its proper management. These are now mostly missing.
To paraphrase Mahatma Gandhi, the world has enough water for everyone’s needs, but not enough if it is not managed properly.
Peter Brabeck-Letmathe is Chairman of the Board of Nestlé, and chairs the 2030 Water Resources Group. Asit K. Biswas is the Distinguished Visiting Professor at Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, Singapore and Co-founder of the Third World Centre for Water Management, Mexico. | 1,269,819 |
standard” of research, it is important to remember that they are not the only way to establish causality. In a famous example from 1968, scholars Donald Shaw and Maxwell McCombs were able to demonstrate that the mass media’s coverage of election topics in July of that year (a U.S. presidential election year) heavily influenced public opinion about the importance of these topics in November of that same year by using a cross-lagged correlational design, a simple design where researchers take multiple measurements and compare their influence on each other across time. One way that Ute could get around the ethical dilemma of actively manipulating user profiles is to use a similar design—watching users’ natural behavior over a set period of time and looking for changes in user behavior as a result of (in Ute’s case) using more or fewer photos in profile posts. Could the manipulation be potentially harmful in any way? Once a manipulation has been logically justified and considered necessary for addressing a UX researcher’s burning question, the project still isn’t ready for the green light until it can arguably pass the most important scrutiny: could the manipulation reasonably expose participants to any risks beyond what could be encountered in their normal usage of a site or platform? For Ute’s question, it might seem harmless enough to add or hide a few selfies on randomly selected user profiles. However, media psychologists suggest that selfies are a key component for identity expression, and we might question the extent to which Ute’s research proposal would disrupt these users’ online experiences. To some extent, the minimization of harm is very much related to having a clear understanding of the mechanisms behind a study (the first question in our list). How might our users feel about being studied? The first three questions deal more with planning and implementing a UX research project, but there is a final important ethical consideration: the user experience in the study itself. Often times in psychology experiments, researchers will conduct an exit survey where they will (a) explain to study participants the purpose of the study, (b) debriefed them about the mechanics of the study manipulations, (c) provide participants a chance to comment on the study and (d) ask them to offer oral or written consent, allowing the user’s data to be included in the final research report. While not always practical, such a practice can go a long way in making users feel included in the research process. In addition, these interviews can go a long way in providing qualitative data that might explain larger data abnormalities (in the business, we refer to this as mixed methods research). In general, chances are that if a UX research team doesn’t feel comfortable informing users about their role in a study, then they shouldn’t be conducting the study in the first place.
While intensive ethics training might not be practical, it wouldn’t hurt to at least consider the impact of the research beyond the data. Taking a more critical eye to the possible impact of A/B testing on users will not only result in more compassionate studies, but more compelling and effective results to boot. | 1,269,820 |
The end may be near for Julian Castro’s White House bid.
The long-shot Democratic presidential candidate said on Monday to end his campaign if he doesn't raise nearly $1 million by the end of the month.
NO BREAKOUT MOMENT FOR CASTRO AT DEBATE, BUT LONG-SHOT VOWS TO FIGHT ON
The former San Antonio, Texas mayor who later served as Housing and Urban Development Secretary under President Barak Obama took to Twitter to highlight “this is a critical moment – if my campaign can’t raise $800,000 by October 31st, my campaign will be silenced for good. Help us keep up the fight.”
“If I don’t meet this deadline, I won’t have the resources to keep my campaign running,” the candidate added in an email to supporters.
Castro has struggled with fundraising since he jumped into the race 10 months ago. He brought in a modest $3.5 million in the July-September third quarter of fundraising. That was his best quarter — but the haul was far lower than the leaders in the 2020 campaign cash race. And he had less than $700,000 cash on hand at the start of this month.
While he qualified for the September and October Democratic presidential primary debates, Castro faces an uphill climb to make the stage at the November showdown. He’s reached the fundraising criteria but is far short right now in hitting the polling threshold.
Castro's new pledge runs counter to what he told Fox News just last week.
Asked following the debate in Ohio if he’d continue even if he didn’t he make the stage at November’s showdown, Castro pledged "I’m going to keep fighting on. I believe that with hard work, we can make the next debate in Atlanta."
With his new pitch, Castro seems to be taking a page from Sen. Cory Booker’s playbook. The Democratic presidential candidate from New Jersey last month warned that he couldn’t raise $1.7 million by the end of September, he would likely end his White House bid. Booker ended up bringing in more than $2.1 million in the last 10 days of the month, helping him to up his third-quarter haul to more than $6 million.
“I’ll be very blunt with you. Our appeal worked,” Booker told Fox News on Monday.
“People sent in from every single state, close to $50,000 contributors. We need to sustain that. I will not be able to compete and win if people are not going to CoryBooker.com and saying ‘you know what, this guy, I want him in the race. Here’s $5, $20, whatever. So we’ve got to sustain it. This quarter, we’ve got to do better than we did last quarter or else we can’t get more organizers on the ground,” he said. | 1,269,821 |
BRATISLAVA(Reuters) - Slovakia’s top court on Thursday overturned rulings by lower courts that had cleared the frontrunner to become Czech prime minister of cooperation with communist-era secret police (StB), a court spokeswoman said.
The leader of ANO party Andrej Babis signs his books during an election campaign rally in Prague, Czech Republic September 28, 2017. Picture taken September 28, 2017. REUTERS/David W Cerny
Andrej Babis, who is almost certain to win a parliamentary mandate in the Oct 20-21 vote, has admitted to meetings with StB officers in the former Czechoslovakia, but insists he only discussed the country’s economic interests.
Especially for older Czechs and Slovaks, the injustices of the communist era of their joint past are still raw nearly 30 years on and any suggestion of collusion could still be a stain on his reputation.
If he were to be listed as an informer, it would not bar Babis, 63, from elected office and he questioned the timing of the decision by Slovakia’s Constitutional Court.
“I never signed collaboration with the StB and never collaborated with the StB...,” Babis said via a spokeswoman.
“Of course I am bothered that this issue is returning to the beginning after five years and will be abused in a political fight...a few days ahead of an election.”
Babis said he would fight the ruling with another lawsuit, if needed, having launched the original lawsuit to clear his name.
The decision returns to lower court the lengthy battle over Babis’ activities in the 1980s, when he was a member of the Czechoslovak ruling Communist party and worked for a state foreign trade company.
Babis moved from Slovakia to the Czech Republic in 1993 after the dissolution of Czechoslovakia. He then built up his Agrofert chemicals business and joined politics in 2011.
StB files released by Slovakia’s investigative institute of communist-era oppression, UPN, say Babis was an informer of the secret police.
Several Slovak courts including the Supreme Court have cleared Babis of the allegations.
Those rulings were based on evidence given by former StB agents, who testified that Babis was never recruited and his appearance in the archives, under a code name, only meant unwitting cooperation.
“The reasoning by the Constitutional Court was that UPN can not be sued in this case because it did not author the StB documents. The court also said former StB agents are untrustworthy witnesses by definition,” UPN attorney Pavol Polacek from the Polacek&Partners law firm told Reuters.
“Legal opinion of the Constitutional Court is binding for lower courts so the regional court will have to dismiss Babis’ lawsuit,” he added.
Babis is also facing fraud charges in the Czech Republic in a case involving a 2 million euro EU subsidy a decade ago. He has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing. | 1,269,822 |
said Graham.
Texas Rep. Dan Crenshaw got in the weeds with none other than CNN’s Chris Cuomo, a liberal-leaning anchor who, in my opinion, doesn’t get enough credit from the right for his solid questioning and debating skills. But Crenshaw got the best of Cuomo on this one. Watch how he steers the CNN host into the argument that Trump’s ‘lawbreaking’ - i.e. what we’re supposed to be removing a sitting president from office for - actually consisted of some obscure campaign finance violation.
“I’m not sure I agree with the premise that he’s done something wrong,” Crenshaw said after Cuomo tried to get him to agree that, while maybe Trump shouldn’t be “removed,” what he did was still “wrong.” “I understand that there’s a theory about wrongdoing, but the facts don’t back that up.”
Crenshaw defended Trump’s inquiry about Biden as something that, as a possible criminal violation, has a legitimate “public interest,” calling Cuomo’s assertion that Trump went after Biden “because he thought it would be good for him” an “assumption” that would require mind reading.
“That’s a little bit of a game people play in politics,” Cuomo said. “You don’t need to play that kind of game because you have reason on your side here, which is ‘I think he had a legitimate public interest.’ Maybe, but it doesn’t have to be his only interest.”
Crenshaw wondered what the “right answer” would be if something is in the public interest but also “good for the president,” to which Cuomo appeared to appeal to vague campaign finance laws: “Under the law — you can look at the FEC guidelines about this — if you have multiple points of interest in something and one of them helps you in the election, you’ve got trouble.”
“Now you’re trying to make this a campaign finance law thing, and that’s a stretch,” said Crenshaw, giving the CNN anchor a skeptical groan. “That’s an enormous – it’s really difficult to make that kind of political leap.”
That’s just one example, of course, and hopefully only one of many bold defenses to come. The point is, while not everything President Trump does or every word he utters is defensible, that July 25 phone call certainly is, in spades
I get it. The “process” is lame. Republicans can’t call witnesses without Adam Schiff’s approval. That sucks, but it’s the cards you’ve been dealt. Now play them, while you’ve still got a winning hand. | 1,269,823 |
The project is set to pay for a series of carpool or transit incentives, including free rides on all Loudoun County Transit buses that go to Metro stations for the next month and a half.
WASHINGTON — With years of construction-related backups about to begin along Interstate 66, the project is set to pay for a series of carpool or transit incentives, including free rides on all Loudoun County Transit buses that go to Metro stations for the next month and a half.
The Virginia Department of Transportation officially announced the start of major construction Wednesday, with temporary lane closures or shifts this weekend on I-66 between Virginia Route 123/Chain Bridge Road and U.S. Route 50, and on I-66 near the Capital Beltway.
More significant construction work — including long-term lane shifts, concrete barriers and, soon, the end of the “red X” lanes — is scheduled to ramp up over the next few weeks.
The expected long-term traffic delays are why the project has promised to support carpooling and transit during construction as a way to mitigate backups over the next 4½ years.
Private companies are building two HOV or toll lanes in each direction between the Beltway and Gainesville next to three regular lanes and a permanent shoulder, with construction due to end by late 2022. The separate toll lane restrictions inside the Beltway at rush hour will also remain in place.
Other increased carpool, vanpool and commuter bus incentives are expected to be announced shortly as part of the broader program funded through the project.
Free, discounted rides
From Monday through at least June 2, all rides between Loudoun County Transit stops and the Wiehle-Reston East or West Falls Church Metro stations will be free, Loudoun County Transit said Wednesday. That includes routes 901/902 to West Falls Church; and routes 72, 83, 84, 87X, 88X, 921/922, 923/924, 925/926, 927/928, and 990-993 to and from Wiehle-Reston East.
PRTC OmniRide Commuter Bus riders on routes along I-66 from Prince William County and the Manassas area will get significant discounts soon, too, but those will start sometime in May, spokeswoman Christine Rodrigo said.
OmniRide buses on I-66 will be 50 percent off for the entire 4.5 years of major toll lane construction. For OmniRide express buses to Metro, the SmarTrip fare will drop from $3.45 to $1.75 when the discounts begin. For OmniRide buses to D.C. and nearby stops, the fare will drop from $6.90 to $3.45 for all buses serving Gainesville and Manassas.
Certain Fairfax Connector routes will also have discounted fares during toll lane construction, said Robin Geiger, head of communications for the Fairfax County Department of Transportation. The details of those discounts are expected to be ironed out in the coming weeks. | 1,269,824 |
various scenes of Evangelion:2.0 and Evangelion:3.0 the pilots display physical features superior to the norm: Shinji is capable of ripping apart Unit-01's control panel using bare hands; Asuka is capable of breaking a thick glass with a punch; Asuka, Mari and Shinji are subject to physical changes when reaching high synch rates with their Eva Units; Asuka and Mari do not age (Curse of Eva). More than once Ritsuko also mentions that the pilots may be subjected to contamination or they may lose their humanity. It appears that pilots are somewhat more than simple humans and have no repercussions from being in the L-Barrier.
How is the Pillar activated?
The Wille crew succesfully hacks the Pillar to activate the Anti-L system. The operation was already initiated and completed up to stage 4 out of 5 by unnamed "precessors", possibly Euro-NERV members.
What are the new Eva Units?
There are three new enemy Evangelion types in the movie, all featuring Lilith's mask and the new NERV logo from Evangelion:3.0.
Eva 44A [read as "4 two A"]. It is composed of two different Eva Units fused together. It can fly and it is equipped with a Lance of Longinus. They do not display great strenght as their AT-Field is destroyed by Unit-08's cannons and they don't show any long distance attack.
Interestly, Ritsuko states that they formed a colony of their own and that they are now a new creature.
The next two Eva types work in tandem.
Eva 44B [read as "4 two B"]. It is composed of two different Eva Units fused together. They don't display any ability of attacking or defending on their own. They support Eva 4444C with the energy required to fire its positron cannon.
Eva 4444C [read as "4 four C"], nicknamed "the Boss" by Midori. It is composed of four Eva Units holding and aiming a positron cannon. A series of long and flexible drills give him a medium-range attack and defense mechanism. The power to operate its positron cannon is supplied bu the Eva 44B.
The military use of 44B and 4444C is said to be prohibited by the Vatican Treaty, an international treaty introduced in 2.0 to limit the number of Eva Units a single nation can operate.
Who is coordinating the enemy Eva?
Fuyutsuki. It is presumably not a full scale attack as Ritsuko says that he's merely testing them.
What does Mari mean at the end with "preparing Unit-08 for overlapping"?
Currently unknown.
In the Ultraman mythology, a Japanese TV-series source of inspiration for Evangelion, the term "Ultra Overlapping" is used to indicate a fusion of the 6 Ultra Brothers. It is possible the word has been choses as an homage and Unit-08 will fuse with another Eva Unit later in the movie. | 1,269,825 |
Scott Miller spoke with Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar on the potential release of Taliban prisoners—an issue that the two sides and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani disagree on in terms of both timing and scale.
India-Pakistan crossfire. Over the weekend, Indian and Pakistani troops exchanged fire across the Line of Control that divides the disputed Kashmir region. The crossfire killed three civilians on India’s side of the border, while Pakistan counted one dead and four wounded. On Monday, Islamabad summoned an Indian ministry official to lodge an official protest over, by its count, 749 cease-fire violations by India this year. Indian authorities say that Pakistani troops initiated the cease-fire violation targeting a civilian population.
Press freedom under threat. The Indian journalist Siddharth Varadarajan, the founding editor the news website the Wire, has been served notice to appear before the Uttar Pradesh police for publishing a story that showed the state’s chief minister, Yogi Adityanath, attended a religious gathering in violation of the national lockdown. The article misattributed a quote to Adityanath, which was later corrected. The charges against Varadarajan follow a growing pattern of intimidation of the media in India.
Sri Lanka’s death protocols. Colombo has made cremations compulsory for coronavirus victims, going a step further then recommendations from the World Health Organization that state people who died of COVID-19 can be buried or cremated. The decision has angered Sri Lanka’s Muslims, who make up 10 percent of the country’s population of 21 million, as Islam forbids cremation.
Question of the Week
Bhutan’s Queen Jetsun Pema gave birth to a baby boy on March 19. That brings us to our question this week: What is the population of the Himalayan kingdom?
A) 550,000
B) 750,000
C) 5,550,000
D) 15,550,000
Scroll down for the answer.
Odds and Ends
Elephants roam free. Near and around India’s Corbett National Park, the Hindustan Times reports that elephants are changing their behavior because of the nationwide lockdown, with less conflict between human and pachyderm. “Earlier while an elephant would cross through a corridor, there would be heavy traffic with some people trying to come close to the animal, which would irritate it and eventually lead to conflict,” said one expert quoted in the article. The park has some 1,400 elephants.
And the Answer Is…
B) 750,000.
According to the United Nations, Bhutan had a population of 754,388 in 2018, with a median age of 24.8 years.
That’s it for this week.
We welcome your feedback at [email protected]. You can find older editions of South Asia Brief here. For more from FP, subscribe here or sign up for our other newsletters. | 1,269,826 |
The oldest rocks ever discovered in our solar system have been dated back about 4.57 billion years, meaning Earth obviously finished forming later than that. However, determining exactly when that happened can be difficult. New research presented by French geochemists from the University of Lorraine at the Goldschmidt Geochemistry Conference in Sacramento, California has revealed xenon isotopes. These isotopes indicate that the Earth and Moon are 60 million years older than was previously believed.
There aren’t many geological clues from the time our planet originated, just because so much of it has been destroyed over time. Layers of rock which provide a considerable amount of reliable information from other points in the planet’s history just don’t exist that far back. Instead, researchers need to use other techniques, such as analyzing the isotopes of different gasses in rock samples.
A quartz sample from Australia dated back to 2.7 billion years, while quartz from South Africa was found to be 3.4 billion years old. The xenon gas that was trapped inside is reflective of the conditions at the time, which researchers Guillaume Avice and Bernard Marty compared to xenon today. This allowed the researchers to tweak the technique used for dating rock samples, making it more accurate. In doing so, it pushes back the estimated date of the hypothesized impact that formed the moon by about 60 million years (+/- 20 million years).
"It is not possible to give an exact date for the formation of the Earth. What this work does is to show that the Earth is older than we thought, by around 60 million years,” Avice explained. “The composition of the gases we are looking at changes according the conditions they are found in, which of course depend on the major events in Earth's history. The gas sealed in these quartz samples has been handed down to us in a sort of "time capsule". We are using standard methods to compute the age of the Earth, but having access to these ancient samples gives us new data, and allows us to refine the measurement.”
It is believed that when the solar system was coming together, a planet about the size of Mars slammed into the proto-Earth, and the debris that was expelled eventually coalesced into the moon. This had to have happened before the atmosphere formed, otherwise it would have been obliterated in the collision. While many have traditionally believed that the atmosphere formed about 100 million years after the solar system formed, these results suggest that it could have appeared only 40 million years after the fact.
“The xenon gas signals allow us to calculate when the atmosphere was being formed, which was probably at the time the Earth collided with a planet-sized body, leading to the formation of the Moon,” Avice continued. “Our results mean that both the Earth and the Moon are older than we had thought.”
"This might seem a small difference, but it is important. These differences set time boundaries on how the planets evolved, especially through the major collisions in deep time which shaped the solar system,” Marty concluded. | 1,269,827 |
It’s official.
The New York Red Bulls officially announced today the acquisition of Mathias Jørgensen from Odense Boldklub using Targeted Allocation Money, becoming New York’s youngest rostered first-team player in 2019.
Sporting Director Denis Hamlett spoke with reporters after the announcement was made, and touched on the process in acquiring the talented forward who he said wanted to be a part of the Red Bulls organization.
“We've been following him for a while, we have a scouting network set up, and he’s someone that we've been keeping an eye on,” Hamlett said. “The important thing is, when tracking players, it’s about timing and when the right opportunity comes for a player to make that move to come across, because it's never easy. He's a talented young player and I think it speaks volumes that a young player coming from Europe wants to be part of the New York Red Bulls and Major League Soccer.”
When asked if Jørgensen would spend time with the second team, Hamlett said it remains to be seen, but does feel like Jørgensen has the qualities that could help the first team immediately.
“I think that remains to be seen but the key part is, like when I think with any young person coming into our team, we feel like part of it is that adaptation process of playing in our league, our culture, but I think that that takes time,” Hamlett said. “We feel like as a striker he has some dynamic tools that we feel that will help us right off the bat. He's someone that is a team player and his willingness to play for the team and I think it's going to be a good fit for us.”
As talented as Jørgensen is, Hamlett said his character played a big part in deciding to bring him over.
“For an 18-year-old young man he is pretty clear in terms of his thoughts, his ideas,” Hamlett said. “He's very humble, he’s got a good attitude. His willingness to be a team player, in the end, when I sort of look and think like this is the character part. We all know that when you look at the players, you know, the tactical and the physical parts of it. Those are components we look at, but for us, character is a big piece for us because of the culture that we're trying to create and bringing the right people that are team players.”
Jørgensen has yet to join the club for preseason camp, as the team is still waiting on clearance with the ITC, but the club is looking forward to getting him on the field.
“We're really excited we’re able to get this across the line and looking to having him as soon as we get clearance with the ITC," Hamlett said. "We're looking forward to having him join our camp.” | 1,269,828 |
Image 1 of 3 The QX25 and 61 have eight sliders and rotary knobs, four backlit drum pads and dedicated transport controls The QX25 Image 2 of 3 Alesis QX61 Image 3 of 3 Alesis Q61
NAMM 2012 PRESS RELEASE: Alesis, maker of tools and instruments for today´s music makers, introduces the Q61, QX61 and QX25 USB MIDI keyboard controllers. Alesis will unveil the trio of new controllers at booth #6400 of the 2012 NAMM Show from January 19-22 in Anaheim, California.
The Q-series USB MIDI controllers are the no-nonsense way to add expressive MIDI control to any production or performance. Each controller features USB MIDI for easy connection to Mac, PC, iOS devices* and traditional MIDI hardware modules, samplers and synthesizers.
Q61 61-note keyboard
The Q61 is a 61-note keyboard controller that works with virtually any music software and MIDI hardware devices. With velocity-sensitive keys, the Q61 offers a five-octave range of expression in a sleek, portable controller, built for the studio or stage. A full array of essential controls is onboard, including pitch and modulation wheels, octave up and down buttons, an assignable data slider, and the ability to send program changes from the keys.
QX25 and QX61
The QX25 and QX61 are 25-note and 61-note keyboard controllers, respectively, that deliver powerful tactile control over any parameter of any favorite music software. Both controllers enable musicians to punch out a drumbeat on great-feeling pads, open up a filter with smooth, tight knobs, or adjust volume and playback of sequencing software with long faders and snappy buttons. The QX25 and QX61 bring immense parameter control and velocity-sensitive keyboards that get the composer´s hands off of the mouse and into the action for a more efficient, visceral music-making experience.
Whether someone is looking to trigger drum samples, tweak a software synthesizer or adjust individual tracks in a mix, the QX25 and QX61's extensive layouts ensure appropriate feel and proper response thanks to their eight sliders and rotary knobs, four backlit drum pads and dedicated transport controls.
“What began with the Q49 has now grown into a family of controllers with sizes and configurations for any musician to capture their performances,” said Dan Radin, Product Manager, Alesis. “Whether you need the simplicity of the Q61, the power of the QX61 or the compact punch of the QX25, there´s a perfect Q-Series companion for every musician.”
Information taken from official press release, for more visit Alesis.
Submit a press release: email [email protected]
Connect with MusicRadar: via Twitter, Facebook and YouTube
Get MusicRadar straight to your inbox: Sign up for the free weekly newsletter | 1,269,829 |
CBN, in which 78 people were crushed to death at the gates of PhilSports Arena in Pasig City.
Marshals and other production staff members were posted all over AFP Theater to look after the safety of the contestants and spectators.
After the show, paramedics were put on standby near Roldan, the stroke victim who won the house and lot, as a news crew approached him for an interview. A nurse took his blood pressure as he fielded questions.
The new homeowner actually didn’t win in the final round of the game, but Pacquiao nonetheless decided to give him the top prize.
Deserving winners
“When he learned that he just lost, he didn’t get sad or upset,” Pacman recalled. “He just shrugged it all off and said ‘okay.’ That made me decide all the more to give the house and lot to him.”
Galvante said she hoped that Pacquiao’s brand of generosity would make the show stand out from the others.
“He has a clear objective,” the network executive said. “He doesn’t just want to give doles for [its own] sake. He wants each of the winners to be deserving of the help he’s extending to them. He wants each winner to share a story that would be uplifting to the viewers, too.”
She said the show would avoid promoting the so-called “culture of mendicancy.”
Onstage, Roldan told Pacman that his children had already abandoned him in his condition, a revelation that prompted the host to remind the audience to “love and honor your parents, so that when you grow old your children would take care of you, too.”
Humble beginnings
When another contestant shared that she hailed from Calamba City in Laguna, Pacquiao remarked that he once worked as a construction worker there. “I also sold sampaguita (flowers) and pan de sal (in that province),” he recalled.
When another contestant mentioned the town of Rodriguez (formerly Montalban), Rizal, the rags-to-riches sports hero recounted that he used to go to a “baile or disco” there as a young man.
Pacquiao later explained that he brought up his humble beginnings on the show “to inspire the audience.”
“All that I said there really happened. I want the viewers to realize the value of hard work. I also came from nothing. But I didn’t give up despite our poverty,” he told the Inquirer.
Galvante also said the network was planning to take the show on the road. “We will visit Cebu, other provinces and hopefully other countries—everywhere where there are Filipinos.”
Read Next
EDITORS' PICK
MOST READ | 1,269,830 |
WASHINGTON — Democrats launched a long-shot effort to restore the FCC’s net neutrality rules on Tuesday, and they left little secret that the move was to make the issue a potent one in the 2018 midterm elections.
“If our Republican friends don’t wise up and join us, Democrats will be making net neutrality a major issue in the 2018 elections, and we will win,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), at an event at the Capitol where he was joined by net neutrality activists and other House and Senate members.
The FCC, in a 3-2 party line vote, decided in December to repeal many of the agency’s net neutrality rules, including those that prohibit internet providers from blocking or throttling of content or from selling “fast lanes” to companies to get speedier access to consumers. The idea behind net neutrality is that internet traffic should be treated equally.
The FCC’s action was published in the Federal Register last week, triggering a 60 legislative day window for Congress to register its disapproval as a way to reverse agency orders.
Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) said that he introduced just such a resolution on Tuesday. Democrats have secured all 49 votes in their caucus for the resolution, and one Republican, Susan Collins of Maine, said that she also supports the effort. That leaves them just one vote shy of passage.
Even if that happens, the resolution still must pass the House and be signed by President Trump. Rep. Mike Doyle (D-Pa.) said that 150 Democrats have signed on to his resolution to restore the rules, but it is unclear whether he will garner enough Republican support to garner a majority.
Schumer said that Republicans will be “the ones to blame” if internet providers are able to slow their service with the net neutrality rules removed.
“When a young couple is streaming their favorite Netflix show, but it keeps lagging, who is to blame?” he said. “The American people will know that Republicans are to blame, while Democrats fought it.”
Some polls shed light on why Democrats are seizing on the issue. Last month, the market research firm GfK released a poll showing that of those who say they understand net neutrality, 72% favor it.
Net neutrality activists designated Tuesday as a “day of action” on net neutrality, with the aim of securing one more vote in the Senate. A group of 22 states and the District of Columbia also are challenging the FCC’s action in court, along with Vimeo and a number of public interest groups.
The industry group Broadband for America attacked the effort to restore the rules.
“Everyone agrees that preserving a free and open Internet for the future is an important goal, but Broadband for America does not believe that such a significant policy issue, which would affect virtually every American for generations to come, should be decided by an obscure legislative device that bypasses congressional debate and important input from the public,” the group said. | 1,269,831 |
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On the question of abortion, Pew found in 2018 that 51 percent of Catholics say abortion should be legal in all or most cases and 42 percent say it should be illegal.
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On Saturday, as news and images and videos on the incident spread, Foys, and the boys' school — Covington Catholic — released a joint statement condemning the actions of the high school students.
“This behavior is opposed to the Church’s teachings on the dignity and respect of the human person. The matter is being investigated and we will take appropriate action, up to and including expulsion,” it said. “We know this incident also has tainted the entire witness of the March for Life and express our most sincere apologies to all those who attended the March and all those who support the pro-life movement.”
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Archbishop Joseph Kurtz of Louisville, the state’s overseeing bishop, tweeted that he condemned the “shameful actions” of the students. The Catholic Conference of Kentucky issued a statement criticizing the teens as well.
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However, Kurtz’s tweet was since been removed, and the Covington diocese on Tuesday released a statement about its independent investigation.
“Concerning the incident in Washington, D.C., between Covington Catholic students, Elder Nathan Phillips and Black Hebrew Israelites the independent, third-party investigation is planned to begin this week. This is a very serious matter that has already permanently altered the lives of many people,” the second statement said. “We pray that we may come to the truth and that this unfortunate situation may be resolved peacefully and amicably and ask others to join us in this prayer. We will have no further statements until the investigation is complete.”
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Kurtz also issued a new statement on his blog, saying his first reaction was primarily motivated by wanting to support the Covington bishop, “who is in a position to have the best information about what transpired,” and emphasizing they were condemning “alleged actions, not people.”
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“At this time, I am not going to get ahead of the Diocese of Covington’s independent investigation with additional comments,” Kurtz wrote. “Whatever the investigation reveals, I hope that we can use this as a teachable moment, learn from any mistakes on the part of anyone involved, and begin the process of healing.”
Stowe’s Wednesday op-ed didn’t address the disputed interaction between Phillips and the teens but focused on what he described as a distorted antiabortion movement that has become divorced from its roots as a broad effort to honor human dignity. He noted that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops just a few months ago issued a major letter on racism, which “has worked itself into the fabric of our nation. The pastoral letter describes racism as a ‘life’ issue,” he wrote.
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Vegan activists stormed a Spanish rabbit farm this weekend, and were surprised when the farmers fought back when they attempted to steal their property.
A video posted to Twitter shows a British vegan activist with her face covered in blood, who goes on to detail why they are in such a state.
On the description of the original Instagram post, Mythical.Mia details what happened when they attempted to “rescue” 16 rabbits from the farm:
The farmer was extremely aggressive and attacked us, strangling activists and smashing their heads with metal poles. The police came and told us to leave peacefully, which we did. After we left the farmers chased us down the motorway at 200km for an hour. We tried to lose them down a side road but they were on our tails. They blocked us into a dead end and surround the car with 5 other farmers’ cars. They were banging on the windows, shouting and threatening us. We called the police who arrived after an hour. They diffused the situation and escorted us to a ‘safe place’. We asked them to escort us home but they refused and said we would be okay. They let us go and 10 minutes later back on the motorway one of their call pulled up alongside us and shot at us. The window exploded in my face and there was a lot of blood from all the glass. We’re currently at the hospital and waiting to go to the police station to report this crime.
60+ activists in Barcelona went into a rabbit meat farm, rescued 16 🐇s then were followed, chased & assaulted by the creepy farmers. Please find more footage, share & follow all of these amazing activists risking their lives for animals & for the truth. live-streams on Instagram pic.twitter.com/isdiyJxQ6I — Allie Moser Ⓥ (@AllieJMo) 2 de setembro de 2019
National File has reported this week on the shenanigans of another group of vegan activists, who segregated hens from roosters so that the hens “wouldn’t be raped”:
Almas Veganas, a vegan group from Girona, Spain, are an anti-speciesist and transfeminist group who were recently seen in a viral video separating hens from cockerels and smashing eggs because they didn’t ‘want the hens to be raped.’ The group from the north-east of Spain, in Catalonia, surprised social media users with their actions but expressed a desire to prevent the hens from being subjected to rape from the cockerels. The group also smashed the eggs, claiming that they ‘belonged to the hens.’ They suggested that the hens had been genetically modified to produce an unnatural number of eggs for human consumption.
A group of vegans in Argentina were also whipped and humiliated by cowboys, after they attempted to disrupt a rodeo event. A vegan woman in Australia also made headlines after she sued her neighbours for barbecuing. | 1,269,833 |
National Rural Assembly Poll results on the presidential race released Monday (pdf) found unsurprisingly that swing-state rural voters preferred Mitt Romney over Barack Obama by 14 points. Also not surprising is that the pollsters found that party identification likely matters more in determining whether or not a position will draw support or opposition from these voters than does the substance of the policy position in question.
Demonstrating the point, 600 likely voters were asked to choose between the Republican and Democratic party platform position statements on immigration. A majority of the rural voters (50 percent to 39 percent) chose the Republican position. When party labels were removed from the same two position statements, however, opinion among the voters swung to support for the Democratic position by virtually the same percentage spread (40 percent to 49 percent).
As Bill Bishop at Daily Yonder put it, “Democrats have a more popular position on immigration in rural America– until that position is linked with the Democratic Party.”
The poll was conducted by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, which targeted voters in Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Virginia and Wisconsin. Greenberg is a left-leaning firm that polls for Democratic campaigns. But Republican-friendly polster Glen Bolger at Public Opinion Strategies helped write and analyze the survey and its results. The poll was commissioned by the National Rural Assembly and the Center for Rural Strategies and was paid for by the Carnegie Corporation.
Bishop provides a short sharp summary of the findings. “Rural voters are all over the map on the immigration issue,” he writes.
Nearly two-thirds (63 percent) say immigration is “good for America.” A slight majority (45 percent to 42 percent) say immigration is good for the U.S. economy. Seven out of ten rural voters, however, support laws “like the ones in Arizona and Alabama that allow local law enforcement officers to check the papers of people they suspect are illegal immigrants.” But they also support a “path to citizenship” for undocumented immigrant children and they oppose (62 percent to 31 percent) a constitutional amendment that would eliminate citizenship for children of illegal immigrants. The closer the immigration question comes to home, the more wary rural voters become. But, basically, rural voters agree, 59 percent to 31 percent, that the “growing diversity of the country is good for America.”Rural voters are less sure that immigration is good for “rural America,” 50 percent to 45 percent. And a majority of rural voters in swing states (50 percent to 37 percent) say immigration is bad for the rural economy. You can see in the poll that rural Americans are open to immigration and ways to work through the problem of illegal immigration. But then political party intrudes…
EDITOR'S NOTE: We have all had a political discussion with a friend from "the other side" and found that we are in agreement (or near agreement) on an issue. Please share examples of other issues where we have common ground, in the absence of party affiliation, in the comments section. | 1,269,834 |
, so it's very handcrafted. I wouldn't go as far to necessarily call it an indie game, but it's that level of attention to detail and that level of hands-on from the team.
What I'm really excited for – and hopeful for – is that when the players out in America play the game, and they see all these events that are going to go by, they're going to be able to have a really cool experience from that. When they finally get to the ending, it's going to be really big and impactful for them. I'm really excited for players to have a chance to do that, and I'm also really excited for them to be able to take something away from this game, from this experience that me and the rest of the team has created.
Anything you can tease about the story or characters?
Suda: The game is about detectives and there's a criminal that they're chasing, and so it's a crime story in terms of that. It's cool because the player will be able to experience this from multiple different perspectives within the game. The interesting thing about it, though, is that when we were working on [the original], I had just done No More Heroes. In the past, I've compared that process of creating No More Heroes to having a bowel movement; The Silver Case was like that bowel movement re-entered me and then [came] out of my mouth. So, it was an energy that existed in that timeframe for me, and one kind of allowed the other to happen. And it was a very special time because it allowed me to create these two very different works. So, [with] the fact that it was created during this time period of really strong creative power [in mind], I really hope that people will look forward to it. That wasn't really a tease, but...
Is there any wrestling in this game?
Suda: A little bit. It's my habit to throw some wrestling things in there.
Is there anything you wanted to share that I didn't give you a chance to? Anything to tell the fans?
Suda: The Silver Case, the original one, it had two sides to it – Placebo and Transmitter. Two scenarios, essentially. There's like the front-facing one and the back-facing one. For this one, the Placebo part of the story is still there; it's from the perspective of a former journalist. However, there's also another scenario called Match Maker that talks about this different group doing things, and then there's a third scenario going on. So rather than just the two that were in The Silver Case, there are three threads that are going through this entire story. It really is a crime suspense game, but it goes from crime into this big serial murder case, and like all this murder stuff happens. The way the game unfolds and opens up, it's really cool and unique, and I'm really excited. That's what I want people to know – there's a lot going on from the story side of things. | 1,269,835 |
Why going will not be easy for Devendra Fadnavis, were he to return
india
Updated: Nov 08, 2019 10:20 IST
Despite sealing a pre-poll pact for last month’s assembly elections in Maharashtra, the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Shiv Sena have failed to reach an agreement to come together to form a government even as the deadline to do so lapses in a day.
While the BJP and Sena fought the elections together and secured 105 seats and 56 seats respectively, they have been having trouble in coming to an agreement about portfolios and about a shared Chief Minister deal.
The Sena is giving the BJP sleepless night by sending feelers to another Maharashtra-based party the Nationalist Congress Party and others to explore the possibility of forming a government without the BJP.
The term of the current assembly ends tomorrow, and the BJP is making all efforts to secure Sena’s support to retain Devendra Fadnavis as the chief minister. Even if he manages to retain the chief minister’s chair, the going will not be easy for Fadnavis, the first chief minister in recent past to complete full five year term. Here are four reasons for it.
*The BJP is the single largest party with 105 seats but it is good 40 seats short of the half way mark. This makes the support of 57 Shiv Sena MLAs very crucial for the BJP to secure another term in power. It’s dependence on Sena is greater this time that what it was in 2014 when the BJP had 122 MLAs.
*The relationship between the Shiv Sena and the BJP has ebbed to a new low, with the Maharashtra based party asking for rotation of chief minister’s post, much to the displeasure of the BJP. Shiv Sena has claimed that the BJP had promised a 50:50 share in power and rotational chief minister’s post when the two negotiated a seat sharing deal for the parliamentary election earlier this year. By refusing to come on board without the BJP honouring the deal, Sena has displayed that it is going to be a difficult partner.
*Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray and chief minister Devendra Fadnavis have had an uneasy relationship over the past five years. Thackeray feels Fadnavis treated the Sena ‘unfairly’ in power-sharing agreement in the state and hurt them politically. They were in alliance but remained distant, so much so that Sena often took a different line on crucial issues such as demonetisation.
*This election has been special for Sena. It was for the first time that a member of Thackeray family - Uddhav’s son Aditya Thackeray - contested election. Uddhav now wants a grand debut for Aditya, and eyes the chief minister’s post for him. If Fadnavis manages to remain CM, it will cause a lot of heartburn in the Shiv Sena. | 1,269,836 |
. It just means the terrorist’s got it all wrong. Here’s what Craig says about terrorists:
If they sincerely believe it’s right, then they also believe in objective moral values. There’s no contradiction here at all. It’s just that we have a disagreement about what the objective moral truths are. To say that there are objective moral values doesn’t mean that there won’t be moral disagreements. Or that there won’t be moral growth as you come to see that maybe you were wrong in the past and now you have a clearer perspective on things. Don’t confuse the reality of moral values with the knowledge of them. To say that there are objective moral values doesn’t mean we are infallible in our moral apprehensions. I think we do apprehend objective moral values, but many times, we can make mistakes. I think the Muslim terrorists have made a terrible mistake. And the reason is: I think they have the wrong god. The god that they think has commanded them to do this doesn’t exist. Therefore, they are terribly, and tragically mistaken. But there’s no contradiction at all here between someone believing that something is objectively right and there being objective moral values and duties.
Objective moral laws are real and that fact doesn’t change, even if people disagree about whether or not a certain action’s good or evil.
Evil Requires a Good God
Third, objective moral laws don’t just come out of nowhere. They are a communication of one mind to another. This is totally different from some Scrabble letters that fall on the ground and happen to spell out a word. Totally different from what a Magic 8 Ball might tell you when you shake it up.
Objective moral laws have an undeniable force that you feel obligated to obey. That’s because they come from a moral lawgiver who has authority over you and me; a being whose jurisdiction is the universe he created.
In order for evil to exist, there must be an objective standard of goodness. Did you know you could have good without evil? But you can’t have evil without good; without a standard of goodness. Think about it like this: You can have a standard with nothing falling short of that standard, but you can’t have something falling short of a standard without a standard! Get it? Reminds me of an old Switchfoot song, “The Shadow Proves the Sunshine.” Objective moral laws are real communications from a good God.
Conclusion
We mourn with those who mourn. Christianity is very real about the problem of evil. This isn’t the way things should be. But the very concept of “should” points us to an objective standard of goodness: God’s own nature. Turns out, evil and suffering are evidence for God and not against him–a God who hears our prayers and to whom all people are accountable for their actions.
Recommended Resources
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FATBOY SLIM, AKA NORMAN COOK, played his first American in-store DJ set
last night (November 6), at the VIRGIN MEGASTORE in NEW YORK CITY’s UNION SQUARE.
The
performance was simulcast via satellite to 17 Virgin stores around the
country, and celebrated the release of Cook’s new LP, ‘Halfway Between The Gutter And
the Stars’, which comes out in the U.S. today (November 7).
Although the gig was open to the public, only those who pre-bought one of 300
copies of the CD on Friday (3 November) got wristbands that allowed them on the lower
level, where the DJ was set up.
A Virgin spokesman said that it wasn’t until Friday afternoon that all of the
wristbands had been distributed. (Pre-sales started at 9 a.m.) He wouldn’t
say how many copies of the new album had been pre-ordered, but he expected
the stores to sell “lots and lots”.
Beginning at 10:30 pm, Cook spun a set that combined a good chunk of
material from ‘Halfway’. (‘Sunset (Bird of Prey’,’Star 69′, ‘Ya Mama’) with a
chunk of 1998’s ‘You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby ‘(‘Right Here, Right Now’,
‘The Rockafeller Skank’, ‘In Heaven’, ‘Kalifornia’). He filled in the gig
with mixes The New Radicals’ ‘You Get What You Give’, ‘Groove Armada’s ‘I See
You Baby’ (complete with a little shake of Norman’s ass) and Azzido Da Bass’
‘Dooms Night’ among others. He closed the 90-minute in-store performance
with a version of Cream’s ‘Sunshine Of Your Love’.
The DJ drank a steady stream of orange juice throughout and looked guilty as
he hid behind his decks to light a cigarette. Wearing a grin as big as the smiley face on his T-shirt, Cook
seemed to be having the time of his life, despite the store’s harsh overhead
lighting, which he indicated he wanted dimmed (to no avail).
He did not sign autographs or come out for an encore.
Fatboy Slim will be at Denver’s Filmore Auditorium today (November 7), followed by
Seattle’s The Showbox (November 8), San Francisco’s 1015 Club (November 10)
and Los Angeles’ Club Soho (November 11). | 1,269,838 |
We've seen HoloLens used in an office environment at BUILD and as part of the Halo and Minecraft experiences at E3, but Microsoft wants to see if its augmented reality headset can also be used to help research efforts in an academic setting.
The so-called Academic Research Request for Proposals will award five universities or institutions with $100,000 each, as well as two HoloLens kits. Although the goal is to see how the device will help research of all types, the company is looking at how it will impact studies in a few specific areas.
Data visualizationExample: Using mixed reality to make large data sets easier to navigate and understandEvolution of pedagogy in STEM, medical, and design educationExample: Using existing 3D assets or new 3D assets for high-value training (e.g., interactive 3D models for medical training)Future of communication and distributed collaborationExamples: Remote training and support, first-responder emergency management, and virtual conferencesInteractive art and experimental mediaExamples: Narrative storytelling, new forms of artistic expression, interactive journalismPsychology-related topicsExamples: Human perception and human-computer interactionSolving difficult problems and contributing new insights that are specific to the applicant's field
In order to be considered for one of the five prizes, applicants (restricted to U.S. residents only) must submit a one- to three-page proposal paper by 11:30pm PDT on September 5, 2015. Information includes an abstract of the proposal as well as a detailed description, the approach to research, use of funds and an overall schedule of the entire project.
After submission, the application will be considered using a few criteria such as its overall impact in terms of scholarly papers and presentations, how feasible is the project for completion, and the overall qualifications of the main investigator.
Microsoft noted that the $100,000 funding will end after one year, as it is only meant to kickstart projects. Researchers should also look into finding multiple avenues of funding during and after Microsoft's investment.
The academic research is but one of the many paths that Microsoft will pursue to test the use of HoloLens. Last month, it collaborated with NASA for Project Sidekick, which would use two HoloLens devices in the International Space Station to enhance Skype communication with a NASA operator on Earth, as well as a standalone procedure that involves using its augmented reality software on top of real-world items in order to train astronauts while in the station.
However, the devices never made it to the International Space Station, as the SpaceX shuttle carrying them exploded early in the flight.
We still haven't seen too much of HoloLens since its announcement, but Microsoft's probe into research capabilities is a sign that the company sees HoloLens as useful in areas of business, science, healthcare and even astronomy. It's not just another toy for the future, but a tool to help cure diseases and enable astronauts to communicate far away from home.
Follow Rexly Peñaflorida II @Heirdeux. Follow us @tomshardware, on Facebook and on Google+. | 1,269,839 |
Theatre Advertising
In the world full of series lovers, people are addicted to Netflix, Amazon series; but they never miss the chance to watch their favourite stars on the big screen. Leisure time in life is the most enriching phase. Many new sources of entertainment have accepted in this modern era, but love for cinema has never faded. Many people visit the cinema with their friends, families. Theatre is a fun spot for many, where people laugh, smile, cry, cheer as well as pray for the protagonist. Hence, People weave beautiful memories within theatre, where people are more emotionally charged and tapping the emotional brain, during this time can be a fruitful opportunity for any company to push their products and services in the audience mind. People are exposed to the attributes of the product during the enriched ambiance of the theatre, which drops nuances of the product in the mind of the people.
People give attention to advertisements while waiting for their movie commencement, as well as while waiting in the queue to collect their orders. Interval is a phase, where people move out of the theatre and march towards the food stores, thus, during this time, if they see products’ advertisements on the walls around them, as well as, the advertisements on the food tray, and on the leaflet; the advertised products get settled in the subconscious mind. In leisure time, brains are more active and highly aware of the surrounding, which is an annexed benefit for the advertiser. A pleasant environment with a relaxed mind and body will always show interest in the advertisement featured before the start of the film or during the interval. Many times advertisement is preferred by the advertiser on the exit aisle. When the mind is fully relaxed and is in a jolly state, everything around becomes interesting. This can instigate a person to buy a new product.
An advertiser's primary role is to play with people’s minds, and the right way of communication if adapted, it is like a cherry on the cake. The right mode of advertisement is desirous by advertisers for their brands. Inflated attention is sought by advertisers, in theatre people can’t flip the channel or cannot move out just for few seconds, thus, advertisement receives around 150 to 350 plus views in a single show, which can be multiplied with the number of shows, run in a day by a theatre. In essence, theatre advertising has conspicuous results as a group of the diverse throng is exposed to the advertisement.
When a brand doesn’t have a restricted target audience then the theatre advertisement is helpful. Theatre caters to multilingual audiences. In theatre there is a huge price difference on the basis of the seats’ location in the hall, thus, people with various spending capacity are exposed to the brand. Several options are available these days in the theatre like Cinepolis, PVR, INOX, BIG cinemas. Hence, advertisements for those products are generally preferred in theatre, which are mediocre in the price range. Thus, this product can be easily bought by upper-middle-class people, as well as, middle class people. | 1,269,840 |
Yet, the Senate Democrats filibustered our plan because they don’t care about the immigration system or reform, and they don’t want to solve the problem. They would rather use it to get elected. That’s not working so well.
But we remain committed to immigration reform that protects our country, strengthens our economy, and lifts our workers from poverty to prosperity.
We want every American to know the dignity of work, the pride of a paycheck, and the satisfaction of a job well done. Because when our people are free to live their lives and to follow their hearts, there is nothing — nothing at all — that we cannot achieve.
What we are witnessing now is the rebirth of the American Dream. Everybody in the world is talking about it. It looks a little nasty when you watch the news, or as I sometimes call it, the Fake News. (Laughter.) But everybody in the world is talking about what’s happening in the United States. It’s really incredible. Best numbers in so many different ways — companies, unemployment. So many records we’re setting. The whole world is talking about it. And each of you here today, along with millions of hardworking Latinos all across our nation, are making that dream into a reality. You’re really making America great again. A lot of the people in this room are making America great again. (Applause.)
You’re unleashing the American spirit. You’re bringing jobs to American communities. And you are fighting for the American way.
Because you know that America is a nation that thinks big, dreams even bigger, and always reaches for the stars. You’re reaching for the stars. I know so many of you. You’re reaching for the stars; you have been for a long time. And now you’re getting there.
Together, we will build great buildings, invent incredible new products, discover amazing new technologies, and blaze bold new trails in science and medicine and the arts. And we will do it all with American skill, American grit, and American pride.
This is our time. This is our moment. Go get DACA. Go push those Democrats. I’m telling you. So this is a moment for DACA, for all of us. But this is a very special moment. A lot of tremendous things can happen here. Right now, so many tremendous things can happen if people want them to happen. This is how we are taking care of our people, taking care of our country.
I just want to thank all of you for being here. Having known so many in the room and having respected all of you, I can say that I’m very proud of you. And I know you’re very proud of our country.
So thank you all very much. God bless you, and God bless America. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you. (Applause.)
END
12:22 P.M. EST | 1,269,841 |
PARIS (Reuters) - Louis Vuitton owner LVMH is launching a new fashion brand with Barbadian singer Rihanna, in a rare move by the French group to set up a label from scratch as it taps into soaring demand for celebrity collaborations in the luxury world.
Fenty - after the “Umbrella” hitmaker’s full name, Robyn Rihanna Fenty - will build on the singer’s existing joint venture in cosmetics with LVMH, with a full range of clothing, shoes and accessories.
LVMH said on Friday that the launch, rumored for several months, was “fast approaching”, with the first looks set to be presented in Paris before the summer.
The French group has increasingly exploited collaborations with celebrities as well as streetwear designers to attract young customers of luxury goods.
But most ventures of the sort have been restricted to limited editions, and LVMH is looking to steal a march on peers by taking its pairing with 31-year-old Rihanna to another level.
It is the first label the acquisitive group - also home to storied couture houses such as Christian Dior and Givenchy - has fully created since Christian Lacroix’s eponymous brand launched in 1987, It eventually sold that on in 2005 after it struggled to ever turn a profit.
Known for her bold fashion statements at red carpet events, Rihanna is followed almost as much for her style as her music, and had already worked with other labels including sportswear brand Puma on collections under the Fenty name.
These included pastel-colured sneakers with large bows and cropped hoodies. The singer has collaborated with shoemaker Manolo Blahnik and has a lingerie range called Savage X Fenty.
Fenty Beauty, launched under LVMH’s umbrella in September 2017, had reached nearly 500 million euros ($562 million) in sales by the end of 2018.
Analysts attribute its success to an offering that included a very wide range of skin tones, catering to a more diverse audience than many make-up brands historically had.
LVMH’s billionaire boss Bernard Arnault said in a statement that the group would support Rihanna with a team and resources, though it did not give any financial details.
The group reported 46.8 billion euros ($52.58 billion) in sales in 2018, up 10% on 2017.
LVMH had considered the project for the past three years, a source familiar with the matter said. The brand will be essentially an e-commerce-only venture, supported with temporary “pop-up” events rather than a store network.
It will also be able to rely on Rihanna’s social media credentials - the singer has amassed 70.5 million followers under her Instagram handle “badgalriri”.
“Thank you Mr Arnault for believing in this little girl from the left side of an island,” Rihanna said on Twitter. | 1,269,842 |
Do you want a Life during school?
Is there Life after Study?
For every classroom hour, you are told to study 3 – 4 hours outside of the classroom. That is ABSURD!
You, or someone you know right now is being forced into hard labor just because they are attending school. Students that have a full class load would most likely be spending no less than 20 hours per week in the classroom. Then to take things past ample and into excruciating is the requirement that you are studying 60 – 80 hours per week outside of class to maintain good scores. That would be about 100 hours commitment per week. You were not meant to be an island. You have isolated yourself. Now you have become a study island; where nobody else can go.
Some students must support their schooling with a full-time or part-time job. Most jobs do not accommodate you studying while you are on the job. Pretty soon the student starts thinking the job is much easier than the schooling and all the study they must do each and every day. To let the study time lapse is lethal to good scores… as you have been told.
What is all this study really worth? Sure, students want to see results from the effort they are putting into their studies. But, more often than not, the amount of energy that is put into study, does not reconcile to the resulting grades. Imagine how you would feel if while all your naturally smart friends were out, having a great time at the beach or at a ball game, while you have a ball and chain, anchoring you to your studies. And they get better grades than you do. WOW! That got to hurt.
What makes your fiends different from you, that you have a life of study, and they actually have a life? What special information did you miss along the way? You received all the traditional ways to study properly; reading, re-reading, note-taking, outlines, taking tests, study groups, quizzes, mock-testing, etc. Gee, no wonder this study takes so much time. With all the extra effort, you would expect your payoff to be huge, but is only mediocre in comparison. Maybe the traditional way to study is flawed somehow.
When you are engaged with serious study, you must be efficient. Start analysing which things work for you, and which things don’t. Any study habit that does not pan out, stop using it. Stick with only those that work for you. Remember those friends that don’t need to study? This is most likely the answer you are missing. Everyone is born with a photographic memory. Some people are able to keep using it into adulthood. Most people, like you, loose contact with it. But there are specifically designed techniques that allow you to regain access to your photographic memory. Then you too, can have a Life during school. Now, all you need is the technique.
Photographic Memory – ZOX Pro Training
I Don’t Read – I ZOX!
study, photographic memory, speed reading | 1,269,843 |
Canada’s celebrity groundhogs have “predicted” an early spring after officials declared the pudgy prognosticators did not see their shadows.
Ontario’s Wiarton Willie and Nova Scotia’s Shubenacadie Sam were both greeted by cheers as their forecasts were issued by their handlers on Thursday morning.
So, my prediction is official. I didn't see my shadow so an early spring it is. #officialprediction #earlyspring — Wiarton Willie (@willieofficial) February 2, 2017
Folklore has it that if the groundhog sees its shadow when it emerges from its burrow on Groundhog Day, there will be six more weeks of winter. If the groundhog doesn’t see its shadow, then tradition says spring is on the way.
Shubenacadie Sam was the first to issue a forecast.
The portly rodent waddled out of a small barn just after 8 a.m. local time and officials declared he did not see his shadow.
It's an early spring, guys! Called it. #GroundhogDay — Shubenacadie Sam (@ShubenacadieSam) February 2, 2017
Sam then scurried into a snowy yard, darted around the enclosure and hid behind a promotional banner for the annual event in what was his 29th prediction.
“Soon we shall see the many colours of green,” a town crier bellowed to the cheers of onlookers at the Shubenacadie Provincial Wildlife Park. “The good news that Sam did bring will mean we get an early spring!”
Last year, Sam also predicted the early arrival of spring, though the wintry weather dragged on for months after.
In Wiarton, Ont. — where a festival leading up to Thursday’s “official prediction” by the town’s albino groundhog began on Jan. 27 — a crowd gathered in front of an outdoor stage to hear Willie’s prognosis.
The town’s mayor put her ear to one side of a small enclosure on stage where the famous rodent was shuffling around before declaring “it’s an early spring!”
“Wiarton Willie sees no shadow in sight. He says early spring, will his prediction be right?” a town crier then called out.
South of the border, however, an American groundhog issued a different forecast.
The handlers of Pennsylvania’s most famous groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil, said the furry rodent “predicted” six more weeks of winter after seeing his shadow.
Members of Phil’s top hat-wearing inner circle revealed their “forecast” at sunrise Thursday.
In reality, Phil’s prediction is decided ahead of time by the group on Gobbler’s Knob, a tiny hill just outside Punxsutawney, Pa. | 1,269,844 |
Syria war: Turkish forces set up positions in Idlib Published duration 13 October 2017 Related Topics Syrian civil war
image copyright EPA image caption The Turkish convoy crossed into Idlib from Reyhanli, in the southern Turkish province of Hatay
Turkish soldiers and armoured vehicles have crossed into Syria as part of an operation Ankara says is aimed at stopping fighting in Idlib province.
A military statement said the forces would set up observation posts to help monitor a "de-escalation zone" in line with an agreement with Russia and Iran.
Idlib is largely controlled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a jihadist alliance linked to al-Qaeda.
It also borders the Kurdish enclave of Afrin, which Turkey wants to contain.
Turkey backs the opposition to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and last year supported a rebel offensive against so-called Islamic State (IS) along the border in neighbouring Aleppo province.
That operation also served to prevent a US-backed alliance that is led by the Kurdish Popular Protection Units (YPG) seizing the territory and reaching Afrin.
Ankara considers the YPG an extension of the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has fought for Kurdish autonomy in Turkey for three decades.
Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency reported that military convoys had crossed into Idlib from Reyhanli in the southern Turkish province of Hatay.
The Hurriyet newspaper said about 30 armoured vehicles and more than 100 soldiers were taking part in the operation, and speculated that more troops could be sent in the coming days.
The Turkish military statement said its soldiers had started their activities in Idlib by establishing observation posts in line with a plan agreed last month with Russia and Iran - which back President Assad - in the Kazakh capital Astana.
The three powers said they would each send about 500 observers to positions along the edge of the de-escalation zone to prevent clashes between Syrian government and rebel forces, allow the delivery of humanitarian aid and establish conditions necessary for the return of displaced people.
HTS, which was formed in January by a group previously known as al-Nusra Front, warned that the move would "end with restoring Bashar's rule" to Idlib.
However, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that HTS fighters had escorted the Turkish troops towards a western area adjoining Afrin.
image copyright Reuters image caption Turkey wants to ensure Kurdish forces do not attempt to capture rebel-held areas of Idlib
A Kurdish militiaman told the Associated Press that the troops were stationed in three separate points along a "front" between Afrin and Idlib.
An official in a Free Syrian Army (FSA) faction said the Turkish deployment would "ensure the area is protected from Russian and regime bombing and to foil any attempt by the separatist YPG militias to illegally seize any territory".
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed last week that he would not allow the YPG to form a "terror corridor" to the Mediterranean, which would require the Kurds capturing mountainous areas held by opposition and government forces. | 1,269,845 |
Amazon has learned an important lesson about trolls and fake reviewers.
Michael Wolff’s explosive book, Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, comes out today. Amazon reviews for the book at time of writing were relatively civil, which is, unfortunately, surprising. Beneath the surface, Amazon is surely working hard to keep the trolls at bay.
Last September, fake reviewers came out en masse to leave one-star reviews for Hillary Clinton’s What Happened, her book about the 2016 US presidential election. The split between five-star reviews and one-star reviews was clearly unusual, with an uncommonly high percentage of reviews left by unverified purchasers. It took the company half a day, but Amazon ended up deleting at least 900 reviews it said violated its guidelines.
Wolff’s book has been equally popular as Clinton’s. Following a cease-and-desist letter sent from Trump’s lawyers to the author, Wolff’s publisher decided to move the publication date up by four days. But for such a controversial and popular book, the Amazon review section has stayed surprisingly quiet.
This morning before the official 9am US eastern time release of the book, there were only four reviews, three of which were verified purchases. Between 8:20 and 8:40am, two reviews had disappeared from the page, both verified purchases.
A spokesperson from Amazon confirms that the site is deleting reviews that violate its guidelines “as always.” Deleting reviews retroactively, or preventing spurious reviews from appearing on the site at all, means Amazon can prevent trolls from posting reviews without paying to buy the book.
It’s clear that Amazon is watching the page carefully, though not entirely consistently. Amazon has not returned request for comment on how many reviews were deleted or why. One review was originally posted as a non-verified purchase, then later switched to verified.
It’s clear that people with strong opinions are watching the page, and this is not simply a case of unusually quiet internet. That review, the earliest that still remains on the site, has 77 replies, written with exactly the kind of respect and level of discourse one would imagine on a 2018 message board. That’s about the same number of comments the book itself has, likely because Amazon is not reviewing responses to reviews.
At time of writing, there are no reviews from unverified purchases on the page, but there are plenty that are clearly not about the contents of the book.
Deleted
A real purchase, not a real review:
Quartz/Thu-Huong Ha
A real purchase, seemingly a real review:
Quartz/Thu-Huong Ha
Not deleted
A non-real purchase, seemingly a real review, later changed to a real purchase:
Quartz/Thu-Huong Ha
A real purchase, not a real review:
Quartz/Thu-Huong Ha
A real purchase, seemingly not a real review: | 1,269,846 |
thrown this fantastic diplomat under the bus to serve his own personal interests.”
The Conservative MP Sir Patrick McLoughlin agreed, saying: “It is unedifying to see someone who wants to be prime minister failing to stand up for hard-working civil servants, who have done nothing wrong, under attack from foreign governments. Leadership involves standing up for your team.”
And the former Foreign Office minister Alistair Burt said: “Anyone, I think, would have seen last night’s events and seen a potential prime minister letting someone go very publicly.”
Replying to Darroch’s letter of resignation, in which he said that speculation was “making it impossible for me to carry out my role as I would like”, McDonald said Darroch had been the target of “a malicious leak” and expressed gratitude for his work. “You are the best of us,” he wrote.
Kim Darroch has resigned. Now Britain risks becoming a vassal of the US | Martin Kettle Read more
May told the House of Commons she had told Darroch it was “a matter of great regret that he has felt it necessary to leave his position”. Jeremy Corbyn called the treatment of Darroch “beyond unfair and wrong” and said he had given “honourable and good service”.
The criticism of Johnson was based on his choice of language in Tuesday night’s Conservative leadership debate, in which he refused to give Darroch his support, even as his leadership rival, the foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, said he would expect the ambassador to stay in post until his planned retirement.
Hunt said in a statement that he was “deeply saddened” by the outcome, adding: “I am outraged that a selection of his reports should have been leaked.”
At the foreign affairs committee hearing, McDonald said that there had been a great deal of soul-searching about the leak and added that he knew of no precedent where a friendly power had refused to cooperate with a serving British ambassador.
Play Video 0:54 'It is a matter of great regret,' says Theresa May as Darroch resigns – video
Asked what the impact would be for transatlantic relations he said: “It is too soon to have a complete or authoritative judgment. Nothing like this has ever happened. There must be consequences.” He later insisted the special relationship was so deep and so wide that it could survive any individual squall.
There was no immediate comment from Trump, but the vice-president, Mike Pence’s chief of staff, Marc Short, said that the move was “probably the right course”.
A state department spokeswoman said: “The United States and the United Kingdom share a bond that is bigger than any individual, and we look forward to continuing that partnership. We remain committed to the US-UK special relationship and our shared global agenda.” | 1,269,847 |
United Airlines has begun physically covering built-in webcams on in-flight entertainment devices following privacy concerns, according to a report from BuzzFeed. The screens, enterprise-grade tablets provided to United by the aviation equipment division of Panasonic, are said to come with built-in webcams by default, with Panasonic executives claiming the cameras could one day provide improved entertainment features like seat-to-seat video calling and even gaming. United claims it did not specially order its screens with webcams.
“As with many other airlines, some of our premium seats have in-flight entertainment systems that came with cameras installed by the manufacturer. All cameras have since been covered, which were never activated and that we have no plans to use in the future,” a United spokesperson told BuzzFeed. The report states the airline will continue to cover the webcams in all future installations of its premium seating options, which come with the Panasonic screens already built into the seatback.
It’s a mystery why the in-flight screens have cameras in the first place
The privacy controversy first emerged earlier this year when some passengers, most notably cybersecurity researcher Vitaly Kamluk, began noticing webcams on seatback screens. The initial outcry was over Singapore Airlines’ inclusion of the webcam-equipped screens without informing passengers and without disclosing whether the webcams were active. However, it was soon discovered that Panasonic Avionics, a leading supplier of in-flight entertainment systems, has also been supplying US airlines like American and United with similar webcam-equipped screens.
A number of airlines responded in the immediate aftermath by claiming they never ordered screens with webcams. American said it had disabled the webcams and says it has no plans to ever use them. Lisa Connell, Delta’s general manager of onboard product, told The Verge at the time, “A limited number of Delta’s in-flight entertainment screens have cameras, and in those cases they were included by the manufacturer and not a feature we ordered. The cameras are not functional and we have no plans to install the necessary software to use them.”
Delta says it’s moving away from relying on third-party suppliers and instead is focusing on building its own in-flight entertainment systems under a new division called Delta Flight Products. “Delta Flight Products was launched back in 2016 to give us the ability to take more control of the in-flight experience,” Connell told The Verge. “We can be more selective with what we want a product to look like and remove components that we don’t need — like cameras, in this case.”
The New York Times reported last month that United was considering covering its webcams with physical pieces of plastic or stickers, and it appears the company has followed through with that strategy to minimize ongoing privacy concerns. It’s not clear why Panasonic has decided to build screens with built-in webcams when none of its customers seem to want them and passengers seem discomforted by their very presence. The company was not immediately available for comment. | 1,269,848 |
Mindfulness meditation is an ancient practice that has been gaining a lot of traction in recent years. That’s because more and more research is being published that shows how meditation improves physical and mental health. What’s even better is that studies have shown that those who use meditation to quit smoking can significantly increase their chance of a successful quit.
You may be thinking, “Isn’t meditating a thing for like Zen masters and yogis who live in a rock garden?” Well sure, you have people like that, but really anyone can do it, regardless of religion or beliefs. All you need is a quiet space and a few minutes.
Here are three ways how using meditation to quit smoking can be helpful:
1. It reduces stress, which often is a trigger for smoking.
Many people smoke as a way to feel better when they are stressed and anxious. They know that smoking is bad, but they also enjoy that moment of relaxation after they take a puff. But the reality is that smoking just temporarily covers up the stress, whereas meditating can help you better manage and overcome stress by teaching you how to recognize and accept what’s going on around you. With less stress, you’ll have less of a reason to reach for a cigarette.
2. It teaches you mindfulness and to be aware of your smoking habits and cravings.
Smoking habits are often turned on autopilot; People reach for a cigarette because they crave it, without giving much thought to the action. But by practicing meditation to quit smoking, smokers learn to recognize and accept their emotions and how their body is feeling. By deciding to mindfully experience your physical and mental state (both the good and the bad parts), such as how you feel when you are craving a cigarette, you can begin accepting these feelings and reshape your behavior. When you mindfully choose to let the cravings pass without the help of a cigarette, you are changing your reaction to cravings by learning how to embrace rather than escape from them.
3. It helps improve self-control.
Meditation can actually cause changes in your brain that brings on positive benefits. For example, the practice has shown enhanced connectivity between regions of the brain that are linked to self-control. And as you know, the greater self-control you have, the greater your willpower is to quit smoking. Some studies have even show that smokers who meditated began curbing their smoking habits without even knowing it.
Using meditation to quit smoking may not be for everyone, but if you’ve tried other options (like medications or going cold turkey) that didn’t work, then it may be worth trying this strategy. There are a variety of guided meditations that you can listen to, but you can try starting with some of these from UCLA.
Regardless of the strategy you use to quit, make sure you have a quit plan and set Monday as your quit date to help you quit and stay quit!
Have you used meditation to quit smoking? Tell us about your experiences on Twitter! | 1,269,849 |
Abrupt Cryospheric Tipping Elements in Climate System // Oct 18, 2018
Computer modelling simulations of climate change have a very difficult time accounting for abrupt, nonlinear state changes, also known as tipping points. Since IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) reports, including the sr15_ts (download PDF of sr15_ts here):
Rely too much on computer models,
on computer models, They tend to understate the urgency and emergency state of ongoing abrupt climate change.
In this video I discuss the main broad-brush tipping points in the climate system, with a focus on the cryosphere (frozen regions).
Canada on October 17th
Ref: Tipping Elements – the Achilles Heels of the Earth System, from the Potsdam Institute fro Climate Impact Research.
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More On Abrupt Cryospheric Tipping Elements in Climate System // Oct 19, 2018
Continuation of Thursday’s video on how computer modelling simulations of climate change have a very difficult time accounting for abrupt, nonlinear state changes, also known as tipping point, relying too much on computer models, understating urgency of climate change.
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What are the chances of seeing a month or year with global temperatures crossing the 1.5C above pre-industrial threshold in the next few years? Smith et al (2018, open access): https://t.co/QFUpJZyxd8 pic.twitter.com/rmrOUnKuBx — Ed Hawkins (@ed_hawkins) October 19, 2018
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Please consider donating to support my work. I put a lot of time and effort into researching, studying and producing my videos so that you can learn how quickly our world is changing.
I visited the Mosaica exhibit in Gatineau; huge plant displays; amazing art!!
Donating does not need a PayPal account, but simply a credit card. Please click here.
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If you care about security, you should care about climate change If you care about the economy you should care about climate change If you care about health you should care about climate change If you care about food you should care about climate change https://t.co/8mUiBMZWTs — Paul Dawson on Climate Change (@PaulEDawson) October 19, 2018
Ref: Hurricane Michael Reminded America Why Climate Change is a National Security Risk, For the Air Force, Climate Change Just Got Personal.
"The key thing to remember about the report is that it’s clear that the best time to have reduced emissions was 25 years ago, but the second best time to reduce emissions is right now.” — Gavin Schmidt on the recent @IPCC_CH report. https://t.co/AyZtW605lI pic.twitter.com/8w5oCfZtMZ — NASA Earth (@NASAEarth) October 19, 2018 | 1,269,850 |
We’re not even through the first day of 2014 and cyber attacks have already made their appearance. Earlier today, a person (or a few people) breached Skype’s security and hacked its Twitter account, Facebook page, and blog. The group claiming responsibility is the Syrian Electronic Army (SEA). Its message: end spying on the public.
UPDATE: Minutes after we published this post, it appeared that Skype regained control and deleted the hacker messages from Twitter and Facebook, while its blog is being automatically redirected to Skype’s homepage now.
A Skype spokesperson responded to TNW with a statement: “We recently became aware of a targeted cyber attack that led to access to Skype’s social media properties, but these credentials were quickly reset. No user information was compromised.”
The Skype team has also taken to Twitter to acknowledge the hack and reassure users.
You may have noticed our social media properties were targeted today. No user info was compromised. We’re sorry for the inconvenience. — Skype (@Skype) January 2, 2014
The SEA’s official Twitter account also repeated the messages that were posted on Skype’s social media profiles and blog.
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Today’s events are most likely linked to the US National Security Agency’s surveillance programs uncovered by former contractor Edward Snowden. Many tech companies, including Skype’s parent company, Microsoft, have taken steps to refute claims that they have been cooperating with the government.
Documents from the NSA’s PRISM program apparently indicate that the secretive agency could spy on Skype audio and video calls thanks to backdoor access — which was contrary to Skype’s insistence that its service could not be wiretapped. Interestingly, in October, it was reported that the messaging and calling service was under investigation in Luxembourg over suspected links to the NSA. A month later, the country’s data protection authority cleared both Microsoft and Skype of any violations.
The group’s first Tweet appeared just within the hour:
It looks like the group gained access to the messaging service’s social media profiles. Even Facebook wasn’t immune to the cyber attack:
Here’s what they posted on Skype’s blog:
The Syrian Electronic Army has certainly been busy in the past year. The group backs Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and has been targeting news publications, computers, and various other companies. In 2013, it claimed responsibility for the hack of the New York Times, the Financial Times, the BBC Weather’s Twitter account, and even went after Twitter.
Today’s message is a bit striking since it’s focused on spying, not the SEA’s usual pro-Syria communication that it leaves when going after websites and social media profiles.
We’ve reached out to Skype for comment and will update this if we hear back.
Photo credit: KAREN BLEIER/AFP/Getty Images
Read next: 2013 in Latin American tech: Less talk, more results | 1,269,851 |
ing Deandre Ayton
3. Hawks (20-49)
Atlanta is one and a half games behind both the Suns and Grizzlies for last (first?) place, a deficit that feels as insurmountable as going down by seven points to NCAA tournament no. 1 seed Virginia. But the Hawks have seen promising play from Taurean Prince, who in his second year has improved in every statistical category, including a 38-point night against the Bulls. Prince also hit a game-winner against the Suns that may ultimately keep the Hawks from landing the best lottery odds, but pairing him and John Collins with Marvin Bagley III wouldn’t be so bad, either.
2. Suns (19-51)
There’s not a lot of focus in Phoenix these days, unless Devin Booker explodes for 40 or more points. But a glance at the numbers shows that even though Memphis is on one of the worst losing streaks in recent memory, the Suns have a point differential of minus-9.4—the worst in the league by nearly two points.
Even Booker, who has had a hand injury, wasn’t happy after the team’s loss to the Cavs on Tuesday: “I think our team has been spoiled enough, including myself,” he said.
On Thursday, the frustration reached a boiling point against the Jazz. Both Marquese Chriss and Jared Dudley got ejected for getting into an altercation that included Chriss blatantly cheap-shotting Ricky Rubio.
Dudley y Chriss fueron expulsados por esta "acción" sobre Ricky Rubio pic.twitter.com/wEkOEclzle — NBAclubESP (@NBAclubESP) March 16, 2018
Phoenix is tied with Memphis for the best lottery odds right now, so the Suns have just as much of a chance at Ayton and Luka Doncic as the Grizzlies. Gear up for a No-Power battle down the stretch.
1. Grizzlies (18-50)
It was poetic, really, that on the night Deandre Ayton’s Arizona team was blitzed by 13-seed Buffalo in the NCAA tournament, the Grizzlies put together a tank performance for the ages to lose their 19th straight. Losing out would give them the longest losing streak in NBA history. And the last time the Grizzlies won fewer than 20 games during a season? It was 1999, when they were still in Vancouver.
The Grizzlies activated Tyreke Evans for Thursday’s game, and he scored 25 points, but also committed the game-losing foul. It was the perfect way to mask the ultimate tank matchup. Even Marc Gasol tallied a double-double. Gasol has voiced his frustration with this Grizzlies season on multiple occasions, and with a rebuild on the way, it’s fair to wonder whether the two are long for each other after this season. In more ways than one, Memphis and Ayton—a match made in lottery heaven—inched closer to each other Thursday night. | 1,269,852 |
Hibernian Football Club are delighted to confirm that Graeme Mathie is to become the club’s first-ever Sporting Director.
Following on from George Craig’s decision to step down as Head of Football Operations at the end of the calendar year, Graeme will look to build on the progress and achievements of the past five years, including promotion as Championship winners, qualifying for Europe and enjoying our best run for many years, and – of course – winning the Scottish Cup in 2016.
While Graeme will inherit solid foundations on which to build, he is more focused on playing a key role in the creation of a consistently successful new era at Easter Road Stadium.
Graeme has been Head of Player Identification & Recruitment at Hibernian since August 2014.
Prior to his arrival in Edinburgh, he worked with the Scottish FA and Celtic – following on from a career as a professional footballer with Coventry City, AFC Bournemouth, Motherwell, Ayr United, East Fife and Albion Rovers.
Ahead of taking up his new post, Graeme said: “This is a role that I am hugely excited about and I understand and relish the responsibility to help deliver success for this great club.
“I have to thank Ron, Leeann and the board for this opportunity. I am enthused by the vision that Ron and Leeann and others are working on for this club. I’m excited by the possibilities here and will do everything I can as part of the team to help bring about the success our supporters deserve.”
Graeme also paid tribute to the work done by George Craig.
He added: “I’d also like to express my gratitude to George. I believe this can be the start of a new, exciting period for Hibernian and none of that would be possible without the culture, facilities and staff he’s helped put in place.
“George brought me to the club and has always trusted and supported me to develop both personally and professionally. I want to ensure we build on his legacy and help realise his vision for what Hibernian can be.”
Chief Executive Leeann Dempster added: “We are delighted to announce Graeme as our first Sporting Director.
“It’s important that we build on the success we have had in recent years and the foundations that have been put in place. Graeme has been central to those achievements and we look forward to seeing him develop in his new role.
“Ron’s arrival is creating a fresh impetus, with a lot of work going on. We are more determined than ever to be successful within Scottish football, to enjoy regular exposure to European football and deliver a team and a club that supporters can be proud of.
“We all have a part to play in that.”
Graeme will officially start in his new position on January 1, 2020.
You can watch Graeme's interview with Hibs TV in full here. | 1,269,853 |
LG announced yesterday that it would be acquiring webOS from HP to use in LG smart televisions. The company has inherited all of the rights to the source code for webOS, including documentation and engineers, as well as all of its related websites. But what about projects like Open webOS and webOS Ports?
As we now know, the cloud services division of webOS will remain at HP, along with some of the related patents, while LG gets the rest. Martin Risau, senior vice president of webOS for HP, told Ars that from here on out, “LG is totally free to do whatever they want to do” to integrate webOS however it sees fit.
“Open source will be alive and well at LG," added Sam Chang, vice president of Smart TV at LG. "We think that’s a really important part of this transaction. When you think about the loyal development community out there and the need for a robust ecosystem to support smart TV, it’s really a perfect fit.” Of course, LG will have to make changes to webOS to optimize it for use with a remote.
Risau told us that the company will continue working on the free JavaScript application framework Enyo because “it benefits both companies." Chang added that, “We do believe both open source and Web technology is the best way to minimize fragmentation and enable cross-connectivity to multiple devices." Interestingly enough, Open webOS had initially been established by HP to further the development of the operating system, in spite of a lack of dedicated hardware.
It’s important to note that this acquisition isn't a total surprise to either HP or LG. A version of Open webOS, called the Professional Edition, had been circulating around back in October 2012, when webOS Nation first reported on rumors that LG would be making a webOS-enabled TV. Its success would require a serious investment in applications—ones that could be made with Enyo. The apps would need to include services like Netflix, CinemaNow, Pandora, and Vudu, which are all available on almost every set-top box, and natively on TVs from rival companies like Samsung. HP intends to stay involved in the development of Enyo, citing its relevance to its app catalog.
When asked about LG's acquisition of webOS, Tom King, project leader for webOS Ports, was excited and optimistic. "They reached out right away and said, ‘nothing’s changed, you’re still dealing with the same people… we’ll still be interacting with you guys and making this happen.’ I take that as a very positive step,” he explained. “It appeared from my reading that Open webOS is still going to be an open source project that they’re actively going to contribute to and participate in. I’m encouraged that we've got a new driver.”
Update: This article has been edited to add that HP will only continue to work on the Enyo framework. Ars regrets the error. | 1,269,854 |
The deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history has prompted some to call on Congress to reform gun laws across the country, but changes will likely have to wait.
President Donald Trump on Tuesday said, "we'll be talking about gun laws as time goes by."
While the nation waits to see if changes are made to gun and gun safety regulations, The Washington Post poked around to see which U.S. Congress members have received donations from the National Rifle Association, which advocates for gun rights.
The NRA has given $3,533,294 to current members of Congress since 1998, The Washington Post reported. Just under half (49) of the 100 U.S. senators in office and 258 of the 435 representatives in the House have accepted those donations.
In the Golden State, 16 current members of Congress have received a combined $241,020 from the NRA, according to The Washington Post. Fifteen of those members are Republican.
House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and other House Democrats on Wednesday are slated to honor the victims of the mass shooting in Las Vegas as well as press for "commonsense gun violence prevention legislation."
Congressman Mike Thompson, who is the chair of the Gun Violence Prevention Task Force and is scheduled to attend Wednesday's event, is one of the California members of Congress who received donations from the NRA, according to The Washington Post. Thompson supports an individual's rights granted by the Second Amendment, according to his website. He also believes that "we have a responsibility to make our schools, streets and communities safe."
"We can do both, but Congress will need to step up," a statement on Thompson's website reads.
NBC Bay Area has reached out to Thompson and other California members of Congress for comment.
Below is a breakdown of members of Congress in California who have received donations from the NRA:
1. Rep. Ken Calvert (R): $42,550
2. Rep. Darrell Issa (R): $29,900
3. Rep. Duncan Hunter (R): $24,850
4. Rep. Devin Nunes (R): $22,950
5. Rep. David Valadao (R): $19,400
6. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R): $18,000
7. Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R): $15,450
8. Rep. Tom McClintock (R): $13,950
9. Rep. Duncan D. Hunter (R): $13,000
10. Rep. Ed Royce (R): $11,970
11. Rep. Susan Brooks (R): $6,000
12. Rep. Paul Cook (R): $6,000
13. Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R): $6,000
14. Rep. Mike Thompson (D): $4,000
15. Rep. Mimi Walters (R): $4,000
16. Rep. Steve Knight (R): $3,000 | 1,269,855 |
Gary Coles, who grew up in low crime Wyoming, said that people have the same concerns, whether they are from the U.S. visiting Latin America or Latin American natives visiting big U.S. cities. "People from the United States or Canada are very concerned or even terrified about safety in Mexico," he said. "Meanwhile, if you talk to someone in Mexico or in any other Latin American country, they will be terrified of going to a big city in the United States."
Coles believes that the reason for both largely inaccurate perceptions is that the news media tends to sensationalize crime. "In the United States and Canada, the news media can't print enough about drugs and drug related crime in Mexico," he said. "At the same time, the media in countries south of the U.S. border will sensationalize school shootings and terrorist attacks in the U.S. cities."
David Bayliss said that crime tends to be more publicized in expat communities such as where he lives in Coronado, Panama. "If someone's house gets robbed here, everybody knows about it because the expats communicate so well with each other," he said. "In Dallas, where I'm from, if my neighbor a few blocks over had his garage burglarized and they took his lawnmower, chances are I wouldn't hear about it."
Perhaps the ultimate measure of safety is the level of protectiveness parents have over their child. In this regard, expats said that the environment in their communities was safe for children. "When my children were teenagers I would give them 200 pesos (about U.S. $12) and a cellphone and they'd go to the market and walk on the malecon (walkway along the water) alone, and I didn't worry," said Spencer McMullen, who has lived in the well-known expat area of Lake Chapala / Ajijic in Mexico for 11 years.
Brit Kate Corrigan said much the same about Belize. "Yes, Ambergris Caye is safe. I am a single parent of a 13-year-old daughter," Corrigan said. "I have lived here for four-and-a-half years, and the only rule I have for my daughter is that she call me half-an-hour before dark, so that I can make arrangements to come pick here up."
John-Marc Gallagher summarized the issue of crime in Latin America when he said: "The best measure of safety would be how we here in Granada (Nicaragua) FEEL. We feel safe, we feel free to walk around and enjoy the outdoor bars and restaurants and we feel safe in our homes and businesses. Granada is home to so many single, middle-aged women I have lost count. Older, single women would not be retiring here, building homes, starting businesses and hanging out at the outdoor establishments if they didn't feel safe."
This article is commentary by an independent contributor. At the time of publication, the author held no positions in the stocks mentioned. | 1,269,856 |
A Democratic senator has asked the Office of Government Ethics to investigate comments made by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin in an interview this week, in which he appeared to jokingly “plug” one of his previous company’s films, The Lego Batman Movie.
Senate Finance Committee chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) sent a letter to OGE Ethics Director Walter Schaub this week asking for a probe into the comments made by Mnuchin — a Hollywood film financier before taking a job in the Trump administration — in a live interview with news outlet Axios on Friday.
In the letter, Wyden asked the ethics watchdog to investigate whether Mnuchin may have promoted the product of a business he still holds interest in — namely, the production company RatPac-Dune Entertainment — when he urged attendees at the Axios event to send their kids to see the Lego Batman Movie, which was produced by RatPac Dune.
“I am concerned that Sec. Mnuchin’s comments, may be seen to have a predictable effect on the financial interests” of RatPac-Dune, Wyden wrote in the letter.
At the Axios event on Friday, Mnuchin — whose RatPac Dune helped produce blockbuster films including Avatar and Mad Max: Fury Road — was asked to give a movie recommendation.
“Well, I’m not allowed to promote anything that I’m involved in. So I just want to have the legal disclosure, you’ve asked me the question, and I am not promoting any product,” the Treasury Secretary replied. “But you should send all your kids to Lego Batman.”
In his letter to Schaub, Wyden called the comments “troubling” and asked for the ethics watchdog to complete a review and report the results to both himself and the Treasury Department. Wyden noted that as part of his service in President Trump’s Cabinet, Mnuchin had promised to “not participate personally and substantially in any particular matter that to [his] knowledge has a direct and predictable effect on the financial interests of the entity.”
Mnuchin is allowed 120 days from his confirmation to comply with the ethics agreement, but Wyden wrote that the Finance Committee had received “no evidence” to show that the Treasury Secretary had divested his interest in RatPac-Dune.
In a statement, a Treasury spokesperson pointed out that Mnuchin had deliberately stated he was not promoting the film while speaking with Axios.
“As his statement reflects, the Secretary clearly recognized that he generally may not promote private interests and specifically gave the legal disclosure that he was not promoting a movie, but answering a question he was asked directly,” the statement read.
Whatever the outcome, The Lego Batman Movie likely doesn’t need the publicity; the family-friendly animated film has grossed a total of $293 million at the international box office since its release in early February.
Follow Daniel Nussbaum on Twitter: @dznussbaum | 1,269,857 |
stand there with a mag 7, when it's called out everyone that will pass has passed he then pushes being them. I've seen it work even at LEM/Supreme level.
One of the most effective shotgun usages is using them as a surprise. Nobody expects a shotgun, they're seen as weak, unusable, that there's no point when you can use a rifle, which to a point is correct.
However, due to the fact people don't expect a shotgun the best thing to do is play close quarters, maybe even push. The shotgun is forgotten about and people are not wary. It will be an effective tactic once or twice a game, maybe even more times. This goes along with pushing in general, as on the CT side a push is generally a bad idea if done in consecutive buy rounds. However, it can work very well to throw an enemy off. This is the main idea of the CT side shotgun.
On T side shotguns are almost never used. They can be effective in Cobblestone dropdown or for clearing close angles. Due to the nature of the M4s not being a one shot kill assuming reaction times are the same for both sides you can kill the other person with one shot, and the most they can do is headshot you. For an example, here is a guide to clearing skyfall/drop down in Cobblestone. JW commonly uses this tactic.
When the top is smoked get a teammate to flash through. Jump down with the flash while looking up, you won't get flashed and it'll flash your opponents looking at you. Using the sawed-off it should be a one hit kill on anybody within your view due to the constructions within the area. This allows you to get a kill, maybe clear the area, and then pick up a rifle. These techniques can be applied anywhere in the game so long as it’s close quarters.
On Inferno, one can clear the apartments with a sawed-off even more effectively. Anybody playing the first two corners can be one shot, or jumping into apartments from the hay bales outside will allow you to clear stairs, boiler or a player mid all in close quarters where a shotgun excels.
Shotguns are definitely underused in Counter-Strike. At Dreamhack Cluj-Napoca 2015, GeT_RiGhT on Ninjas in Pyjamas used the MAG-7 to great effect against Team Liquid in the group decider match when he was on CT side Mirage. When used correctly and at the right time, not only can you grab an easy kill here and there, but you do it with a cheaper gun nearly half the price of a regular rifle and gained three times the money you would have with that rifle. This means you will have more money and more of an ability to drop for your teammates, strengthening your economy further.
The shotgun has two maps with huge competitive viability, those being Inferno and Cobblestone.
Are you into fantasy leagues? Then check out AlphaDraft and put together your allstar lineup! | 1,269,858 |
Independent," which she sang while wearing an audition number, in front of silhouettes of three judges, noting her "American Idol" beginnings. Then she segued into "Since U Been Gone," "Stronger" and her new single, "Catch My Breath."
-Ke$ha gave a tribal-themed performance of "Die Young," backed by dancers wearing skull faces, and lots of drum pounding and choreography.
-Taylor Swift's performance of "I Knew You Were Trouble" was incredibly elaborate. The stage was designed to look like an elegant old-fashioned ballroom, and Taylor was escorted down a grand staircase while wearing a white gown and sparkly cowboy books by a masked man in a military coat. She sang as the other "guests" at the ball, all of whom were wearing masks, danced around her, and then, her white dress was ripped off, revealing a red bodice and black skirt - perhaps a metaphor for Taylor's loss of innocence after getting involved with the guy who was "trouble."
-Nicki Minaj sang "Freedom" wearing white fur, standing in a winter scene with frozen trees. By the end of the song, snow was falling down and she was joined by an entire choir.
-Pink's performance of "Try" was astonishing: she sang the song while performing a complicated, physical and sometimes brutal dance with a male partner on a set that looked like a run-down hotel room. Glass shattered, flames burned everywhere and Pink was upside down, on the floor, on a bed…everywhere.
-Justin Bieber performed "As Long as You Love Me" acoustically, and it was difficult not to imagine he was thinking of his ex Selena Gomez as he sang the impassioned lyrics. His performance of "Beauty & a Beat" with Minaj was upbeat, with lots of choreography and a big set with video screens.
-Christina Aguilera sang a medley of songs from her new album, "Lotus," surrounded by dancers and drag queens, some of whom wore bags on their heads with words like "Pig," "Loser," "Weird" and "Fake." Her performance was immediately followed by Pitbull performing "Don't Stop the Party," and then Christina joined him at the end for their collaboration "Feel this Moment," from his new album "Global Warming."
-No Doubt sang "Looking Hot," and Gwen Stefani certainly was.
-Linkin Park sang "Burn It Down"
-Carrie Underwood gave a dramatic performance of "Two Black Cadillacs"
-Swizz Beatz performed a frenetic version of "Everyday Birthday" with Chris Brown, Ludacris and what looked like a hundred dancers onstage.
-South Korean rapper PSY closed the show with "Gangnam Style," and he was joined by a surprise guest - MC Hammer, of all people - as the song turned into a mash-up of "Gangnam Style" and "Too Legit 2 Quit. | 1,269,859 |
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. All rights reserved.
References
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2. Pavel, D. Basic principles underlying human physiology. Health 6, 1816–1821 (2014).
3. Butler, D. Investigating journals: The dark side of publishing. Nature 485, 433–435 (2013).
4. Beall, J. Beall’s List of Predatory Publishers 2016. Scholarly Open Access. (2016). Retrieved from https://scholarlyoa.com/2016/01/05/bealls-list-of-predatory-publishers-2016/
5. Bloudoff-Indelicato, M. Backlash after Frontiers Journals added to list of questionable publishers. Nature 526, 613 (2015).
6. Oransky, I. Why did Beall’s list of potential predatory publishers go dark? Retraction Watch (2017).
7. Crawford, W. Ethics and access 1: The sad case of Jeffrey Beall. Cites & Insights 14, 1–14 (2014).
8. Goodson, P. Questioning the HIV-AIDS hypothesis: 30 years of dissent. Frontiers in Public Health 2, 1–12 (2014).
9. Frontiers publishers. Publisher Statement on “Questioning the HIV-AIDS Hypothesis: 30 Years of Dissent.” Frontiers in Public Health 3 (2015).
10. Frontiers in Public Health editors. About [Journal]. Frontiers in Public Health Retrieved from http://journal.frontiersin.org/journal/public-health#about (2016).
11. Herndon, J.M. Human and environmental dangers posed by ongoing global tropospheric aerosolized particulates for weather modification. Frontiers in Public Health 4, 1–16 (2016).
12. Frontiers in Public Health editors. Retraction: Human and environmental dangers posed by ongoing global tropospheric aerosolized particulates for weather modification. Frontiers in Public Health 4 (2016).
13. Van Noorden, R. Publishers withdraw more than 120 gibberish papers. Nature (2014).
14. Sokal, A., & Bricmont, J. Fashionable Nonsense: Postmodern Intellectuals’ Abuse of Science Picador, New York, NY (1999).
15. Sewell, G. A second look at the second law. Applied Mathematics Letters (2011).
16. Oransky, I. More on Applied Mathematics Letters: Journal retracted paper questioning second law of thermodynamics. Retraction Watch (2011).
17. Oransky, I. Elsevier apologizes for Applied Mathematics Letters retraction, pays author’s legal fees. Retraction Watch (2011).
18. Applied Mathematics Letters editors. A second look at the second law. Applied Mathematics Letters 24, 1968 (2011). | 1,269,860 |
Chinese AI and humanoid robotic company UBTECH Robotics today announced a staggering US$820 million in Series C funding. With its new estimated value of US$5 billion, Shenzhen City based UBTECH becomes the world’s most valuable AI startup.
Internet giant Tencent led the funding with a US$120 million investment. It is believed UBTECH’s capabilities in robot design and manufacturing will strengthen Tencent’s AI products. Last year, Tencent reportedly pumped US$40 million into UBTECH. Also joining the funding are the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Haier, Minsheng Securities, Telstra, CDHFund, and others.
Zhou Jian
UBTECH Founder and CEO Zhou Jian told Synced that “this round of financing will be mainly used for strengthening R&D capabilities, facilitating marketing and brand development, and attracting top-tier talents.”
Founded in 2012, UBTECH aims to “bring a robot into every home, and truly integrate intelligent robots into the daily lives of everyone creating a more intelligent way of life.” The company’s Alpha 1S robot holds the Guinness World Record for “most robots dancing simultaneously.” A video of UBTECH robodog Jimu dancing and licking paws at the 2018 CCTV Spring Festival Gala went viral. Also in the UBTECH family are Cruzr, an intelligent service robot; the voice-activated, video-enabled companion Lynx; and a Star Wars First Order Stormtrooper robot. The company even produces a BuilderBots Kit for children who want to build robots.
UBTECH’s hot products.
While the global robotic market is competitive, UBTECH has an advantage with its technological development of humanoid robot servos and motion controlled gait algorithms. UBTECH is a global leader in robotic joint and body structure manufacturing.
Zhou says UBTECH’s sales goal for 2018 will exceed CN¥2 billion. He also unveiled the company’s roadmap for the next four years:
Commercialize high-torque servos and accelerate the development of robot operating system ROSA in 2018;
Implement the service robot technology Home AI in 2019;
Launch a robot cloud service platform and a new generation of low-cost, large-scale humanoid service robots in 2020;
Introduce a full-fledged solution for the service robot industry by integrating core hardware servo, operating system ROSA, and cloud service platform in 2021
Star Wars First Order Stormtrooper robot
Zhou’s vision for robots goes beyond the crunching of algorithms and whirring of servos. Rather he stresses the relationship of such machines to human beings. “In UBTECH, we insist on viewing the robot as a member of a future family.”
* * *
Journalist: Tony Peng| Editor: Michael Sarazen
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Subscribe here to get insightful tech news, reviews and analysis! | 1,269,861 |
Although environmental pollution continues to become an escalating problem, more consumer awareness regarding this concern is leading to a push for offenders to clean up their act. Here, we explore the three environmental areas pollution affects the most and what is being done to curb its effects.
Air Pollution
Air pollution refers to the presence of gaseous and solid particles that get dissolved in the air due to the burning of fossil fuels, chemicals from factories, ozone and even natural sources like dust and pollen. Some pollutants have adverse health effects when inhaled and can cause poisonings, cancer and other diseases.
One major concern when it comes to air pollution is the growing concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) that is present in our atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is released from the combustion of coal, gasoline and most other materials, and it is a major contributing cause to global climate change due to its ability to trap heat within the atmosphere in what’s known as the greenhouse effect.
The Environmental Protection Agency has put air quality standards in place that companies must adhere to, such as caps on the number of pollutants that can be released into the air and fuel-efficiency standards for modern vehicles. Over time, we can hope that these limits begin to curb this growing problem.
Water Pollution
Similarly to air pollution, water pollution is the contamination of bodies of water due to human activities. Since water is quickly becoming more scarce, reducing the effects of water pollution is a very important issue.
Polluted water can seep into underground water tables and reservoirs and have a detrimental effect on the health of those exposed to the pollutants. Pollutants can also affect farmed fish, making them incredibly toxic. Common water pollutants include heavy metals such as lead and mercury, bacteria from sewage treatment plants and even dangerous medications that are flushed down the toilet. Many electrical companies are worried about their effect on the water and the long-term ramifications of current power models, and they have begun implementing environmental practices to reduce the pollution caused by their industries.
One way average Americans can help reduce this problem is by recycling products that contain dangerous chemicals, such as light bulbs, ink cartridges, and batteries, instead of throwing them out. Not flushing medications into the sewer system and reducing the use of harsh cleaning chemicals can also help to significantly reduce water pollution in the long run.
Soil Contamination
Also known as land pollution, soil contamination occurs when toxic chemical waste is dumped into the ground instead of being properly disposed of. These chemicals can leech into nearby underground water reservoirs and be carried far away, affecting the health of people a long way away from the original dumping site. Although many environmental regulations have been put into place to reduce these unethical practices, accidental leaks of oil and other substances can and do still happen.
We’re all part of the environment, and our environmental choices can make a difference. It’s important to both educate ourselves in order to become better environmental stewards as well as putting pressure on our government and bad corporate actors in order to reduce the negative effects that pollution can have on our planet. | 1,269,862 |
This is what Prototaxites might have looked like in their prehistoric landscape (Illustration: Elsevier/Hueber) Francis Hueber peers up at a Prototaxite fossil (Image: Carol Hotton)
Scientists have identified the Godzilla of fungi – a giant, prehistoric fossil that has evaded classification for more than a century.
A chemical analysis has shown that the 6-metre-tall organism with a tree-like trunk was a fungus that became extinct more than 350 million years ago.
Known as Prototaxites, the giant fungus has intrigued scientists, who originally thought it was a conifer. In 2001, Francis Hueber at the National Museum of Natural History in Washington DC, US, first suggested it may be a fungus, based on an analysis of the fossil’s internal structure. But he had no conclusive proof.
“No matter what argument you put forth, people say it’s crazy,” says C. Kevin Boyce, a geophysicist at the University of Chicago in Illinois, US. “A 6-metre-fungus doesn’t make any sense, but here’s the fossil.”
Boyce, who says Prototaxites “get his vote for being one of the weirdest organisms that ever lived”, helped solve the mystery by comparing the types of carbon found in the giant fossil with plants that lived about the same time, some 400 million years ago.
Closer cousin
Plants only absorb carbon from carbon dioxide in the air around them. As a result, the ratio of two carbon isotopes found in atmospheric CO 2 – carbon-12 and carbon-13 – is the same for all plants that live during the same period.
“If you are an animal, you will look like whatever you eat,” explains Boyce. Previously classified as plants, fungi are now considered a closer cousin to animals, although they chemically absorb their food rather than eat it mechanically.
The researchers found that the carbon ratios from the different fossil samples of the fungi differed much more than would have been expected of a plant from that era, strengthening the evidence that Prototaxites is a fungus that absorbed some of its carbon from sources other than the air.
Samples of the giant fungi have been found all over the world since its discovery a century ago. It lived between 420 million and 350 million years ago, at a time when millipedes and worms were among the first creatures to make their home on dry land. No animals with a backbone had left the oceans.
“A 6-metre fungus would be odd enough in the modern world, but at least we are used to trees quite a bit bigger,” says Boyce. “Plants at that time were a few feet tall, invertebrate animals were small, and there were no terrestrial vertebrates. This fossil would have been all the more striking in such a diminutive landscape.”
Journal reference: Geology (vol 35 p 399) | 1,269,863 |
Are you ridin’ with Biden in 2016?
If you’re reading this article, chances are you’re not; but if you’re a Democrat, and you’re on the fence about who to support in the upcoming primary battle, there’s a super-PAC that would like a few minutes of your time.
The prospect of a Biden presidential run feels like a fever dream (or nightmare, depending on how easily amused by political theatre you are.) Since he first took his place as Vice President in 2009, Biden has defined himself not by savvy policy moves, but by behavior that likens him more to America’s Crazy Uncle Joe than America’s #2 Leader.
Still, his believers are out there in the form of the Draft Biden PAC, and they’re starting a major grassroots push aimed at convincing the Vice President to make a run for the Oval Office.
Watch:
In terms of optics, they checked all the boxes: lots of young people, strong minority presence, all wrapped together with a social issue ribbon. It’s bland, but it’s also a hard sell—something that this particular PAC is relying on.
According to Draft Biden organizer William Pierce, the group isn’t putting any money behind promotion of the video, and is instead relying on a network of supporters to jumpstart and increase organic exposure.
In case you were wondering, yes—that’s code for “we don’t have enough money to buy ads for this.”
Lack of money is a problem, but it’s also expected at this point. The numbers aren’t exactly working in Biden’s favor at this point in the game. Via The Hill:
Hillary Clinton remains the front-runner in the race for the Democratic nomination, but recent polling shows Biden would have an impact on the contest if he were to run. According to a Monmouth University survey released earlier this month, Clinton takes 51 percent support nationally, followed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) at 17 percent and Biden at 13 percent. But the poll found Biden’s entrance would shake up the race. In addition to Biden’s 13 percent support, an additional 12 percent of Democratic voters said they’d be likely to support Biden if he took the plunge, and 31 percent said they’d be somewhat likely to support him. Most of that additional support, 68 percent, would come from those who are currently Clinton supporters. “Most people seem to be focusing on a Sanders surge among the liberal wing of the party,” said Monmouth polling director Patrick Murray. “But the bigger threat to Clinton may come from a Biden candidacy, where the two would be fighting for the same voters.”
The “shake up” is what this group is counting on—and what could give Hillary a run for her money if a grassroots push translates into a large enough movement to convince Biden to jump in.
| 1,269,864 |
During the second day of Uber's Elevate Summit 2018, the company revealed concepts for its air taxi ports. While still at the early developmental stages, Uber plans to support over 4,000 passengers per hour, per Skyport. These initial blueprints come from Corgan, an architecture firm keen on "transforming urban air mobility" with what it calls "Connect," an infrastructure that will enable up to 1,000 Uber eVTOLs (Electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing) each hour.
The Connect system is composed of a single module that can be easily adapted for use on open sites like the topmost level of parking garages or skyscraper roofs. The module itself consists of four parts. First there's the Connection Plaza, a hub area which keeps the system tethered to pre-established highways, and provides a nice entryway for those rushing off to an important business meeting; the Bridge facilitates intuitive passenger flow. Corgan hasn't forgotten customer service either -- the hypothetical Station will apparently be a hotspot for urban commuters, and will offer restaurants, amenities and a shopping precinct. Lastly, the Flight Deck will be the part that connects passengers with their dedicated Uber air taxi pod. The firm added that each paired module can manage 180 landings per hour.
According to Corgan's press release: "Our vision for Connect is to address the greater needs of the community and take advantage of the un-utilized space found above highways in every major city."
A number of different Skyport designs have been submitted by other companies, too. Engineering company Gannett Fleming envisions a system that boasts up to 52 take-offs an hour per module and would accommodate 600 arrivals and departures, also within an hour. Imagine a cluster of smallish helipads glued together and you've got the basic idea. Other ideas take design cues from nature. Architecture group Humphreys & Partners, for example, is trying out a beehive structure (seen below) that will act as a nest for 900 passengers.
During his presentation on stage, Mark Moore, the director of Uber's Aircraft Engineering Systems, said the company would be using an "all-electric battery" for the vehicles themselves and is "not embracing hybrid" systems as a solution. If you're worried about environmental noise, Moore claimed the air taxis will be around 15 dB quieter than a similarly sized helicopter, and said more companies are tackling "ultra-low noise signature efficiency" as personalized sky travel becomes more readily available.
He believes that air mobility services could be 10 to 20 times safer than current helicopter trips -- the air taxi service will be operated by commercial pilots who undergo specific training -- but also feature some level of background autonomy after extensive testing, similar to Uber's self-driving cars.
Uber has faced issues with its ground-based autonomous driving project and things are far more complicated when you're flying in the air. Moore emphasized that UberAIR's DEP redundancy (distributed electric propulsion redundancy) could help reduce the likelihood of mechanical accidents and crashes. There's only one way to find out. Uber plans to start aircraft testing by 2020. | 1,269,865 |
Parting ways with OpTic Gaming
Today I announce that I will no longer be a part of OpTic Gaming in any capacity. After talking for a while without going too deep into details it became clear that it would just be best to part ways rather then trying to stay with the team.
I'm not going to write about every iteration of the roster and all the events we attended but this all started on July 3rd, 2015 after my 2 month break after being replaced on Team Liquid where I was given a shot to play again on eLevate and back than I was a lot worse so I have to thank RUSH for vouching for me to give me another shot at helping build a roster that would eventually improve over the past year till now. I am happy that we kept the core of NAF, RUSH and I for so long and were able to improve so much over that period of time and even though things came to an end and it hurts to not be playing with the team anymore I think it is for the best at the end of the day.
Regardless of any tension stanislaw and I had over the course of our time playing together I truly do respect him and his work ethic as that is hard to find with a lot of players which has helped our teams success ever since we picked him up last year. Stanislaw is a really good player, very smart and will do an excellent job leading the team in the future.
I still consider them my friends and even if I am not apart of the team anymore it still makes me happy to see something I helped build with them over a year ago continue to succeed so I wish them the best.
I would also like to thank H3cz, J and everyone else in OpTic for giving us the opportunity at the start of the year to be a part of the biggest brand in esports and for supporting us through the good times and the bad times. One of the things I will miss the most is the support of the fans from OpTic as I have never experienced anything like that with any team I have ever been apart of which made our lows easier to get through and also made us feel appreciated when we succeeded. So a big thanks to all the fans from the Green Wall!
This will now be the 2nd team I will be parting ways with since the start of 2014:
RONIN5/NGE -> LunatiK eSports -> Denial eSports -> Team Liquid
eLevate -> Sponsorless -> Conquest -> OpTic Gaming
Today I will be playing in the WESG Canadian qualifier with a pug for fun to try and make it to Brazil/China. As for my future I am uncertain. There are many paths I can explore and maybe attempting to start from scratch for a 3rd time is a possibility but I am not going to jump into anything too fast. I do still want to stay in the esports industry as I have a passion for it and I am open to whatever may present itself.
Reply · Report Post | 1,269,866 |
If Windows 10 isn't your cup of tea, System76 has a new Ubuntu laptop with Intel's Kaby Lake chip that won't burn your wallet.
The 14-inch Lemur laptop starts at $699, a more affordable price for cost-sensitive users than Dell's Ubuntu-based XPS 13 Developer Edition, which starts at $949.
"We don't have any Mac tax or Windows tax that goes into [Lemur]," said Ryan Sipes, community manager at System76.
Despite having a free OS, Dell's XPS 13 laptop has been criticized for being more expensive than the XPS 13 with Windows 10, which starts at $799.99. The Lemur is has many features in common with the XPS 13 DE, though it isn't as slick-looking.
Most users of prior versions of Lemur are enthusiasts, university students or casual PC users. Many Lemur users are seeking alternatives to Windows or Mac PCs, Sipes said.
Intel's Kaby Lake chips started reaching laptops in recent months. Most have Windows 10, and System76 had to tune Linux to work with Lemur. Likewise, Dell had to develop Linux drivers for Thunderbolt 3 and USB-C docks specifically for XPS 13 DE.
System76 has preloaded Ubuntu to provide a polished user experience out of the box, Sipes said. Users can install other distributions like Debian or Mint, and System76 provides the tools to reload the software repository.
The 10-year-old boutique PC company has made a name building Linux laptops and desktops. It has survived the ups and downs of the PC market and increased the number of its laptop and desktop offerings over the last few years.
The entry-level $699 Lemur model has a Core i3-7100U CPU, 4GB of DDR4 RAM, 500GB hard drive, 802.11ac Wi-Fi and Ubuntu 16.04 or 16.10.
A fully loaded $1,997 laptop comes with a Core i7-7500U CPU, 32GB of DDR4 DRAM and a 1TB NVMe-based solid state drive.
The top-line Lemur gives you two times more storage and memory than a fully-loaded $1,799 Dell XPS 13. The Dell XPS 13 has some advantages, though -- it is thinner, has a higher-resolution edge-to-edge screen, and is much lighter.
The Lemur laptop has a full HD screen and USB Type-C port. For a cost, a solid-state drive can be added in a second storage slot.
The Lemur packs many ports in its 1.6-kilogram frame. It has USB 3.0, USB 2.0, HDMI and gigabit ethernet ports. It also has an SD card reader and 720p webcam.
One surprise is a VGA port, which is actually being excluded from most laptops now. VGA ports have carried over from previous models for those who want to connect monitors and projectors, Sipes said. | 1,269,867 |
Dependence on tobacco is a primary medical problem deserving of thoughtful, ongoing attention from every healthcare provider. Any argument to the contrary can be answered with the following facts: 40 out of every 100 cancer cases in India are tobacco-related1. Nearly 95% of all oral cancers occur among tobacco users1. Tobacco usage is estimated to cause about 71% of all deaths due to lung cancer, 42% of all chronic respiratory diseases and nearly 10% of all cardiovascular diseases2.
Hospitalisation offers an opportunity to address tobacco-use among patients who may be particularly receptive, especially if they are hospitalised for a tobacco-related illness. Addressing tobacco use among hospitalised patients also takes advantage of patients' interaction with the healthcare system, as they may not have previously interacted with healthcare providers in a setting where tobacco use was discussed.
Life First’s tobacco treatment protocol is based on Tobacco treatment programmes at Mayo Clinic (USA), Massachusetts General Hospital (USA), and National Health Service (UK), and the Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence: 2008 Update—Clinical Practice Guideline by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as well as by our experiences at Prince Aly Khan Hospital, where the programme has been adapted for the Indian context.
By partnering with LifeFirst, one can offer tobacco treatment services to the people who need it the most, namely, those who are already at risk. Quitting tobacco results in a host of positive outcomes like improved response to treatment, better rate of survival among cancer patients3, reduced likelihood of developing secondary cancer after treatment4, and reduced mortality after suffering from a heart attack5.
For Inpatients
For Outpatients All admitted patients are screened for tobacco use by a trained Tobacco Treatment Specialist (TTS).Further, tobacco users are given a brief advise session during their hospital stay in order to motivate them to quit smoking. Patients willing to join the programme are then provided with face-to-face counselling, behavioural modification, pharmacotherapy (if needed) and follow-up support (in person or over the phone) for six months following their discharge. Patients are identified through a process of screening by a trained Tobacco Treatment Specialist (TTS) or via a referral system by primary consultants. These patients are then taken through a session where they are informed about the ill-effects of tobacco use, the benefits of quitting and are given information about the LifeFirst TTS service. Patients who agree to join the service are provided with specialised services, according to the LifeFirst protocol.
95% of all oral cancers occur among tobacco users Nearlyof all oral cancers occur among tobacco users 1
Be a LifeFirst Partner
What does LifeFirst offer?
Intensive training of the identified hospital staff in tobacco treatment by internationally qualified trainers.
Periodic sensitisation of consultants and Resident Medical Officers.
Development of Information Education and Communication materials to create awareness.
Setting up of an electronic database system for data collation.
Technical support for implementation of the service and ongoing monitoring support.
What will be your contribution? | 1,269,868 |
Native Policies (Expansion Feature)
Coexistance Policy means that you respect native lands and try your best to coexist with them peacefully. It removes all native uprisings from your colonies, at the expense of slower settler growth.
Trading Policy means that you try to maximize the economic benefit your empire derives from the natives. It increases the benefit you gain from successfully assimilating the natives.
Repression Policy means that you actively persecute the natives, seizing their land and wealth for your settlers. It increases the chance of native uprisings but gives you higher settler growth.
Declare Colonial War (Expansion Feature)
Concede Colonial Area (Expansion Feature)
Hello and welcome to another development diary for Europa Universalis 4 about the upcoming unannounced expansion, inofficially codenamed 'Secret Denmark'. Today we'll be going over a few features regarding colonialism and the treatment of natives.When dealing with the natives in your colonies, you currently only have three options: Kill them all, garrison the colony, or do nothing and hope for the best. Garrisoning every colony can be quite a bit of micromanagement, while killing the natives is counterproductive since you miss out on those sweet, sweet native assimilation bonuses to goods produced. To add a little more choice, we've created a new system called Native Policies. Native Policies lets you pick a single policy for your entire empire between the three choices of Coexistance, Trading and Repression:You can choose a native policy once you have at least one colonist, and must do so before establishing any colonies. Once chosen, it costs 1 stability to change your native policy. In addition to this paid feature, we've also changed natives somewhat in the free patch by adding a cooldown on how often they can rise up: Once a province has a native uprising, it cannot have another for 1 year.Ever wished that Protectores were a little more useful in expanding your overseas Empire? Ever wanted to employ the British strategy in India? The Declare Colonial War feature lets you do just that. When declaring war against an overseas target, those with the expansion will have the option to consider it a colonial war instead of a regular war. Declaring a colonial war prevents you from calling in any of your regular allies, but will let you call in your Protectorates. Other subjects will also be called in as normal.As anyone who's ever fought a war over the New World knows, making peace can be a bit of a hassle. Finding all the provinces you want in a particular colonial area, ensuring they're all selected, and so on. Concede Colonial Area gives you a bit of a shortcut by allowing you to demand every province in a particular colonial region where you already have a Colonial Nation. In addition to gaining all the provinces the enemy has in the region, using this peace option will also block them from colonizing that colonial region while you have a truce.Well, that's all for today: Short and sweet. Next week's dev diary will be a big one though, as we discuss the concept of diplomatic feedback. | 1,269,869 |
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday issued an executive order revoking limits imposed by predecessor Barack Obama on the transfer of surplus military equipment to local law enforcement agencies, the White House said.
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Obama had curtailed the equipment transfer program after law enforcement officers using military-style armored vehicles and guns confronted protesters in Ferguson, Missouri, in 2014 following the fatal police shooting of a black teenager.
Trump’s executive order said, “All executive departments and agencies are directed, as of the date of this order and consistent with Federal law, to cease implementing those recommendations and, if necessary, to take prompt action to rescind any rules, regulations, guidelines, or policies implementing them.”
The Republican president has reversed or cut back many of his Democratic predecessor’s policies since taking office in January.
The use of military equipment in Ferguson prompted a wider outcry over the use of war-fighting equipment by local law enforcement agencies in the United States.
After a review, Obama barred the military from transferring certain types of equipment to police or sheriff’s departments, including tracked armored vehicles, armed aircraft or vehicles of any kind,.50-caliber firearms and ammunition, grenade launchers, bayonets and camouflage uniforms.
Obama also required law enforcement agencies to justify the need for items like helicopters and other aircraft, wheeled armored vehicles, unmanned drones, riot helmets and “flash-bang” grenades.
“These restrictions that had been imposed went too far,” U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions told a meeting of the Fraternal Order of Police union in Nashville, Tennessee, earlier on Monday.
“We will not put superficial concerns above public safety. We will do our best to get you what you need.” Sessions did not specify what those superficial concerns were.
Sessions said helmets and body armor available through the Defense Department program were the types of equipment that saved the life of a police officer during the 2016 Orlando, Florida, nightclub shooting. And helicopters and armored vehicles are vital to emergency and disaster response, he said.
Monday’s order drew criticism from some of Trump’s fellow Republicans in Congress.
“It is one thing for federal officials to work with local authorities to reduce or solve crime, but it is another for them to subsidize militarization,” Senator Rand Paul said in a statement.
Paul promised to introduce legislation that would ban transfers of certain military equipment to local law enforcement agencies, improve transparency surrounding such transfers, and require the agencies to return equipment prohibited under the proposed law.
U.S. Representative Mark Sanford also condemned the executive order, criticizing the transfer program as a potential waste of taxpayers’ dollars. He said in a statement that he had introduced a bill in 2016 to auction off military equipment instead of give it to local agencies.
The Defense Department’s law enforcement support program has transferred more than $6 billion worth of equipment to police agencies since its inception 25 years ago, Pentagon figures show. | 1,269,870 |
The economy grew an annualized 1.9 percent in the July-September period, marking a fourth consecutive quarter of growth but sharply down from the previous quarter as consumption slowed and exports fell, casting a cloud over “Abenomics.”
In the previous three months, gross domestic product rose at an annualized 3.8 percent.
Data announced Thursday by the Cabinet Office showed that the inflation-adjusted GDP grew 0.5 percent from the previous quarter, leading the administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to justify his Abenomics policy, marked so far by drastic monetary easing and aggressive public spending.
“We believe domestic demand is holding firm and the economy is on a continued up-trend,” economic and fiscal policy minister Akira Amari said after the GDP announcement. “The government will continue to pursue its ‘three arrows’ policy (including yet-to-be implemented growth strategies)... to chart a solid course out of deflation toward an economic recovery.”
The GDP growth was mainly a result of the ¥20 trillion-plus emergency stimulus package the government approved in January that pushed up public investment. Public investment grew 6.5 percent from the previous quarter.
Private residential investment rose 2.7 percent, thanks to ultra-low interest rates and an upswing in consumer sentiment, the government said.
Private consumption, which accounts for about 60 percent of the GDP, increased a mere 0.1 percent, compared with the April-June growth rate of 0.6 percent.
Exports fell by 0.6 percent, compared with a 2.9 percent increase in the April-June period, due to a slump in business with emerging Asian economies.
Amari expressed optimism over the future, citing forecasts from private-sector economists pointing to an uptick in GDP in the coming quarters because of a rush in demand ahead of the consumption tax hike next April.
Ryutaro Kono, chief economist of BNP Paribas Securities, warned however that the trend may not last long.
“Growth is continuing even while inflation is on the rise, but the robust growth is due to the additional fiscal measures,” Kono said. “This will continue to support growth for a while, but we may see a slowdown in late 2014 after this support runs out, unless further fiscal measures are introduced and the yen depreciates further.”
Kono doubts the government will achieve its fiscal 2013 target of 2.8 percent real GDP growth. “It won’t, is our forecast,” he said.
Yoshiki Shinke, chief economist at Dai-ichi Life Research Institute, on the other hand, said the slowdown for the latest quarter is not a major concern.
“The results aren’t much different from what we forecast,” Shinke said. “A slowdown from the previous quarter is evident, but I would think that’s mainly a backlash from an overly high growth in exports and consumption.... I think the recovery is progressing steadily.” | 1,269,871 |
If one were to peek into Yale’s science classrooms, it is unlikely that he or she would report any gender disparities. In class, there appear to be an equal number of male and female students, and both genders seem to engage equally during lecture. One would assume that scientists, who are trained to think objectively, are completely immune to gender discrimination. However, a recent Yale study by Corinne Moss-Racusin and colleagues suggests otherwise.
The researchers created a fictional student and sent out the student’s application to science professors at top, research-intensive universities in the United States. The professors were asked to evaluate how competent this student was, how likely they would be to hire the student, how much they would pay this student, and how willing they would be to mentor the student. All of the applications sent out were identical, except for the fact that half were for a male applicant, John, and half were for a female applicant, Jennifer. Results showed that, with statistical significance, both male and female faculty at these institutions were biased towards male students over female students.
Corinne Moss-Racusin, Ph.D, author of a paper on science faculty gender bias and author of this study, states that the motivation to investigate this issue came from the many popular conversations about why gender disparities in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields exist. Some people claim that women are biologically less capable than men in quantitative fields. Other researchers are quick to conclude that women choose to avoid the lifestyle that comes with being a scientist. Both parties assume that gender bias does not exist without actually testing for it in a lab. Therefore, the outcome of Moss-Racussin’s study is shocking.
The implications of this study are alarming, not only for women looking for a professional position in STEM fields, but also for the entire field of science. Moss-Racusin emphasizes the importance of mentoring by stating, “if you look at the paths of successful women, there is one thing they have in common by and large: they all had good mentors.” However, as the study shows, because scientists are less likely to offer women mentorship, the potential contributions of women to science are limited. Meg Urry, Chairwoman of the Department of Physics at Yale, describes the dilemma perfectly: “We have to diversify the profession before it clones itself out of existence.” The only way for science to progress is if we have the broadest and best possible input of brains. However, this progression is impossible unless scientists can find a way of avoiding the gender bias altogether.
Although it may not be possible to completely eliminate gender biases in the immediate future, Moss-Racusin believes that it is possible to reduce their effects by making simple changes in academic departments. Standardizing how often professors meet with students and implementing a third-party check system can ensure that all students are accessing the same levels of support from their academic advisor. Overall, awareness of this gender bias is the only way to keep the playing field level for all Johns and Jennifers. | 1,269,872 |
Blackbird Kitchen & Beer Gallery will open on Wednesday, Feb. 26 instead of Tuesday, Feb. 25 as originally planned, the restaurant announced on Facebook.
Blackbird had said it would open on Feb. 25 in an interview with Sac News & Review's Janelle Bitker.
Sac Foodways got a preview of the restaurant. Here's the snippet:
The general theme is elevation, by exciting and perhaps educating the beer and cider lovers in this town. The pumped up bar menu has items that pair well with the suds, such as an Oyster Po’Boy, a Grilled Steak Sandwich and a Burger with “Awesome Sauce”. I was a bit fearful that Carina’s seafood mojo had been subjugated but I had no need to fret. Her lovely bits from the sea are still represented nicely, with mouth pleasers such as Seared Arctic Char, Penn Cove Mussels–and YES, she’s still making her mythical Chowder!.. I ate. I drank. I was high walking back to my car and I didn’t care. Blackbird is back.
Read the entire post on Sac Foodways.
If you just can't wait to try the newest iteration of Blackbird, I think it'd be worth walking by the place on Tuesday to see if they're having a super secret soft opening. I don't have any inside information on this, but they were open on Saturday, and they might be again tomorrow getting the staff more practice.
Blackbird is located on 9th St. between J and K streets, and can be found online at http://blackbird-kitchen.com.
More News:
Sushi burritos will be dished out of former Trey B Cakes spot - Have you ever looked at your spicy tuna roll and desperately wished it was bigger? Like, burrito-sized? Surely, the owners of Wrap N’ Roll mused that one over a few times. And soon folks can try them—yes, sushi burritos—in Midtown. The Elk Grove spot will open their second outpost at the former Trey B Cakes location (1801 L Street) on April 1. Janelle Bitker in Sac News & Review.
Restaurateur opening ramen, sushi restaurants in Davis - Restaurateur Chuck Kim is opening two new Asian restaurants in Davis in the coming months. Kim opened Sushi Hook in 2007 in the shopping center at 807 Howe Ave. in Sacramento, which serves a wide variety of rolls, sashimi and bento boxes. He later opened Ramen & Rice in the same center in 2012, which makes ramen bowls and Korean food. Mark Anderson in Sac Biz Journal.
Organic juice store preparing to open in midtown - The owners of a new midtown Sacramento business hope to quench your thirst -- the organic way. Sun & Soil Juice Company, which specializes in organic juices and smoothies, is expected to open at 1912 P St. this spring. Sonya Sorich in Sac Biz Journal. | 1,269,873 |
Kids' Corner type Video Games
Today’s Wall Street Journal contained a fun little article about how Shrek Forever After‘s tie-in with the Vidalia Onion Committee is getting youngsters to eat onions. The campaign, which includes in-store displays with giant inflatable Shreks and images of characters on the packaging, is being credited, at least in part, to some eight million more pounds of Vidalias being sold so far this year compared to the same period last year. “There’s no question that Shrek has driven sales at the consumer level,” says John Tumino, a sales director at Richter & Co., a Charlotte, N.C., company that supplies onions to Safeway.
I have a four-year-old at home, and she will not eat onions, Vidalia or any other. She’s not buying the “but these onions are sweet!” line. She meticulously extracts every tiny speck from her fried rice, piling them on the edge of my plate. Or flinging them on the floor. So you can color me intrigued if Shrek — whom she likes, though not as much as Donkey, who is also featured in some in-store displays — can get her to eat them. After all, it’d make my life easier if I didn’t have to worry about whether stuff had onions in it…or fight to enjoy my dinner while a certain little someone amasses a greasy heap of discards next to food I’m trying to eat.
But there’s no major nutritional value to onions, so it’s more interesting than a godsend if a movie character gets her to eat them. Broccoli, brussells sprouts, salmon, breakfast that doesn’t have to be drowned in sweeteners — now we’re talking. I know Shrek’s “ogres are like onions” spiel made this a natural tie-in, but it’s too bad Popeye has fallen out of favor. I distinctly remember spooning down a bowl of steamed spinach as a youngster, walking around the table with a flexed arm so my parents, uncles, grandparents could all feel how my muscles were getting bigger after each bite.
I think the lesson from Shrek is that massively popular movie characters might work better than characters on a TV show. Kids’ movies are first and foremost about fun, whereas (most) kids’ TV shows are primarily about teaching lessons — Elmo tries to peddle broccoli, but kids are dubious of those do-gooder Sesame Street characters, who are always trying to get you to do the right thing. So, PopWatchers, any ideas about movie characters we can get to do our bidding on some of the un-kid-friendly nutritional foods? I immediately thought Little Mermaid and fish, but I guess that just means I’m kind of a sicko… Maybe the G-Force guinea pigs could shill for carrots? Your turn. | 1,269,874 |
Following in his father’s footsteps, Justin Trudeau has beaten the odds to become the youthful, optimistic face of Canada. John Powers sits down with the newly minted prime minister.
An Ottawa River breeze is chilling the air outside Rideau Hall, the grand stone building used for Canadian occasions of state, but on this festive November morning, nobody seems to mind. They’ve come by the thousands to be part of history: the swearing-in of their new prime minister, Justin Trudeau, the 43-year-old son of Pierre Trudeau, who from 1968 to 1984 was the most glamorous PM their country has known.
“This is our Camelot,” the Canadian reporter behind me says, only half kidding. Be that as it may, it’s certainly the triumphant culmination of a strange political journey. “Two years ago, Trudeau was viewed as a lightweight,” says Andrew Coyne, the sharp political columnist from Toronto’s National Post. “Many people would have found the whole idea of him being prime minister funny.”
Yet like so many successful politicians, Trudeau has thrived on being what George W. Bush memorably termed “misunderestimated.” Even as attack ads mocked his callowness—“Justin Trudeau: Just Not Ready”—his upbeat campaign proved him ready enough to win. He led his center-left Liberal Party to a dramatic upset victory over both the far-left New Democratic Party and the ruling Conservatives, headed by the divisive and hard-line Stephen Harper.
Unlike his predecessor, Trudeau celebrates openness and transparency—he plunges into crowds, cheerfully poses for selfies (even at G20 meetings), and shocks some with his public displays of affection toward his wife, Sophie Grégoire-Trudeau. Breaking with precedent, he has invited the public to join the festivities at Rideau Hall, and by the time the wailing bagpipes announce his arrival, among the thousands of people lining his path are several waving photographs and signs that read, “Just in time, Justin!” When the man himself finally pops into view alongside his wife, resplendent in her white baby-alpaca coat, you hear the crowd whoosh with excitement.
It’s easy to see why. Strikingly young and wavy-haired, the new prime minister is dashing in his blue suit and jaunty brown shoes—a stylistic riposte to the old world of boringly black-shoed politicians. To his right is Sophie, whom the New York Post, with characteristic elegance, has termed “the hottest First Lady in the world.” To his left is his much-tabloided mother, Margaret, renowned for partying with the Rolling Stones back in the day. And bounding in merry patterns before them are the couple’s three kids: Xavier James, eight; Ella-Grace Margaret, six; and tiny Hadrien, who’s not quite two. The whole family looks like an advertisement for the Future. | 1,269,875 |
Germany’s Nico Rosberg won his first Formula One world championship after finishing second in a tense Abu Dhabi Grand Prix won by Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton.
After all the suspense and expectation, Sunday’s race saw Hamilton chalking up his 10th win of the season, and fourth in a row, but powerless to do anything about the championship outcome despite making every effort.
His attempt to push Rosberg into the clutches of those behind him, by deliberately slowing the pace in the closing laps to the concern of team bosses, produced a nail-biting finish with the top four separated by just 1.6 seconds.
Last 10 world champions 2016 – Nico Rosberg 2015 – Lewis Hamilton 2014 – Lewis Hamilton 2013 – Sebastian Vettel 2012 – Sebastian Vettel 2011 – Sebastian Vettel 2010 – Sebastian Vettel 2009 – Jenson Button 2008 – Lewis Hamilton 2007 – Kimi Raikkonen 2006 – Fernando Alonso
Rosberg, who had needed only to finish in the top three to be sure of the title, held position to become his country’s third champion after Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel.
The son of 1982 title-winner Keke Rosberg is also only the second son of a world champion, after Britain’s Damon Hill, to take the crown.
Hamilton started from pole position and had little trouble winning the day-night race at the 5.554km Yas Marina circuit. But Rosberg had entered the race 12 points ahead of Hamilton in the standings, meaning a podium finish would secure the title regardless of Hamilton’s performance.
Rosberg ends the season on 385 points to Hamilton’s 380 to replicate the title win of his father Keke in 1982.
“Unreal,” Rosberg said on the podium. “I am very, very proud. I have done the same feat as my dad achieved. He will be here in half an hour and I am so excited to see him.”
“That was not the most enjoyable race I’ve had,” he admitted at the end. “I’m glad it’s over and I am absolutely ecstatic.”
In addition to persuading F1’s veteran commercial ring-master Bernie Ecclestone to “eat his words” after saying that a Rosberg title win would be bad for business, he left several other pundits chewing furiously.
“Big congratulations to Nico, good job man,” said Hamilton.
Abu Dhabi GP – Top 10
1. Lewis Hamilton – Mercedes
2. Nico Rosberg – Mercedes
3. Sebastian Vettel – Ferrari
4. Max Verstappen – Red Bull
5. Daniel Ricciardo – Red Bull
6. Kimi Raikkonen – Ferrari
7. Nico Hulkenberg – Force India
8. Sergio Perez – Force India
9. Felipe Massa – Williams-Mercedes
10. Fernando Alonso – McLaren | 1,269,876 |
A bounce has happened, altcoins recovering quickest include Monero, Ontology, Ethereum Classic and Decred.
As expected some sort of bottom has been reached and a rebound has occurred, whether this has any momentum to reverse the long term bearish trend is anyone’s guess but at the moment it is looking unlikely.
After reaching a 2018 low of $235 billion yesterday markets have recovered a little. Bitcoin hit the yearly bottom of $5,826 a few hours ago before a bounce back of 3% to $6,180 where it currently trades. Ethereum did not match its sub-$370 April low but fell to $426, it has recovered marginally to $455 but is still down 1% on the day. Altcoins are still generally in the red this morning, however there are some showing signs of recovery. These tokens however are the ones that have been hit hardest over the past week.
The best performing altcoin in the top 25 this morning is Monero according to Coinmarketcap. XMR is showing a 12% bounce on the day from a low of $109 during Sunday’s big dip. This is the lowest level Monero has been for almost eight months. It is currently trading at $126 showing the best recovery at the time of writing. Currently Monero has recovered all losses over the past week and is trading at the same level it was this time last Monday. The monthly picture is bleak though with XMR losing almost 30% over the past 30 days from $173 this time last month. Against Bitcoin Monero is 8.8% higher at the moment to just under 2050000 satoshis. This time last week its satoshi level was closer to 1910000 marking a 7.3% climb on BTC.
When crypto markets hit rock bottom, as what appears to be the case yesterday, there will be the inevitable bounce back. Monero is currently benefiting from this as is Ontology which has made just over 10.5% back on the day to trade at $5.10. ONT hit a low of $4.30 yesterday and was one of the hardest hit altcoins along with EOS, Litecoin and Cardano. At the time of writing many of the altcoins are still in the red and these include Stellar Lumens, Iota, Neo, VeChain, Qtum, and Icon. The bounce has been a very weak one indicating more downward movement could be ahead.
Total market capitalization has crept back above $250 billion but is only back to yesterday’s level before it all began to collapse. On the up side markets have clawed back $15 billion from their 2018 low of $235 billion but on the down side they are still very bearish. Trade volume has increased from $11 billion to $16 billion in the past 24 hours.
More on Monero can be found here: https://getmonero.org/
FOMO Moments is a section that takes a daily look at the top 25 altcoins during the Asian trading session and analyses the best performing one, looking for trends and possible fundamentals. | 1,269,877 |
Minister”) with “One Nation, One King,” a starry, large-canvas drama set against the French Revolution, and provocateur Gaspar Noé, whose ’90s-set “Psyché” concerns a group of urban dancers who get mysteriously drugged while rehearsing in a closed-down boarding school and succumb to madness. The film recently wrapped shooting in Paris and is deep in editing.
ALSO IN THE MIX
Few countries boast a better track record of supporting female filmmakers than France. In addition to Denis, Eva Husson could appear with “Girls of the Sun,” featuring Golshifteh Farahani as a female Kurdish fighter; Mia Hansen-Løve, whose “Maya” focuses on an immigrant reporter who was released after months of captivity in Syria in 2012, only to return to Goa after trying in vain to build his life in Paris; Catherine Corsini with Christine Angot adaptation “An Impossible Love”; and possibly first-timer Vanessa Filho, whose feature debut “Gueule d’Ange” stars Marion Cotillard as a single mother who abandons her 8-year-old daughter after meeting someone in a nightclub.
Several timely movies from the Middle East are being buzzed about for Cannes, most notably Nadine Labaki’s “Cafarnaúm,” the Lebanese actress-turned-director’s much anticipated follow-up to “Where Do We Go Now?” which played at in Cannes in 2011. Labaki’s film has previously been described as a political and contemporary fable about a child who rebels against the life he’s been imposed.
Meanwhile, the latest film from Israeli auteur Amos Gitai, Mathieu Amalric starrer “Tramway to Jerusalem,” could also turn up at the festival. The film takes place on along a tramline that connects several of the city’s neighborhoods, bringing together a mosaic of people from different religious and ethnic backgrounds.
From Egypt, Abu Bakr Shawky’s “Yomeddine,” an adventure-filled drama about a Coptic leper and his orphaned apprentice’s search for their families, has been submitted. The same goes for “Weldi,” the latest from Tunisian director Mohamed Ben Attia (whose “Hedi” won a Silver Bear in Berlin two years ago), which was produced by Belgian brothers (and two-time Palme d’Or winners) Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne. Also from Belgium, director Joachim Lafosse is hoping to finally be tapped for competition with his aptly titled new movie, “Keep Going,” based on the novel by Laurent Mauvignier.
Nick Vivarelli, Patrick Frater, Richard Kuipers, and Maggie Lee contributed to this report.(Pictured: Robert Pattinson in “High Life.”) | 1,269,878 |
The U.S. will kick off its annual joint military exercises with South Korea on Monday, but this year’s drills will involve far fewer American troops than last year’s amid heated tensions with nuclear-armed North Korea.
The Pentagon said Friday that the exercises, known as Ulchi Freedom Guardian (UFG), would see about 17,500 U.S. service members take part in the drills scheduled to begin Monday and run through Aug. 31.
About 25,000 were involved in the 2016 drills.
South Korea’s Defense Ministry said about 50,000 South Korean forces will join the drills.
In a statement, the Pentagon did not address the discrepancy in the numbers, but the UFG exercises come amid soaring tensions over the North’s nuclear weapons ambitions. Pyongyang routinely blasts the drills as a rehearsal for invasion and warned last week of a “second Korean War” should Seoul and Washington go ahead with them.
The U.S., however, disputes this claim, saying the exercises are defensive in nature.
“UFG is computer simulated defensive exercise designed to enhance readiness, protect the region and maintain stability on the Korean peninsula,” the Pentagon said, adding that they “help to ensure peace and security on the peninsula, and reaffirm U.S. commitment to the Alliance.”
The exercises will be the first large-scale drills since North Korea conducted two successful tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles and later unveiled a plan to lob missiles near the U.S. territory of Guam. The North later walked back that threat, saying that it would instead keep an eye on the situation.
Beyond the smaller number of U.S. troops, the U.S. may chose not to involve any of its strategic assets in the drills.
South Korea’s SBS television network reported Friday that Washington had canceled plans to deploy two aircraft carriers, a nuclear-powered submarine and strategic bombers to the peninsula for the drills. Citing an anonymous South Korean government source, the report said Seoul had agreed with the proposal to scale back the exercises.
The U.S. has used its B-1B heavy bombers on Guam to showcase its ability to project “overwhelming force” over the Korean Peninsula. It last conducted such a mission over South Korea on Aug. 8, when two B-1Bs were joined by South Korean F-15 fighters.
North Korea labeled the U.S. as the “air pirates of Guam” and called the training exercise a “mad-cap drill simulating an actual war.”
But since Pyongyang unveiled its plan to fire missiles near Guam on Aug. 9, the U.S. has apparently refrained from sending strategic assets — including the Guam-based bombers — near the Peninsula.
Instead, the U.S. Air Force sent two B-1Bs from Andersen Air Force Base on Guam to link up with Air Self-Defense Force F-15s near the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea on Wednesday. | 1,269,879 |
Public schoolchildren across the country were physically restrained or isolated in rooms they couldn’t leave at least 267,000 times in the 2011-2012 school year, despite a near-consensus that such practices are dangerous and have no therapeutic benefit. Many states have little regulation or oversight of such practices. This map shows where your state stands. Data compiled as of January 2014. Related: Violent and Legal: The Shocking Ways School Kids are Being Pinned Down, Isolated Against Their Will
Compare states by Total Score Is the use of restraints limited to emergencies? Is the use of seclusions limited to emergencies? Is parental notification of either practice required? Is the use of seclusions prohibited? Are restraints that restrict breathing banned? Mechanical restraints prohibited ProPublica awarded each state a score based on how closely they follow six key elements that are outlined in reform bills and U.S. Department of Education non-mandatory guidance. The highest score is 12, for most restrictions, and the lowest score is 0, meaning least restrictions. A patchwork of regulation ProPublica awarded each state a score based on how closely they follow six key elements that are outlined in reform bills and U.S. Department of Education non-mandatory guidance. The lowest score is 0, with the least restrictions.
Is the use of restraints limited to emergencies? Emergencies involve potential harm to the student or others. ProPublica did not consider “academic disruption” or “property damage” emergencies.
Is the use of seclusions limited to emergencies? Emergencies involve potential harm to the student or others. ProPublica did not consider “academic disruption” or “property damage” emergencies. Georgia is the only state to prohibit seclusion in all cases.
Is parental notification of either practice required? Most states don’t require that parents be told every time children are subject to restraints or seclusions.
Is the use of seclusions prohibited? Georgia is the only state to prohibit seclusion in all cases.
Are restraints that restrict breathing banned? This includes the so-called "prone" restraint, which some states have prohibited explicitly.
Are mechanical restraints prohibited? “Mechanical” restraints use something artificial like straps, handcuffs or bungee cords to do the restraining.
State Total Score Restraints limited to emergencies Seclusion limited to emergencies Parental notification required Prohibits seclusion Prohibits restraints that restrict breathing Prohibits mechanical restraints
* parental notication in some instances
** with parental waiver
*** if included in IEP
**** ban limited to prone restraint
(a) Prone restraint permitted by trained staff.
(b) Prone restraint allowed through August 2015.
(c) Seclusion allowed if child is "supervised."
(d) Minnesota's statue "was drafted in a way to create some ambiguity," using "physical holding" instead of "restraint."
Source: Jessica Butler, a national advocate for children with autism. Meral Agish provided research for this map. | 1,269,880 |
DENVER (AP) — A Christian-affiliated health system in a court fight over Colorado’s assisted suicide law says the state can’t stop religious organization from disciplining employees who encourage the option in violation of its beliefs.
In a federal court filing Wednesday, Colorado-based Centura Health argues in part that the U.S. Constitution’s religious freedom protections trumps the state law’s protections for doctors who both chose to or decide against prescribing lethal drugs to hasten the death of patients.
“We’re only asking them for asking clarity around how the law works for those who chose to opt out,” Centura CEO Peter Banko said Thursday.
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The legal dispute started last month after Neil Mahoney, a terminally ill man, told his Centura doctor, Barbara Morris, that he wanted to get the drugs allowed under the law passed by voters in 2016. Morris wanted to help him do so but did not because of Centura’s policy against it.
Instead, they filed a lawsuit in state court asking a judge to decide whether she could help him because Centura’s policy allegedly violated state law. She was fired days later.
Centura, which was formed by Catholic and Seventh-day Adventist health care ministries, moved the case to federal court. Lawyers for Mahoney and Morris are trying to get it moved back to state court. At their request, a judge on Thursday granted their request for a quick decision because of Mahoney’s health.
“No matter how much Centura tries to delay this case procedurally, in the end a court of law is going to decide whether Centura can enter the hospital business but willfully ignore Colorado laws governing all hospitals, whether religious or otherwise,” said Jason Spitalnick, a lawyer representing Mahoney and Morris.
Morris worked for a Catholic hospital within Centura, St. Anthony Hospital. Directives forbid Catholic hospitals from participating in euthanasia or assisted suicide in any way. Centura says those prohibitions apply to its employees who carry out its mission.
Banko said Centura feels for what Mahoney and his family are facing and said he hopes the courts will act quickly.
Centura’s religious freedom argument fits within the constitutional doctrine of church autonomy, developed over the years, in which courts have usually chosen not to interfere with the decisions and autonomy of all kinds of religious institutions, including hospitals and non-profit organizations, said Frank S. Ravitch, the chair of the law and religion program at Michigan State University’s law school.
However, it is not clear whether a doctor would be seen as a kind of “minister” of the hospital group or not, he said. It is also possible that Morris could argue that Centura’s policy was interfering with her doctor-patient relationship and her ability to provide the best care to her patient, he said.
“The doctrine of autonomy has a more limited application in this context,” Ravitch said. | 1,269,881 |
: In pictures Fingerprint payment NatWest is trialling a new bank card that will allow people to touch their hand to the card when paying rather than typing in a PIN number. The card will work by recognising the user's fingerprint NatWest/PA Wire Business news: In pictures Mahabis bust High-end slipper retailer Mahabis has gone into administration. 2 Jan 2019 Mahabis Business news: In pictures Costa Cola Coca-Cola has paid £3.9bn for Costa Coffee. A cafe chain is a new venture for the global soft drinks giant PA Business news: In pictures RIP Payday Loans A funeral procession for payday loans was held in London on September 2. The future of pay day lenders is in doubt after Wonga, Britain's biggest, went into administration on August 30 PA Business news: In pictures Musk irks investors and directors Elon Musk has concluded that Tesla will remain public. Investors and company directors were angry at Musk for tweeting unexpectedly that he was considering taking Tesla private and share prices had taken a tumble in the following weeks Getty Business news: In pictures Jaguar warning Iconic British car maker Jaguar Land Rover warned on July 5, 2018 that a "bad" Brexit deal could jeopardise planned investment of more than $100 billion, upping corporate pressure as the government heads into crucial talks AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures Spotif-IPO Spotify traded publically for the first time on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday. However, the company isn't issuing shares, but rather, shares held by Spotify's private investors will be sold AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures French blue passports The deadline to award a contract to make blue British passports after Brexit has been extended by two weeks following a request by bidder De La Rue. The move comes after anger at the announcement British passports would be produced by Franco-Dutch firm Gemalto when De La Rue’s contract ends in July. The British firm said Gemalto was chosen only because it undercut the competition, but the UK company also admitted that it was not the cheapest choice in the tendering process. Business news: In pictures Beast from the east economic impact The Beast from the East wiped £4m off of Flybe’s revenues due to flight cancellations, airport closures and delays, according to the budget airline’s estimates. Flybe said it cancelled 994 flights in the three months to 31 March, compared to 372 in the same period last year.
In the midst of a Black Friday that will no doubt produce figures showing another record as retailers accept they’re damned if they do and damned if they don’t and decide to join the party, the figures do, however, combine with other data to show that the consumer is playing an important role in holding the economy up in the wake of a Brexit vote that has badly hit business investment.
How the survey, and other data tracking the performance of the the retail sector, responds into the New Year when price rises as a result of the weak pound start to filter through, combined with the realisation that wages aren't going to rise to meet them, remains to be seen. | 1,269,882 |
Chinese experts have long maintained that the West overstates their country’s influence over North Korea, especially in the Kim Jog Un era. They acknowledge that China has economic leverage over Pyongyang, but at the same time point out that China is boxed in because its ultimate goal is a stable North Korea—and because any international pressure could lead to instability on the Korean Peninsula, Beijing is reluctant to take forceful action.
“It is difficult to estimate China’s influence over Pyongyang,” Lu Chao, director of the Border Study Institute at the Liaoning Academy of Social Sciences, a government think tank, told NK News in an interview in 2015. He said that in the era of Kim Jong Il, Kim Jong Un’s father, “the two countries followed the practice of notifying each other on serious issues. But the ties are going through a relative low point, and there seems to be no such practice now.” In an interview in May with the Globe and Mail, Luo reiterated those comments: “Frankly speaking, we are right now at the lowest point in the relationship between China and North Korea.”
Americans who have dealt with Chinese diplomats on North Korea empathize, but say there’s no question China still wields enormous influence on the leadership in Pyongyang.
“I think it’s a fair statement that China is experiencing a significantly different dynamic with Kim Jong Un than with his predecessor, which should be extremely concerning to all of us, and which I think is legitimately concerning to Beijing as well,” said David Pressman, a former U.S. ambassador to the UN for special political affairs during the Obama administration. “I think there was a time when there was more predictability in the relationship between China and North Korea and the leadership of both countries.”
But Pressman, who is now partner at Boies Schiller Flexner LLP, added while China has the “ability to influence” North Korea’s calculus on its weapons programs, “we’re not even seeing a significant effort from Beijing to attempt to do that.” He noted that in early 2016, China was willing to adopt strong sanctions against North Korea at the UN, but “proved systematically prepared to look for excuses to not implement and not force the measures, including the measures that they’ve supported, being implemented.”
Indeed, at the time the UN imposed sanctions—which, among other things, prohibited North Korea’s sale of coal—China insisted on an exemption that permitted Pyongyang to export coal to facilitate the livelihoods of individual North Koreans.
“What the Chinese then proceeded to do with the livelihood exemption was funnel enormous amounts of coal trade under the guise of this exemption,” Pressman said. “So they were prepared to support the political message of banning the export of coal, but they weren’t prepared to deliver in practical terms that would actually make the North Korean regime feel some financial pain. And for sanctions to work, obviously that has to happen.” | 1,269,883 |
Desperate Cumulus CEO Mary Berner wants her staffers to become radio-active.
Berner, with her company’s shares and revenue sagging, is asking all staff members in a recent company video to tap friends and family to generate leads for the firm’s ad sales unit, according to sources, who described the wacky video to The Post.
The video features an animated howling wolf, who approaches coffee shop owners to talk up the benefits of radio ads, sources said.
Berner tells staff that if each of the firm’s 6,000 employees brings in one sales lead per quarter, it could result in $240 million in new revenue, sources said.
That’s 20 percent of 2015 revenues. The cash could certainly come in handy, as revenue was down 2 percent in the first nine months of 2016.
To motivate staff, Cumulus is offering the person with the most leads prizes like becoming CEO for a day, or Super Bowl tickets.
Cumulus — the third-largest radio station owner in the country, behind iHeart Media and the soon-to-combine CBS/Entercom — did not meet its 2016 budget, Berner admitted in the video.
With revenue falling and $2.4 billion in debt choking cash flow, Cumulus shares are down nearly 80 percent over the past 12 months — to 51 cents a share at Friday’s close — and there have been whispers of a possible Chapter 11 filing.
Cumulus reports its fourth-quarter and full-year earnings on March 16.
Berner, who steered Reader’s Digest through a bankruptcy proceeding, was hired in October 2015.
In late February 2016, a desperation move by Berner that would have allowed Cumulus to pay down some debt was blocked by a judge after protests from JPMorgan.
Cumulus owns roughly 450 radio stations, including New York’s WPLJ and WABC. Ebitda fell 37.9 percent in the third quarter, to $43.8 million.
Cumulus also has syndication company Westwood One, which represents talent including Michael Savage, Jim Bohannon and Mark Levin.
Berner’s video isn’t the first instance of her resorting to nontraditional means to boost morale.
In 2011, while at Reader’s Digest, Berner asked senior staff to eat bugs as part of a Halloween event.
The Cumulus sales video features an animated wolf named Sulumuc — which is Cumulus spelled backward — approaching a local coffee shop owner to talk about radio advertising.
At the end of the video, Berner is seen giving high fives to her staff, who howl like wolves, sources said.
“Being a leader is so easy, even a freakin’ wolf can do it,” said Berner in the video.
A Cumulus spokeswoman declined comment.
Cumulus’ biggest shareholders include Crestview Partners and the Dickey family. | 1,269,884 |
As the value of cryptocurrencies rises, more and more scammers are trying to dupe people. Recently, someone faked Litecoin creator Charlie Lee’s Twitter account and launched a fraudulent scheme in which he claimed to be giving away 180 LTC.
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The individual is asking people to make a transaction of 0.3 LTC to a specified wallet address, and in return the first 60 people to make the transaction will receive 3 LTC each.
I am donating 180 Litecoin to the LTC community. First 60 transactions with 0.3 LTC sent to the address below will each receive 3 LTC to the address the 0.3 LTC came from LKGMCZZxp4hSCkwDQCuefBiwh93diTKt2z Don't miss out. Claim your LTC now! — Charlie Lee [LTC] (@SatoshiLitez) January 29, 2018
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The scheme was posted in various cryptocurrency communities, but Twitter users were quick enough to point out the scam, calling it out and requesting that Twitter ban the account.
The fake account copied almost every aspect of Charlee Lee’s account except the username, to which it added a ‘z’ (@SatoshiLite/@SatoshiLitez). The scamster is even retweeting Charlee Lee’s recent posts in order to look authentic.
The model of this scam is a classic one and is tried by various fraudsters, and surprisingly, it works really well. Many people will make these small transactions in their greed to gain more coins. Luckily, there have been no victims of this particular scam yet.
PSA: Please be wary of this Twitter scam going on right now. After every of my post, there will an immediate reply by a scammer promising to give away coins if you send him some. The post looks like it’s from me. Blocking them doesn’t help, b/c they just create another account. pic.twitter.com/qPHxKntPHD — Charlie Lee [LTC] (@SatoshiLite) January 30, 2018
A similar attempt was once made with Vitalik Buterin’s Twitter account, offering Ethereum instead of Litecoin.
From classic phishing tactics to faking ICOs, scammers are trying everything they can to scam cryptocurrency investors. Though fake public accounts can be easily identified, novice cryptocurrency investors often become victims.
The cryptocurrency market is very vulnerable to scams and cyber attacks, and ICOs in particular. In a recent study, Ernst and Young found that more than $400 million were either lost or stolen from ICOs. Scammers are so active that within a day of the rumors of the Telegram ICO appearing, several fake token pre-sale websites were launched. | 1,269,885 |
British Columbia Premier Christy Clark's deputy chief of staff has resigned, days after the leak of a controversial document outlining the Liberals' plan to win ethnic votes in the upcoming provincial election.
Kim Haakstad had offered advice and input during the drafting stages of the Liberals' "Multicultural Strategy" revealed in documents leaked by the NDP earlier this week.
The documents were originally sent from Haakstad's email account in January last year and revealed a proposed outreach plan involving the premier's office, the Multiculturalism Ministry, the government caucus and the B.C. Liberal Party.
Clark, who accepted Haakstad's resignation Friday night, maintains she didn't know who crafted the controversial document and said she has asked for a review to ensure no government resources were inappropriately used.
Martyn Brown, who served as former premier Gordon Campbell's chief of staff, calls the documenting of such a strategy "politically stupid" and inane.
"The premier, to this moment as I speak, doesn't seem to grasp the scope and magnitude of the damage she's done to her party and to all the people she's serving," he said.
B.C. government probe
Meanwhile, the B.C. government has announced the terms of reference for an investigation into the scandal.
Deputy Premier Rich Coleman said yesterday he might have results from the investigation within 24 hours.
However, it now appears it will take longer because the terms of reference don't give a deadline for the final report, saying only that the findings will be reported as fast as possible.
John Dyble, deputy minister to the premier, will head a team that will conduct interviews and review documents related to the ethnic vote plan, and the investigation will cover the premier's office and several ministries, including the one dealing with multiculturalism.
But NDP House Leader John Horgan said the review falls short because it doesn't include the Liberal Party or the party caucus.
Riding association presidents step down
Haakstad's resignation comes as the presidents of three Liberal riding associations in Surrey — Fleetwood, Whalley and Green Timbers — stepped down.
The Liberals, however, were quick to point out two of them quit well before the ethnic votes scandal blew up.
Peter Fassbender, the candidate in Surrey-Fleetwood, said his riding president, Brenda Locke, appears to have resigned over personal issues.
Clark apologized in a written statement on Thursday for the language used in the document.
It outlined "quick wins" for the Liberals, such as making apologies in the legislature for historical wrongs, specifically mentioning the 1914 Komagata Maru incident, which saw a ship carrying 356 passengers forced to return to India after a two-month standoff in Vancouver Harbour.
"The document did not recognize there are lines that cannot be crossed in conducting this outreach and it is unacceptable," Clark's statement read.
"The language in this draft document and some of the recommendations are absolutely inappropriate."
B.C.'s next provincial election is slated for May. | 1,269,886 |
A knockout in both appearance and performance, a 2011 Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport formerly owned by Floyd Mayweather Jr. entered the ring at Barrett-Jackson’s 46th Annual Scottsdale Auction in Arizona on Saturday. It unexpectedly took a hard hit, however, by failing to meet the asking price and ended up down for the count. The pearl-white wonder had, at one time, been a part of the undefeated and currently retired boxing great’s vast automobile collection—an assemblage that reportedly has included more than 100 vehicles from one supplier alone.
The Bugatti on the block was one of the French marque’s Veyron variants introduced in 2009. Named after Pierre Veyron, a bygone Bugatti engineer and part of the driving duo that took first at the 1939 24 Hours of Le Mans, the supercar pays him high praise as one of the fastest production machines ever made. The Grand Sport, fit with a targa-style roof, opens up on the open road with a 1,000 hp, 8-liter W-16 quad-turbocharged engine (with 922 ft lbs of torque) mated to a 7-speed automatic transmission. The power train enables the convertible to cruise from zero to 60 mph in a sizzling 2.4 seconds and a top speed of about 254 mph (with roof closed, 229 mph with it open)—close competition to its sibling, the Bugatti Chiron, which can bolt to a blistering 261 mph. Keeping the Veyron’s velocity in check are carbon-fiber-reinforced, silicon carbide disc brakes that can bring the Bugatti to a stop from a speed of 62 mph in 103 feet.
In 2010, the manufacturer made it possible for new owners to tailor the paint and interior trim to personal taste, an offer the premier pugilist took advantage of, evidenced by the exterior’s pearly presentation. The inside is dressed in red leather upholstery and carbon-fiber detailing.
Out of the 405 total Veyron’s built, only 150 were of the Grand Sport version. And as a near-new example, the one offered has only 1,668 miles on the odometer. With a serious seven-figure price tag when originally purchased, Mayweather’s ride was expected to roll out of Scottsdale for more than before due to its prize-fighter provenance. Perhaps if there had not been a reserve on the asking price, it could have been a contender.
Keeping the car company during the auction at WestWorld Scottsdale were rocker Steven Tyler’s 2012 Hennessey Venom GT Spyder (sold for $800,000 with its proceeds going to charity), pop star Justin Bieber’s 2011 Ferrari 458 Italia (sold for $434,500), and the famed 1986 Ferrari Testarossa from the iconic cop show Miami Vice (sold for $151,800). Barrett-Jackson’s sale ran from January 14 through 22. (barrett-jackson.com) | 1,269,887 |
Is there a link between differences in IQ test performance and the activity of certain genes? Researchers from Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin have shown that modifications in the structure of a specific gene have a negative impact on individual test performance. This suggests that environmentally-induced epigenetic changes to our genetic material have a greater impact on intelligence than previously thought. Results from this study have been published in Translational Psychiatry*.
Stress and adverse life experiences are examples of environmental factors that can affect gene activity, leading to structural changes in our genetic material (genome). These ‘epigenetic changes’ enable the human genome to adapt to its environment, allowing our DNA to be passed on to the next generation of cells, as well as passing on the information that determines whether, and under which conditions, a particular gene will be activated.
This study was led by Dr. Jakob Kaminski and Prof. Dr. Andreas Heinz of Charité’s Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy on Campus Charité Mitte. The international team of researchers compared the IQ test results of close to 1,500 adolescents with epigenetic modifications. The study focused on testing genes that are important in dopamine-based signal transmission (dopamine neurotransmission). Dopamine plays an important role in the brain’s reward system and is crucial in modulating a person’s drive and motivation. The researchers were able to demonstrate a link between the epigenetic regulation of dopamine neurotransmission and an individual’s IQ test performance. Epigenetic modification resulted in the dopamine receptor gene being silenced: neurons carried fewer dopamine receptors, and signal transmission was reduced. In this current study, silencing of the gene was associated with lower IQ test results.
Commenting on the results of the study, Dr. Kaminski explains: “We have previously been able to observe links between stress and cognitive performance, particularly in relation to the activity of the dopamine-controlled reward system. Environmentally-induced gene activity now joins the ranks of other factors known to influence IQ test performance, such as poverty and genetic constitution. In this study, we were able to observe how individual differences in IQ test results are linked to both epigenetic changes and differences in brain activity which areunderly environmental influences.” The researchers are hoping to conduct more in-depth studies to determine the extent of environmentally-induced neurobiological modifications, as well as the degree to which these modifications affect IQ test performance.
*Kaminski JA, et al.: Epigenetic variance in dopamine D2-receptor: a marker of IQ malleability? Translational Psychiatry 8, Article number: 169 (2018). DOI: 10.1038/s41398-018-0222-7.
Links
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy
Learning and Cognition Working Group
Original article in Translational Psychiatry
Contact
Dr. Jakob Kaminski
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy
Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin
t: +49 30 450 660 065 | 1,269,888 |
Broadband Internet Service Coverage in Canada in 2014
The map depicts broadband Internet services that were available across Canada and the technologies used to provide those services as of the end of 2014. It forms part of the record of the proceeding initiated by Telecom Notice of Consultation 2015-134.
*Internet speeds at or above the CRTC’s targets may not be achievable throughout the entire LTE coverage area.
Speeds
This map depicts the availability of broadband Internet access service at or above the CRTC’s target speeds of 5 megabits per second download and 1 megabits per second upload within hexagon areas of 25 square kilometres.
Served/Underserved
For the purpose of these maps, the entire hexagon is classified as “served” by the given technology if at least one household has access to these target speeds in that hexagon. The actual speeds and coverage may vary depending on the technology. For example, wireless signals may be affected by distance from the tower, terrain and weather; similarly cable and digital subscriber line (DSL) technologies may be affected by distance and other factors. Actual availability may therefore vary within a specific hexagon. “Unserved” and “underserved” areas simply display the population.
Technology
Cable : A communications technology that provides data transmission over coaxial cable.
: A communications technology that provides data transmission over coaxial cable. Digital subscriber line (DSL) : A data communications technology that provides data transmission over a copper local loop.
: A data communications technology that provides data transmission over a copper local loop. Fibre : A technology that uses glass threads or plastic fibres to transmit data using pulses of light.
: A technology that uses glass threads or plastic fibres to transmit data using pulses of light. Fixed Wireless : A wireless network that uses either licensed or unlicensed spectrum to provide communications services (voice and/or data) where the service is intended to be used in a fixed location.
: A wireless network that uses either licensed or unlicensed spectrum to provide communications services (voice and/or data) where the service is intended to be used in a fixed location. Long-Term Evolution (LTE) Mobile : A protocol or standard used for communications between a mobile phone and cell towers in mobile networks. LTE is also referred to as 4G (fourth generation) cellular technology.
: A protocol or standard used for communications between a mobile phone and cell towers in mobile networks. LTE is also referred to as 4G (fourth generation) cellular technology. Satellite: Since satellite is a service with a national footprint, it is excluded from this map.
Data Sources
The CRTC gathered information from:
the record of the proceeding of the review of basic telecommunications services;
the Department of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada;
the CRTC’s web-based Data Collection System that collects information from service providers on a regular basis; and
the public domain (e.g. information on the websites of service providers). | 1,269,889 |
Mayor Pete Buttigieg told The New York Times that he doubts whether Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., could assemble a political coalition capable of defeating President Donald Trump.
In a piece that was published on Tuesday, Buttigieg argued the following about Sanders:
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In an interview, Mr. Buttigieg said Mr. Sanders’s left-wing proposals were no longer as provocative as in 2016 — “people were refreshed by the novelty of that boldness” — and expressed skepticism that a self-described democratic socialist in his late 70s could win a general election. “I have a hard time seeing the coalition ultimately coming together there,” he said. (Responding to the critique, Faiz Shakir, Mr. Sanders’s campaign manager, trumpeted the senator’s populist record and said his “unifying progressive agenda” made him “the best-positioned candidate to defeat Donald Trump in the general election.”)
Buttigieg has seen his political star rise considerably over the last month. As the mayor of the small Indiana town of South Bend, Buttigieg would normally not be considered a viable presidential prospect, although the experience level expected of a president has dropped since Trump was elected in 2016 without any prior political or military experience (a first for a president). Yet he has garnered attention due to his eloquence and his ability to appeal to the Democratic Party's moderate wing, which is searching for an alternative to the self-described democratic socialism preached by Sanders.
Buttigieg has gained attention for his eloquence, particularly in a speech earlier this month where he opened up about accepting his homosexuality and criticized Vice President Mike Pence's intolerant views toward the LGBT community.
"It’s hard to face the truth that there were times in my life when, if you had shown me exactly what it was inside me that made me gay, I would have cut it out with a knife. If you had offered me a pill to make me straight, I would’ve swallowed it before you had time to give me a sip of water," Buttigieg said at an LGBTQ Victory Fund event on Sunday.
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After explaining how he eventually realized God made him that way, Buttigieg added that "that’s the thing that I wish the Mike Pences of the world would understand. That if you have a problem with who I am, your problem is not with me. Your quarrel, sir, is with my creator."
Buttigieg has also seen his poll numbers rise. In a recent survey taken of members of the political action committee Democracy for America, Buttigieg ranked third by drawing support from former Rep. Beto O'Rouke of Texas, another charismatic young moderate who is hoping to emerge as an alternative to Sanders. Buttigieg may have also benefited from the scandal surrounding former Vice President Joe Biden, whose star has faded somewhat after women came forward describing occasions when he touched them inappropriately (he has not been accused of sexual misconduct). | 1,269,890 |
A record-breaking cyber-attack targeting an anti-spam watchdog group has sent ripples of disruption coursing across the internet, experts have said.
Spamhaus, a site responsible for keeping ads for counterfeit Viagra and bogus weight-loss pills out of the world's inboxes, said it had been buffeted by the monster denial-of-service attack since mid-March, apparently from groups angry at being blacklisted by the Swiss-British group.
"It is a small miracle that we're still online," Spamhaus researcher Vincent Hanna said on Wednesday.
Denial-of-service attacks overwhelm a server with traffic, like hundreds of letters being jammed through a mail slot at the same time.
Security experts measure those attacks in bits of data per second. Recent cyberattacks, like the ones that caused persistent outages at US banking sites late last year, have tended to peak at 100 billion bits per second.
But the furious assault on Spamhaus has shattered the charts, clocking in at 300 billion bits per second, according to San Francisco-based CloudFlare Inc, which Spamhaus has enlisted to help it weather the attack.
"It was likely quite a bit more, but at some point measurement systems can't keep up," CloudFlare chief executive Matthew Prince wrote in an email.
Patrick Gilmore of Akamai Technologies said that was not an understatement.
"This attack is the largest that has been publicly disclosed, ever, in the history of the Internet,'' he said.
Disgruntled service providers
It is unclear who exactly was behind the attack, although a man who identified himself as Sven Olaf Kamphuis said he was in touch with the attackers and described them as mainly consisting of disgruntled Russian internet service providers who had found themselves on Spamhaus' blacklists.
There was no immediate way to verify his claim.
He accused the watchdog of arbitrarily blocking content that it did not like.
Spamhaus has widely used and constantly updated blacklists of sites that send spam.
"They abuse their position not to stop spam but to exercise censorship without a court order," Kamphuis said.
Gilmore and Prince said the attack's perpetrators had taken advantage of weaknesses in the Internet's infrastructure to trick thousands of servers into routing a torrent of junk traffic to Spamhaus every second.
Both experts said the attack's sheer size had sent ripples of disruptions across the internet as servers moved mountains of junk traffic back and forth across the web.
"At a minimum there would have been slowness," Prince said, adding in a blog post that "if the Internet felt a bit more sluggish for you over the last few days in Europe, this may be part of the reason why."
At the London Internet Exchange, where service providers exchange traffic across the globe, spokesman Malcolm Hutty said his organisation had seen "a minor degree of congestion in a small portion of the network."
But he said it was unlikely that any ordinary users had been affected by the attack. | 1,269,891 |
“WE SHOULD call him Walker the Rigger,” fumes Martha Laning. The chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin is up in arms about plans by Scott Walker, Wisconsin’s Republican governor, to change a law so that Republicans can avoid losing another special election. “He has already rigged the system so much that he thought he would not have to worry any more,” says Ms Laning, referring to districts gerrymandered to favour Republicans, which voters are challenging at the Supreme Court (see article), and voter-identification laws that make it harder for minorities and poor people to vote.
Until a few months ago Mr Walker expected to cruise to re-election in November for a rare third term. Yet the year started with a shock for him. In January a historically Republican district in a rural western region in Wisconsin voted for Patty Schachtner, a Democrat, in a special election for a state Senate seat, even though her Republican opponent, Adam Jarchow, was far more experienced and better funded.
To avoid another nasty surprise in a special election, Mr Walker decided not to hold any. Yet on March 22nd Josann Reynolds, a county-circuit judge appointed by the governor, ruled that by March 29th he must call special elections for a vacant seat in the state Assembly and one in the state Senate. Not holding them, she argued, would disenfranchise tens of thousands of voters who have not been represented since December, when two Republicans resigned to work for the governor. Mr Walker reacted by asking Republican legislative leaders to recall lawmakers for an extraordinary session on April 4th, so they could pass a bill that would no longer allow special elections after the state’s spring election in even-numbered years. (This year’s spring election is on April 3rd).
The Republican Party has majorities of 18 to 14 in the state Senate and 63 to 35 in the Assembly, so neither race risks changing the balance of power. Yet Mr Walker does not want to give Democrats more of the momentum that helped them flip seats in three dozen elections for state legislatures since Donald Trump was elected president. A poll earlier this month by the law school of Marquette University in Milwaukee found the state evenly divided: 47% of those surveyed approved of the job the governor is doing, while 47% disapproved.
Two other Republican governors, Rick Snyder of Michigan and Rick Scott of Florida, are stalling on special elections. Mr Snyder has decided to wait until November to replace John Conyers, a Democratic congressman who resigned in December because of allegations of sexual harassment, as well as Bert Johnson, a Democratic state senator who resigned after pleading guilty to charges of corruption. Mr Scott, who like Mr Snyder is term-limited, is refusing to hold special elections for two seats in Florida’s legislature.
A couple of Wisconsin’s Republican state senators have expressed concerns about Mr Walker’s proposed opt-out from special elections. The bill will not pass if they vote against it. The governor may still be obliged, after all, to abide by Judge Reynolds’s ruling. | 1,269,892 |
Some 10 Department of Homeland Security agents descended on an apartment building between Mission Street between 18th and 19th Thursday morning to execute a federal search warrant, and took one Latino man, named Brian, into custody.
The Homeland Security Investigations agents, outfitted in bulletproof vests, repeatedly said it was “not an immigration matter” and there were no collateral arrests — meaning no undocumented residents were taken into custody during the arrest of the suspect. It’s unclear if Brian is undocumented.
One of the agents on the scene explained to a woman that her son was being transported to 450 Golden Gate Ave., a federal building downtown. The agents said the suspect could be out on bail in the next couple of days. The agents took his car and told his mother to bring her son’s passport. “That’s all he needs,” the agent said.
Another agent on the scene told the woman that her son could have an initial court appearance today.
One of the agents told the woman that her son tried to flee out of a back window of his apartment on Mission Street near 19th Street. “But he’s okay,” the agent said.
Richard Rocha, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security’s San Francisco office, told Mission Local that he had no details on the arrest, but said that Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducts operations every day throughout the city and “routinely executes criminal search and arrest warrants.”
Rocha said that these operations are not about a person’s immigration status, but abut enforcing 400 criminal statutes. According to its website, the federal agency is tasked with investigating “cross-border criminal activity.”
By around 10 a.m., agents were filtering in and out of a small entrance at the suspect’s apartment. Dogs barked from inside the entrance, and the mother continued to ask in Spanish, “How much longer?”
The agent unloaded equipment out of unmarked cars — a dirty and beat-up minivan and SUV.
“I have never seen anything like this,” said a 27-year-old man named Omar, who said he was a resident of the building and the cousin of the man who was taken into custody. “I have no idea what’s going on.”
He said he rushed over after he got a call from his aunt, the mother of the man taken who was arrested.
He said around six people live in the building, in about four rooms. Agents on the scene said the search warrant would take hours.
“It’s really messed up and she (the mother) doesn’t know what’s going on,” said Leticia Arce, an employee with Causa Justa, a housing rights organization, who was translating for the woman. “It’s important to at least have someone speaking Spanish for her.”
The mother declined to talk to reporters. | 1,269,893 |
Rust - a safe, concurrent, practical language
Rustコアチームは4月27日(米国時間)、「Announcing Rust 1.17 - The Rust Programming Language Blog」において、Rustの最新版となる「Rust 1.17.0」の公開を伝えた。Rustはシステムプログラミングを対象としたプログラミング言語で、安全性、処理速度、並列処理などに注力して開発が進められている。Rustの前のバージョンを使っている場合は「rustup update stable」の処理で簡単にアップデートが可能だと説明がある。
「Rust 1.17.0」自体は品質の向上などを目指したもので変更などは小さいものにとどまっている。これまでよりもコードの省略表記が可能になっており、よりスッキリとしたコーディングが可能になったほか、コンパイラから表示されるエラーメッセージが詳細でわかりやすいものに改善されている。
RustはMozillaが主体となって開発が進められているプログラミング言語。Rustで開発したコードはすでにFirefoxに取り込まれるなど、一定の活用が行われている。TIOBE Programming Community Indexでは2017年4月におけるRustのポイントは0.375%で41位。プログラミング言語としてはそれほど広く使われる状況にはなっていないが、Mozillaをはじめ特定の分野で今後も利用が続けられるものと見られる。 | 1,269,894 |
BERKELEY COUNTY, S.C.–According to the National Hurricane Center, Hurricane Matthew made landfall Saturday morning just southeast of the town of McClellanville.
At 10 a.m., Matthew was centered about 30 miles southeast of Charleston, its winds having dropped to 75 mph, a Category 1 storm.
Strong winds and dangerous storm surge continue to affect the lowcountry. Heavy rains and gusty winds are also spreading inland.
On the forecast track, the center of Matthew will continue to move near or over the coast of South Carolina today, and be near the coast of southern North Carolina by tonight.
Down trees, heavy flooding and many power outages have been reported in Berkeley County.
1. Area of College Park Road in Ladson
2. Providence Baptist Church in Macedonia
3. Entrance of Cane Bay neighborhood has 18″ – 24″ of standing water
4. Damage to a home in Moncks Corner
5. Drainage Pipe in Overton sticking up out the ground
6. Tree down on Plantation North Blvd. in Goose Creek
7. Wind damage to gas pump on the corner of Hwy 17A and Royle Rd. in Ladson
8. Sign blown over on St. James Avenue in Goose Creek
9. Courtland Drive in Ladson
10. Flooding at a home in Macedonia
11. Flooding off of Highway 17 A in Macedonia
12. Video of flooding on Highway 52 in Moncks Corner
13. Tree down in Moncks Corner
14. Entrance of Woodland Lakes in Goose Creek
15. Down tree in Goose Creek subdivision
16. Down fence in Foxborough neighborhood of Goose Creek
17. Down power lines in the Pineview Subdivision in Goose Creek
18. Flooding in St. Stephen
19. Wind damage in St. Stephen
20. Tree damage to house in Macedonia
21. Snapped tree in Moncks Corner
22. More flooding from St. Stephen
23. Flooding in Jamestown on Hartley Hill Road
24. Flooding in St. Stephen on Harristown Road
25. This yard looks like a swimming pool in St. Stephen
26. Highway 52 in Moncks Corner
27. Highway 52 at Altman Street in Moncks Corner
28. Roof blown away at Ceramic Central in Moncks Corner
29. Flooding along the 300 block of Boulder Bluff in Goose Creek
30. Large tree falls in homeowner’s yard in Crowfield subdivision in Goose Creek
31. Road to Short Stay Recreation Area
32. First Baptist Church in Bonneau
33. Flooding off of Greenwood Drive in Beaver Dam
34.Cleaning up debris in Moncks Corner
35. Tree fell over power lines in St. St. Stephen
36. St. Mark AME Church in Bonneau Beach lost their steeple
37. First Baptist Church in Bonneau | 1,269,895 |
According to an exclusive report on Blockchain technology blog Modern Consensus, Circle, a multi-currency money-sending app, is reportedly in the works to acquire Poloniex, a major US-based cryptocurrency exchange.
Modern Consensus cited two unnamed sources that had information about the potential deal.
However, when asked about the reported acquisition of Poloniex, Raj Date, a board member of Circle, told Modern Consensus:
“I can’t comment on anything like that. I’m actually in Europe right now. Thanks for the reach out.”
Ari Paul, the CIO at digital currency hedge fund BlockTower Capital, denied the legitimacy of any deal on Twitter, citing his own source at Circle and calling the Modern Consensus article “fake news”:
I just posted a link to an article asserting that Circle was acquiring Poloniex. Someone helpfully replied that the article was fake news. I confirmed with Circle that the article is not correct. Circle is not acquiring Polo (according to my circle source.) — Ari Paul (@AriDavidPaul) February 3, 2018
Modern Consensus is a blog founded by Ken Kurson, former editor-in-chief at the New York Observer, that covers technology news in the cryptocurrency and Blockchain spheres.
Another twitter user responded to Paul casting doubt on his alleged Circle source, given that Kurson put his reputation at stake in publishing the news:
Do you think there is any possibility that your source at Circle is wrong or intentionally denying? Asking because the post on modern consensus is by Ken Kurson, who appears to be someone who would care for their reputation. — Vlad Stanishev (@xbrkd) February 3, 2018
Kurson cited one of the sources, who he referred to as “highly placed”, with apparent access to the acquisition discussions as saying:
“Circle and Poloniex agreed to terms and Circle has already approached the regulators. The regulators came back with a list of KYC demands [Know Your Customer] and Circle has agreed to meet all the conditions.”
Both Circle and Poloniex did not respond to Cointelegraph’s requests for comments on the pending deal by press time.
Circle, which received $50 mln from Goldman Sachs in a funding round in 2015, contains Circle Pay for fiat transfers, Circle Trade as a liquidity provider of cryptocurrencies, and soon will add Circle Invest, an app allowing retail customers to invest in crypto markets.
Poloniex is currently the 14th largest crypto exchange by 24-hour volume on CoinMarketCap, trading a total of almost $300 million on the day to press time. The exchange allows users to trade in 68 different coins, a huge number as compared to Coinbase's popular crypto exchange platform GDAX, which offers only four, but is in 7th place by trading volume. The Poloniex exchange faced problems this year with incorrect user balances and a very slow withdrawal waiting period. | 1,269,896 |
"I can tell you that the administration is engaged on a daily if not hourly basis, trying to get something done," he said.
More concerns from the Senate
Across the Capitol, Republican senators huddled for their weekly policy luncheon, but while members said they had a good discussion on guns, few seemed ready to act on any major proposals.
"I'm not sure there's anything we can do here that's going to prevent any of these things in the future, OK?" said Sen. Ron Johnson, a Wisconsin Republican.
Sen. Patrick Toomey, a Republican from Pennsylvania, who pushed for a plan to expand background checks back in 2013, said he'd had promising conversations with some members about garnering support for his bill again, but he wasn't definitive he'd be able to get the votes.
"I'm working on that," he said. "There are several senators who voted 'no' in the past who are open to reconsidering. Where they will end up, I do not know."
Republicans also seemed lukewarm on a plan floated by Trump last week to raise the age individuals have to be to buy a rifle. There appeared to be some openness to do that among a few Republicans like Sens. Marco Rubio of Florida and Pat Roberts of Kansas, but on Tuesday, Roberts didn't sound too optimistic.
"They backed off of that," Roberts said of the White House's position. "There's other things we should consider that would have a more dramatic effect."
It appeared the only thing that had some support was Cornyn's Fix NICs bill, but even that has hit snags on both sides of the aisle.
Democrats demand more
While many Democrats have supported the Fix NICs bill, which would incentivize federal and state authorities to enter more data into the country's background check system, Democrats argue it's not enough on its own.
"We want full debate. Not just on Fix NICs but on legislation that would really do the job," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Tuesday. "The students say Fix NICs is not enough. The American people say Fix NICs is not enough... we need full debate... I was gratified to hear Sen. Cornyn say let's debate these issues. I'd like to hear Sen. McConnell say that as well. Because we have a moral imperative to act and act in a real way. Not just a little wink at the NRA."
If Democrats wouldn't support Fix NICs without universal background checks it could paralyze Congress from even passing the most narrow of the proposals they agree on.
"If we're going to fix NICs, what about really doing meaningful background checks?" said Virginia Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine.
Rep. Ryan Costello, a Republican from Pennsylvania, argued Congress needed to act even if it was just a small change.
"Passing a bill that is common sense even if it wouldn't have been the bill that would have prevented previous tragedy, isn't a reason not to pass the bill," Costello said. | 1,269,897 |
ZAPPING the brain with a weak magnetic pulse can wipe out unwanted neural connections in mice at least. The discovery could be turned into a treatment for conditions associated with abnormal neural circuitry, such as schizophrenia.
In transcranial magnetic stimulation a magnetic coil induces electric currents in the brain that can strengthen or suppress neural connections. This technique has been shown to improve symptoms in people with brain disorders such as autism and depression.
Now, Jennifer Rodger from the University of Western Australia in Crawley and colleagues have found that stimulating the brain at intensities lower than would make a neuron fire can remove unwanted neural connections in mice.
As children, our brains produce too many connections between cells. As we develop, some connections are pruned away while others are strengthened. Inept pruning has been implicated in schizophrenia.
Rodger’s team used genetically modified mice with abnormal connections in an area of the brain called the superior colliculus (SC), which is involved in motion detection. In these mice, 90 per cent of the axons in the SC had extended into the wrong areas. These bad connections make it difficult for the rodents to follow moving objects in their line of sight.
Rodger used low-intensity, pulsed magnetic field stimulation (PMF) on the rodents’ SC for 10 minutes a day over two weeks. It is thought that PMF is too weak to make healthy neurons fire. But after treatment, tissue analysis showed that only 45 per cent of the abnormal axons were still there. “The axons that weren’t in the right place were wiped out,” says Rodger. After treatment the mice were also better at tracking objects.
Pulsed magnetic field stimulation awakens unwanted connections, so the brain can remove them
“PMF is awakening unwanted connections, so the brain can detect and remove them,” says Rodger.
Unwanted neurons generally express high levels of a specific NMDA glutamate receptor. According to Rodger, this makes them sensitive to changes in electrical activity and so even low-intensity pulses can activate these neurons.
NMDA receptors send out signals that trigger the recruitment of two chemicals called nitric oxide and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which help remove abnormal circuitry in healthy brains. Indeed, modified mice given PMF expressed higher levels of both chemicals, while only minor changes were found in healthy mice or those given a sham procedure (The FASEB Journal, DOI: 10.1096/fj.11-194878).
“I think it is a very promising avenue for treatment of nervous system disorders that involve abnormally abundant and inaccurate connections,” says Rodger.
Perminder Sachdev at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, says it is “very exciting” and also surprising that low-power magnetic pulses can reverse a developmental disorder. But you can’t be sure normal circuits are not affected, he adds. “One cannot assume that these effects will always be positive.” | 1,269,898 |
We recently interviewed Lex Dreitser, CEO / Creative Director / Unity Developer at vrvu.com, to find out more about the New York City VR University Meetup and its 1400+ members (“badasses”). NYCVRU often records their meetups using RICOH THETAs. We’ve interacted with Lex a couple of times this year, he’s a fantastic resource in the VR field, technically and creatively, and is always energetic and helpful. (Seriously, not sure if he ever sleeps.) If you’re in the New York area, this is a meetup that is definitely worth looking into.
1. What is the New York City VR University meetup all about?
We’re a volunteer based Unity VR / AR / 360 education meetup. We’re dedicated to educating and engaging the community. We specifically focus on the Unity® (free) platform, and best practices for Google Cardboard, Oculus Rift, and other VR hardware. We host topics on developing, publishing, marketing and monetizing Unity VR Apps. Our meetups happen often, every week or more, and cover topics like Pokemon Go, Emerging VR/AR Platforms (Google Daydream & Epson Moverio), Unity Certification Tutoring / Test Prep, even a 360 Video MasterClass in Unity w/ Ricoh Theta focused on the recent contest.
2. How did you get into VR?
I tried it and it was love at first sight.
3. How useful is it recording the meetups with RICOH THETA? Any technical issues like overheating?
It has been great because we don’t need a designated camera man. That’s a real advantage. But there are several drawbacks, too. Audio is lacking, and video is limited to 25 minutes. Therefore, there is never enough battery or memory space for even our three hour events.
4. Why did you pick Unity for VR development?
90% of VR is made in Unity, so that’s an easy decision. We’re certified Unity developers here, so we take Unity development very seriously.
5. What’s your favorite Unity VR project? Please provide URL
There are so many, it’s pretty hard to narrow it down. This one, Hot Dogs, Horseshoes & Hand Grenades, is a pre-release game that has really caught my attention. “If you like cooking, lawn games, and ordnance, this is the VR sandbox game for you.”
The current state of the Early Access version of Hot Dogs, Horseshoes & Hand Grenades consists of 10 environments, broken down into 3 categories: Shooting Ranges, Mini-games, and Gameplay Prototypes. It’s really great to see a VR game evolve in front of your eyes.
http://store.steampowered.com/app/450540/
6. How soon until everyone has VR goggles?
10 years. | 1,269,899 |
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